Palace Bowl Presents, an open-air festival spanning 12 days across July and August, kicked off this summer in South London’s leafy Crystal Palace Park. Its major draw is a genre-spanning lineup of live performances including rock, soul, gospel, Afrobeats, electronic, and even Japanese city pop.
The three Japanese artists who graced the stage for City Pop Waves, the U.K.’s first-ever city pop concert, were Masayoshi Takanaka, Junko Yagami and Himiko Kikuchi. Under the blazing sun, Kikuchi appeared in round-lensed sunglasses and took her seat at the Hammond organ, opening the show with “Ducky Ducky.” As she pounded out the keys, a sound as rich and full as a big band washed over Crystal Palace Bowl. “Today we’re playing songs from FLYING BEAGLE,” Kikuchi announced, turning around to show the crowd the back of her T-shirt, printed with the album’s memorable beagle artwork.
Jamie MacMillanRather than leaning on dramatic narrative or a grand concept, FLYING BEAGLE draws its appeal from refined ensemble work, with piano, keyboards, guitar and horns echoing one another to build an easy, satisfying groove. Yet witnessing this album, originally released in 1977, take on new life here in a country so far from home — twenty-somethings in the crowd shouting “Fluffy!,” the venue erupting into chants of “Himiko! Himiko!” — was a powerful reminder of how effortlessly music can cross eras, borders, and generations.
“We’re out of time, so this will be the last number,” Kikuchi announced, prompting an immediate cry of “One more song!” from the crowd. She answered the call with “Look Your Back!” A performance rich with Rhodes piano and a sweeping, breakneck horn section conjured the feel of a dramatic chase scene, closing the set on a fierce note that fully captured the playfulness and boldness of Himiko Kikuchi’s music.
Next to take the stage was Junko Yagami. “Hello, London!” she called out to the audience, beaming. Her voice clearly transcended the language barrier, reaching fans from every corner of the world gathered there. Proof came during “Tasogare no Bay City,” when the white man standing next to this writer sang along to every word. He’d made the trip from the Netherlands especially for this show, he explained, having stumbled upon the song roughly six months earlier and thrown himself into memorizing its Japanese lyrics ever since.
Jamie MacMillanUp next was “TERRA – here we will stay,” a majestic piece running over eleven minutes that Yagami wrote during the pandemic. True to its title, the song traces the Earth’s story from birth to end, addressing present-day issues like global warming and war. “We say ‘no’ to war,” Yagami declared in fluent English, drawing a wave of applause from the crowd. “The earth is screaming because of global warming,” she said, revealing that she had become a grandmother just a week earlier. “I wrote this song for my grandchild’s future,” she told the crowd, entrusting them with her hope. The screen displayed breathtaking images of Earth together with “TERRA”‘s lyrics rendered in English, a message that clearly reached the London crowd.
The set list was short with just four songs, but Junko Yagami delivered far more than a run-through of beloved classics. As an artist still very much of the present, she used her powerful performance to speak out on world affairs and climate change. Her stage, alert to the changes of the times yet never sacrificing the sheer energy of the music itself, proved that city pop isn’t just about nostalgia but is a form of expression unfolding in the present that can resonate around the world.
Jamie MacMillanAs the moment neared for headliner Masayoshi Takanaka to take the stage, chants of “TA-KA-NA-KA!” rose up from the crowd, and a wave of anticipation swept the venue even before the show began. Then Takanaka appeared, grinning broadly and waving to the crowd. The moment he struck up the buoyant riff of “BRASILIAN SKIES,” the audience erupted into a frenzy.
Takanaka’s playing is a seamless fusion of jaw-dropping technique and the melodies that spring from it. Songs familiar from the studio recordings transformed into something more dynamic, more communal in a live setting. While the band laid down a powerful foundation, Takanaka, smiling every so often, let the guitar itself do the talking — stretching out solos and expressive phrases that pushed the instrument itself into the spotlight.
When the main set ended and the band briefly left the stage, there was still one thing the audience was waiting to see: the surfboard guitar. As the crowd waited for the encore, waves of “Surfboard!” chants rolled through the venue, punctuated by claps in three-beat time. Sure enough, as the intro to “JUMPING TAKE OFF” kicked in, Takanaka reappeared cradling the surfboard guitar, and the crowd roared. He strode from one end of the stage to the other, showing off the gleaming red instrument.
There was also a delightful surprise in store, with Takanaka unexpectedly announcing, “See you at Wembley next year!” He closed out the show with the final track, “YOU CAN NEVER COME TO THIS PLACE,” and told the crowd, “Arigato!” As the whole band took a deep bow, the venue responded with a wave of generous applause and cheers.
Running close to two hours, the show went well beyond simply playing through his best-known tracks and fully revealed the appeal of Masayoshi Takanaka as a guitarist like no other. For all its meticulous construction, the set was laced with playful touches throughout, and that spontaneity gave the show magic only a live performance can deliver. It was a stage where a deeply relaxed atmosphere and overwhelming energy coexisted — grand entertainment that transcended the bounds of a typical live show.
But above all, what made this night’s performance so special was the sense of unity forged between the stage and the crowd. The music born from Takanaka’s guitar and the audience receiving it with their whole bodies came together as one, and the roughly two hours they completed together left an indelible impression on London that night.
City Pop Waves proved to be more than just an opportunity for Japanese artists to perform abroad — it became a place to witness the moment of the country’s music being shared across borders and generations. And nothing made the case more eloquently than this show that city pop is no passing fad, but a music set to keep winning new listeners for years to come.
—This article by Mami Kondo first appeared on Billboard Japan
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