一番ガイ人 (ICHIBANGAIJIN)

Feb. 14, 2010

On Valentines Day, there was an event that occurred here in OKAYAMA. Weeks prior a group of for international students met in secret to practice music together. Ok, well maybe it wasn’t so secret for the people that lived around them in the dorm…. Actually it was as loud as hell, and a lot of people actually heard them practicing. It was “all good” though, because they were practicing for their debut concert.

Seeing that some of the people are going to be going home, they wanted to do something before their final days here. One of them, Phoebe (Philippines), was a guitarist, and she wanted to make sure she played publicly before she left. Thus, came the idea of the “ICHIBANGAIJIN”.



This title was a play on words. There is an underground shopping mall here, and the name is: “ICHIBANGAI” (一番街). To get into the mall, there are various stairs, escalators, and ramps. At most of the ramps, there are typically people selling goods and/or playing music. Therefore, the thought was why not have “the best foreigners” (ICHIBANGAIJIN) play there.




It was then born. The newest and hardest working band in OKAYAMA (OK, maybe not the newest), was born. They were known as the “ICHIBANGAIJIN” (一番ガイ人). They were made up of: Emily Liao (Violin & Vocals), Ray Ruemanapp (Drums & Vocals), Phoebe Beltran (Guitar & Vocals), and Norman (Ukulele & Vocals). It was a great hit.



The funny thing is, down in the photos, the police told them that they were too close to a storefront and had to move. Therefore, there are photos of the police, and the movement of gear to the new position. This new location was one really far away from any storefronts. Oops! Oh well, live and learn.




They were a great band though, and even though it was cold as balls, it was great fun. My friends and I really enjoyed going to see them play. Not only that, but out of all the other bands and what not they were the ones with the biggest gathering and people interested in them.



Now, most of the people that are in the photo are just friends. This is because I don’t know the laws in Japan, and would prefer not to get in trouble for taking photos of strangers watching. There are some spectators in the photos, but they are not the main aim of the photos. I hope that you can enjoy the photos, as much as I enjoyed taking them!




I also have video, but the sound didn’t come out well. I’m also looking for a way to do some editing. Maybe if we are all lucky, I will be posting some videos. I have a ton of photos being edited right now, and hopefully the uploads will start coming sooner rather than later.

There are also many more interviews in the works. The photos are coming along slowly. Please continue to follow!

MORE PHOTOS OF THE ICHIBANGAI HERE!



Here is the band, and groupies moving.


The manager had to step in and find out what was going on, thanks J!

The Cops stepping in and telling us to leave! Yikes!