RISE OR DIE: VAMPS Live at El Rey Theater (Los Angeles) Concert Report

Los Angeles, November 7, 2016, it has been a little over a year since the Japanese rock band, VAMPS, was last in LA. HYDE and K.A.Z’s performance on October 5th, 2015 at The Roxy Theatre was memorable but their show at the El Rey Theatre would prove to be unforgettable. As per usual, the line of people waiting to get in wrapped around the building and fans were animatedly chatting as they held tight for the doors to open at 7:30 PM.

El Rey Theatre is an intimate venue with just a main floor in front of the stage and some extra space off to each side where merchandise was being sold. Naturally, the fans headed straight for the pit directly in front of the stage and anxiously counted down the minutes until the opening act, Citizen Zero would come on. At 8:30 PM exactly, the alternative rock band from Detroit, MI stepped out on the stage and were greeted with a welcoming cheer from the audience.

Rather soft, rock melodies started to emanate from the band and the crowd soon caught on that most of Citizen Zero’s songs had little singing. If anything, that made the music easier to get into and the fans started to bob their heads as the reverberations from the bass and drums started to pick up and hit their chest at full force. Lead singer Josh LeMay took a break between songs to inform the audience that, “VAMPS brought us here for one purpose only, and that is to get all of you excited!” And boy, did they get the crowd excited. Bassist Sam Collins, guitarist Sammy Boller, and drummer John Dudley threw themselves into head banging so it was not long before droplets of sweat started to roll down their faces. To top it off, Josh finished their set by shouting “VAMPS” and was assailed with hysterical screams from the crowd. His jokester response to the fans was, “I just wanted to test that shit out!”

A sense of eager apprehension returned to the venue and stayed there until 9:40 PM when the long-awaited for VAMPS took to the stage. Siren noises preceded their entrance and as HYDE and K.A.Z stepped into the center light, the audience found the source of the noise - a tiny toy-looking siren that HYDE was carrying. After walking back and forth across the stage to the hospitable shouts of salutations, VAMPS started the night with their new single, “INSIDE OF ME”. To the fans delight, HYDE danced his characteristic wiggly style in which he would sway his entire body back and forth while swinging the black and white Jolly Roger flag over his shoulder. He kept the hood up of his black zip-up jacket just as he did in the music video and when he finally removed it to show his newly dyed blonde hair, the crowd went wild.

A few songs later the lights dimmed and HYDE brought out a glowing guitar to kick off “SIN IN JUSTICE”. He cried out, “Common, common, common, ohhhhh - let me hear you scream sin in justice” and the crowd appropriately obliged HYDE’s request by letting loose a drawn-out yell. Perpetuating this mood of angst, VAMPS played “VAMPIRE DEPRESSION”. For this dark, slower rock song, HYDE crouched down leaning forward on his left leg that was propped up by the stand at the front and center of the stage. He provided a visual representation of the anguish depicted within the song by clutching at his head as if tormented by his inner demons while screaming the lyrics “set me free”. But by far the most notable song of the night was “BLOODSUCKER”. HYDE began and ended the song by asking the audience, “Are you all… (paused to allow the crowd to scream in ecstasy) bloodsuckers?” He repeated this question multiple times, each time his voice rising in volume and emotion, his jacket slipping off to reveal his left shoulder, until he fell to his knees, exhausted, at the front edge of the stage.

After “MIDNIGHT CELEBRATION”, VAMPS abruptly exited the stage with no final goodbye. Taking that as their que to call for an encore, the fans wasted no time in launching into the traditional chant of, “Bang, On, Stomp Everybody”. They shouted this until VAMPS came back on stage playing, of course, “REVOLUTION II”. HYDE’s jacket is now completely unzipped to reveal nicely shaped abs and with his hood up carrying the Jolly Roger swung over his shoulder; he is the quintessential picture of a rock ‘n roll vampire. VAMPS then performed “DEVIL SIDE” and with HYDE’s jacket unzipped and his left shoulder now exposed, he looks simply ravaged and hungry to find his “lamb”. Their final song for the night was “SEX BLOOD ROCK ‘N ROLL” and the crowd was so pumped at this point that they audibly sang a whole verse, above the loud sound of the instrumental rock music. The encore climaxed when HYDE beckoned K.A.Z onto the center stand and they jumped off at the same time to end the night. HYDE’s parting words to the adoring audience were, “Thank you soooooo much, we’ll be back, we’ll be back LA. Thanks so much, good night LA” and the fans screamed loudly after HYDE spoke each sentence; as if reaffirming with every shout, their belief that they would soon be reunited.

HYDE’s whispered words of “Japanese vampire” during “RISE OR DIE” could not describe their performance at El Rey Theatre any better. From licking his fingers seductively, sticking out his tongue playfully, spraying water from his mouth, to leaning forward into the crowd to allow female fans to grab at his clothes and body, HYDE acted like the sexual, dark, crowd-pleasing vampire that VAMPS is infamous for. The crowd fed off of the band’s seductive spirit and projected it threefold - creating lustrous memories that will endure in the hearts and minds of each fan present that night until the Japanese rock band’s next appearance in Los Angeles.  

Setlist

1. INSIDE OF ME
2. LIPS
3. REDRUM
4. EVIL
5. REPLAY
6. GET AWAY
7. SIN IN JUSTICE
8. VAMPIRE DEPRESSION
9. DIAMONDS (Rihanna Cover)
   
10. MEMORIES
11. RISE OR DIE
    
12. WORLD’S END
13. BLOODSUCKERS
    
14. MIDNIGHT CELEBRATION

Encore

1. REVOLUTION II
   
2. DEVIL SIDE
3. SEX BLOOD ROCK ‘N ROLL

-Christina (JRockinLA)

All photos by Manuel Figueroa