T.M.Revolution is my favorite artist. He brings so much to the entertainment scene. He is a singer in two projects, an actor, a fashion designer, a tv and radio host, and much more! It's only appropriate that I start this blog with T.M.Revolution since he is responsible for me being into the J-Pop/J-rock scene.
Years ago in college, I borrowed a VHS tape (remember those?) from a Japanese foreign exchange student. I told him that I was getting into some of the music from Japan, so he loaned me this tape with hours of "J-MTV", for lack of a better term. That was when I discovered the legendary, "Hey! Hey! Hey! Music Champ" show, in which guest artists are interviewed and then give elaborate stage performances of their current hit song. This tape that my friend loaned to me was loaded with bands that are now some of my favorites. KinKi Kids, Dir en grey, and Surface were amongst the best, but not to be outdone was none other than T.M.Revolution with a performance of "Wild Rush." I was immediately entranced and watched his segment over and over again.
The year was 2000, and at that time, anything related to Japanese pop or rock was pretty difficult to find "en masse" on the internet in English. Sure, there were some fansites with some meager pictures, or I was able to scrounge up some pictures from Japanese sites, but not able to read any news. For years, I searched, dug, sniffed out, and hunted down any scrap of information I could on T.M.Revolution. Finally, last year, I flew from Dallas to New York City for a live performance from T.M.Revolution at New York Comic*Con. He had performed in the U.S. several years back but I was just a poor college student then. This NYCC show was amazing! There was even a Q&A panel and an autograph session, both of which I was able to participate in or attend.
It was surreal. To stand there, inches away from Takanori Nishikawa, the man known as T.M.Revolution, as he carefully signed his name in my program. I just stood there, silent, staring at him, drinking in all the details of his clothes, his hair, his posture, his skin, even his nails and the way he held the pen with such grace. I was under his spell, and he was veiled in the mist of "I've only seen you in pictures from exotic far away lands... I can't believe you exist and are in front of me!" I wish I could have said that, but I knew his English wasn't perfect, I didn't want to engage with the translator (wasn't even sure if she was a translator, even), and I figured every other girl would be squealing and prattling on to him, so I'd just be respectful and humble. His eyes shined and his smile was perfect as he looked up and said, "Thank you!" in perfect English(!). I smiled, said "Thank YOU!", held out my hand to shake his, which he did, and then said, "I love you!" I couldn't let the moment pass without letting him know how much his music had meant to me throughout the years. With 180 people in line behind me with autograph passes, and more hoping to get a chance before Takanori-san tired, I felt the need to be brief. He returned my sentiment with, "I love YOU!" He was so genuine and very happy to be with this American fans again. His smile and the happiness he exuded was proof. As I walked away, I felt tears whelling up in my eyes from pure joy. I had traveled so long, and tried so hard to get there, I was happy to be successful in getting his autograph and a few precious seconds with him. I was so happy that I thought, "If I don't get a good seat for the concert, I can't be too mad because I got to meet him, which I didn't except when I came here."
Well, to finish the story, I
did get a good seat for the concert, and it was amazing! After the show I just sat there screaming into my balled-up sweatshirt and sobbing my eyes out. I was so happy, I couldn't contain myself. Years of growing interest and searching finally yielded in the best experience possible.
So I share with you, T.M.Revolution. It took me years to gather all of his music, painstakingly searching Japanese websites, using poor translating tools, and clicking "mystery" links to finally find information and places to buy his merchandise. Luckily, these days it's not so difficult to buy T.M.Revolution music, or his full-band project, abingdon boys school. So if you like these songs, please buy the physical copies to support great music and show that people in the U.S. and around the world love T.M.Revolution!
1.独裁 -monopolize-
2.臍淑女 -ヴィーナス-
3.HEART OF SWORD ～夜明け前～
4.LEVEL 4
5.HIGH PRESSURE
6.WHITE BREATH
7.蒼い霹靂 - JOG edit -
8.HOT LIMIT
9.THUNDERBIRD
10.Burnin' X'mas
11.WILD RUSH
12.BLACK OR WHITE? Version3
13.HEAT CAPACITY
14.魔弾 ～Der Freichutz
15.BOARDING
16.Out Of Orbit - Triple ZERO -
17.hear ※未発表曲
I'll have more T.M.Revolution, and abingdon boys school, throughout this blog. Please visit often! Please comment! Please subscribe!
Cheers!
~Tammy
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