Homeless at Fuji Rock, Part 3

So we get to Echigo-Yuzawa, finally, and its pouring rain. Not only that, we don't have any rain gear. Not only that, we have no idea how to get to the actual concert... all the knowledge I came with amounted to 'Its at Naeba ski resort' and 'its about a 40 minute car ride from the station.' Walking didn't seem feasible in good weather, and much less in this monsoon. After a long day of travelling, getting lost, and whatnot, I'm, while not in a bad mood, all about getting shit DONE, so having considered our situation for all of 30 seconds, I think that its about time I should be asking a Fuji-Rock-looking person how the hell to actually get there. Fortunately enough, there are 2 brits hustling around the station, and so I let the question fly... 'Yo, you know how to get to Fuji?' And he's like, 'yeahhhh. See this bus? It goes there. You going? We're headed there ourselves.' Thus, our luck slowly but surely begins to change...

Before heading out with these guys, Isaac and Charles(?) (Akio could remember the other guys name and not Isaac's), I head to an ATM and take out 40k or so, and head to a convenience store for something to eat and a beer, because we dont know where were going to sleep, we only have tickets for the event in 2 days, its pouring rain, and its going to be a long goddamn night. Isaac's down there too, doing what foreigners do best - breezing past all the Japanese people and demanding stuff in English. I help him out real quick, pay for my stuff, and we head to the bus.

I get on and notice a whole lot of equipment, and then Akio mentions he just found out they're with a band. **CLICK** 'Start talking all friendly like, these guys might be our ticket to something good.' We chat and eventually I ask about their band, and its turns out they aren't members per se, but rather managers of Isaac's Dad's band. I ask again, 'what band?' and Isaac casually says, 'Oh, Roxy Music.' WHAAAAAAT. I exhibit my lack of knowledge concerning the band members by asking about Eno, and Isaac informs me he stayed with the band for an album, and had very little input, which, he said, was strange considering his output and career following his stint in Roxy.

So we get on well enough with these guys, and, having mentioned our ticket situation, suggest that we follow them for a bit and they'll see what they can do. We head into the hotel on grounds, and are immediately surrounded by instruments, musicians, and not much else - its a bit hectic, but I've got to say the hotel employees did a seemingly good job at managing the whole ordeal. We're waiting on the sidelines, Akio and I, and eventually Isaac comes over and says he's got to call their Tokyo contact about passes, but it looks good. Hopes are up now, but I'm not one to believe in something until its actually infront of me, so I'm more than anything nervous now. But, as luck would have it, Isaac comes back again, after about an hour total, and hands us 2 red badges with 'Roxy Music' written on them. Free backstage pass for the night. Killer.

Akio and I head off to the festival, and this shit is magical, psychedelic, astounding, and everything in between. 8 stages total, set across the entirety of the ski resort, there are long passages through woods on raised wooden platforms with all kinds of crazy light shows set in the woods themselves. Theres a cliff face that is, in its entirety, covered with falling stars... it literally looked like the cliff was melting. Outside movie theaters, carnival grounds, all kinds of food, clubs, gondolla rides, and all other kinds of things, and with our backstage passes we routinely got free beer, could avoid the lines at pretty much everything, and never had to wait for a bathroom. Fuji Rock is, in 2 words, extremely intense. And that doesn't even take into account the totally killer line-up.

The first day I saw only 2 bands because we got there kind of late: Muse and !!! (that's ChkChkChk). But that the bands stopped at midnight doesn't mean that the fun stopped, no, it just meant that's when the DJ sets started. Outside and inside, there were lights flashing, and bass thumping. Akio and I stopped at a bar before we headed to the Orange Stage, had a few while talking to some girls from Taiwan, and then headed to the mud pit... oh that's right - it always seems to rain during Fuji Rock.

The Orange Stage was an outside venue, so we were all dancing and slipping around in a huge mud bath. Sometime during this, we randomly met up with the Roxy Guys, who had another present for us... 3-day video crew backstage passes. Immediately upon receiving those we lost sight of the guys as they were washed away in a storm of mud, rain, and people. Again, in the midst of dancing, I spot Akio coming towards me with a pretty shitty look on his face, and sure enough, when he approaches me he says 'I lost the big money.' Took me a second to realize he meant his wallet, and then he made a phone gesture too, so I realized hes lost both. FUCK, I think. I look around, he looks around, we don't find anything just as one would expect when looking for something in a giant mud pit at 3 am with 3 or 4000 people dancing around you. Akio says hes gonna take a quick look around, and I figure its not a bad, though hopeless, idea. He leaves and just like that, 2 or so minutes later he returns with a huge grin on his face bearing both in hand. Unfuckingbelievable, our luck.

Here's my first favorite memory: I've been dancing with a girl for a while, things are going well I suppose. Its around 4 or so in the morning at this point, and the sun is just peaking over the tall mountains which happen to be shrouded in fog. Sun light is exploding through said fog onto the audience, all the while there are huge pillars of flames shooting up behind me in front of the stage as the DJ is playing. Eyes lock, and the most explosive kiss ensues. Killlllller.

This is taking too long. Part 4 will follow.