Shutsujin! (Departure for the front!)

(1st Japan trip) – Murray & Emma 10:20 Depart Phoenix 12:10 LAX is at once old and pokey and huge. Getting off the plane we see two twenty-ish Japanese. He is wearing a T-shirt with a ‘Toybox’ logo. Toybox is the band that were on first on the taiko stage at Matsuri. They are a bit thrash, a bit punk with vocals that are very aggressive and only approximate conventional frequency patterns :) Being me I say ‘Hi’ and ask about the t-shirt. It turns out they are members of the band; Keiko the drummer and Nauto the lead guitarist.We are all headed for the Tokyo flight so we search for the bus and ride it together. Nauto is kind of quiet. This is when it strikes me I missed coffee. Keiko is animated and curious. She asks how long we’ve been playing Taiko and what we’ll be doing on the 21st, 22nd, 24th and 26th because that’s when they have gigs. Very cool. We are able to counter that we are studying Taiko, visiting Nikko oh and by the way we have a gig too. Heh. But we are not able to be at any of theirs.We lose them when they have to go check in but see them again near the gate.Nauto is alone for a few minutes and we strike up a conversation. We exchange contact details. Their gigs are in Shinjuku and Roppongi. Happening places :) Keiko has to go back to Japan to get a visa/permit thingy. They just graduated and she found a job. Her card quotes a pediatric clinic in Mesa. Nauto gives me a quick lesson in how to exchange cards. In the right hand holding one corner, ready to recieve with the left hand. I snap a picture of them as proof we met. Nauto says they mostly get gigs in bars and wonders if there is some way the taiko could join in. Hmmm! Murray