Next weekend at Fuji Rock, Japan’s oldest and most prestigious rock festival, which will host 30,000 to 40,000 visitors per day to see top international acts including Vulfpeck, Vampire Weekend and Fred Again from July 25 to 27, Sunset Rollercoaster (落日飛車) will become the second Taiwanese band to perform on the festival’s largest stage, the 40,000-capacity Green Stage.
Also at this year’s festival, one of Fuji Rock’s smallest stages, the Rookie A-Go-Go, which is for discovering up-and-coming bands, will launch a cooperation with the Taiwanese festival Rock in Taichung. This will include a performance by Taichung group Shinrakudo (震樂堂), which mixes rap-metal with folk religion facepaint for a style they call “temple rock.”
Fuji Rock first launched in 1997 as Asia’s first major rock festival and, held since 1999 in a ski resort more than two hours by bullet train from Tokyo, established itself as a regional beacon for music fans, over the years hosting the world’s most famous acts, from the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Coldplay to the Chemical Brothers and Kendrick Lamar. This year, it will host more than 200 performances on at least a dozen stages.
Photo courtesy of Zhong Lin
“Fuji Rock was one of the first international music festivals attended by Taiwanese rock fans in the late 1990s,” said Freddy Lim (林昶佐), Taiwan’s current de facto ambassador to Finland and the lead singer for Chthonic (閃靈), which in 2000 became the first Taiwanese band to perform at Fuji Rock.
“Since then, more and more fans from Taiwan have made the pilgrimage. As a result, Fuji Rock has become a dream stage for many Taiwanese bands,” Lim said.
Taiwanese bands to perform at Fuji Rock over the years include three performances by Chthonic plus appearances by Tizzy Bac, Go Chic, Manic Sheep, Suming (舒米恩), Elephant Gym (大象體操), Fire EX (滅火器) and Prairie WWWW (落差草原). Sunset Rollercoaster performed once before in 2019, and last year No Party For Cao Dong (草東沒有派對) became the first Taiwanese band on Fuji Rock’s Green Stage, with a Sunday morning time slot.
Photo courtesy of the band
“When we played the White Stage in 2012,” Lim continued, referring to Fuji Rock’s second largest stage, “it was an unforgettable experience. The production was flawless, and the crowd’s energy was incredible. Most Fujirockers might be dressed like they’re headed for a picnic, but during our set, they went full metalhead. One hundred percent commitment.”
Sunset Rollercoaster will arrive at the this year’s edition of Fuji Rock as one of Asia’s most popular bands embodying the resurgent genre of city pop. Their performance on Fuji Rock’s opening Friday, scheduled for 5pm to 6pm, will mark one of the event’s most high-profile appearances ever by a Taiwanese band.
On stage, the group will appear together with South Korean indie band Hyuko. Last year, the two groups co-wrote and released an album, AAA, which they’ve followed with a tour that has so far produced 17 performances in 10 countries and territories, stretching from Melbourne to Seoul.
Photo courtesy of SMASH Japan
ROCK IN TAICHUNG COLLABE
Rock in Taichung’s new collaboration with Fuji Rock meanwhile opens a door for continuing exchanges between Japan and Taiwan. The two festivals will exchange bands on their rookie stages, with Taiwan sending the band Shinrakudo to Japan next week, and Fuji Rock sending four bands to the upcoming Rock in Taichung festival planned for October.
This deal has been in the works since 2022, said Nuno Chen (陳信宏), the founder of Taichung’s first live house, who for the last 17 years has organized Rock in Taichung with Taichung City Government through his company Emerge Music.
Photo courtesy of SMASH Japan
“We were just coming out of COVID, and everyone was eager to resume international connections,” he said.
That year, Chen invited several of Fuji Rock’s organizers to his Emerge Fest, a small indie rock event he organizes in the mountains of Taichung.
“They really liked the festival and found it had a similar feel to Fuji Rock, though on a much smaller scale. We also discovered that both our events had discovery stages for news bands. And this was important, because those kinds of stages are not just about ticket sales. They’re about supporting the culture,” he said.
The two sides eventually decided on an exchange of rookie bands. Chen opted for Rock in Taichung as the partner event, as the city-sponsored event is free and attracts around 40,000 annually, offering greater exposure for visiting Japanese bands. Before inking the deal, Taichung Deputy Mayor Cheng Chao-hsin (鄭照新) visited Fuji Rock in 2023.
“Fuji Rock is an event that Taiwanese rockers all want to go to, and it’s an event that we really study and learn from,” Chen said.
Last year, Taiwanese were Fuji Rock’s third largest overseas market, behind China and the US, according to organizers. The ranking is based on nationality, not residency. A decade ago, Taiwanese were the festival’s top overseas market, sending around 500 fans annually.
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