Yukiko Fujii; Satoru Nakagawa
Tokyo Tramps made a strong impression on the patron at Hugh O’Neil’s Restaurant &Pub in Malden, Massachusetts last Saturday night. The husband and wife team of Satoru Nakagawa and Yukiko Fujii along with drummer Jungho Kang from South Korea served up their usual blend of blues, oldies rock and roll, and New Orleans flavored music. Their successful blend of familiar and unfamiliar means they keep you intrigued with their original ideas without going off the deep end.
Opening with their original “Me And My Guitar” Tokyo Tramps displayed how well they can shift dynamics to bring a song to life. It started out sounding melancholy and weepy in a subtle way with tender harmony vocals before becoming a willful expression. Nakagawa’s guitar phrase practically whistled the high notes through his amp.
Next tune, “Breakaway,” showcased more of Yukiko Fujji’s talents. Her slappy, thumpy bass line gave Nakagawa a catchy groove to play over. She also nudged the lyrics along with her plucky vocal talent. It was her push, on voice and bass guitar, through the twists and turns in this tune that made it happen.
“Flowing Water” was a dark, bouncy, riffy build up, musically, meditatively to an intriguing chorus. Nakagawa unfurled a lean, mean phrase, one that sustained its ominous notes. Their original “Why” found Fujii kicking things forward with her trademark vocal climb, arriving at an assertive, plaintive cry. She also pumped out a vivacious bass line that forced Nakagawa to step up his game until his phrasing was sharp enough to penetrate and cut glass.
A mellow, jazzy take on “Layla” by Derek And The Dominoes required the trio to inject many subtle nuances to appease the audience’s expectations. Nakagawa took a turn for the sublime, playing a line that was loaded with personality. Tokyo Tramps played what might be their catchiest song of their career, their own “Jeffrey Jive.” This radio friendly piece has a call and response chorus that pulled everybody’s attention. It’s inescapable riffs and groove could make anyone dance. They threw in some wah-wah and it was a party.
Jungho Kang
“Shake Your Money Maker,” a cover that’s become a Tokyo Tramps live staple, came off brisk, firm, and determined to wiggle its rhythm and beat. Nakagawa’s slide guitar work was another example of how he can elevated a song from something flinty to a thing of beauty.
Fujii sang an eerie lead vocal on “Mystery Man” that matched perfectly what Nakagawa was conjuring up, There was something in her vocal assertions and something in Nakagawa’s persistent riffing that made this piece driving and exploratory.
Tokyo Tramps never failed to express appreciation for their influences and the history of American music. “Good Morning, Marietta” rolled on a steady rollicking groove before “Those Lonely Lonely Nights” reminded of an Elvis Presley ballad. Fujii injected a bulbous bass line into “Ti Ni Nee Ni Nu” as Nakagawa tossed in some of his most tasteful licks.
Fujii coated “You Can Have My Husband But Please Don’t Take My Man” with a finely accented vocal line, putting in all the right emotive oomphs to create the ironic desperation. “Have You Ever Loved A Woman” by Fredie King let Nakagawa close out the night with some beautiful guitar phrasing.
It was another fun night with Tokyo Tramps. They created a cool vibe with their overall sound and presentation while giving audience members something impressive to talk about the next day. Let’s hope Tokyo Tramps get their new album out to U.S audiences real soon.
