Concert Review: CHAI
October 12, 2023
On Wednesday, October 11th, CHAI played a packed room at Philadelphia’s Johnny Brenda’s concert venue. CHAI is a 4-piece band from Japan, fronted by twin sisters, Mana (vocals and keyboards) and Kana (vocals and guitar), along with Yuuki (bass) and Yuna (drums). Their tour — We The CHAI Tour — comes in support of their recently released eponymous album, and will be heading to Mexico and Europe in the coming weeks. Here are a few thoughts on CHAI’s performance:
How I Ended Up at the Show
Sometimes, how I get to shows isn’t always a linear process, like: I’ve been a fan of this artist for years, I can’t wait to see them! In this case of CHAI, I got to this show somewhat serendipitously. A couple of weeks ago, while putting the monthly playlist together, I came across CHAI’s new album. I’d listened to them before, and liked their music, but hadn’t realized they put out a new album.
The first song I listened to was I Can’t Organizeee — a groovy synth-laden tune — and was completely mesmerized, so much so that I sent the song to Kevin — co-playlister, friend of the blog and in real life — and anyone willing to listen to me blabber about them. Thankfully, Kevin had the presence of mind to check the Spotify tour listing, and let me know that CHAI would be in Philly in a couple of days. I bought my ticket immediately.
The Concert
CHAI played for a little over 1-hour. Their set was high energy, fun, and playful, with some serious grooves along the way. Over the course of night, the band played songs from their latest album, as well as previous albums, WINK (2021), PUNK (2019), and PINK (2019). Given CHAI is 4 albums into their discography, the concert displayed their sonic evolution and how they’ve developed over time as producers and songwriters. Still, there was a through line with all of their music.
CHAI in The Lineage of City Pop
Much of CHAI’s music, and sound, more broadly, could be described as “City Pop” — the name often used to loosely describe a style of Japanese music that was popularized in the 1980s that combines Black musical genres, namely R&B and Jazz. In Jeffrey David Salazar’s thesis — a former graduate student in UMass - Amherst’s department of East Asian Languages and Cultures — he documents the rise of the genre during the 1960s (as seen in Japanese folk music), its peak from the late-70s to the mid-80s, and its subsequent decline during the 1990s. Critically, Salazaar notes how the genre’s rise and fall coincided with the country’s economic status; songs of hope and optimism during the early 1980s were replaced by a near total dismissal of the genre by the 1990s as Japan’s asset price bubble burst.
Nonetheless, City Pop saw a reemergence during the 2010s, as DJs began (re)discovering albums of the past. And thanks to YouTube and TikTok algorithms, City Pop’s seen an even stronger resurgence amongst younger audiences and English-speakers. We can see the influence and rediscovered interest in the genre by looking at The Weeknd’s song, Out of Time, which samples Tomoko Aran’s 1983 song, Midnight Pretenders, one of the more popular City Pop tunes. (There’s also a great City Pop playlist on Spotify for anyone looking for a tour of the genre).
When listening to songs from CHAI’s latest album, like MATCHA, From 1992, or PARA PARA — all of which were adeptly performed and amongst my favorite songs from the night — it’s easy to see the lineage that the band follows in. At the same time, they aren’t merely an act recreating the songs of their youth, they’re pushing the sound forward as well.
