Fuji Rock Festival 2012

[Blue Stapler]

An uncharacteristically early announcement, as they usually do this on New Year's Day, but the dates have been confirmed. July 27 through 29. The Stone Roses will be playing.

http://www.smash-uk.com/frf11/news.php?id=67

If I had to venture a guess, I'd say the reason they're announcing this so soon may be because the Roses' England shows sold out so insanely fast, but who knows. I'm certainly not complaining about the early announcement, or the one band that's been confirmed.

[TeamCoachellaHellYeah]

God, I really need to make it back to Fuji....

[Brochella]

I'm gonna be teaching in Korea for the next year...should probably make a point of going to this, eh?

[getbetter]

Tying in a Japan trip with Stone Roses sounds pretty fucking awesome.

[Cookieman908]

Damn, only one band in and the lineup's already off to a great start.

[Blue Stapler]

I'm certainly not complaining about the early announcement, or the one band that's been confirmed.

I would now like to rescind this statement, as it's dawned on me that this announcement will drive up demand of the early bird tickets, and will make it somewhat harder for me to score them. It would've been more convenient for me had they waited until March like they usually do (though I suspect that it was the band's decision, not the organizer's). Oh well. I just hope Ian sings a lot better than he does in this video.

I'm gonna be teaching in Korea for the next year...should probably make a point of going to this, eh?

There's actually a music festival in Korea that's held on the same weekend as Fuji and shares some of the same acts. This they had the Chemical Brothers and Arctic Monkeys among others. Though yeah, the Fuji lineup is a lot stronger, so if you can afford to fly to Japan I'd definitely recommend it.

[hangthedj112]

Stone Roses would be nice to see but I think next year if I do Japan again Metamo still looks better over all... And also in Naeba in September is labyrinth festival

[Blue Stapler]

Stone Roses would be nice to see but I think next year if I do Japan again Metamo still looks better over all...

As long as a hurricane doesn't force the festival out of commission like it did this year...

[gweilo]

I thought this board would be getting off to an earlier start because of this....

Time for me to start looking for accommodation. I'm already late to that game. The Stone Roses are likely to sell even more tickets than usual, which will hopefully mean that Smash has an easier time convincing other bands to come (more exposure).

Frankly, I'm not a huge fan. I'll see them if there's no clear-cut alternative.

[hangthedj112]

As long as a hurricane doesn't force the festival out of commission like it did this year...

Yeah that was a bummer, I was on the Shinkansen from Hakata to Mishima when I found out.

[Blue Stapler]

gweilo - Good to see you. So are you done with camping for good? I haven't really decided what I'll do in terms of accommodations yet, but I have a feeling it'll be the tent/sleeping bag option for me again, due to financial reasons...

I'm seeing the Roses no matter what. And yeah, I share your optimism that their presence in the lineup would help draw some other bands to Fuji.

I thought there was a really, really good chance that we'd get Radiohead next year, but now I'm not so sure. I don't know if they can afford both the Roses and Radiohead without the rest of the lineup suffering. Plus, I know that the band said in an interview that they'd like to focus on indoor venues this time around. Bleh. At least they did say that they plan on playing Japan.

Another possible headliner is Foo Fighters, who are doing a Japanese tour in March organized by Smash. Oasis were in a similar situation in 2009, when they toured here in March (courtesy of Smash) and then played Fuji in the summer.

Yeah that was a bummer, I was on the Shinkansen from Hakata to Mishima when I found out.

From Fukuoka? Whoa. Crap. "Bummer" seems to be quite an understatement for you. I guess I didn't have it nearly as bad as you did. I'd reserved a spot on the bus that was supposed to take me directly to the venue, and had just arrived at Tokyo station (the train fare only setting me back several hundred yen) when I found out. But still, yeah, the cancellation totally sucked.

[Al & Mel]

Hey all,

Can't make Coachella next year so we're thinking about giving Fuji Rock a go instead. We've decided that we'd rather not camp for this one (getting too old for really roughing it, plus 4 times camping at Coachella has kind of spoilt us) but having trouble finding how to go about securing a nearby hotel, the official website doesn't really have a lot of details about booking from overseas. Looks like it all happens through a ballot but again can't really find decent info. Has anyone gone through this before and have some advice on how it all works? Prince Naeba Hotel seems like the logical choice for proximity but all hotel booking websites say it is unavailable for the Fuji weekend so I'm guessing all rooms can only be booked through the Fuji Rock ballot.

Also, is it worth turning up on the Thursday i.e. much happening in the area on the Thursday night?

Cheers
Al

[TheImportance]

The Stone Roses are enough to get me out there! I was trying to plan a trip to meet my friend who lives outside of Tokyo last year, but we eventually gave it up because we weren't too happy about the line up. 2012 is looking like it's gonna be the year though.

How english speaking friendly is this festival? Excuse my ignorance.

[Blue Stapler]

Al & Mel - I think the ballot thing only applies to the Naeba Prince. There are plenty of other hotels and inns within walking distance from the festival site. The Naeba Tourism & Hotel Association has an English web page listing the lodging facilities in the area. You might want to check with them to make sure that they aren't too away from the festival grounds before booking a reservation.

You'll only find eight inns on that page (presumably because those are the only ones that can handle English inquiries), but there are actually dozens of others. If you speak Japanese or know someone who does, and want to expand your search, then try the ones listed here. Another option is to stay at a hotel in Echigo Yuzawa and commute back and forth on the free shuttle bus, though I don't see why you'd want to do that unless you're finding it absolutely impossible to find anywhere to stay in Naeba (which can happen if you start looking too late).

As to Thursday, the pre-fest is totally free, with bands/DJs (who they won't announce in advance) playing at the Red Marquee. You also get to dance the Neaba Ondo, see a modest firework display and some of the other random events (food eating contest etc.), and of course, get your first taste of awesome Fuji Rock delicacies. The atmosphere is great and I think it's totally worth it, though if you're combining it with a Japan sightseeing trip and would rather spend your time elsewhere in the country, that's understandable. But keep in mind that: a) it'll probably be slightly easier to find accommodations for Thursday through Sunday rather than Friday through Sunday, and b) arriving at Naeba on the shuttle bus and exchanging your ticket for a wristband will be much less of a hassle on Thursday afternoon/evening than on Friday morning.

I was trying to plan a trip to meet my friend who lives outside of Tokyo last year, but we eventually gave it up because we weren't too happy about the line up.

You mean the lineup this year? I actually thought the 2010 lineup was pretty good, but different strokes for different folks of course!

How english speaking friendly is this festival? Excuse my ignorance.

I'm a native Japanese speaker so I can't really say, but some of the non-Japanese-speaking folks on this board who've done the fest before seemed to do just fine. Maybe they can weigh in?

[Blue Stapler]

I think the ballot thing only applies to the Naeba Prince.

Actually, now that I think about it, I'm not so sure if this is true. But the point is - you don't have to go through the official tour. Just contact the hotels/inns directly and make your reservations with them.

Hope you (and TheImportance) do decide to take the plunge. It may not be Coachella (not that I would know what Coachella is like, since I've never been despite having over 500 posts here...), but Fuji Rock is a whole lot of fun in its own way! And of course, Stone Roses.

[TheImportance]

Sorry yeah, I meant this year's line up. 2010 is pretty brilliant in my eyes! Them Crooked Vultures, Air, Belle and Sebastian, Massive Attack, Ian Brown, LCD Soundsystem... Tons of good stuff.

[Al & Mel]

Hey Blue Stapler, thanks for the advice. Not a lot of info out there if you don't speak Japanese, which I certainly don't, so will see how we go through the links you posted. Might be spending a bit of time on Google Translate!

We defintely want to stay close by and not have to worry about a daily shuttle bus so that's why we're trying to work this out fairly early. And the Thursday night sounds like fun so will definitely look at arriving for that to make the most of the festival and avoid the rush.

Thanks again
Al

[hangthedj112]

Even as you get out into the areas outside of the city where most of the festivals are people are still extremely accommodating to tourists, even if they speak very little english...

Japan is honestly one of the best countries to travel to as an english speaker, people are extremely welcoming and a lot of signage is in both Japanese & English no matter where you go

[listenup]

The Stone Roses are enough to get me out there! I was trying to plan a trip to meet my friend who lives outside of Tokyo last year, but we eventually gave it up because we weren't too happy about the line up. 2012 is looking like it's gonna be the year though.

How english speaking friendly is this festival? Excuse my ignorance.

We have travelled from Australia the past few years and had no trouble with the language barrier. Everyone is so polite and helpful that it really isn't an issue. Fuji is the best festival! We are trying to come again in 2012 one more time (we say that every year - haha)

[Blue Stapler]

Radiohead are playing Taiwan on July 25. Not that this has anything to do with Fuji Rock of course!

[TeamCoachellaHellYeah]

Radiohead at Fuji Rock will be one of the most amazing settings for them ever....ever....

[Spooks]

Yea they just tweeted....

Fujirock_com
Nice to know Radiohead is playing in Taipei on the 25th of July which does suggests they might appear @ Fuji Rock... fb.me/18wvs5Ugu
1 hour ago

[Boourns]

Radiohead at Fuji Rock will be one of the most amazing settings for them ever....ever....

Oh man. I need to be there for this glorious event.

[Blue Stapler]

Spooks - It's extremely misleading, but that's actually not fuji rock's twitter account. Fujirock.com is more of a fansite, albeit one that's been pretty much officially recognized by the organizers. Their speculation isn't any better than yours or mine.

That being said, you can't help but assume that Radiohead are a practical lock for Fuji. I'm looking forward to seeing both them and the Stone Roses, so I'm in no position to complain, but between those two bands, I feel like it'll be really crowded this year.

[Al & Mel]

This is defintely making it more likely we'll make it this year even if just a rumour. Still waiting to hear back from Naeba Tourism about accomm so still no idea about availabilty. Strangely July is not available in the drop down on the reservation form so that doesn't help...

Listenup - sounds like you got a bit of experience buying tickets from Aus, any idea when we can purchase them and any advice on how it works? I've read earlybird tickets are released in Feb but sounds like that might be for local buyers only

[listenup]

I just sent you a PM with some email address to try for accommodation. I'll let you know if I hear back from any more as we have already booked accommodation.

[gweilo]

... I'm in no position to complain, but between those two bands, I feel like it'll be really crowded this year.

It'll be ungodly.

I just sent you a PM with some email address to try for accommodation.

Would you mind forward that to me as well? I have a contact in Japan I haven't checked in with yet, but it might be good to have options. I'll probably just end up staying in the same place I did last year. It was a bit pricey but worth it I guess....

[Blue Stapler]

Oh good, the message board is back up.

A lot of you probably know this by now, but Radiohead has officially been confirmed. The band's website had them down as playing on Sunday, but this has since been changed, and now it only says July 27-29. I'm assuming they made the change at the organizer's request, and they're still the Sunday headliner.

I'm pretty annoyed that they're announcing these blockbuster bands before the early bird tickets go on sale. And you know what else is annoying? They raised early bird ticket prices by 2,000 JPY. Ugh. Normal tickets still cost the same as in previous years, except with one twist - the price applies only until May 19, and after that there's a 3,000-JPY price hike. So if you're planning on going you'd be well-advised to get your ticket early.

[Al & Mel]

Have organised somewhere to stay for the fest so now just have to worry about tickets and getting there!

Are the Hayawari early bird tickets open to overseas buyers? Wouldn't mind saving some money seeing as we're definitely going but hard to work out the details from the webites involved.

[paulb]

Have Radiohead played Fuji Rock before?