(Photography by James Chen)
A Brief note regarding the photography of this live event: photography from outside of the media pit was unfortunately not permitted this evening, so no shots through raised hands/horns toward the stage. Despite a lack of visual evidence of the energetic circle pits, moshing, and crowd surfing, I assure you, our readers, that L.A. pulled up and were absolutely turnt up for the finale of HANABIE.âs 2026 North American tour.
HANABIE. have wrapped up their 2026 North American tour with back to back nights of shows in Los Angeles, California. This tour was produced by Live Nation and has taken the band from coast to coast, with a pair of stops in Canada. The final night of the tour took place on Sunday, April 12th at the Belasco in downtown Los Angeles, and fans were treated to the nonstop spectacle of HANABIE.âs ICONIC Harajuku-core.
HANABIE. is from Tokyo, Japan and formed in 2015. The band consists of Yukina on vocals, Matsuri on guitar, Hettsu on bass, and Chika on drums. HANABIE. has built a fervent fanbase and tours very actively, with recent appearances at some of the largest festivals in the EU (Wacken Open Air, Rock Am Ring, PolâandâRock Festival, etc), also in North America (Aftershock, VANS Warped Tour, KNOTFEST, etc), and in Japan, of course (SUMMER SONIC, MIXED HELL, PUNK IN SUMMER, etc).
This nightâs performance came into existence because the original Los Angeles stop had sold out too quickly, leaving many fans hanging. Fortunately, this second night in Los Angeles was added as a remedy, and so both HANABIE. and their fans made this one really count with an energetic showcase from both sides of the barricade.
When the set begins, the members of the band appear on stage one after another: Chika, Hettsu, and Matsuri each step onto the center riser near the edge of the stage to greet the cheering crowd. Yukina appears last and hops onto the left and right risers and performs a graceful bowing gesture to the fans, who are already screaming and losing their minds at this point.
Yukina shouts:
ITâS THE FINAL DAY!
and no moment is wasted as the band launches into the set with âNEET GAMEâ, a high-energy âHarajuku-coreâ anthem that celebrates the chaotic, digital lifestyle of a social recluse through a blend of metalcore and glitchy chiptune fragments. The track mirrors the overstimulation of a late-night gaming session, using Yukinaâs rapid-fire vocal shifts to express the rejection of societal norms in favor of virtual escapism.
Preparing for the next song, Yukina asks:
ARE YOU READY??
and the venue erupts in reverberating cheers from the audience. Yukina follows up with:
Do you like miso soup?
and just as the crowd begins to respond affirmatively (câmon, who doesnât like miso soup?), Yukina cuts them off with the half-snarling, half-screaming start of âSUNRISE MISO SOUPâ accompanied by an isolated snare roll from Chika. Once Matsuri and Hettsu join in, the song blasts off in earnest in the form of a metalcore track depicting the daily chaos of getting up in the morning and the restorative energy of a traditional breakfast which includes miso soup.
When Matsuri takes over the vocals for the chorus, Yukina jumps off of the center riser and playfully âchasesâ Hettsu around the stage in an exaggerated cartoonish manner. The crowd loves it and Yukina comes back around onto the center riser and demands the audience to jump along with her as the song approaches its climax.
Yukina jumps into the air several times, and while she may be small in stature, she certainly is able to maintain a significant amount of airtime.
Gochisousama deshita!
declares Yukina, wrapping up âSUNRISE MISO SOUPâ with this Japanese phrase thatâs used in daily life to give appreciation to a just-finished meal.
An electronic melody fills the air, giving everyone present a few moments to catch their breath as the sets proceeds into âReiwa dating apps generationâ. The members of the band each move an arm up and down to the beat, and the crowd mirrors this motion.
Yukina launches into growling vocals that explore the âswipe cultureâ of dating app usage in the Reiwa Era (cultural note: Japan uses era names corresponding to a ruling emperor of that particular time period. When the current emperor, Naruhito, ascended the throne in 2019, the âeraâ from that point forward was named the Reiwa Era).
The blend of metalcore riffs with hyperpop and electronic textures become the backdrop for the dizzying loop of matching, ghosting, and âmutingâ potential partners. Videogame-style synth melodies echo the idea that love is just another screen-based game.
Just a few songs into the set had the barricade already under siege by a steady stream of crowd surfing fans. Credit should be given to the security staff at The Belasco for maintaining a safe atmosphere for the fans to enjoy, and for preventing crowd surfers from taking hard falls for by setting them onto their feet as they made their way over the barricade.
We are HANABIE. from Japan!!
declares Yukina, and the crowd cheers in response with horns in the air. She continues:
Today is the final day⊠this is sad, I know⊠Alright, everyone, can you give me more, L.A.??
The crowd cheers affirmatively; Yukina stabs both hands forward with arms straightened, and then splits them apart in opposite directions to her left and right.
Fans knew that this meant it was time for a wall of death, and they were happy to oblige. Before launching into âTOUSOUâ (âEscapeâ, in Japanese), Hettsu also makes a âparting the Red Seaâ gesture with her arms to prepare the fans for the impending chaos.
A PA announcement in the style heard on Japanese trains or breaking news broadcasts plays:
çŸćšăć„łæ§ććăéè”°äžă§ă
ăAt this moment four females are on the rună
followed immediately with a primal scream from Yukina, unleashing the fans who slam into each other from the sides of the divided floor space. The initial clash and release of energy transitions to moshing and then back into a circle pit.
During âSpicy Queenâ, a single off of HANABIE.âs latest EP, three additional figures appear in front of the stage on the right side. They are wearing red-colored chili pepper shaped soft, plush headgear/costumes and they start hyping up the crowd with intense headbanging. It creates an oddly amusing spectacle, as one chili pepper is small and could be described as a plush helmet for its wearer, while another chili pepper covers its wearerâs entire upper body and goes down to their knees. Their energetic headbanging causes the green stems at the tops of the chili peppers to flop about wildly.
A HANABIE. show wouldnât be complete without âWe love sweetsâ, arguably the track which launched the band into a new level of recognition in 2021. A juxtaposition of an extreme, obsessive love for sugary treats with the brutal intensity of metal.
The song is a high energy track that serves as a bold anthem of self-confidence and celebrates a fierce, unapologetic personality. Someone who is âspicyâ is described using food, flavor, and eating metaphors as one who refuses to be bland or conform to expectations. A fun piece of word play (script play?) appears near the end of the song:
èŸăăšăăæŒąćă«äžæŹè¶łăă ă㧠ćčžăăŁăŠæăă«ăȘăă ăă©ă©ă©ă€!
ăAdding just one line to the Japanese character âhotâ transforms it into âhappinessâ, I guess!ă
It refers to these two kanji (words) which differ by just one additional horizontal line (and slightly elongating a vertical line): èŸ and ćčž.
The evening is nearing its end, and HANABIE. perform for the Los Angeles crowd the track that garnered significant international recognition upon its release in early 2023, âPardon Me, I Have to Go Nowâ (âSaki ni shitsurei shimasuâ). This song opened the gates to international touring for the band, and enabled the band to perform at large festivals in the EU and in North America.
The song is a high-speed, nu-metal-infused anthem that serves as a rebellious response to the pressures of Japanese work culture. It tackles the stifling social obligation to remain at the office until late at night, with the title itself using the standard, polite phrase for leaving before oneâs colleagues. Yukinaâs vocals pivot between a professional persona and an explosive, liberated outburst.
Yukina shouts to the crowd:
Letâs cheers!
the crowd applauds and yells back excitedly. The members of HANABIE. then begin to sing-song chant to the melodic hook of âICONICâ:
I want to drink tequila, YOU KNOW?
instead of
I am me iconic, YOU KNOW?
The members of the support bands Nekrogoblikon and Enterprise Earth, as well as the tourâs crew and staff members have also joined HANABIE. on stage at this point, and shots of tequila are being distributed amongst them all.
Thank you for the tour, letâs cheers! KANPAI!!
exclaims Yukina, and the crowd shouts in response. Few fans still have drinks in their hands at this point, but they applaud and put up horns as those on stage raise shot glasses to each other and to the crowd. They take their shots and there is more celebratory applause from the crowd.
As the support band members and crew exit the stage, a telephone ring sounds and Yukina appears on the center riser holding a pink old fashioned corded telephone. She âanswersâ the phone and holds the receiver to her ear:
Moshi moshi, kochira nounai shireibu d-d-d-d-desu
ăHello, this i-i-i-i-is the intracerebral headquartersă
Yukina rapidly repeats one of the last syllables of the phrase, sounding like an audio glitch while simultaneously shaking as if her entire being was glitched.
After hanging up the phone, Yukina lets the backing track handle the hook and then launches into the brutal growling vocals. âIconicâ, followed by âTodayâs Good Day & So Epicâ are the final two songs of the North American tour, and the crowd gives it their all for this finale.
