(Photography by James Chen)
Toru Kitajima, who goes by “TK”, gifted a night of emotionally raw post-hardcore progressive rock to adoring fans in Los Angeles. This was the second stop of TK’s headlining North America tour, his first such run outside of Asia, and it took place on May 29th at the historic Belasco Theater, which was at capacity with fans.
TK is the lead vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter of the band Ling Tosite Sigure (凛として時雨) and uses the moniker “TK from Ling tosite sigure” for his solo work. TK’s solo work retains the kinetic, math-rock core of his main band, Ling Tosite Sigure, but serves as an experimental sandbox that fuses progressive post-hardcore with cinematic, electronic, and J-pop-influenced textures.
TK incorporates piano, synthesizers, and sweeping string arrangements to craft intricate, multi-layered soundscapes that are both violently chaotic and elegantly beautiful. This genre-bending music is underpinned by TK’s signature vocal delivery which effortlessly shifts from a delicate, whispered falsetto to raw, raspy screams, as well as his technically demanding, reverb-drenched guitar work.
Joining TK for this North American tour are the following artists:
- Drums: Tatsuya Amano, the drummer for the metalcore band Crossfaith
- Keyboard and backing vocals: Sara Wakui, who has toured with Ado and is a prolific composer
- Bass: Kentaro Nakao who has played bass for many bands including the now-disbanded Number Girl
From the moment the lights dropped, TK and his phenomenal support artists effortlessly translated his studio perfection seamlessly to the stage. The setlist was a carefully navigated journey through his solo discography. The night kicked off with the aggressive, driving rhythms of “katharsis” and continued on weaving through standout tracks like “Fantastic Magic”, “Phase to Phrase”, and eventually into some deep cuts.
For an undeniable segment of TK’s fans, he is the ultimate representative of a new, modern era of “anime music,” bringing forth and intertwining high-art, uncompromising alternative rock with anime. TK’s solo works have become iconic as opening and ending themes for anime works with massive fervent followings such as “Tokyo Ghoul”, “Chainsaw Man”, “My Hero Academia”, and “Solo Leveling”.
Launching the show with the Tokyo Ghoul:re anthem, “katharsis” was a statement of intent. The song relies on a massive, sweeping piano melody that suddenly crashes into blistering guitar work. Amano’s extremely kinetic drumming elevated the performance, turning the complex, shifting time signatures into a hard-hitting, physical experience.
Moving on to “Kalei de scope”, TK’s executes fast, cascading melodies on guitar that dazzle the senses. Nakao’s basslines drive the song’s frantic math-rock groove forward, and cuts through the layers of sound with a metallic, percussive bite, and a bit of funk.
During “phase to phrase,” Wakui’s keyboard work serves as the vital rhythmic and melodic counter-point to the song’s complex time signatures. Wakui’s playing weaves intricately beneath TK’s rapid-fire vocal delivery, providing a brilliant harmonic structure that mirrors the song’s constant, fluid shifts in tempo.
The transition into “copy light,” “white silence,” and “Tsumi no Houseki” forms a breathtakingly delicate, sentimental, and intensely vulnerable trilogy that slows the theater to an absolute standstill. Standing in stark contrast to the night’s frantic rock chaos, this three-song segment strips away the heavy wall of distortion to lay bare the raw poetic soul of TK’s songwriting.
This part of the show made each audience member feel as if it was just them as an individual with TK and Wakui isolated in the theater for an unplugged performance. The spell begins with “copy light,” a heart-wrenching ballad that relies on a melancholic piano arrangement to mirror a deep sense of grief. TK’s vocal performance here is extraordinarily fragile, with a deep sentimentality that bleeds seamlessly into “white silence,” where Wakui also contributes delicate vocals. The sequence reaches its theatrical peak with “Tsumi no Houseki” at the midpoint for the night, before accelerating into a full throttle finish.
The set moves on to “Signal”, a song featured as the opening theme for the anime “91 Days”. This piece acted to complete the pivot from melancholic ballads back to heavy, progressive rock. Continuing on with “melt”, the song’s intricate, overlapping vocal layers and ambient, slow-burn progression washed over the audience in a hauntingly beautiful wave of sound. As a work detached from TK’s more aggressive sounds, “melt” conveys a distinct, bittersweet warmth on top of a deep sense of melancholy.
Approaching the end of the set, TK shakes the walls of The Belasco with “UN-APEX”, featured as the ending theme for the massively popular anime adaptation of “Solo Leveling”. A feeling of catharsis among the fans immediately surging into energy which fueled dancing, jumping, headbanging, and more was clearly felt through the theater.
The set is concluded with “P.S. RED I”, a high-energy track that builds up intensity with soaring strings conveying a sense of anxiety from high-stakes tension. The silence when the four finish performing this song and walk off the stage is jarring, some fans are perhaps shaken by this track which may be less familiar audiences outside of Japan, others are unsure whether the night would be over without TK performing some of the songs most anticipated for this tour.
As the crowd continues chanting for an encore, TK and his three supporting artists return to the stage to soaring applause. For many fans, what followed was the “main event”: the live performance of “unravel”. The song is featured as the opening theme for the anime adaptation of “Tokyo Ghoul”, and TK’s first solo work to be featured as a tie-up in this manner. The song begins with fragile, exposed seemingly whispered verses over a serene melody. Any serenity is shattered as the song launches into heavily distorted math-rock riffs, with all restraint abandoned when TK channels his voice into the iconic high-register screams.
For the absolute finale of the evening, Los Angeles was given “first death”, featured as an ending theme for the anime adaptation for “Chainsaw Man”. Following the emotional highs of “unravel,” the track pushed the concert’s kinetic energy past its breaking point, trading progressive melancholia for a relentless, fast-paced sonic assault. From the first moment, the song locks into a blisteringly fast, driving tempo built upon a foundation of Amano’s dynamic high-precision drumming. Vocally, “first death” leaves absolutely no room for TK to catch his breath. He channels a sense of volatile desperation, singing of mortality and violent inevitability as his vocals erupt into piercing screams.
The evening was a flawless showcase of musicianship that masterfully bridged the gap between avant-garde complexity and raw emotional vulnerability. The breadth of TK’s solo work was on full display here, with the back-to-back encore pairing of “unravel” and “first death” completely shattering any lingering tension and bringing the night to a thunderous close that cannot be forgotten.