The Tokyo Rocks festival, which had been scheduled for May 11 and 12, was an ambitious attempt to bring big-name overseas artists such as Blur, Primal Scream and My Bloody Valentine together with a range of Japanese acts. On March 31, it was announced it had been canceled.

Unlike major commercial festivals such as Fuji Rock and Summer Sonic, which are organized by tour agencies with a good track record in promoting overseas artists here, Tokyo Rocks' background is rooted in the local scene. Its sudden cancellation just six weeks before it was due to take place is unfortunate then, and demands a postmortem.

The initial announcement stated only "management problems," which is strongly suggestive of internal political problems among the various groups organizing the event — something that subsequent announcements have stated more directly. The extent to which poor ticket sales may have been responsible is unclear, since no figures have been announced. The word from inside suggests that the festival's (hopefully temporary) collapse was at least not directly related to sales.