X Japan kicked off its Japan tour on Tuesday night in front of a packed crowd at Yokohama Arena. And the show was a welcome return to form.
After disbanding in 1997 and returning to the stage in 2008, the band has played one-off shows in Japan and a handful of tours overseas, but this is the first time in 20 years the group has embarked on a real domestic tour. It includes four consecutive dates at Yokohama Arena before moving on to Osaka, Fukuoka and Hiroshima. The tour finishes up Dec. 14 and 15 at Nippon Gaishi Hall in Nagoya. The band is also set to perform at London's SSE Arena in Wembley on March 12.
"X Japan is truly back," vocalist Toshl said triumphantly from the stage during the group's encore, echoing a statement he made at a show last year. His words held some weight time though; the band's set consisted mainly of new tracks from an album scheduled to be released March 11. The selection included "Born To Be Free," which was released as a digital single last month.