Unprecedented times lead to unexpected sights. In the throes of a pandemic, that means a Fuji Rock Festival lineup featuring ... zero international acts.
A year after “postponing” (PR talk for “canceling”) one of Japan’s marquee summer music festivals due to the COVID-19 pandemic, organizer Smash Japan is moving ahead with Fuji Rock 2021 from Aug. 20 to 22 at the Naeba Ski Resort in Niigata Prefecture. It won’t be like any previous edition of the event: Attendance will be limited and those who show up must use a special app to register personal information. Various other anti-infection measures are set to be implemented — so bring lots of masks and prepare to have booze sales stopped early in the day.
Seeing if Smash can pull off Fuji Rock during a pandemic in a country where general vaccinations will still be nascent come the summer (maybe convert some beer stalls into Pfizer booths?) is the biggest storyline to watch. For music fans, however, the most significant change comes from the all-domestic lineup, spurred by the inability of foreign acts to enter Japan this summer.