Tokyo is one of the cities we know best in Japan as we often fly in to Narita and have days off here. Japan's capital is a technicolour assault on the senses- vendors with megaphones outside camera shops, the pungent smell of fried octopus balls, tranquil temples and tasty tempura, Harajuku’s sea of people and the quiet back streets of Daikanyama.

After a day to acclimatize, the first port of call was HMV in Shibuya for an instore acoustic show. We played; Fear Of Flying, Can’t Kick The Habit, Peter Waits, No Reason Why, I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend and Do You Ever Think Of Me. A lot of punters turned up and then stayed after to have stuff signed. We were under strict instructions not to take too long which was a shame as there were a few familiar faces there.

The Feeling had been on the same flight as us and had kindly invited us to their show that night but by the time the instore had finished, so had their show. Instead we went out to a great restaurant and then on to a bar with fantastic views for a nightcap or three.

Day 2 Tokyo

Oh dear, my voice is a bit croaky and I’m regretting the final few Asahi’s last night The venue is called Shelter and it’s a cool venue with a great crew and sound system. We’re the only band so we have the luxury of a long soundcheck. It’s a long set- 23 songs, so I’m nervous to how my voice will hold out, luckily the gig is packed, great fun and the audience are fantastic. We’ve all decided to wear suits and skinny ties like the ‘Can’t Kick The Habit’ video. It’s a cool and (unfortunately) hot look!

It was great to see Michiko at the show who gave us all lovely presents.

The aftershow at Hub (a rather strange British style pub with DJs) was a blast. We saw lots of old friends and sang Happy Birthday to Nori (who works tirelessly for our label). Another late night. A few strepsils in the morning I guess….

More to follow……

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