About
OTOBANCHI, a music event held in FUTO in early spring, centered around friends from Seattle. Owner Koyama wrote about the atmosphere of that day, along with the passage of time and music.
4:00 PM
Venue Setup
Everyone prepared for the concert venue from the usual store where we had been operating as usual. We chatted with the performers and listened to the sounds of the rehearsal.
6:00 PM
Door Open
With food laid out and drinks in hand, everyone spent the time before the performance as they wished. The special illuminated lanterns only visible on OTOBANCHI nights.
7:00 PM
Opening Act
The show started at 7 PM. The opening act was oono yuuki. He appeared and began to sing "Hon" (Book). The night began with this song, which is a very memorable one for Futo, as he also played it first at FUTO two years ago.
Hon (Book) - From "ENRAI | YOAKE(Distant Thunder | Dawn)"
yuuki oono
yuuki oono
singer-songwriter
Born in Kochi Prefecture, Yuuki Oono began performing around 2008, primarily at the art space Nanahachi in Hacchobori, Tokyo. He has released five albums to date, performing as a solo singer-songwriter and with his six-member instrumental band, oono yuuki band. In 2018, he toured the West Coast of the United States as a solo artist with Seattle singer Tomo Nakayama and others. In recent years, he has also created music for theater and film, as well as sound installations. In April 2024, he released "Enrai | Yoake," his first album in nine years.
oono yuuki band currently consists of six members: oono yuuki (guitar, piano), Hironari Takahashi (drums), Taichi Kabayama (guitar), Junya Okubo (saxophone), Yudai Sasaki (flute), and Taichi Gotoh (bass). In 2023, they released "GREENISH BLUE, BLUISH GREEN," their first album in 11 years. They held a release show in December 2023 at Shibuya Club Quattro with Yuta Orisaka as a guest, and an activity 15th-anniversary live show in December 2024 with Neco Nemuru as a guest.
On June 25, 2025, oono yuuki band will release their new album "Mawarimichi, Kaze no Sankaku" and will embark on a release tour featuring eastern youth and Uki as guests.
7:30 PM
Songs Melting into Us
Oono's voice and the sound of the guitar blend into the enclosed light. From "Akuma" and "Motor Park" towards "Yoake."
Yoake - From "Enrai | Yoake"
yuuki oono
7:45 PM
As a Japan Tour Final
Tomo Nakayama took the stage for the final performance of his Japan tour, which visited Tokyo, Nagoya, Kyoto, and Kochi, in support of his new album "Ocean." He was also joined on stage by oono yuuki and Debbie Miller for some of the performances.
Plovers - from "Ocean"
Tomo Nakayama
Tomo Nakayama
singer-songwriter
Born in Japan and raised in Seattle, Tomo Nakayama has been active for over 20 years, traversing indie folk, synth-pop, and film scores. His music has been featured in Netflix's "House of Ninjas" and the Sundance-nominated film "Tatchi Feely," and has received acclaim from NPR, KEXP, and The New York Times. His representative song, "Get To Know You," has garnered over 2 million streams worldwide. He has also performed with Cornelius, Built To Spill, Buffalo Daughter, The Twilight Sad, oono yuuki, and Shugo Tokumaru. Additionally, he has collaborated with Jeremy Enigk (Sunny Day Real Estate) and experimental dance group Malacarne. He has served as an artist-in-residence at Town Hall Seattle, and his sound installations and works have been featured at the Northwest Museum of Art, King Street Station, and the Wing Luke Museum.
Following the simultaneous US-Japan release of his latest album, "Ocean," in November 2025, Tomo Nakayama's Japan tour took place in April 2026, visiting Tokyo, Nagoya, and Kyoto. After successful release performances in Seattle and LA, his first Japan tour with a full band, featuring Christopher Icasiano of Fleet Foxes, Yuuki Matthews of The Shins, and former Band of Horses member Chris Early, concluded with great success.
8:20 PM
Melody to Nature Echoes
A bird takes flight, the clear blue sky, light beyond the clouds. A melody, as if taught by the changing natural world, gently echoes in a back alley of the old town. From music to music, from friend to friend, the sounds dance.
Darkest of Seasons - From "Fog on the Lens"
Tomo Nakayama
8:30 PM
Her First Performance in Japan
Debbie Miller's memorable first performance in Japan begins. The performance unfolds with piano, guitar, and the joyful music of Tomo Nakayama and oono yuuki.
Debbie Miller
singer-songwriter
“Debbie Miller is a Seattle treasure”
- DJ Kevin Sur, KEXP"
“Debbie is a local talent you need to hear.”
- Sonic Boom Records
Debbie Miller is a singer-songwriter based in Seattle, USA.
Her music, often described as a "masterclass in contrast," resonates deeply with listeners as it subtly blends heartwarming humor with profound emotions. Her songs can bring a smile or a tear, sometimes even simultaneously within the same piece.
She studied classical piano in New York, then explored theater and a cappella before beginning her songwriting journey in her mid-20s.
She is currently working on her second full-length album, "Birder," which is scheduled for release in late 2026.
Grand Canyon
Debbie Miller
Help Me Stand
Debbie Miller
9:30 PM
Encore for the Night
A warm round of applause from the full house brought them back for an encore. They returned to the stage with smiles and performed the classic "If I Needed You" as a trio. Three voices and three guitars reveled in the music, as if reluctant for the moment to end.
If I Needed You
Tomo Nakayama
9:30 PM -
Afterglow Letter to Myself
After the show, while still basking in the afterglow, I'll write down my thoughts and feelings from tonight, from this moment, on a postcard and send it to my future self a year from now, along with my memories.
New music arrives with the face of someone saying nice to meet you.
I think it feels a little like meeting a person for the first time.
Music we know well reaches us as if asking
Hey it has been a while. How have you been?
I think it feels like an old familiar friend.
The music from that night echoed inside me as if it were gently saying
We both made it all the way to today. Well done.
I hope that for those who came that night too
even just one of the songs that sounded in that place
will become something like a close friend
as time goes on.
To meet music
to feel something
to think
to spend time with it.
Just as we come to know ourselves more deeply
through time spent with a friend
we face ourselves through time spent with music.
I hope Otobanchi can continue to be that kind of place
together with musicians who stand before people
a little shyly as ever
and sing so beautifully
and together with the honest music they play.
And someday
let us meet here again
with new friends
and old friends.
April 25 2025
Shohei Koyama
I play music with my old friends
"Roscoe (What A Gift)" by Tomo Nakayama
What a gift to be born
What a gift to be alive
Roscoe (What A Gift)
Tomo Nakayama
Credit
Photo: Yoshihiro Miyagawa
Music, Covers and Info: oono yuuki, Tomo Nakayama, Debbie Miller
Event Operation: Yuki Yamamoto, Chiemi Takano, Mayuka Goto, Mitsuho Nomura, Shino Yamada, Kimika Kubo, Haruna Ikeda, Haruka Watanabe
Food: Kuboyan
Drink: KAKUUCHI CAFE FUTABA
Special Thanks: Lemon House Inc., Motoaki Takahashi, Shiro Takahashi, Kaoru Takahashi and People who came into the show
Organize, Design and Text: Shohei Koyama
Supported by Team JIYUCHO, and by you, who keep believing in the way we make dreams come true.