Less Than Two Weeks Away Until AWA! But…

Japanese indie rock band The Captains on the cover of Purple Sky magazine.

It’s less than a couple of weeks until September 19th: Day one of Anime Weekend Atlanta 2008. Many thing have been planned for this year. The return of Vic Mignogna, and a few guests from previous years, such as Monica Rial and artist Fred Perry. Even Otaku Guru and founder of Otaku USA magazine Patrick Macias will be there. 2008 also marks the return of an awesome Japanese indie band, The Captains. They preformed at AWA last year: the year I couldn’t make it…And I’m afraid 2008 is the year I can’t make it either.

After the end of JAMPcon, I thought I was going to go to Atlanta this year for sure, but due to unforeseen financial problems, I won’t be able to make it this year…again. I originally planned on having at least $250 for spending money, then another $300 for the room (I know…Ouch!). But with the way things are going, it’s just not going to happen. However, there’s a bright side to all of this: I get to prepare for next year! The Middle Tennessee Anime Convention will be in early April (3rd-5th), and there’s next year JAMPcon to look forward to in July; going to a local convention will be less daunting than driving 100 miles between two cities.

It looks like I’ll be missing out on another chance of going to The Captains concert. But when you think about it, there seems to be a small trend going on with Japanese indie bands preforming in the US. The Captains started preforming in the US last year, if I recall correctly. In fact, they preformed in Chattanooga at some local bar that I didn’t know about (and in this small mountain town of all places…). Another J-Indie band that’s been preforming in the US for a few years is Peelander Z. They’ve preformed a few times at MTAC as well, including small outlets across the country. And to make matters worse, for me at least, they will be preforming at AWA too.

Well, if The Captains’ second performance at AWA grants them a third performance next year, I will be there! For now, I might as well sit tight until 2009 and refer to my list of fears.