One of the few buildings in Birmingham city centre to escape the craze of modernism in the 1960’s, where the beautiful buildings were torn down only to be replaced by brutalist monstrosities, The Victoria is something of a hidden gem. With many of its original fixtures and fittings, it is a venue that simply drips history and tucked away upstairs is a rather nifty live room and it’s a space that makes the perfect frame for tonight’s gig that showcases the best in alternative music from Japan and the UK.
Hibushibire + Djabbic 3 + Ayu Okakita at The Victoria, Birmingham on 17th October 2025
‘Grow, grow’ is Ayu Okakita’s personal ethos (indeed, it was the title of her sophomore album), and her musical career has indeed been one of exploration and evolution. From major label releases in her native Japan to pumping out indie sounds with Nedry in the UK, Ayu’s been on a mission to create the perfect sound, and with her one-woman show, it seems she’s possibly found it. Initially appearing with an acoustic guitar, Ayu’s set gets off to a rather sedate start, yet it’s a quiet storm that soon builds into a tempest and one which sweeps the crowd along on waves of effervescence. With the aid of some choice technology (loopers, Laptop, drum pad controllers), Ayu creates an arresting sound that’s hard to ignore. The loops in particular are a big part of Ayu’s sound and, along with her vocals, flutter around the venue like butterflies. A Radiohead cover leaves a big impression on the crowd, but make no mistake, Ayu is the star and big things beckon.
Ayu Okakita at The Victoria, Birmingham on 17th October 2025 | Photography JJ Grant (wonderlens)
Formed in 2023 and drawing from a wide range of influences (everything from The Stooges to Sonic Youth), Djabbic 3 have a sound that can only be described as “bowel-loosening”. The band dispense with a guitarist, meaning that the bass guitar comes to the fore, and when combined with a drummer who seems intent on pulverising his kit to dust, you have a monstrous (but very nice) sound. After the stealthy nature of Ayu’s set, Djabbic 3 take a completely different approach and attack the crowd with some of the heaviest riffs known to man. It’s pertinent that they originate from the same city as Black Sabbath because they operate with the same kind of punch and songs such as Retrospective radiate a similar kind of danger. As with many bands who operate as a trio, Djabbic 3 create a big sound, so much so that it would be easy for their vocalist to get lost within their melee, yet he has a powerful voice and more than holds his own, especially on a surprise cover of Mudhoney’s Suck You Dry. With songs that are distilled into their purest form, devoid of flab and filler, Djabbic 3 came, saw, and conquered.
Djabbic 3 at The Victoria, Birmingham on 17th October 2025 | Photography JJ Grant (wonderlens)
When it comes to Japanese music, Kushikatsu Records certainly have their fingers on the pulse and have brought some great bands to the UK’s second city (and beyond). Tonight it is space rockers Hibushibire, who are a perfect fit for The Victoria’s intimate vibe. Formed way back in 2012, the space rock/freak out band known as Hibushibire have left a trail of intriguing studio albums in their wake (most notably last year’s Flashback Stonehenge), but it is in the live environment where the band really belong (if you need proof look no further than their Official Live Bootleg series, currently up to issue 11) because the stage is the place which affords them most freedom.
Obviously, studio output is constrained by running time, so a concert is the place where Hibushibire can really spread their wings and fly. It gives the band an organic feel, the impression that their songs can grow in any direction, and that’s precisely what happens tonight. With drummer Aoi Hama beating a hypnotic rhythm and Kohei Katsuma hitting the congas like a shaman, an otherworldly vibe is created, as if the band really are aliens visiting us from another dimension. It’s a feeling enhanced by changchang who has just the right amount of reverb on his guitar and microphone so he sounds like a commander of an intergalactic spacecraft.
Hibushibire at The Victoria, Birmingham on 17th October 2025 | Photography JJ Grant (wonderlens)
Tetsuji Toyoda is the bass player rounding out the band and as a collective these four musicians lock in together to deliver their songs in a tight-but-loose way that is both crushingly heavy and feather light. Katsuma also manipulates electronics, while halfway through their set changchang plays his guitar strings with a drumstick for a truly mind-blowing experience that makes me wonder if the bar staff have been putting something ‘extra’ in the beer. The mesmerising nature of the band’s sound alters the very fabric of time, reducing minutes to moments and stretching seconds into eternity. It means that when the band’s set comes to a crashing conclusion, it feels as if we have awoken from a hypnotists spell, but Hibushibire’s set was no dream and will live in the memory for a long time.
Photography: JJ Grant (wonderlens)
