The Wednesday warriors of San Francisco were treated to an intimate and energy-filled performance by multi instrumentalist and producer Shinya Mizoguchi, performing as starRo, last night at The Independent. The night started out with a bang as starRo opened with an extended version of “A New Day.” Running through the simple and minimalistic intro from his new album, “Monday,” Mizoguchi then expanded on the glitchy sound segments of “A New Day” to start the audience jumping with a contagious energy.
The Independent was the second stop on starRo’s tour, on which Mizoguchi is accompanied by a live band featuring drums, guitar, bass, and vocalist J-Rican. The additional musicians on stage really helped fill out starRo’s sound and did an excellent job of keeping the crowd engaged and dancing. J-Rican exploded onto the stage to provide vocals for an upbeat rendition of “I Wish”. He took advantage of the moment, moving around the entire stage and boosting the crowd’s engagement, even drawing the people from the back of the venue closer to the stage. There was a certain camaraderie that connected all of the attending patrons, a theme that seems to be consistent of any artist performing on label Soulection’s roster.
Highlights throughout the night included an onstage freestyle dancer getting down to “Serendipity”, numerous dance circles breaking out in the audience with the assistance of J-Rican, and starRo dropping his remix of Kero Uno’s “Princess Diamond” (the first song that introduced me to starRo). Guitar, bass, and drum solos were sprinkled throughout the night, showcasing each musician and what they brought to the table. For his finale, starRo dropped his absolute fire remix of Rihanna’s “Bitch Better Have my Money” which ushered the audience into a full-on moshing frenzy. The level of energy at the venue is a sign of things to come for the newly emerging starRo, I can’t wait to see where his career will take him.
The Independent was the second stop on starRo’s tour, on which Mizoguchi is accompanied by a live band featuring drums, guitar, bass, and vocalist J-Rican. The additional musicians on stage really helped fill out starRo’s sound and did an excellent job of keeping the crowd engaged and dancing. J-Rican exploded onto the stage to provide vocals for an upbeat rendition of “I Wish”. He took advantage of the moment, moving around the entire stage and boosting the crowd’s engagement, even drawing the people from the back of the venue closer to the stage. There was a certain camaraderie that connected all of the attending patrons, a theme that seems to be consistent of any artist performing on label Soulection’s roster.
Highlights throughout the night included an onstage freestyle dancer getting down to “Serendipity”, numerous dance circles breaking out in the audience with the assistance of J-Rican, and starRo dropping his remix of Kero Uno’s “Princess Diamond” (the first song that introduced me to starRo). Guitar, bass, and drum solos were sprinkled throughout the night, showcasing each musician and what they brought to the table. For his finale, starRo dropped his absolute fire remix of Rihanna’s “Bitch Better Have my Money” which ushered the audience into a full-on moshing frenzy. The level of energy at the venue is a sign of things to come for the newly emerging starRo, I can’t wait to see where his career will take him.
