Passionate fandom has become the domain of pop music. Or, at least, that's the image that has developed globally over the past decade, as intense groups of diverse people throw their support behind a wide range of mainstream acts, from Beyonce to BTS. Rock, once the hub for this type of devotion, doesn't boast quite the same reputation anymore.
Save, perhaps, for in Japan, where rock music still has legs and can attract a passionate following. That much was clear on March 10, when the band Sid (stylized in all capital letters as SID) celebrated 15 years together at Yokohama Arena. Besides offering the chance to catch one of the more prolific Japanese groups of the 21st century, this big anniversary gig showed just how tight a connection many fans have with their favorite performers.
The Yokohama Arena performance functioned as the finale for a nearly year-long jaunt by Sid to commemorate the band's 15th anniversary. Over that time, Sid has been a productive quartet, releasing singles that have landed in the Oricon top 10 and which have served as themes for various marquee anime, including "Fullmetal Alchemist" and "Bleach." Fittingly, a large chunk of the band's set featured cuts tied to famous cartoons, though this never felt like an anime-adjacent show (although backing visuals of a kind of steampunk airship flying through all kinds of terrain came pretty close to being late-night animated fare).