Candle Night @ Zojoji 2011

In retrospect, it was all eerily prescient. When it started out in 2003, Candle Night had the simplest of concepts: for a few hours on the evening of the summer and winter solstices, people would turn their lights off and do something by candlelight instead. As the slogan went: Turn off the lights, take it slow. Given everything that's happened in Japan over the last few months, and the prospect of power shortages throughout the summer, the message no longer seems like one of wide-eyed idealism but of urgent necessity. Zozoji Temple has been at the heart of things since Candle Night first started, and it'll be hosting a free concert on Saturday, a couple of days prior to the event itself. There'll be performances by singers Yae, Bird and Salyu, followed by a reading by Ai Tominaga; in a nice touch, most of the food and drink on sale during the event comes from Tohoku.