Cover up: 5 great Japanese tribute acts

What's that you say? The age of the tribute act is dead and gone? We beg to differ. While the halcyon days of The Bootleg Beatles may have passed a decade ago, the glory days live on in Japan. So much so, in fact, that a surprisingly large-scale rock festival will take place in central Tokyo this weekend, made up entirely of Japanese pretenders. It promises to be a corker, too – while they may not look a lot like their idols, Japanese musicians (note: we said musicians, not singers) are nothing if not note-for-note accurate.

In celebration of the Legend of Rock festival, we've put together a list of Japanese tribute bands, some of which will be cranking it up to 11 in Hibiya Park this weekend.

5: Von Halen

What fun it must be to be in a Van Halen tribute band – paid (albeit poorly) to indulge in fret masturbation for an hour a night, with crowds (albeit small) goading you on rather than tutting. Lovely stuff. Japan's Von Halen do both Eddie and The Kinks proud here…until 'Debuccho Lee Roth' opens his mouth and demonstrates an 'ability' that is the polar opposite of his guitarist's axe prowess. 'E.D. Von Halen' is the star here – he's got the boyish leaps and runs down pat.
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4: The Beggars

The Beggars is a great name for a tribute band (heck, it's not a bad name for a band, full stop), though unfortunately these guys don't quite pull it off. They've certainly got the fulsome sound, and 'Mick Jaggarico' occasionally sounds like the original (oddly enough, he's especially good at mimicking Jagger's estuary English during between-song banter), but the frontman isn't consistently energetic enough to ape Mick successfully. He looks like he may be into his 50s, which is no excuse when you consider that his idol is pushing 70 and still going strong.
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3: Hattallica

Metallica may never have been the world's most visual band, but watching this Hattallica video, we're struck by how familiar their mannerisms are. Lead guitarist 'Kirz Hammett' mirrors the vaguely effeminate body language of his Californian namesake wonderfully, and 'James Hirofield' prowls the stage as though he's preparing for a hunting expedition with his hero. One small problem: while his tenor is uncannily similar to Hetfield's, this guy can actually hit and hold the notes.
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2: Mr Jimmy

Few do it as well as Mr Jimmy Sakurai, a legend in his own lunchtime who has been knocking out a stunningly accurate take on Jimmy Page since 1994. His Robert Plant buddy is pretty good, too – those notes can't be easy to reach (note the very tight trousers). Anyone out there considering a career in the rough'n'ready world of tribute performance could learn a lot here.
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1: Jimisen

The unparalleled king of the Japanese tribute scene has got to be Jimi Senzrix ('Jimisen' to his fans, just as the original is fondly known here as Jimihen, and perhaps worth noting that 'senzuri' means masturbation). You'll have to squint a tiny bit to complete the illusion, but as a performer, this guy manages to channel his inner Hendrix perfectly. His voice is surprisingly accurate, and he's a stunning guitarist, too (he'd need to be).
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Special mention: Gueen

They're not playing this weekend, but they're worth a mention if only for the high production value involved in their shows – just have a look at the video above and hazard a guess at the kind of money and time they must be investing. If you watch it through until the end, you'll see that 'Freddie Hatae' lacks a little in the butch department, but his between-song banter is funny, playing up the embarrassment of a man cursed to wear Freddie Mercury's onstage wardrobe every night of his life.

Click here for more information on the Legend of Rock festival