Sense of Wonder is back

After a two-year hiatus music fest fans will be glad to hear that Sense of Wonder – the outdoor festival started in 2007 – is back for a third round. The first and second editions took place in September of 2007 and 2008 at the Yamanakako Community Plaza Kirara in Yamanashi prefecture; however the venue brought with it some issues.

The previous incarnations of the festival not only suffered from cold weather, but more problematic were the traffic jams caused by the day-trippers to Fuji-Q Highland amusement park which led to major delays in the arrivals of the performers.

This time, to make good, the festival organisers have moved the festival date up to Saturday May 29, and have changed the venue to Kasama Geijutsunomori Park – a well-known public art space in Ibaraki prefecture.

Live performers will include Zazen Boys, Youmou-to-ohana and Kicell. Among the DJs in the line up will be Ken Ishii, performing under his pseudonym Flare for the first time in five years.

The third instalment of Sense of Wonder also has the backing of the local Kasama Tourist Association and the Kasama-yaki Pottery Cooperative Society. Over twenty stalls will be set up, selling everything from locally brewed sake to soba noodles.

If you are thinking about driving there, parking is free – and for those taking the train, shuttle buses will run from JR Joban Line Tomobe Station and JR Mito Line Kasama Station. For schedule and shuttle bus times, and other information, check out the event website.

Date: Sat May 29
Time: 9am open, 10am-9.30pm
Location: Kasama Geijutsunomori Park (Kasama, Ibaraki)
Ticket: ¥10,500; ¥8,500 adv
Performers: Live: Ar, Boredoms, Ino Hidefumi, Losaliosmi-gu, Miimo, Ogre You Asshole, Pe'z, Sakerock, Sour, Zazen Boys, Kicell, Kumorina, Tatetakako, Youmou-to-ohana DJ: Flare (a.k.a Ken Ishii), DJ Quietstorm, niǔ, Hiroshi Watanabe aka Kaito, Ryu Konno Installation : atelier365° Tsukuribito Dai Suchi, Candle June, D.H. Rosen, Mirrorbowler, Kuristina, Culina, Oxoxo, Hideaki Hosono
Website: s-o-w.jp/