BEST LIVE MUSIC VENUE
Club Quattro
TOKYO, JAPAN
By Michiko Toyama

Posted Monday, November 15, 2004; 21:00 HKT
As every music lover knows, Asia occupies a lowly place on the rock 'n' roll map. The international bands that tour the region are typically well past their prime, lured out of retirement with the promise of lucrative reunion gigs. Ticket prices are high, production values are low, and the shows themselves—before an aging, suited fan base—can have all the atmosphere of a business conference. Very occasionally, younger, more contemporary artists make an appearance—but their itineraries are limited to a couple of carefully chosen dates, arranged to amortize the cost of touring their real destinations: the Anglophone markets of Australia and New Zealand.

That's why the mere existence of Club Quattro brings a lump to the throat of anyone unable to face yet another Air Supply concert or Andy Williams dinner-cabaret. This intimate venue (it holds just 800) in Tokyo's Shibuya district has seen rock's leading lights tread its boards—from Nirvana, Oasis and the Red Hot Chili Peppers to Björk. Artists of the caliber of Lenny Kravitz have played impromptu "secret" gigs here, and the club has been responsible for breaking acts like the Pizzicato Five and the Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra—Japanese bands that have gone on to attract an international following. Even if you stand at the back of the room, you're closer to your idols than you'd be if you were in the front block of the city's Nippon Budokan arena. Club Quattro is the true home of rock 'n' roll in Asia.

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