Review: High Noon, a midsummer’s day. A congregation accumulates outside of a Tokyo fairground; each member unified by a single desire. Their shared mission, to brave the unforgiving heat of a Japanese summer and bare witness the pop extravaganza that is T.M.Revolution.

T.M.Revolution, short for “Takanori Makes Revolution”, is the vehicular title for one Takanori Nishikawa. This bubble gum maestro is most likely known in the States for his infectious themes to such anime hits as Mobilesuit Gundam Seed (INVOKE) and Samurai X aka Rurouni Kenshin (Heart of Sword), but in his native land of Japan, he has been melting the hearts of young Japanese school girls since 1996. With six full length albums and multiple hit singles under his belt, this thirty-three year old pop icon has set his sights westward with a recent appearance at Baltimore’s annual anime convention, OTAKON.

The Sony Records affiliate “TOFU Records” has been heading the campaign to bring T.M.Revolution to the states as well as the hearts of both Otakus, and J-pop enthusiast alike. Their first order of business has been the successive release of T.M.R’s most recent album “Coordinate”, and a DVD documenting his 2002 tour “Summer Crush”.

The event begins with a sequined robed Nishikawa being chauffeured through the crowd on the back of a large, white, convertible, while in the company of two beautiful blondes. This excessively lengthy procession does its job though, as the female concert goers are whipped into a fevered frenzy. He eventually reaches his destination and is escorted onto the stage where he rips off his red, white, and blue boxer’s robe (think flamboyant rocky balboa) only to reveal his quasi-gothic black ensemble.

The set opens with a pounding dance anthem entitled “Black or White?”. Actually, the anthems just kept on coming as one song soon blurred into four or five, leaving my teeth, stomach, and brain simultaneously aching from the syrupy pop that was oozing from my television. Only half way through did the overall sound change enough to catch my attention. Nishikawa eventually takes up a guitar to show us his musician oriented side, and the dance pop shifts in tempo to a more guitar driven sound. In true Japanese fashion Nishikawa performs to perfection, playing to the predominantly female audience with the skill of a seasoned professional. The occasional “crotch rub” (aka “fan service”) was present causing the near simultaneous explosion of thousands of teenage girls.

Throughout the concert we are given a glimpse into the preparation that Nishikawa and his staff went through during the course of the day. This acts as a preface to what is more thoroughly documented on the second disc. We find that this elaborately organized event, with its grand scale and strict preparation, is conducted with a certain enjoyable work ethic. Nishikawa and his staff take the time to have a little fun and the camera is there to capture it, squirt gun battles and all.

For anyone familiar with the varying J-pop acts out there, I would say the best way to describe the package that is T.M.R., is to envision someone with a look similar to Gackt and a sound similar to Ayumi Hamasaki; neither half attaining the same amount of skill or charisma as its originator. Whether that comparison is fair or accurate, is up to the viewer. All in all, T.M.Revolution is a decent pop act with catchy hooks. What he lacks in originality, he makes up for with a pyrotechnics and a bitchin laser light show.