Die, Kaoru, Kyo, Toshiya, Shinya

It’s Friday the thirteenth, and a miserable one at that. Thick cloud cover casts New York in a sallow, wan light, and the sky sputters icy raindrops that whisper against umbrellas the promise of a deluge. I’m walking down 23rd Street in Manhattan, and around me pedestrians are hurrying to their destinations, eager to escape the rain and cold. As unpleasant as the weather is this afternoon, not far ahead stands a large group of people who seem perfectly content to stay outside in the rain. Wrapped in plastic bags and cheap ponchos and huddling under makeshift cardboard shelters, the line of a few hundred college-aged people winds around two corners and threatens to overtake a third.

No, their ad-hoc cardboard signs proclaim, they’re not homeless. This isn’t a line for a soup kitchen. They’re here for Dir en grey.

Tonight is the second show of the Japanese rock giants’ three night booking at the Gramercy Theater. Some of these people have been sitting outside the theater since the first show let out on Wednesday night. I am personally acquainted with many of these fans: I was one of them too once, waking up at insane hours and waiting on line all day to ensure a good spot in the crowd. I say my hellos to all the familiar faces on the line, but today I’m not here to sit around on the concrete. I’m on my way to meet up with Dir en grey’s roadie-cum-translator Nora and an as-of-yet unknown member of the band for a short interview before the show.
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