X Japan Targets Europe

The band has slotted four shows in four countries, playing Shepherd’s Bush Empire in London June 28; France’s Zenith Paris July 1; the Tivoli De Helling in Utrecht, Netherlands, July 2 and Berlin’s Columbiahalle July 4.

Both the London and Berlin venues have been upgraded since the band first announced shows in those cities. X Japan was originally scheduled for the O2 Academy in London and Berlin’s Huxleys Neue Welt, but fan demand resulted in promoters moving the concerts to larger venues.

“We are all so excited to finally come and play in Europe,” X Japan drummer/pianist/songwriter/leader Yoshiki said in the obligatory quote required by international law in all tour announcements. “Because we’ve never played Europe before, we didn’t know how many fans we had there, so we’re so excited to have this kind of support.”

X Japan is also booked for the annual “Summer Sonic” pair of festivals in Japan, playing Osaka’s Festival Grounds Aug. 13 and Tokyo’s Chiba Marine Stadium Aug. 14.

In other X Japan news, there’s still no word on whether a $73 million bid for Yoshiki’s see-through piano during an online auction benefiting Japan’s earthquake/tsunami relief efforts was the real deal. Earlier this week the Associated Press reported Yahoo Japan had halted the auction so it could investigated the bid.

Click here for the X Japan website.