[Music Event in Narita!] I went to REHUB @ Barge Inn Narita by Narita no Okage Vol.2

On Sunday, July 31, the second edition of the music event REHUB was held at Barge Inn Narita, a bar on the street leading from Narita Station to Narita-san Shinsho-ji Temple.

- What is REHUB? -
With live events drastically reduced due to the COVID-19 pandemic and Narita City originally lacking in venues like clubs or music bars, the decline in events has had a significant impact on the city’s music culture. To combat this, the REHUB project was launched by the resident DJs of The Barge Inn, along with groups from fashion culture like Los Mavericks in Shibayama, and collaborated with Narita no Okage who produces live events in the Narita area. The goal is to revive the art culture by reconnecting the community (hub) and to turn negatives into positives, akin to rehabilitation (rehab), hence the name REHUB.

Like last time, many talented DJs were on the lineup, and this time there was also a live band performance, so I was really looking forward to it.

I participated in the event by providing sound equipment support.
We brought in the JBL EON712 as the main speaker and the CLASSIC PRO CPM110P as the floor monitor.

The EON712, with its 12-inch, 1300W capacity, delivers clear, comfortable mid-highs and a dense, tight bass that gets your heart pumping.
It can be wirelessly controlled via the dedicated JBL Pro Connect app, allowing for detailed settings like EQ and AFS (Automatic Feedback Suppression) directly from the speakers.
This time, we chose not to use the preset EQ and kept the settings flat, adjusting the sound on the mixer instead. The richness of the bass and the clarity of the mid-highs were impressive, as expected from JBL.

The CPM110P is a powered coaxial speaker. Unlike the typical two-way type, where the high and low units are separate, this compact design is space-efficient. The full range sound coming from a single point makes it easy to monitor, which is another great feature.

The event was held at the same venue as last time, Barge Inn, the social spot in Narita. A quick aside: there was actually another half of the floor space beyond what we use now. It’s not currently in use, but stepping in there brought back a flood of great memories from my younger days I spent here! I truly hope we can use that space again someday.

The sound setup was smoothly handled by my reliable colleagues, not by me (haha).

Barge Inn has a long, narrow floor space, so we carefully considered the placement of the amps, equipment, and main speakers.

The DJ booth was packed with gear, including two turntables, the DJM-750mk2, and the all-in-one DJ system XDJ-XZ! I’ve never seen such a wide setup before! It was a seamless blend of digital and analog. There’s something undeniably cool about a DJ spinning records—it’s just too slick.

The drums were mic’d up with an AKG drum mic set, and the main vocal mic was the Shure BETA58A. Even surrounded by loud music on stage, it captured the vocals perfectly. Truly a top-notch vocal mic!

The deep red body of the Nord keyboard was stunning. This keyboard also produced great sound! By the way, the stand was the reliable K&M.

The guitar amp was Supro, and the bass amp was Quilter. They both delivered excellent sound. Despite their compact size, the power was more than sufficient. The guitar was mic’d up, while the bass sound was taken from the DI OUT, with the balance adjusted through the PA speakers.

The main mixer was the Soundcraft Ui16. We added a computer and tablet so we could walk around the venue while adjusting the sound. Standing next to the performers on stage, we balanced the monitors, fine-tuning in real-time. This not only improved precision but also saved time during the rehearsal.

The monitor speakers on stands were CLASSIC PRO CP15II, a model regularly used at Barge Inn. The CP-II Series is CLASSIC PRO’s higher end PA speakers, with its robust wooden enclosure, delivered powerful sound and performed well as always.

The event started at 4:00 p.m., just as the sun was setting and the temperature was cooling down. The performances by DJs connected to Narita were all unique and refreshing.

Even though I don’t know everyone, if the music playing resonates with me, I find myself naturally gravitating toward the DJ booth and joining in the fun. I love that.

This is KAGE from Sound House’s DJ team. He did a great job, choosing popular Japanese tracks that got everyone hyped up. There’s something oddly entertaining about watching him turn knobs, don’t you think?

The band I was personally looking forward to...

They were amazing.
They gave me goosebumps.

I was already impressed during the rehearsal, but they blew me away during the performance. When the DJ stopped and the live band started playing, I could feel the energy in the room surge. Kids, elderly people, and even international guests all raised their hands and joined in. There were so many people that it was hard to see the band members!

This time, I was just the guy who brought the speakers.
The PA setup and adjustments were handled by my colleagues.
The music was performed by the DJs and band members.
It’s been 14 years since I was assigned to the showroom and tasked with speaker management, doing this work day in and day out. That’s all.
But it’s not bad.

If my children ever ask me what my job is,
I’d like to say, “I help people who make music to express what they want to say through sound. I make it loud so many people can hear it.”

I want to show them people enjoying the event and proudly say, “This is my work.”

I was moved by the words of my colleague who always handles the PA.
Before the event started, they asked the band’s vocalist, 2LOW, “What message do you most want to convey?” After listening carefully to every word, they said, “Thank you. We’ll do our best to make sure your message is clearly conveyed through our PA settings.” I’ve never seen such a reliable PA engineer. I’m sure the band members were able to focus entirely on their performance without any worries. That energy was a key factor in creating such an electrifying atmosphere.

Let me also share something the event organizer mentioned:
“Two years for us older guys is different from two years for someone in their twenties. A lot of the younger people around here don’t know where to hold events or how to do it. So, we want to create that space for them.”

I hope we can get back to places where we can all enjoy music freely and comfortably as soon as possible.

In my experience, music events often bring people together under the feeling that “friends of friends are all friends.”
The connections and bonds formed at these events are invaluable and will continue to grow.

I’m grateful to the organizer, Sugano-san, who asked me to help this event, my colleagues who helped me with setup and PA settings, 2LOW-san, the band members, the DJs, everyone involved, and everyone who came out and made the event a success.

I’m looking forward to the next opportunity and will continue working hard!