Event Report CANNONBALL Fest

The relentless, scorching heat continues day after day—how are you all holding up? Today, I would like to share a live report with you.

The event I attended was CANNONBALL 2025, a fully indoor summer music festival held on August 10th and 11th at Saitama Super Arena. It was an extravagant two-day event featuring a total of 20 Japanese artists. In this blog, I’ll focus on three standout acts from Day 1, which I attended, and share my impressions along with my favorite song from each of their performances. Here's the lineup!

Source: From the official CANNONBALL 2025 website

Act 1: 04 Limited Sazabys

Thanks to a friend I went with, I’ve been listening to this band since high school, so they feel very familiar to me. That said, I had only experienced their music through CDs and streaming until now. I finally got the chance to see them live for the first time. It was a strange sensation. While the songs were familiar, the visual experience was completely new. Still, watching the band perform in person moved me to a whole other level. The song I’d like to highlight is "Galapagos." It’s one of my top favorites from the album SOIL, which my friend recommended to me (half forced on me) back in high school.

Act 2: SixTONES

The second act was SixTONES. I had never paid much attention to this genre before, but after the festival, I now consider myself a fan. There are two main reasons for that. First is the sheer energy of the crowd. From the moment the opening movie played, the venue erupted in cheers. Every time there was a bit of fan service during their MC segments, the room buzzed with excitement. It was just like the scenes I’d only ever seen on TV before.
Second, SixTONES themselves did an amazing job of feeding off that energy. Their interactions with the audience between performances and the way they amped up the excitement were truly impressive. The atmosphere they created made them clearly stand out from the other acts and they really made a lasting impression on me.

The second reason was the live performance by the backing band. I had never really associated live instruments with dance-vocal group performances, so seeing a full band supporting SixTONES with such flawless musicianship during their high-energy set was incredibly moving. There were many moments where I found myself captivated by the playing and gear of the backing musicians. It was a powerful experience that completely changed my previous perception of them as being "behind the scenes" or invisible contributors.
These two discoveries completely overturned my expectations and left a lasting impression on me. The standout song I’d like to highlight is “BOYZ”. With its guitar-forward arrangement, the punchy intro riff and soaring guitar solo truly struck a chord with me.

Artist #3: Maximum the Hormone

The third act—and the one I was most looking forward to—was Maximum the Hormone. They were actually the band that first got me hooked on music festivals. At my very first summer fest, which I attended on a whim with a friend, I found myself headbanging in the middle of a chaotic mosh pit, completely swept up in the energy. The rush I felt in that moment stuck with me, and ever since then, I’ve jumped at any chance to attend a festival. Even after all these years, they delivered an absolutely killer performance once again! The song I’d like to highlight is “Koi no Mega Lover”. When it comes to summer songs from Hormone, this one is it. A legendary track that needs no introduction. If you haven’t heard it yet, now’s the perfect time—definitely give it a listen!

That wraps up my live report of CANNONBALL 2025.
As the very first edition of the event, it was impressively well put together. The fully indoor setup gave a refreshing take on summer festivals, especially in the midst of these recent scorching heatwaves. This event allowed everyone to enjoy the music in cool comfort.
If the timing works out, I’d definitely love to attend again next year!