Punk, Visual Kei, and Metal festivals recommended for people in their 40s

favorite_borderLast updated:2025/3/8

• Music Festival Master / Editor-in-ChiefHane Keisukebeenhere
  Editor-in-chief of RAG MUSIC and in charge of music festivals. When I attended my first music festival as a freshman in college, I was captivated by its charm—“I can’t believe there’s a place this free and this fun.” I share information about wonderful music festivals every day to help grow the community of festival fans.

Punk hardcore

First up is a punk and hardcore festival.

Speaking of people in their 40s,Hi-STANDARDMany of you were probably listening in real time to melodic punk—among others—as well as hardcore bands like SA and SLANG, weren’t you?

Here, we introduce a festival where bands from each generation perform every year.

AIRJAM (Air Jam)

http://airjam.jp

A rock festival hosted by Hi-STANDARD, the well-known driving force behind Japan’s melodic hardcore scene.

Unfortunately, it isn’t a festival held every year at the moment, but whenever it’s announced, tickets sell out immediately.

In recent years, with the growing popularity of melodic hardcore among young people, this event has attracted not only adults from the so-called Air Jam generation but also many younger participants.

It hadn’t been held since 2000, but it was suddenly staged in 2011, and in 2012, in response to the Great East Japan Earthquake, the long-awaited hosting in the Tohoku region was realized.

Since we released a full album in 2017, I’m looking forward to seeing if there will be any events held from 2018 onward.

ECHOES (Echoes)

http://ikkinotdead.com/echoes/17/

This is a festival organized by HAWAIIAN6, a band that was also, for a time, signed to PIZZA OF DEATH.

Past performers includeBRAHMANThere are also many bands like NAMBA69 and SLANG that performed at AIR JAM in the late 1990s.

Most of the other lineup also seems to consist largely of artists from that generation, so isn't the target likely set for people in their late 30s to 40s?

This music festival, held since 2006, offers a lineup every year that delights punk and hardcore fans, and is recommended for adults.

Nakatsugawa THE SOLAR BUDOKAN (Nakatsugawa Solar Budokan)

http://solarbudokan.com/2017/

Nakatsugawa THE SOLAR BUDOKAN is a rock festival organized by Taiji Sato of the rock band Theatre Brook.

This event began with the idea of holding a music festival powered entirely by electricity generated from solar energy in response to the Great East Japan Earthquake.

Many artists who share this vision have gathered, and it’s an event loved by the performers as well, known for the idea that “the sound played with electricity generated from solar power is truly wonderful.”

Looking at the lineup each year, there are plenty of acts for younger audiences, but many artists who were active in the ’80s and ’90s as well, making it a festival I can recommend to people in their 40s.

visual kei

Visual kei bands were also creating a huge sensation in the late 1990s, weren't they?

Some of you in your late 30s or 40s might have listened almost exclusively to visual kei bands back then, right?

These days, events featuring only visual kei bands have become quite rare, but there’s an event I recommend even to fans from back in the day.

VISUAL JAPAN SUMMIT

http://visual-japan.com/

It’s the largest visual-kei event, which was held only once in 2016.

The lineup featured an illustrious roster, and for fans of visual kei, it must have been an irresistible event.

Given an event of this scale, it might be difficult to hold it regularly, but as a visual-kei festival, it’s unquestionably an insanely hot event.

I imagine many people in their 40s actually took part as well, didn’t they?

Shibuya is in trouble.

http://f-w-d.co.jp/beautytricker/shibutai2017/

This is a visual-kei circuit event taking place throughout the Shibuya area.

The scene seems to have a relatively large number of younger visual kei bands, but wouldn’t it be interesting for people in their 40s to experience the current visual scene as well?

Because I’ve listened to a lot of old visual kei bands, I can understand the current bands’ backbones, which might make it more enjoyable.

metal

Aren’t there quite a few people in their forties who like metal?

Are there perhaps people in their 40s who used to listen almost exclusively to heavy metal and hard rock in the ’80s and ’90s?

There aren’t many festivals in Japan that invite overseas metal bands and are held every year, but the domestic metal scene is a must-see!

LOUD PARK (Raudo Pāku)

https://www.facebook.com/LoudPark

LOUD PARK is definitely recommended for overseas heavy metal and hard rock fans.

It’s one of the largest metal festivals in Japan, featuring a lineup centered on overseas artists every year, where you can enjoy genuine metal and hard rock.

As one of the rare festivals featuring overseas metal and hard rock bands that’s held every year, it must feel like an annual celebration for metal fans in Japan, don’t you think?

KNOTFEST JAPAN (Knotfest Japan)

https://twitter.com/knotfestjapan

KNOTFEST, the music festival hosted by the American heavy rock band Slipknot.

It’s an event featuring decorations and productions that embody their worldview.

It has been held around the world, including in the United States, and has also taken place in Japan.

Since it's hosted by Slipknot, the lineup features hugely popular artists from Japan and abroad, making it an irresistible event for metal and loud music fans.

In conclusion

This time, we introduced recommended festivals focusing on music genres popular among people in their 40s.

When it comes to music festivals, some people may now think of them as part of youth culture, especially among students, but in reality, you'll find that many adults attend as well.

Also, for events like the ones we introduced this time, many are targeting people in their late 30s to 40s, so if you participate, you’re sure to have a great time.

By all means, pick an event you like and make your music festival debut!