Moshing Maniac 2000 (2014)

*12 Months of the Monster and Mr Boredom

The February performance in the 12 Months of the Monster and Mr. Boredom series by core of bells.

A performance held in February. The theme was moshing — the act of deliberately slamming one's body against others in a densely packed crowd — and it was conceived from the observation that at hardcore punk live shows, the behavior of the audience often appears more central than that of the performers, leading to the idea of eliminating the band's presence entirely.

Before the show, "fans" wearing core of bells merchandise T-shirts file into a large cage-like mosh pit installed between the general audience seating and the stage. Once the "mosh pit" is packed to capacity, the view is blocked, and the stage becomes completely invisible from the general audience seating.

Even after core of bells' live performance begins, the performing members are never visible; all the audience can see is the choreographed moshing of the frenzied "fans" unfolding before their eyes.

The general audience can only imagine the content of the live performance based on the intensity of the moshing and the blasting volume from the speakers. As the show nears its end, the human walls inside the mosh pit part for a "Wall of Death" — a specialized form of moshing — briefly revealing an empty stage, thereby exposing the absence of the band that was supposed to have been performing.

This was the first collaboration with Noriyuki Kiguchi, founder of Akuma no Shirushi.