Before the concert, I traveled to Sendai
to see a friend of mine. The day before had been my bonenkai or end-of-the-year
party with my base school coworkers at a hot spring resort, and I barely managed
to catch my train because of my own stupidity, but thanks to my wonderful
fellow teachers, I made it on time and spent a wonderful day on the train (it
was horrible: I made two wrong transfers out of the planned seven or eight and
made the already tiring trip two hours longer). Anyway, I got to her place. We
had a nice relaxed evening with her friends over umeshu (plum wine) and
delicious pizza.
Because the show Sunday was in the
afternoon, I didn't have much time to go sight-seeing. After paying for my
Tohoshinki ticket at Lawson, I took the subway and left for the venue, which
was a cinch for me to locate. Though I had a huge scare upon entering. I was
told something that I couldn't quite catch, and was asked to wait by the
entrance while almost everyone went on past me. For a moment I really thought I
wouldn't be let in. After quite a few minutes and a lot of worrying, someone
came to talk to me and I could understand that there was a dress code. I think
that might have been an agreement with the fan club (the members of which could
buy the tickets), so the fact that I wasn't aware might have looked suspicious.
I was able to get away with my ignorance because I'm a foreigner. (That saved
my butt so many times!) Anyway, I had noticed that everyone was wearing a
school uniform, but I didn't think it was required. Thankfully, they lent me a
blouse, a tie and a skirt so I could get in. I also bought a pair of cat ears
because many people were wearing them and they were very cute. From some
reports I've been reading, it seems that I was incredibly lucky to be able to
attend the concert. In the past, there have been ID checks and I'm not even in
the fan club. (O.O) Again, being a foreigner truly saved me.
(To tell the truth, I'm REALLY tempted to join the fan club. So I'll make up for my sins one day.)
After raiding the merch, I went to find
my seat (of course, I didn't, someone led me to it after he caught me taking a
picture of the stage – double oops). Surprisingly, it was pretty good, even
though the room wasn't that big. I could almost make out Gackt's 眩しい
facial features perfectly.
Well, I have Lasik to thank for that too.
I really need to catch up with Gackt. I
haven't been following his activities for a few years so I have no idea what
he's been up to (and have probably missed 4-5 albums). Turns out that there was
a big concept going on for the tour (I assume it's just the tour, but it might
even not be limited to the concerts, for all I know). There was this fictive (I
hope) super-academic school called Camui G. Gakuen (Camui is Gackt's supposed
last name) where 9 students rule powerfully as the handsome and revered senpais
of all students (kind of like the F4 in Hana Yori Dango). Of course, Gackt was
the head of that group and was referred to as "kaicho" (which means
he's head of the student body) and called that by everyone. Also, as if
that wasn't enough, there were a bunch of Japanese words that they used (for
example: arigataki instead of arigatou). Gackt used that a lot to fire
up the crowd, yelling out "Yoroshii ka?!" to which we had to answer
"Kashikomari!" (from the verb "Kashikomarimashita", which I
guess could be translated as "Understood" and basically indicates a
willingness to obey). At the beginning of the concert (and maybe on more than
one occasion), we observed the "Kiritsu/Rei" practice that we have in
school, where students stand up and bow to greet the teacher. There was even a
school anthem and all... the whole package! I'd be surprised if it wasn't
Gackt we were talking about... but it is.
The doors opened at 2 o'clock and the
event officially started at 3, but although Gackt did make his entrance by
walking through the room and waving at his fans (He was so close! TWT He truly is
just as handsome in person!), the real thing didn't start for an hour and a
half. To be honest, since I had no idea what was going on, I feared for a moment
that this was not a concert at all. I mean, it could have been just a fan
meeting or something. What took place was a lot of fun, but I kinda wanted it
to be over after an hour or so. Members of his band and F9 group fooled around
a lot, including taking part in a batsu game that involved acting a dramatic
scene. As I said before, I'm really behind Gackt's activities, so I had no idea
if the "YOU" everyone was calling out was the same as the one I
remembered. It seems to be so. Apparently, Chacha is still in the band. I
really thought JOB had changed ever since. (I swear I am the worst fan ever! I
used to know what they were up to, but that is no longer the case.) Well, I'm
really glad to know they're still around, although the family seems to have expanded.
I've always loved that cheerful guy Chacha, especially. (^O^) Anyway, everyone
was really, really good-looking. Like, unrealistically so. They were wearing a
bunch of weird clothes, but that's alright when you are that handsome. You can
afford to sport a potato sack if that's your thing. It's not like Gackt
didn't do it in the past, right? (Remember Oasis?) But what they did... was
truly all kinds of crack. I have the whole thing recorded, but I only remember
some parts, like the fact that one guy was wearing a dress and that his balloon
boobs kept creeping up his cleavage, and also that another guy wearing a very ugly
turtle (ninja?) costume laid a bunch of eggs that were then thrown at us. Ohhhhhh. And there was some boys' love pretend
make-out during the acting part. That was also quite nice.
In other words, Gackt is still a retarded
pervert. He hasn't changed!
The real concert started at 5 o'clock and
lasted a little under two hours. I know, it's a little short, but more than a
concert, it seems like this was a "school festival", so it wasn't all
about the music. I think the songs for the most part were covers, but it was an
incredible concert still. Very entertaining. It was also the finale, which is
an important point to remember, but I will talk about that later.
I found a useful little blog entry which
contains some pictures as well as the track list.
1. スリル／布袋寅泰
(Tomoyasu Hotei): This was alright. Not my favourite, but I think Gackt did
a pretty good job. Sounded kinda old-school. I think it's not exactly a recent
song. I didn't know the singer, but he seems to have been in the music industry
for an eternity and to have acquired global recognition. I suppose it was a
good choice, but I wasn't exactly a big fan either.
2. WHITE
BREATH／T. M. Revolution:
At that point, I hadn't realised Gackt was performing covers, but I knew that
song, so at that time, I just assumed it was his. Still, something seemed off.
Anyway, now I know that it was TMR and it makes a lot more sense. I love that
song and Gackt's rendition was wonderful: delightfully energetic and powerful
like Gackt only knows to do so well.
3. B'z
メドレー:
This medley made me want to get to know B'z music more. Jaejoong too performed
a B'z song when I went to see his concert in November (I think it was 「ultra
soul」) and it was amazing. As for Gackt, he sang a bunch of them,
and each performance ended with a catchy "u-ru-to-ra-so" (RE!), "ultra soul", and a giant
panel with the words we had to sing being lowered.
4. 1/3
の純情な感情／SIAM
SHADE: The good old J-Rocker that we love came out to play for this song. Gackt
is a very versatile singer that has a great number of styles and while he's a
master at singing heart‑wrenching ballads, no one can deny that he knows how to
rock, and that he does it like a boss. Another band that I would like to check
out thanks to Gackt's brilliant performance.
5.
情熱のイナズマ／GACKT:
Before this performance, Gackt showed us a little dance (which probably
everyone but me already knew by heart, huhuhu ;A;). It was a cute little
one-two butt-shaking arm-waving dance that even I was able to take part in
(which means it was terribly easy). The whole thing ended with a
"Whoo!" shout from the heart and was pretty fun overall. In a way,
the dance reminded me of songs such as Marmalade, Soleil and (especially!) U+K.
However, the song was quite fast-paced and did not involve mascots dancing
around the stage in a silly way. It sounds quite catchy and good. Also, unlike what
happened in the past, no band member was touched inappropriately. My eyes
wouldn't have missed the abuse. But I mean, the man did turn 40 last summer,
maybe it was time to grow up a little. At any rate, I think it's really nice
how Gackt kept trying to make us participate as much as possible to ensure that
we wouldn't get bored (not that the show was boring, not in the least).
The show went on with Gackt complaining
that it was cold (another similarity with Jaejoong's concert?!), except it
really wasn't. He was just too deeply focused on his "kaicho" act. He
continued his monologue (dialogue with imaginary person), going on about
someone not able to find a good boyfriend ("Even a foreigner is OK!"
Yah, what was that for! D: XD Hahaha.) I only barely understood what was going
on, but then Ayu's name was mentioned. Not only are they from the same label,
but I think they're pretty good friends too, and I remember there have always
been dating rumors surrounding those two, but they probably just have a good
laugh about it over a bottle of wine. Iunno. Okay, I'm rambling too much.
6. SEASONS／浜崎あゆみ: This song sounded
familiar, but I was still a clueless fool and did not understand that he was
singing Ayu's song. It didn't help that the song sounded exactly like one of
his ballads would and suited his voice perfectly. Really, really good job. He
truly gave it his all and man, was the result breathtaking. I will never get
tired of Gackt's voice. So soothing yet painfully moving.
7. I
LOVE YOU／尾崎豊 (Yutaka
Ozaki): Another flawless performance, which just goes to show that Gackt
truly is a master of love songs. He never fails to express perfectly whatever
feeling or message has to be conveyed. His rich timber gets me every time. How
I love his voice! I cannot handle all the feels. TWT Let's be honest, this man
is the real thing when he is on stage. His voice is just as good, if not better
than on his albums, but different enough for anyone to be able to tell that he
isn't lip-syncing.
8. ミスター／KARA:
Okay, more confusion. Suddenly, a bunch of luscious blondes emerged through the
crowd and walked towards the stage in their ridiculously short skirts. At
first, I thought they were like a second F9 made up from female students, but
when they started singing, it became obvious. They were men, alright. It
was the same guys from earlier (well, only four of them). Still clueless, as I
did not know the tune, I thought it was a new song written solely for our
entertainment. But despite the fact that the high-pitched voices sounded a
little strange, they really weren't all that bad, surprisingly. The dances they
performed could very well not have been a joke, but an actual Korean pop girl
band. Well, turns out that they didn't make up everything. It was a song from
KARA.
9. FANTASTIC
BABY／BIGBANG:
At that point, I was starting to get that something was up. I know and adore
this song, so of course I recognised it right away. Although, boy was I NOT
expecting what we got. Now other members of the F9 came out on stage, and among
them was the "kaicho", Gackt himself, dressed up as one hell of a
gorgeous woman. (So hot, so sexy, much thighs, wow. Or rather, why?! T_T
So angry, much jealous, grrrrrrr.) The lyrics for this one were changed and
adapted to the context and vocabulary of Camui Gakuen. From what I could
understand, it was pretty damn funny! But despite the fact that it was (more
than) a little ridiculous, it was still a good performance and extremely
entertaining. I enjoyed thoroughly how the "girls" flashed their
panties on purpose. (^^)
10. 江南スタイル／PSY:
Because at that point, why not? How much stranger could it get, really... Before
I could understand what was going on, and before the familiar first few notes
of Gangnam Style could be heard, a man came out dressed as a pretty convincing
PSY, and of course, he was flanked with the pretty ladies. I was (almost
literally) rolling on the floor with laughter. Maybe to the other fans, it
wasn't all that surprising, but I was expecting everything but this. I was
shocked, in a good way, and speechless, but also quite amused. What an
incredible performance! The lyrics were also changed because what better
occasion to sing about "CAMUI STYLE"! Epic shit. :'D
11-12. Rusty Nail, X／X JAPAN:
Because I hadn't had enough surprises. This was seriously worth going all the
way to Sendai for. The REAL Toshi was present. X-Japan's one and only singer. As
for the rest of the band, Gackt was on drums sporting a blonde wig (to look
like Yoshiki, I suppose), while the guitarist and bassist had hair much like
hide used to have, a hot pink styled like a mohawk. Now, I was not and still am
not the biggest X-Japan fan, but you have to say that regardless, it's still
something to feel pretty damn lucky about. I paid a pretty decent amount for
the ticket and got to see not one but two artists, one of which is considered a
true veteran and highly respected actor in the music industry, while the other
has soared to the rank of legend. To think that I was able to see him live... I
feel so blessed! I'm so glad I was able to capture the audio for future
reference and reminiscence :3 Besides, I needed proof! Many of my friends, I
have found, are fans of X-Japan. Let's just say they were a little envious. (^_~)
The songs were awesome. I knew both
of them, as they are quite famous, even amongst people who are not necessarily
fans of X-Japan. Not sure where I heard them, but it's really not that surprising
at all. Despite his age (no offence, but he is a little old), Toshi could belt
out those notes without even a strain to his voice. It seems hard to
believe that the man would still have that much energy to this day. His performance
was perfect. I really like his voice. It's quite unique. You never know,
this show might have been all I needed to finally get into X-Japan. The fans
were really into it and they knew the lyrics pretty well, which I thought was
cool. The Great Toshi really stretched the song "X" as he is known to
do, for quite a few minutes, and we went on doing "X" signs with our
arms and light sticks endlessly.
This was followed by yet another funny video.
The student from before was running again, calling out for our beloved kaicho,
and that is when the unthinkable happened (really, it was totally predictable).
He slipped on a banana peel and was sent flying out the screen. When he gathered
himself and finally found who he was looking for, Gackt was sitting in his
fancy office drinking wine like a true
gentleman. I don't quite remember
how it escalated to that point, but suddenly Gackt was wearing Vegeta's clothes
and turning full-blown Super Saiyan on him. Just what you would expect from a
regular Gackt concert. When that was over, there was a final song with all
the F9 members present, wearing sparkly silver clothes and headbands, circling
around the stage on roller skates. More confusion: I could have sworn that I
was suddenly at a Johnny's concert, hahahahaha. Now that was pretty much the
end of the show. For the last time, Gackt proclaimed his love for us (愛してるよ！),
which made me all warm and fuzzy inside, and then he left the stage. There were
no more encores.
There wasn't much to see after. I didn't
stick around too long, because it was too crowded and I couldn't possibly
imagine that Gackt himself would show up. We could still buy merchandise and
the members' special dishes (like YOU's curry), or take pictures with the
cardboard cut-outs. After returning the school uniform that I had been lent, I
went back to the station and then on to my friend's apartment. We had a fun
evening in downtown Sendai eating a bunch of delicious things like veggie
burgers and cream puffs.
Of course, the day would not have been
complete without a puri-kura photo session.
The rest of my holidays in Kyoto and
Tokyo, coming soon.
