So to start from the beginning, last Thursday Sandra, a girl in my Interculteral Communications class, stopped me as I was leaving after class and wanted to make sure she heard right that I liked Visual Kei. So we got started talking a little about VK, and she happened to mention Kagrra, was going to be in Osaka over the weekend. And of course I knew they were on a tour and that it was their 10th Anniversary Tour. I've known Sandra for a grand total of about 10 minutes and we're already making plans to go to a concert!
On Saturday we got together to try to figure out how to get ticket, but we couldn't really figure it out, so I had it in my mind that the plan was off. But later that night I get a message from her that her okaasan knows how to get tickets. Sunday we meet up again all ready to go to the concert, but when we go to buy the tickets they're all SOLD OUT!!! So depressing!!! But we noticed they where going to be in Kyoto in a few days. Even though it was a school night we said hell to it and bought the tickets. They were about 4700yen each, which as J-Rock concert tickets go is REALLY GOOD!
There was a slight mix up where I though it was yesterday and scared the crap out of both of us, but it was in fact today! Obviously!
The background is done so now I'm getting to today!
Well today started out like any other day that I really don't want to go wrong. I fell down the stairs. So Japanese houses have lovely skinny, steep, and small stairs. From the first time I saw these stairs I knew I was going to eventually fall down them. And that day was today! Thankfully the only thing I got was a painful blister on my hand and a soon to be 10 inch bruise down my left shin where I slid down.
But that was about the only bad thing today! Classes went super fast and there were all amazing! (BTW gestures are haunting me in EVERY class and in real life now!)
Finally Interculteral Communications ended and Sandra and I headed out. It's amazing just how close to Kyoto we are! It literally only took about 20 min or less on the express train.
We're all excited once we get off the train and start heading for KYOTO MUSE. We're walking and walking and still haven't found it, so we head back thinking we passed it. Only to find that if we had kept walking about 10 feet past were we turned around we would have found it!
While we were waiting in line we meet 2 girls from France who were going to the concert as well. One of them had an awesome phoenix tattoo!
Finally they called our number, this was amazing practice for listening to numbers BTW! And KYOTO MUSE is super small!!! There was less than 300 people in there! And we were nice and close to the stage!
The first thing we do when we get in of course is by some merch! Sadly there were already SOLD OUT of the shirts, but I will find it on ebay no matter what!!! So I ended up buying a fan and tour pamphlet. This fan is the best 4000yen (aka $45) I've ever spent!
So we move to the floor and are about 10-15 feet from the stage! And the first thing I look for and find is Sin's Koto!!! Sadly it's on the other side of the hall, but everyone else only comes up to my chin so I can see it fine!
The lights dim and...Kagrra, appears through the back curtain!!! First Izume(drums) came out, he looked so adorable! Next Nao(bass) came out. Akiya(guitar) was next, we were directly in front of Akiya! Then Sin(guitar/koto) came out and headed for is guitar, his hair looked amazing! Finally Ishi(vocal) wondered out of stage. At this point the hall is filled with people calling their names! It was so loud!
But then the most amazing thing, that would never happen in a thousand years in America happened. Nao hit one note on his bass and everyone went silent! It was so quiet in there!
After a few more notes, they started playing!!! And I think one of the most beautiful thing ever happened. Everyone in the crowd raised their fans and copied Ishi swaying them though the air. It was literally a sea of fans!
I don't know really any of the songs they played, but there were all amazing!!! And the dances that went with them were so fun! I kept watching Ishi to see what hand movement was next, but I broke away a lot to see what the others were also doing!
Sin was my first to look for, I really wanted to see him play his Koto, and when he did it was beautiful! He seemed to be having a few problems with his guitar through out the concert though, but he managed and sounded awesome! I think of all the amazing things I've seen and experienced since coming to Japan, seeing Sin play his Koto live has to be the most amazing thing!
But Akiya kept stilling my attention. As he was directly in front of us on stage it was easy to watch him. But I noticed he kept looking in out direction a majority of the time he looked out. I finally realized he was looking not in our direction, but at us!!! When you are a foreigner and stand nearly a head taller that everyone else you get noticed. Akiya actually pointed at me!!! And cheered Sandra along when everyone was jumping! I also thing I got a small wink like thing that came along with a salute, which I of course returned and received a big smile!!!
When they talked to us, I was happy in that I think I could understand about 30% maybe even 40% of what they were saying! Ishi seemed to be making fun of Nao for how he posed in some pictures, then Nao tried to bring Izumi in to pick on him!
When it came to the end, like all concerts must they left stage. It didn't take very long for the audience to start calling their name to get them back on stage. After Sandra and I spent a few minutes giggling over some REALLY high pitched voiced girl, they finally came back out!
This time though Nao cam out first and sat down at the drums. He was followed by Ishi who picked up Nao's bass and Izumi who took Akiya's guitar. After a few minutes of them playing on the instruments Sin and Akiya came out looking very shy! They both took up microphones, they were going to sing!!! They said a few things, well Akiya did, Sin kinda bounced around looking awkward. They all started up the song, which happened to have a good bass and drums and a semi messed up guitar(Izumi kept laughing). All Sin could manage was to keep saying "JUMP JUMP JUMP..." and even with my feet about to fall off I couldn't stop when ever he would start up! Akiya was actually pretty good!
After that song they all took up their normal places, only to have Ishi decided to play musical instruments again! Right off the bat Nao volunteered to play the drums again. But Akiya, Izumi, and Sin all wanted to play bass, so Ishi made them play Jen Kan to see who got to be bass. Izumi won! Which meant Ishi got guitar and Sin and Akiya were forced to sing again. Sin was so shy up there he couldn't manage more than a few words before cracking up! Akiya was almost as bad.
After Ishi said some beautiful things about thanking us for being fans and staying with them for 10 years (I totally though he was near tears!), finally they played one final song, all in the original places. And of course they had us all sing the chorus acoustic! Which was amazing!
As their all throwing their picks and drum sticks into the crowd, Akiya was totally looking at us and threw his pick strait for us. It grazed my hand and bounced off Sandra's head and someone else got it. I think he saw that we didn't get it and throw his next one for us too, but it was short and the girl in front of me got it! But it was so amazing that he tried to get it to us!!!
The whole was back to Hirakatashi we couldn't stop talking about it, and I couldn't stop smiling walking home from the train station!
So I didn't think anything could be better than Sacred Ceremony, but I think this beats it! The whole experience was just so amazing and unique that it was just so much better! I mean the way the crowd got silent from just one note from them and how everyone danced along almost completely in time with each other. Also how Kagrra, interacted with the crowd! And the fact that Akiya paid so much attention so 2 little foreign fans throughout the whole concert!
Next time I shall update about my host family, though I think I'll back date it so it seems like I posted it before the concert! tehehe
I'd post pictures, but I wasn't allowed to take any, but I might post some of my fan and pamphlet.
Gilli
It sounds breathtaking! Glad you had a wonderful time!!!
ReplyDelete