Here's my 2 cents on the whole night.
[b]Venue:[/b]
My brother and I got there about 30 minutes before the door opened and got a spot in line with my friend/bandmate Brye and some other IM'ers. The line wasn't nearly as long as it was in 2008, but the crowd was progressively getting larger as time passed.
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0128.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0132.jpg[/img]
Upon entering the venue, I immediately reserved us a spot at stage left, right against the stage itself (turned out to be the best spot of the night), as my brother purchased his merchandise. Then we switched. At the merchandise table, there were shirts from each band (Pop Chocolat, Monokuro, Noodles, and The Pillows) for $15 each as well as a general tour shirt (also $15) and the drumming Buster-kun shirt (only $12), overstock from 2008 (size XL only).
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0144.jpg[/img]
There were also accessories such as a hybrid rainbow towel ($12), buster-kun wristbands ($5 each), buster-kun keychains (in blue and pink, for $10 each), and of course, CD's ($10-$15) from all the bands (EXCEPT THE PILLOWS?!). I ended up purchasing the Noodles shirt and a buster-kun wristband.
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0145.jpg[/img]
After getting everything I needed I returned to the stage to find that the crowd was getting larger and larger. The stage was setup with Pop Chocolat's equipment as they were to perform first.
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0138.jpg[/img]
After a few minutes, they came out on stage:
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0148.jpg[/img]
[b]1. Pop Chocolat - 8/10[/b]
They started out pretty rough with their first song. It was obvious they were opening. But, right after the first song, they took a minute to talk the audience. The bassist, Michiko, did most of the talking as her English was exceptionally adequate compared to anyone else from Pop Chocolat or the other bands. She told us that the next few songs on the setlist were from the album Trip, produced by Sawao Yamanaka.
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0154.jpg[/img]
Then, it got good. It got so good, I left the crowd in the middle of their performance to cough up another $15 for their 6-song CD. It was worth it.
[b]2. Monokuro - 6/10[/b]
Monokuro was the second opening act. They were featured on the Electric Rays compilation CD with the songs "mind game" and "AM." They first came out on stage to do a quite lengthy soundcheck followed by an exit off stage. They later reentered to perform. I cannot explain how terrible they were; my ears were bleeding. There's a remarkable difference in quality between their recordings and live performances. I literally left my spot near the stage to go sit on the side because I simply couldn't stand them. The lead singer in particular was drunk out of his mind, bringing the whole performance down 10 notches. The bassist was fine, and the drummer was also.
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0158.jpg[/img]
In the intermission between Monokuro and Noodles, Yoko (Noodles) came out from backstage to grab her guitar, which sat right outside the backstage entrance. I happened to be sitting on the ground there since Monokuro came on, so I siezed the opportunity to get my Noodles T-Shirt signed.
[b]3. Noodles - 9/10[/b]
I took a few pictures of the setlist and Yoko's equipment during the initial setup period. I was surprised to see that she only brought about 3 pedals: Overdrive, Bluesdriver, and Digital Delay.
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0168.jpg[/img]
Still, compared to 2008, the Noodles did a fantastic job. Sawao was watching them the whole time from stage left.
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0164.jpg[/img]
Their setlist has also greatly improved since two years ago.
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0169.jpg[/img]
In between their second and third song, I noticed that Ayumi (drums) was wearing a Joy Division shirt, so I yelled it out. Yoko chuckled and said to me, "Nice shirt
." (It was the shirt she signed just before she got up on stage.)
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0176.jpg[/img]
Before the last song, "Ingrid said," they stopped to thank everyone and said that they would be back again soon, possibly this year.
[b]4. The Pillows - 8/10[/b]
As one would expect, the crowd went bonkers as soon as Sato entered the stage, followed by Sawao and Manabe, and finally, the bassist from Monokuro (Jun had passport issues and couldn't make it; makes sense why they're only playing two shows this year).
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0186.jpg[/img]
I got a picture of their set list as well as shot of Manabe's pedal board, for all you pedal junkies.
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0184.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0183.jpg[/img]
As manabe was setting up, I got his attention and said, "Rememeber me? Ano Hito Onaji Sora no Shita de!" He was like, "WOW
," and went and told one of the photographers, who chuckled and waved at me. Then, after setting up, they all exited and reentered with theme music. This time, on their way up, Sawao pointed at me and on the mic said, "I know you! You entered the cover contest!" I was like, "Hell ya I did!"
(For those of you who are lost by now, check out [url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GaYcoXAOU4Q[/url])
After a few comments, Sawao played the "I'm going to San Francisco" bit followed by "I Think I Can." And the setlist goes on...
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0190.jpg[/img]
In between songs, Sawao took a moment to tell the crowd, "We have been making music for 20 years. So physically, we are old. But our hearts, go on forever! We will keep making music!"
During the following break between songs, someone threw a shirt up on stage that read something along the lines of, "We came all the way from New York to see you. Please play Swanky Street." The request was turned down, however, due to the fact that Monokuro's bassist didn't know how to play that song. Still, Sawao played/sang the intro as the crowd went wild. After that, they moved on to Carnival and the rest of the setlist.
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0192.jpg[/img]
After they exited, they were encored back up by the routine "ONE MORE SONG! ONE MORE SONG!" chant, to play once more. The first thing Sawao did on his way back up was crowd dive. He even received a bracelet from the crowd, and put it on. They finished the night with "One Life" and "Last Dinosaur." At the end of "Last Dinosaur," Manabe threw some picks out to the crowd and I was lucky enough to catch one!
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0197.jpg[/img]
After they finished, I threw up an envelope to Manabe, which contained my band's CD and some other stuff like photos and a band bio. Manabe gladly accepted it
.
[b]After the Show:[/b]
Immediately after the show, before I even left from the stage, one of the staff members for either The Pillows or Noodles (not entirely sure), named Ben, came up to me and was like, "Hey, are you itaffy13?"
I replied, "yeah"
"We've been following you for the past two years on YouTube."
"Who's been following me?!"
"Us; The Pillows, Noodles, etc. Keep up the good work!"
"Wow, that's awesome. By the way, I threw a package up to Manabe; can you make sure he gets it?"
"Ya sure."
The venue slowly cleared up and I noticed that many members from the bands were lingering about the venue. I first targeted Pop Chocolat so that I could get my CD signed and I ended up getting all four of their signatures.
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0199.jpg[/img]
Then, I found Sato and told him who I was and got a picture with him and the other two Pillows.
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0193.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0194.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0195.jpg[/img]
Finally, I found Ayumi and Ikuno near the backstage entrance and got my shirt signed so that I now have all the Noodles's signatures on it.
[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg177/itaffy13/IMG_0198.jpg[/img]
[b]Final Thoughts:[/b]
Pop Chocolat did an awesome job opening up and I'm definitely inclined to listen to them more because they were very impressive.
Monokuro was a let down considering their music is usually good. But that lead singer just made a fool of the whole band.
Noodles get the [i]Most Improved[/i] award for completely exceeding my expectations from 2008. I definitely think they're headed in the right direction.
There was a lack of enthusiasm regarding The Pillows's encore due to the fact that if the bassist knew the songs, then it was planned. Then again, I think The Pillows did the best they could without Jun. Sure, 2008 was much more authentic and exciting, but this performance was still outstanding.
[b]The Complete Experience: 8/10[/b]
.
