live report: lynch. "Diffusing Ideal" oneman @ Gifu Club Roots, Nov 8/08
This venue was in the middle of ass-nowhere! I got off at a local station 2 stops away from Gifu, so tiny it didn't even have an attendant, and the streets surrounding it were completely dark. I asked a salaryman on a bike for directions, and he was really nice about it. I ended up walking for 20+ minutes, and then I came to a dead end by an underpass, and thought I was lost. So I looked around and saw some young people and thought it'd be a good idea to ask them for directions, but as I got closer, I realized the crowd of young people WERE the lynch. fans, lining up at the club!
The inside was very similar to Osaka MUSE-- black all over, and a high/wide stage, but it was not as deep. It probably could have held about 400. I was 179, so I lodged myself Yusuke-side, pretty much in the middle.
They started about 10 minutes late. When they came out, Yusuke had a really cute new haircut. It's very straight and long in the front (chin-length), but a cute bob in the back. Asanao and Reo looked much the same. Junji came out in a lot of clothes... layers upon layers. The sides of his head has been shaved, but his bangs and the hair in the back have gotten very long.
And of course, Hazuki-- who looked mostly the same as in the Ambivalent Ideal PV, except no gloves or weird lip colour. And his hair colour is back to that reddish brown as before.
set list
Adore
I'm sick, b'cuz luv u.
dizzy
59.
New Song 1
melt
lizard
the whirl
prominence
Ambivalent Ideal
New Song 2 (Shadows)
the universe
STARZ
alien tune
a grateful shit
unknown lost a beauty
Encore 1
an illusion
above the skin
from the end
Encore 2
liberation chord
DOZE
pulse_
Encore 3
Adore
The energy was excellent for this crowd! Most of the attendees were probably Nagoyans, but I think they've been getting livelier with each gig. I haven't been following the blogs/forums these days, so I was shocked when they played New Song 1. I had no idea that they've been performing unreleased material, and by the looks of the audience, a lot of people already knew the song. People already had hand motions and stuff for it (though not everyone was doing it). It was mid-tempo, and not as dark as Ambivalent Ideal... very energetic and fun, though I wouldn't call it poppish. Hazuki did some truly weird moves at the beginning for it... one of his I'm-having-a-seizure type deals.
The whirl was a treat to hear, since I don't think they ever play that at event lives. It was followed by prominence, which is wonderful to hear live out of the slow songs, because it's so different from on record. The build-up was great, and Club Roots did a bang-up job with the lighting, casting haunting purples and oranges. But it was here that I noticed Reo's guitar was WAY TOO LOUD, and stayed really loud throughout. It drowned out Hazuki a bit, and warped its own sound. My hearing's still a bit off today.
Then they played a SECOND new song! Hazuki announced it as "Shadows" and it's listed as such on 2ch, so I'm sure I didn't hear wrong. But again, it seemed like everyone knew it but me, and I was so confused. It had a bit of an old-school sound to it; a very even mix between all the instruments and high energy but melodic. It even sounded like it could've been a Berry song, so I spent most of the song wondering whether it was really a new song or just very old. (Of course, I've heard all the Berry songs, and I was positive it wasn't one of them, either.)
They finished the main set around 7:20pm, which was super early. They came back for the first encore to do all slow slongs, mostly. I'm a little disappointed they didn't do stuck pain, but I'm hoping for that and other rare songs at the Anniversary Live.
When they came back for Encore 2, they were all wearing tour shirts. Hazuki started off the MC and asked how many people had never been to Club Roots before. (A lot.) He was like, "Oh wow! Well, I guess the last time we were here was about 2 years ago, January 28th 2006." (It was a one-man now that I check.) "At that time we didn't have Yusuke or Junji, the band was this guy and this guy and me." (He pointed to Asanao and Reo and called them both 'kore', which we laughed at.) "The livehouse was much less filled, and the feeling was rather different, but we had a great time!" Then he said some stuff about being happy that they've come such a long way since. Then he passed the mic to Reo.
Reo. "Thanks for coming out here, everyone. I suppose most of you must be coming from Nagoya, where we always hold our lives. This time, though, we have no Nagoya live, because Nagoya is the final, isn't it?" (Which means, of course, that Hazuki was completely lying last time at the E.L.L.) "The reason is that Nagoya isn't equivalent to the Tokai region, and we want to gradually be able to play everywhere in the nation. We are starting by varying the locations on this tour, by playing Gifu." Everyone clapped a lot at this, and even Hazuki was like, "Ahhhh, naru hodo."
Then the audience called for Yusuke and Asanao to speak, but both were too shy, haha. Surprisingly though, JUNJI stepped up to the mic. He had been wearing the tour hoodie and he came up and let loose a really loud, "SUMIMASEN DESHITA~~~" His voice is higher-pitched than I expected! "I'm sorry to say that it's really hot playing here, and I have to take off the parka (hoodie) I'm wearing!" Of course, all the girls cheered extremely loudly.
After the MC, they went into Encore 2, which was the first time I've heard DOZE. It's quite fun live, and the slow mysterious part in the middle is quite lovely to hear in person. Then, it was pulse_, the classic ending song. Hazuki dived during this, and it turned out a LOT better than the time he tried at Osaka, probably because the venue was smaller. For a few moments, it looked dangerous, but the crowd surged back to shove him back onto stage with the help of the security people.
When they went off after Encore 2, Hazuki and Yusuke both threw water bottles, and the two girls in front and next to me caught them. I'll catch something yet off of lynch.... next time. And when they went off stage, Yusuke and Reo took off their shirts (lots of screams). Yusuke revealed a very huge tattoo on the upper part of his back! I guess it never gets shown in photographs. I didn't see it very clearly, but it had wings... I think it was a butterfly.
Well, the house lights came up, but the audience started clapping for another encore, and unlike E.L.L., no staff guy came to tell us off. So after a good chunk of time, they actually came back to do a third unplanned encore! They played Adore again, and the audience sang most of the verses-- lots of fun and everybody put in all the energy they had left. Then they thanked everyone and left for real. I got out of Club Roots a little after 8pm.
The walk back to the train station was so cold, and I had a 1.5-hour train ride from Gifu back to Toyohashi (the entire length of the main trunk of the Meitetsu line!). Great live, though. I can't wait until the Anniversary Live. I bought my ticket through preorder already, but I won't know my number until it gets delivered.
Highlights:
- Two new songs.
- Junji's MC.
- Yusuke's secret tat.
The inside was very similar to Osaka MUSE-- black all over, and a high/wide stage, but it was not as deep. It probably could have held about 400. I was 179, so I lodged myself Yusuke-side, pretty much in the middle.
They started about 10 minutes late. When they came out, Yusuke had a really cute new haircut. It's very straight and long in the front (chin-length), but a cute bob in the back. Asanao and Reo looked much the same. Junji came out in a lot of clothes... layers upon layers. The sides of his head has been shaved, but his bangs and the hair in the back have gotten very long.
And of course, Hazuki-- who looked mostly the same as in the Ambivalent Ideal PV, except no gloves or weird lip colour. And his hair colour is back to that reddish brown as before.
set list
Adore
I'm sick, b'cuz luv u.
dizzy
59.
New Song 1
melt
lizard
the whirl
prominence
Ambivalent Ideal
New Song 2 (Shadows)
the universe
STARZ
alien tune
a grateful shit
unknown lost a beauty
Encore 1
an illusion
above the skin
from the end
Encore 2
liberation chord
DOZE
pulse_
Encore 3
Adore
The energy was excellent for this crowd! Most of the attendees were probably Nagoyans, but I think they've been getting livelier with each gig. I haven't been following the blogs/forums these days, so I was shocked when they played New Song 1. I had no idea that they've been performing unreleased material, and by the looks of the audience, a lot of people already knew the song. People already had hand motions and stuff for it (though not everyone was doing it). It was mid-tempo, and not as dark as Ambivalent Ideal... very energetic and fun, though I wouldn't call it poppish. Hazuki did some truly weird moves at the beginning for it... one of his I'm-having-a-seizure type deals.
The whirl was a treat to hear, since I don't think they ever play that at event lives. It was followed by prominence, which is wonderful to hear live out of the slow songs, because it's so different from on record. The build-up was great, and Club Roots did a bang-up job with the lighting, casting haunting purples and oranges. But it was here that I noticed Reo's guitar was WAY TOO LOUD, and stayed really loud throughout. It drowned out Hazuki a bit, and warped its own sound. My hearing's still a bit off today.
Then they played a SECOND new song! Hazuki announced it as "Shadows" and it's listed as such on 2ch, so I'm sure I didn't hear wrong. But again, it seemed like everyone knew it but me, and I was so confused. It had a bit of an old-school sound to it; a very even mix between all the instruments and high energy but melodic. It even sounded like it could've been a Berry song, so I spent most of the song wondering whether it was really a new song or just very old. (Of course, I've heard all the Berry songs, and I was positive it wasn't one of them, either.)
They finished the main set around 7:20pm, which was super early. They came back for the first encore to do all slow slongs, mostly. I'm a little disappointed they didn't do stuck pain, but I'm hoping for that and other rare songs at the Anniversary Live.
When they came back for Encore 2, they were all wearing tour shirts. Hazuki started off the MC and asked how many people had never been to Club Roots before. (A lot.) He was like, "Oh wow! Well, I guess the last time we were here was about 2 years ago, January 28th 2006." (It was a one-man now that I check.) "At that time we didn't have Yusuke or Junji, the band was this guy and this guy and me." (He pointed to Asanao and Reo and called them both 'kore', which we laughed at.) "The livehouse was much less filled, and the feeling was rather different, but we had a great time!" Then he said some stuff about being happy that they've come such a long way since. Then he passed the mic to Reo.
Reo. "Thanks for coming out here, everyone. I suppose most of you must be coming from Nagoya, where we always hold our lives. This time, though, we have no Nagoya live, because Nagoya is the final, isn't it?" (Which means, of course, that Hazuki was completely lying last time at the E.L.L.) "The reason is that Nagoya isn't equivalent to the Tokai region, and we want to gradually be able to play everywhere in the nation. We are starting by varying the locations on this tour, by playing Gifu." Everyone clapped a lot at this, and even Hazuki was like, "Ahhhh, naru hodo."
Then the audience called for Yusuke and Asanao to speak, but both were too shy, haha. Surprisingly though, JUNJI stepped up to the mic. He had been wearing the tour hoodie and he came up and let loose a really loud, "SUMIMASEN DESHITA~~~" His voice is higher-pitched than I expected! "I'm sorry to say that it's really hot playing here, and I have to take off the parka (hoodie) I'm wearing!" Of course, all the girls cheered extremely loudly.
After the MC, they went into Encore 2, which was the first time I've heard DOZE. It's quite fun live, and the slow mysterious part in the middle is quite lovely to hear in person. Then, it was pulse_, the classic ending song. Hazuki dived during this, and it turned out a LOT better than the time he tried at Osaka, probably because the venue was smaller. For a few moments, it looked dangerous, but the crowd surged back to shove him back onto stage with the help of the security people.
When they went off after Encore 2, Hazuki and Yusuke both threw water bottles, and the two girls in front and next to me caught them. I'll catch something yet off of lynch.... next time. And when they went off stage, Yusuke and Reo took off their shirts (lots of screams). Yusuke revealed a very huge tattoo on the upper part of his back! I guess it never gets shown in photographs. I didn't see it very clearly, but it had wings... I think it was a butterfly.
Well, the house lights came up, but the audience started clapping for another encore, and unlike E.L.L., no staff guy came to tell us off. So after a good chunk of time, they actually came back to do a third unplanned encore! They played Adore again, and the audience sang most of the verses-- lots of fun and everybody put in all the energy they had left. Then they thanked everyone and left for real. I got out of Club Roots a little after 8pm.
The walk back to the train station was so cold, and I had a 1.5-hour train ride from Gifu back to Toyohashi (the entire length of the main trunk of the Meitetsu line!). Great live, though. I can't wait until the Anniversary Live. I bought my ticket through preorder already, but I won't know my number until it gets delivered.
Highlights:
- Two new songs.
- Junji's MC.
- Yusuke's secret tat.