Versailles - Live Report
Kamijo is one of the first Japanese vocalists I became aware of; back in 2003/2004, my early years of discovering Japanese rock bands, I found out about LAREINE - and while I never became a die-hard fan, I used to listen to it and there were some good songs. I also remember him wearing his hair long and golden, just like Lestat - and there's the very famous Lestat cosplay he's done before, too.
However, when LAREINE ended in the horrible 2006 year (so many disbandments that year including PIERROT, one of my all-time favourites and terribly missed band), I didn't expect to hear from him soon - but he quickly formed Versailles. The first time I heard anything about them, I thought that Kamijo had either learned how to sing or forced his voice nowadays - he has such a deep voice when singing today, so different from his earlier days that I couldn't even recognise him when Versailles came up on shuffle.
Versailles first came to Brazil in 2010, but I didn't attend the concert. I thought about going, though, but Rapha (raphamayfair) wasn't all that interested and the premium tickets were sold out really quickly and before we could make the decision of going or not. In 2011, I then travelled to Minas Gerais to spend some time with friends from there who had attended the concert and I was introduced to some songs and, this time, I liked them - and I had to concede that Kamijo did look fabulous.
I watched a couple of PVs, but the first song that struck a chord with me was actually "MASQUERADE". Then came the news of them coming to Brazil for a second time and, as I had promised to my friends from Minas Gerais, I said I'd go if they came back. I was already working at my current job when the tickets went on sale and I secured premium ones for me and Rapha - but there wasn't a M&G this time, just the opportunity to have a gift from their tour handed to us personally.
We bought the tickets in August to a November concert - it wasn't cheap, about US$ 90, but concerts in Brazil are always pricey, especially Japanese ones with VIP/premium tickets. :/ Anyhoo, first came the X Japan concert and only then we started to get ready for Versailles, and I have to say I grew very fond of their latest album, "Holy Grail" - which was fortunately the one they were almost sure to play entirely for us. Despite not being a hardcore fan or very rarely listening to them before, I really admired their work and clothing (I remember someone saying something about Versailles not coming before 2010 because they were too expensive due to the transport of the Victorian outfits, haha).
The day of the concert came - and unfortunately, a friend of mine couldn't make it due to a last-minute surgery. T__T She is a die-hard fan and I actually met her thanks to a Versailles RP muse, so it was very heart-breaking to see her unable to come and she even asked us to call her when Versailles played "MASQUERADE" so she could at least listen to it, since it was a new song. I also tried to enjoy myself to the fullest for yusahana6323, who is a very, very hardcore Versailles fan and never had luck with the countries they are playing so she could see them live.
So - the live house was veeeery far away from my home, and in a part of the city which no one (meaning mother and I) was familiar with. It was also on a Sunday of a holiday and really close to a subway station, but since the concert was scheduled for 19h30 and the meeting session for 22h, we weren't sure we could make it to the subway before midnight (when it closes), despite the region being quite dangerous at night and especially for girls alone. So I bought a GPS, but unfortunately couldn't make it work right at the concert day so without it we went - we made a first trip to the location and we only got the way right the third time we tried. -___- But going back was ok.
We got back home, ate something, changed and then headed to the concert venue again, but this time only me and Rapha in the car. I got there alright and left my car at a nearby parking lot which would only close at midnight and headed to the line. It was huge and we didn't want to spend much time there because we agreed to arrive close to the opening hour so we didn't have to wait much. We met friends outside, talk a little and then... Rain. The whole week prior to the concert had been sunny and hot, but just when the holiday came it was grey, colder and with a very annoying rain. -__-
We hid ourselves near the entrance of a neighbouring venue. XD It was a samba house for older people and it had been going on since way earlier and we jokingly contemplated going inside since it looked nicer than waiting outside in the cold (and rain). XD We even made small talk with the samba-goers, all very friendly and interested in what was going on with all the black-clad people in line. The doors opened with great delay, perhaps because everyone who had bought tickets online had to exchange for electronic cards there. -__- I don't know why they allow us to buy e-tickets if we cannot use them in the end, srsly.
The rain was kind of heavy and the line was huge, so people really got wet. o__o' They were already complaining about the fact that the meeting was to be held after the concert and everyone would be messy and sweaty after 2 hours of headbanging when the band would greet us. XD And the rain didn't help because most people got soaked and the majority was in heels, gothic clothing or cosplaying Versailles, so it was a tough task. I seriously don't understand why people insist to go so well-groomed to concerts as if they were attending a party with heels like the ones I saw or very uncomfortable clothes, because HELLO, THE BAND CANNOT SEE YOU - especially not your shoes. They're either too young and have a lot to learn and energy to make mistakes or I'm already a grumpy, older fan - I was in leggings, long but stylish shirt and flat boots which are amazingly comfortable for standing.
We were given additional identification because we were from the premium zone and entered. The venue, looking from inside, was really big, but so unimpressive. It looked like the basement of some rundown-ish place, I honestly didn't like it. There was nothing special on the stage (such as the name of the band or screens) and people were separated into premium and standard areas. We took the free time we had there to go to the restrooms and dear Lord. ç__ç Why, why are the toilets so horrible at those places? I hate it when they're not well kept and clean, it's kind of an important place no matter where you go. And we were charged quite an amount for not having proper facilities, so this irked me.
We waited for a while and my anxiety crisis was really bad that day, for several reasons. x_x The moment I decided to just sit down on the floor, someone walked on the stage and announced the band - the lights went out and I must say that they were surprisingly on time: it wasn't later than 19h40 when they started, which is remarkable for any concert in Brazil, since delays are always expected.
"Prelude" started to play in the background (there was random classical music being played as we waited XD) and it started: first came Yuki, beautiful in his dark blue/black attire with golden details and he looked so. Damn. Beautiful. He'd open his arms, ask for more cries and cheers and then took his place behind the drums. Next was Masashi, his first time introduced as an official member since last time he wasn't and he played kind of quietly in his place and almost hidden, and didn't attend the M&G. The crowd seemed to really love him, shouted his name and he had a very cool and dark demeanour, looking like he belonged and very handsome in an all-black vest.
Teru was next, with the usual skin showing. XD He smiled, did the same his band members had done, walked back and forth and waited a little before taking his place to the far right and beside Masashi, his white and kind of translucent cape floating behind him. Then, to MUCH screaming, came Hizaki - I'll never understand people who find him handsome or anything, srlsy. T_T I didn't like Jasmine You either and, in this sense, visually speaking, Versailles is a MUCH better band with Masashi in his place, since the two of them (Hizaki and Jasmine) just look like Victorian transvestites for me. And they don't look beautiful like, say, Kaya does. It's plain weird and he certainly took his time walking around and making faces to the crowd before getting his guitar. He was with a white dress with black details.
And even before Kamijo walked on stage, people were already screaming for him - and voilà! The European vampire prince appeared on stage in black trousers, knee-high boots and a long red coat, his golden hair stylised in curls and charmingly covering part of his face. He was wearing coloured contacts and he is truly a vision. He was smiling elegantly and one of his best features indeed is his dazzling smile and the way he carries himself on stage, demanding attention from us - he has a great charisma and it's hard to look away from him.
"Prelude" ended and they quickly launched into "MASQUERADE" (Kamijo said something before: "long time no see", in English). I quickly dialled to my friend and I hold my cellphone up in the air so she could listen to the song. I must say that it was amazing to see such an majestic song live. O___O They all played perfectly, Kamijo's voice was clear and it sounded just like the studio version. They even had certain moments to twirl around, together, and they never missed a beat (not only in this song, though). o__o Fans also wore masks for this song (I had one from a masked ball I attended, but I didn't feel like bringing it with me and risking to have it ruined during the concert).
The next song was "ASCENDEAD MASTER" and I'm surprised I managed to recognise it easily. XDDD Since I didn't use to listen to Versailles before, I had quite a hard time trying to memorise which song was which - but this older tune is one of their most iconic songs, methinks, so it was easy to remember it. I still remained astonished at Kamijo's spirit on stage and the other members seemed to move freely around (except for Yuki, of course).
There were a LOT of MCs. Kamijo talked every two songs or something and it was so funny. XD He has such a high-pitched voice when speaking normally to us and I didn't understand how he sang like that and suddenly changed his voice to talk. 8D I dunno if it was the effort of trying to talk in a different language (I know I alter slightly my tone when I speak Japanese, even though I try not to) or what, but I must say that he did a nice job trying to communicate.
Unlike other vocalists, he obviously learned a lot of words and tried them all, from "eu quero ficar com vocês" ("I want to be with you all") to "estão animados?" ("are you guys excited?") - actually, he said the former a LOT of times, and it took me long enough to decipher what he was trying to say, since his accent was heavy and he changed his voice. XD Next songs were "Judicial Noir" and "Thanatos", this one among my favourites from "Holy Grail" and with a little backing vocal from Masashi! *_____* Despite being an official member, he still was the quieter one and kept mostly to his place, while Hizaki and Teru walked along, climbed the stairs to the drums and Kamijo was, like, everywhere - but remained usually at the centre.
I liked the fact that Kamijo usually announced the next songs before they started playing - and dude, they threw a LOT of things from the stage. Semi-drunk water bottles and roses, mostly - some of them were made of plastic and you could light them up in the dark, and, needless to say, people fought for them. There were picks flying everywhere - Masashi seemed to have an endless stock of them and from the pictures I saw online, they're all quite gorgeous. ♥
After "Libido" and "DESTINY -The Lovers-", if I'm not mistaken, everyone but Kamijo left the stage because it was time for "Love will be born again". I could swear they were having a small pause and I sat down, but as soon as I heard Kamijo I got up. Things were slightly complicated because after 4 or 5 songs, I was gifted with a headache and gah. @__@ It's very unusual for me to have migraines and the like, but I was anxious that day and it was awful. The sound of Versailles is heavy and the lights of the stage blinked fast and brightly, and it didn't help. I stopped headbanging (which I love to do) and spent a while trying to make it go away, so this slow, quiet song was a very nice and welcome change.
The set list carried on: "Desert Apple", "Threshold" and "DRY ICE SCREAM!! [Remove Silence]". Kamijo usually picked up a rose at some time and played with it before throwing to the crowd, which would always cause fights among people - sometimes they were made of plastic, sometimes real - I saw a guy catch one of them mid-air and dude, it almost died completely without petals on his hand, since everyone jumped at the sight of the memento from the concert. He also chose Teru for the majority of the fanservice performed. Teru actually shared moments with everyone, I think. o__o'' Yuki sometimes got attention too, especially when Kamijo climbed the steps to him. x3
There was a time during which Kamijo started saying "Bonjour! Bonjour! Bonjour!" and Rapha eyed me with this confused expression and asking me "isn't bonjour 'good morning'? Why is he saying that at night?" and I couldn't help but laught. XD She has a point - although it's not unusual to use "bonjour" as a kind of "hello" even when it's already dark, a "salut" would have been better. Or a plain "bonsoir". But still, I'm used to the very limited knowledge of French that Japanese rockers usually possess. XDDD Since MALICE MIZER's "Ju te Veux", I gave up trying to make sense of their French, srsly. Not to mention Mana's disastrous "Moi Dix Mois" (correct forms would be "Je te Veux" and "Mes Dix Mois").
Masashi shared with Kamijo my attention, when I managed to draw my glance away from the blond vocalist. XD He walked around and seemed comfortable, but he never was as enthusiastic as Hizaki or Teru when playing. He had a few solos and he did all of them amazingly, not to mention his good technique. Perhaps he's just not that flamboyant or too scared to be and then end up being accused of stealing Jasmine's position. I remember hearing awful things the fans said to him when he replaced the late bassist, but at least in Brazil, everyone seemed to just love him.
The show ended with "Flowery", "Vampire" and "The Red Carpet Day". I must say that "Vampire" became one of my favourites after the concert - I really liked it live, even if I had heard it countless times prior to the live. It was also the time for a special fanservice from Kamijo, pretending to bite Hizaki's neck and thus gaining excited reactions from the crowd. By the time we were close to the end, I felt better and the headache was less evil, so I resumed headbanging and what not. XD Kamijo continued with his MCs, and often asking us to jump in Portuguese ("Pulem! Pulem!"), but his voice always made me crack a smile because it was so... Gay. 8D And then he would resume the singing all manly and seductive and... XD It was too much, I swear.
Teru was the first one to come down from the stage and approach the first rows - the crowd went mad and I thought they would tear his clothing or something, seriously. XD Both Masashi and Hizaki did the same thing later, all of them near to my side - but I was far off to the back this time as I had no patience to stand in line like I did for X Japan. Masashi's hair looked weird when he climbed back to the stage, I'm certain everyone pulled it with great strength. XD It's so dark and long and beautiful~. *__*
The concert ended and they were cheered and applauded and so on. Yuki came forward and he looked positively exhausted. o_o' He was smiling widely and looking really happy, though. n_n Guitar picks, roses and water bottles were thrown again (there was a pick which took a long moment to be found, methinks, since the people in front of me were looking down at various angles for a good time), some kissed by them before being given out. Under the chant of "We are Versailles!" (which just sounds like a cheap "We are X!" rip-off, to be honest), they exited the stage.
They obviously came back for an encore - and before they did so, fans prepared purple balloons because the next song was probably "Remember Forever" and it was a tribute for Jasmine You. I cannot help but think it was another rip-off of the idea the X Japan Street Team had had for the X gig, when yellow and red balloons were waved and then thrown forward during "Endless Rain". The effect, however, was really pretty and we could see that Kamijo was really moved. He sniffled through a good part of the song and had this surprised/glad smile on his face; the other band members seemed to stare off into the distance - I've seen someone mentioning that Hizaki was very surprised, too. And I couldn't see it from where I was, but looks like Kamijo dropped to his knees and cried at the ending.
Next song was "Philia" - and everyone headbanged and danced to it. There was this girl who moved ALL THE TIME through the free space between Rapha and me and the crowd and desperately tried to be noticed by the band and/or grab something thrown from the stage, guuh. I felt like grabbing her and nailing her to a fixed place, because seriously - she was irritating and hit me twice with her rose. ¬__¬ I was thankful to be feeling better so I could move and dance better to the song, hehe~.
And they ended it - and walked away again. XD I had read other reports before so I knew there was a second encore planned, and everyone insisted on calling and screaming for them. I always sat down during those pauses because I was tired and more and more people did the same. XD But I always rose when they came back to the stage and, this time, Hizaki came with an Angra poster on his hands (he's a great fan of them XD) and him, Teru and Yuki played a small bit of "Carry On" there. 8D
When everyone was back, Kamijo had Teru to kiss Yuki on his cheek, haha. Needless to say, the crowd went mad with the fanservice. 8D "The Revenant Choir" was the last song and Kamijo produced a customised Brazilian flag out of nowhere (srsly, no idea where he had hidden it) and waved it around. The members were also introduced (I believed the order was Teru, Hizaki, Masashi, Yuki and Kamijo, who pointed to himself XD) and played for a long while, again throwing picks, roses and bottles everywhere. Masashi even threw a small towel he used to dry his face. XD And he pretended he was about to throw his bass, but cracked a very cute grin and took it back, haha.
There was a moment when Teru wrapped himself with his cape and then wrapped Masashi together with him. XD The fangirls screamed as if there was no tomorrow, of course. They posed for the mandatory after-concert-picture and after having seen it, I can say that the live house doesn't look so bad there - thankfully. Kamijo also made everyone say "obrigado" ("thank you") on the microphone and I swear Masashi was the only one with a manly voice. o__ov The last moment of the band on stage was Kamijo climbing the stairs and then offering his hand to Masashi as they left (the bassist was behind him), what of course prompted a smile from the vocalist and many excited cries from the crowd. XD I bet my friend would have loved to see the small interaction between them. ;-;
Concert ended around 21h30 and then they started to get things ready for the meeting. Fans without premium passes left and we remained there, everyone now mostly scattered around and finding a place to sit down as the stage was cleaned of the instruments. We later learned that the drums were from Angra's current drummer, so Yuki must have been really excited to use it. :D Someone from Yamato (the company which was producing the concert) came to the stage to thank us for coming, to tell us that the band needed a moment to rest and get themselves ready for the meeting and that we should look forward to two great major bands which had never been to Brazil. One of them started with a "G" and there was also a VK festival in the making.
Needless to say, everyone presumed it to be Gazetto. XDDD I wouldn't be surprised if it turns out to be them, but of course I'm hoping for GLAY, being the crazy and long-time fan I am. n__n We waited in line for the meeting and I was slightly worried about my car, since I didn't know how long it would take and I had to get it back (the parking lot looked like it had came from a horror movie, so eerie and creepy, guh @@).
But they didn't take too long to begin - the line moved slowly but we fortunately didn't wait much. We couldn't take pictures or ask for autographs, just greet them quickly and get our gift from the concert. They all changed their clothing into black ones and much more simpler (I think they were from "Philia"?) and the other at the table where they were sat at was: Teru, Masashi, Kamijo, Yuki and Hizaki. We were forced to go through them really quickly, though.
Some girls handed presents to them, but I chose to just greet him with small bows and taking their hands into mine. They actually used both hands to cover ours, it was very cute. n__n I decided to thank all of them in Japanese in a polite manner and offered everyone a smile - the reactions differed, though. XD Teru essayed "obrigado" with a great smile; Masashi thanked me in Portuguese too, but seeming a bit surprised or astonished by something (perhaps by Rapha, who said he was beautiful in English to him just before I got to our dark-haired bassist XD); Kamijo opened a dazzling smile to me (seriously, HIS SMILE IS TO DIE FOR) and thanked me both in Japanese and Portuguese, methinks; Yuki was the cutest imo, and he started saying "arigatou" when he heard me speak in Japanese and he seemed gladly surprised by it, opening this really warm smile and holding my hands tighter as he thanked me again in Portuguese; and Hizaki took my hands and looked at me aloof and/or distant surprised look as he murmured "arigatou" (or was it "obrigado"?). Masashi had such soft hands - Yuki's were really warm, too. ♥
Someone gave us them the "gift" - a very plain-looking poster with their promo picture for "Holy Grail" and this "thank you for coming" message. For the price I had to pay, I really think they could have done something better. :/ There was a table with the tour goods laid out to be purchased - I saw a T-shirt and a fan, but I didn't stop to buy anything and neither did Rapha; I was told they were really expensive, too. We got back to the car quickly, but I made a wrong turn when driving and... I got lost. When there was no one in the streets. With a friend from other state. XD I didn't panic, though, and eventually I found my way back home, even if I drove needlessly through a lot of places while following street signs. XD
It was a very fun concert - they're obviously genuine and they really make an effort to connect to the fans, even after their first visit to the country. I'm impressed with Kamijo's live charisma, smile and beauty; Masashi's demeanour and posture, his technique and his dark/manly looks; and Yuki's talent, sweetness and genki personality. I honestly don't care much about the guitar players, sorry. :/ But they're obviously skilled people.
Another funny thing happened the following day. XD I was at the international airport of São Paulo waiting for my sister to arrive (and boy, did she take her time there) and then I later called Shiro, former Japanese teacher and friend (remember him?). Well, he knew about the concert and we were on the road back to São Paulo after welcoming my sister when he suddenly asked "what's the name of the band you saw yesterday?" "Versailles. Why?" "I think they're here waiting for a taxi at the hotel. There's one guy with long and dark hair and..." "What are you waiting for to grab his autograph? I want oooone!". XD
Turns out Shiro (who was working as a translator for other people) met his client at the hotel - the same one where Versailles had been, haha. He later told me that a small group of girls approached them and asked for things, but by the moment we talked, they had gotten inside the cab already. Damn. T_T He also said he was trying to call me but couldn't do it, so I advised him to get the autograph of any Japanese man who looks slightly feminine and which has the chance of being a rock star next time. 8D
All in all, I'm glad I saw them this time. And I'd go back for another round, if they return in upcoming tours! :) I really would love an autograph from my favourite three, hehe~.