[LIVE REPORT] HYDE @ HOB-Anaheim (Public Version)
HYDE: FAITH LIVE 2006
[July 02, 2006] 21:00
House of Blues - Anaheim, CA
I was actually running around too much to enjoy the opening band, The Black List Club, but what I was able to hear, I loved. Check out their myspace for song samples. I hope they stick around. >.> Apparently the lead guitarist/vocalist used to be the guitarist for Avril Lavigne's band.
I didn't bring my notebook because I figured I'd be standing and didn't want to lose it getting jostled around so you'll have to bear with my memory, apologies.
Hyde appeared around 21:00. Just walked onstage with the rest of the band, guitar-ed up, and broke into the first song.
-----TRACKLIST:
Jesus Christ
Made in Heaven
It's Sad
Season’s Call
Evergreen (dist.)
Sweet Vanilla
(Instrumental interlude)
Dolly
Perfect Moment
Faith
Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds
Hello
Midnight Celebration
Countdown
Hideaway
Unexpected (dist.)
Credit: chigaretahane
-----
The (going-to-be-infamous-if-it-isn't-already) Engrish intro came after the first segment. I think. I'm pretty sure the end bit introduced one of my favorite songs because I was laughing and spazzing at the same time. I can't recall exactly what he said but there was most likely a greeting, hello, then the bit I couldn't forget:"I'm happy to see me!"
I think he realized he said something off because he got a little flustered (and made it look cute because hey, this IS Haido). We all laughed but it was with him I'm inclined to think. He got it right on the next pass."I'm happy to see you!"
"Are you happy to see me?"
Which of course was answered with a thundering, "YES!" If he said anything after that, it's lost on me but he ended with an absolutely adorable:"The next song... is going to be in Japanese... IS THAT OKAY????"
What were the LAST three songs, HAIDO? XD But he was starting up "Season's Call" so I quickly forgave him. I absolutely adore that song so was ecstatic when he played it. I figured he would considering it's his newest single but hearing it live was an absolute treat. After the song ended, he sort of smile/smirked at the crowd, gathered his guitar, and started singing softly, strumming his guitar. I screamed when I realized I was mouthing the words. This was a song I had not expected to hear (though given it WAS the remake, I SHOULD have perhaps figured he'd play it but nonetheless). Even though it was the new version, just being able to sing it with him and the rest of the venue... was love. Absolute love. *_* Every concert I've been to has one of those moments where you're singing and the band's singing, and everyone around you is singing, and it's just... beautiful. "Evergreen" was that for me.
We could see the soundbooth perfectly from where we were sitting on the balcony so we thought we knew what was coming up afterwards but Hyde threw in that instrumental and branched off into a few other songs before hitting "Lucy." Which we sang to again. It didn't have the same effect for me as "Evergreen" though we were swaying and headbanging as well as singing along. Maybe I was having too much fun to register a "moment" or something. :p It was great though. Hyde also donned on his acoustic for it which had me screaming as soon as he put it on. I'm an acoustic fan, what can I say? :p
Furuton introduced the band somewhere within the last six songs (told you my memory's shit xp). I think at first no one knew who was speaking because Hyde (who was standing there with his head down) started pointing behind him making all of us laugh. From what I could gather, he's never been? to the US? (before) but loves the west coast. He and Kaz were formerly of Oblivion Dust, a fact that stunned me to silence when I found out since Oblivion Dust was one of my core bands for a long time. These guys were like legends, almost as if I were watching members of Luna Sea or Siam Shade up there. Anyway, he made everyone cheer for everyone in the band and there was a lot of laughter and smiles during his speech, particularly when he sort of brushed off Hyde's intro. :p
The rest of the night sped by in a blur. At 22:00, they left the stage, Hyde throwing a kiss out to the crowd as he toddled off. Drumsticks were tossed out as well. During the break, we were amused by the fans who cheered every time someone walked onstage, including the guy who set their water bottles up on the amps.
About 10-15 minutes later, the band was back. Hyde led us through a countdown (HA HA) from 13 (I think) which amused the HELL out of me. I felt like I was on some warped version of Sesame Street. We managed to successfully make it to one (Hyde, aren't you proud of your smart fans? XD) and they plowed through the rest of the set list. Everyone was jumping and screaming and singing along when they could. At some point, Hyde's guitar tech crept up to him on his knees and motioned for Hyde to give him the guitar. He didn't. The guy motioned again. Finally, Hyde slipped the strap over his neck and grabbed his microphone, immediately leaping on top one of the center amps to belt out to the crowd. I looked over at the tech who, upon receving the instrument, hopped back to his spot on the side and from what I could tell, started playing. I'm not sure what happened there. There was an instance too- I don't remember when it was now- when I think Hyde's mic failed because his tech switched it out. A testament to their professionalism (or my absolute unfamiliarity with some of Hyde's solo stuff), I actually didn't notice the mic died. I want to say Hyde looked like he was just letting the crowd sing again but I'm not sure what I was actually paying attention to at the time. I just noticed they switched the mic and his voice boomed out afterwards.
Right before the very last song, Hyde consulted with KAZ a moment, tuned his guitar a little, and gave his last major speech of the night, thanking us, and asked us in that cute, half-teasing voice of his:"Will you sing with me?"
"Unexpected" was beautiful, his voice- at first low, soothing, then spiraling up to the chorus. The extended instrumental at the end made it seem like they didn't want to leave the stage, that they wanted to stay and keep playing. It was a perfect end to a wonderful night.
Too soon, they were leaving, Hyde throwing more kisses out to the crowd. Picks were thrown, I don't remember drumsticks. Hyde's tech/assist was skittering onto the stage again before the curtains finished being drawn.
Member Notes:The guys onstage seemed like they were having an absolute fantastic time. That's really what made this show one of the most entertaining for me. Dir en grey was... an experience but if your guitarist is standing there barely acknowledging the crowd and looking mildly pissed off half the time, the show doesn't quite seem as much fun. From the first song, everyone onstage- the energetic drummer, the crazily flailing keyboardist, the fiery bassist, the bouncing guitarist, and of course, Hyde- made each song so electric, you couldn't help but be drawn in.
The first person I noticed actually (after acknowledging Hyde) was his bassist, Hiroki (thanks again, Aki!). o.o The guy really knows how to work up a crowd. Even if no one knew who he was when the show started, he had everyone on his side practically eating out of his hand as the night progressed. He even got a pink, sparkly bra and a red scarf thrown up at him (though it could be that the fans could only shoot things past security on his side).
KAZ wasn't as hyper as Hiroki but he was amusing to watch. He was doing one of three things every time I looked at him: 1) posing for the crowd; 2) playing madly, head down or headbanging; or 3) doing this jumpy, bouncy, shuffly dance thing that had me cracking up whenever I saw it. I'm describing it badly, apologies. It was great though. XD
The keyboardist, Jin, was... dizzying. Every time I caught a glimpse of him, he was headbanging his white dreads into the keyboard. He wore a white mask too, reminding me of Sussy's new band, Ino Head Park.
Furuton won me over with his little speech mentioned above. He's a fantastic drummer and sadly, I didn't really see much of him during the live because everyone else kept doing things to distract me from him. ^^
Hyde... what can I say? Years of playing stadiums and arenas have taken their toll. XD The man knows how to work a crowd. They all did, as mentioned above but Hyde... when he's singing, it's hard to take your eyes away from him. By the first song, he was already on the amps, teasing the front rows. He screamed, made faces- made a LOT of faces, stuck his tongue out, the works. Occasionally, when he thought we could handle it, he would stop singing and mouth words to us to pick up for him. On "HELLO" in particular, he let the audience sing a lot of it. His energy onstage is boundless- when he wasn't singing, he was bouncing all over the stage and headbanging. Though regularly drawing attention to himself, he's also good at stepping down and letting the other band members shine particularly when they had solos. KAZ would be spotlighted in the middle of the stage and Hyde would be somewhere else being somewhat unobtrusive or leaning in to give a small corner some love. Being used to running up and down Tokyo Dome-sized set-ups, he had no trouble covering every inch of the House of Blues stage, and remembered to direct some attention to the balcony as well. He also managed to use all three microphones (his, Hiroki's, and Kaz's) at least once during the live which was very O_O to me. I keep thinking the background mics are set lower or something so it surprised me to see him using them and that they were at full volume like the rest (or maybe the sound guys are just THAT GOOD and adjusted for him every time).
His look was somewhat scruffy but suited him perfectly. Wearing vertically striped and slashed jeans, a denim vest thing that exposed his arms, and a long grayish patterned shirt with long sleeves, he somehow pulled off a casual rocker look blended with a bit of, well, Hyde. The shirt slipped lower off one exposed shoulder as the night wore on. Part of his angel tattoo became visible as the neckline fell, between the shirt and the vest. Hair flew everywhere but mostly fell perfectly back into place, reminding me of Die's hair at the Dir en grey live. Long bangs covered his eyeliner-rimmed eyes and face for most of the night but he occasionally dragged it back with both hands, mainly to scour and make faces at the crowd.
And his ENGRISH!"Come on and show me what you have got!"
I think Furuton (or someone) might have coached him a little because towards the end, after the encore, this was shortened to:"Show me what you've got!"
Hyde is one of those vocalists who seems to like talking to the crowd, even if he's in a foreign country. XD I absolutely admire and appreciate that because that kept me smiling throughout the entire evening. Koshi (Inaba from B'z) did a fantastic job as well when they performed here so I guess that might be the standard but Kyo... *sigh* anyway, Hyde was great."Are you having fun?"
"I'm so happy (to be here)!"
"You want to go crazy with me?"
He introduced a few of the songs too, which was good for me. I've heard almost all his solo stuff but haven't been too crazy about much of it so I haven't really listened to everything.
I mentioned it in my spazz post when I got back from the concert last night but his VOICE was amazing throughout the entire live. I wasn't sure what to expect- Hyde's live performances vary during the L'Arc~en~Ciel concert videos I've managed to find. Sometimes he's spot on, others... he seems to get lazy or be tired. He was fantastic last night. Almost everything sounded like the cd if not better. Again, I could be off on this due to my unfamiliarity with Hyde's solo stuff but hey, if he was off, it wasn't obvious to the uneducated. :p Both my brother and I were impressed.
All in all, it wasn't the near-religious experience the Dir en grey live (almost) was, but it was hella fun and my respect for Hyde's music and showmanship has grown in leaps and bounds.
Even if he did slip and girlydance during one of the first songs. XD
-----
NOTE: Corrections/additions to ANY of the above are greatly appreciated, particularly the quotes. I'm not guaranteeing the wording, just the main gist of what was said. I've already mentioned my failing memory, haven't I? :)
For those on my friends list, personal accounts of before and after the show to follow, mainly because I figure everyone else could care less. :p
Thanks for reading!
[EDIT] I'm told he messed up on "Midnight Celebration" and started the chorus too early, then sort of fudged the rest of the song. XD I didn't notice but there it is. ^_^
[July 02, 2006] 21:00
House of Blues - Anaheim, CA
I was actually running around too much to enjoy the opening band, The Black List Club, but what I was able to hear, I loved. Check out their myspace for song samples. I hope they stick around. >.> Apparently the lead guitarist/vocalist used to be the guitarist for Avril Lavigne's band.
I didn't bring my notebook because I figured I'd be standing and didn't want to lose it getting jostled around so you'll have to bear with my memory, apologies.
Hyde appeared around 21:00. Just walked onstage with the rest of the band, guitar-ed up, and broke into the first song.
-----TRACKLIST:
Jesus Christ
Made in Heaven
It's Sad
Season’s Call
Evergreen (dist.)
Sweet Vanilla
(Instrumental interlude)
Dolly
Perfect Moment
Faith
Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds
Hello
Midnight Celebration
Countdown
Hideaway
Unexpected (dist.)
Credit: chigaretahane
-----
The (going-to-be-infamous-if-it-isn't-already) Engrish intro came after the first segment. I think. I'm pretty sure the end bit introduced one of my favorite songs because I was laughing and spazzing at the same time. I can't recall exactly what he said but there was most likely a greeting, hello, then the bit I couldn't forget:"I'm happy to see me!"
I think he realized he said something off because he got a little flustered (and made it look cute because hey, this IS Haido). We all laughed but it was with him I'm inclined to think. He got it right on the next pass."I'm happy to see you!"
"Are you happy to see me?"
Which of course was answered with a thundering, "YES!" If he said anything after that, it's lost on me but he ended with an absolutely adorable:"The next song... is going to be in Japanese... IS THAT OKAY????"
What were the LAST three songs, HAIDO? XD But he was starting up "Season's Call" so I quickly forgave him. I absolutely adore that song so was ecstatic when he played it. I figured he would considering it's his newest single but hearing it live was an absolute treat. After the song ended, he sort of smile/smirked at the crowd, gathered his guitar, and started singing softly, strumming his guitar. I screamed when I realized I was mouthing the words. This was a song I had not expected to hear (though given it WAS the remake, I SHOULD have perhaps figured he'd play it but nonetheless). Even though it was the new version, just being able to sing it with him and the rest of the venue... was love. Absolute love. *_* Every concert I've been to has one of those moments where you're singing and the band's singing, and everyone around you is singing, and it's just... beautiful. "Evergreen" was that for me.
We could see the soundbooth perfectly from where we were sitting on the balcony so we thought we knew what was coming up afterwards but Hyde threw in that instrumental and branched off into a few other songs before hitting "Lucy." Which we sang to again. It didn't have the same effect for me as "Evergreen" though we were swaying and headbanging as well as singing along. Maybe I was having too much fun to register a "moment" or something. :p It was great though. Hyde also donned on his acoustic for it which had me screaming as soon as he put it on. I'm an acoustic fan, what can I say? :p
Furuton introduced the band somewhere within the last six songs (told you my memory's shit xp). I think at first no one knew who was speaking because Hyde (who was standing there with his head down) started pointing behind him making all of us laugh. From what I could gather, he's never been? to the US? (before) but loves the west coast. He and Kaz were formerly of Oblivion Dust, a fact that stunned me to silence when I found out since Oblivion Dust was one of my core bands for a long time. These guys were like legends, almost as if I were watching members of Luna Sea or Siam Shade up there. Anyway, he made everyone cheer for everyone in the band and there was a lot of laughter and smiles during his speech, particularly when he sort of brushed off Hyde's intro. :p
The rest of the night sped by in a blur. At 22:00, they left the stage, Hyde throwing a kiss out to the crowd as he toddled off. Drumsticks were tossed out as well. During the break, we were amused by the fans who cheered every time someone walked onstage, including the guy who set their water bottles up on the amps.
About 10-15 minutes later, the band was back. Hyde led us through a countdown (HA HA) from 13 (I think) which amused the HELL out of me. I felt like I was on some warped version of Sesame Street. We managed to successfully make it to one (Hyde, aren't you proud of your smart fans? XD) and they plowed through the rest of the set list. Everyone was jumping and screaming and singing along when they could. At some point, Hyde's guitar tech crept up to him on his knees and motioned for Hyde to give him the guitar. He didn't. The guy motioned again. Finally, Hyde slipped the strap over his neck and grabbed his microphone, immediately leaping on top one of the center amps to belt out to the crowd. I looked over at the tech who, upon receving the instrument, hopped back to his spot on the side and from what I could tell, started playing. I'm not sure what happened there. There was an instance too- I don't remember when it was now- when I think Hyde's mic failed because his tech switched it out. A testament to their professionalism (or my absolute unfamiliarity with some of Hyde's solo stuff), I actually didn't notice the mic died. I want to say Hyde looked like he was just letting the crowd sing again but I'm not sure what I was actually paying attention to at the time. I just noticed they switched the mic and his voice boomed out afterwards.
Right before the very last song, Hyde consulted with KAZ a moment, tuned his guitar a little, and gave his last major speech of the night, thanking us, and asked us in that cute, half-teasing voice of his:"Will you sing with me?"
"Unexpected" was beautiful, his voice- at first low, soothing, then spiraling up to the chorus. The extended instrumental at the end made it seem like they didn't want to leave the stage, that they wanted to stay and keep playing. It was a perfect end to a wonderful night.
Too soon, they were leaving, Hyde throwing more kisses out to the crowd. Picks were thrown, I don't remember drumsticks. Hyde's tech/assist was skittering onto the stage again before the curtains finished being drawn.
Member Notes:The guys onstage seemed like they were having an absolute fantastic time. That's really what made this show one of the most entertaining for me. Dir en grey was... an experience but if your guitarist is standing there barely acknowledging the crowd and looking mildly pissed off half the time, the show doesn't quite seem as much fun. From the first song, everyone onstage- the energetic drummer, the crazily flailing keyboardist, the fiery bassist, the bouncing guitarist, and of course, Hyde- made each song so electric, you couldn't help but be drawn in.
The first person I noticed actually (after acknowledging Hyde) was his bassist, Hiroki (thanks again, Aki!). o.o The guy really knows how to work up a crowd. Even if no one knew who he was when the show started, he had everyone on his side practically eating out of his hand as the night progressed. He even got a pink, sparkly bra and a red scarf thrown up at him (though it could be that the fans could only shoot things past security on his side).
KAZ wasn't as hyper as Hiroki but he was amusing to watch. He was doing one of three things every time I looked at him: 1) posing for the crowd; 2) playing madly, head down or headbanging; or 3) doing this jumpy, bouncy, shuffly dance thing that had me cracking up whenever I saw it. I'm describing it badly, apologies. It was great though. XD
The keyboardist, Jin, was... dizzying. Every time I caught a glimpse of him, he was headbanging his white dreads into the keyboard. He wore a white mask too, reminding me of Sussy's new band, Ino Head Park.
Furuton won me over with his little speech mentioned above. He's a fantastic drummer and sadly, I didn't really see much of him during the live because everyone else kept doing things to distract me from him. ^^
Hyde... what can I say? Years of playing stadiums and arenas have taken their toll. XD The man knows how to work a crowd. They all did, as mentioned above but Hyde... when he's singing, it's hard to take your eyes away from him. By the first song, he was already on the amps, teasing the front rows. He screamed, made faces- made a LOT of faces, stuck his tongue out, the works. Occasionally, when he thought we could handle it, he would stop singing and mouth words to us to pick up for him. On "HELLO" in particular, he let the audience sing a lot of it. His energy onstage is boundless- when he wasn't singing, he was bouncing all over the stage and headbanging. Though regularly drawing attention to himself, he's also good at stepping down and letting the other band members shine particularly when they had solos. KAZ would be spotlighted in the middle of the stage and Hyde would be somewhere else being somewhat unobtrusive or leaning in to give a small corner some love. Being used to running up and down Tokyo Dome-sized set-ups, he had no trouble covering every inch of the House of Blues stage, and remembered to direct some attention to the balcony as well. He also managed to use all three microphones (his, Hiroki's, and Kaz's) at least once during the live which was very O_O to me. I keep thinking the background mics are set lower or something so it surprised me to see him using them and that they were at full volume like the rest (or maybe the sound guys are just THAT GOOD and adjusted for him every time).
His look was somewhat scruffy but suited him perfectly. Wearing vertically striped and slashed jeans, a denim vest thing that exposed his arms, and a long grayish patterned shirt with long sleeves, he somehow pulled off a casual rocker look blended with a bit of, well, Hyde. The shirt slipped lower off one exposed shoulder as the night wore on. Part of his angel tattoo became visible as the neckline fell, between the shirt and the vest. Hair flew everywhere but mostly fell perfectly back into place, reminding me of Die's hair at the Dir en grey live. Long bangs covered his eyeliner-rimmed eyes and face for most of the night but he occasionally dragged it back with both hands, mainly to scour and make faces at the crowd.
And his ENGRISH!"Come on and show me what you have got!"
I think Furuton (or someone) might have coached him a little because towards the end, after the encore, this was shortened to:"Show me what you've got!"
Hyde is one of those vocalists who seems to like talking to the crowd, even if he's in a foreign country. XD I absolutely admire and appreciate that because that kept me smiling throughout the entire evening. Koshi (Inaba from B'z) did a fantastic job as well when they performed here so I guess that might be the standard but Kyo... *sigh* anyway, Hyde was great."Are you having fun?"
"I'm so happy (to be here)!"
"You want to go crazy with me?"
He introduced a few of the songs too, which was good for me. I've heard almost all his solo stuff but haven't been too crazy about much of it so I haven't really listened to everything.
I mentioned it in my spazz post when I got back from the concert last night but his VOICE was amazing throughout the entire live. I wasn't sure what to expect- Hyde's live performances vary during the L'Arc~en~Ciel concert videos I've managed to find. Sometimes he's spot on, others... he seems to get lazy or be tired. He was fantastic last night. Almost everything sounded like the cd if not better. Again, I could be off on this due to my unfamiliarity with Hyde's solo stuff but hey, if he was off, it wasn't obvious to the uneducated. :p Both my brother and I were impressed.
All in all, it wasn't the near-religious experience the Dir en grey live (almost) was, but it was hella fun and my respect for Hyde's music and showmanship has grown in leaps and bounds.
Even if he did slip and girlydance during one of the first songs. XD
-----
NOTE: Corrections/additions to ANY of the above are greatly appreciated, particularly the quotes. I'm not guaranteeing the wording, just the main gist of what was said. I've already mentioned my failing memory, haven't I? :)
For those on my friends list, personal accounts of before and after the show to follow, mainly because I figure everyone else could care less. :p
Thanks for reading!
[EDIT] I'm told he messed up on "Midnight Celebration" and started the chorus too early, then sort of fudged the rest of the song. XD I didn't notice but there it is. ^_^