Es VOL.28 live report“livescope 2012 〜the tales of memories〜”

●○ From music freak Es Vol.28

GARNET CROW’s spring 2012 tour, [GARNET CROW livescope 2012 ～the tales of memories～], took place in three shows at two venues in Osaka and Tokyo in March. This issue reports on the final show, held at TOKYO DOME CITY HALL on March 18.

Rain clouds had covered the sky since the afternoon, and a light rain began to fall around 5:30 p.m., just as the doors opened. At the venue entrance, however, a long line of audience members waited with bright expressions that seemed to say the bad weather did not matter. Many had already bought tour merchandise and changed into pale blue tour T-shirts, fully prepared for the show. For GARNET CROW, this was their first concert since the countdown show spanning the end of the year and the New Year, and it seemed especially meaningful to the audience because it was their first Tokyo concert in more than a year.

Inside, the stage was hidden behind white curtains, so no one could see what was set up behind them. As everyone waited for the show to begin, excitedly imagining what kind of stage might be concealed there, the venue suddenly went dark and a huge round of applause erupted.

With the opening SE, silhouettes appeared on the white curtains. The first was AZUKI Nana, briskly walking from stage left to the keyboard set up on stage right. Silhouettes recognizable as Hioto Furui and Hitoshi Okamoto appeared next, drawing cheers from the audience. After a moment, support drummer Kaichi Kurose counted “one, two, three, four,” and the curtain dropped all at once. The concert began with the first song, “Misty Mystery.” At center stage was a small platform five or six steps above the floor where the band was playing, and Yuri Nakamura sang there in a glamorous pale green long dress. Her elegant yet refined appearance was almost like that of an opera singer. Six white curtains with layers of draping hung from the ceiling like palace columns. The simple but solemn set suited GARNET CROW perfectly.

The second song, “Rhythm,” began with an Okamoto guitar solo under red lighting. The minor-key up-tempo number pushed forward from the very start. Riding the intro, Nakamura offered a light greeting—“Good evening, everyone. It’s great to be here with you today”—before moving into the third song, “Genesis I.” She switched from the handheld microphone used for the first two songs to a standing microphone and sang with poise. It was striking to see AZUKI stand up already on the third song, raising both hands high, moving to the rhythm, and encouraging the audience to clap along. The show had only just begun, yet the venue was already hotter than usual.

After Nakamura commented, “This is our first live show since the countdown, so it’s been a little while, and I’ve been really looking forward to it,” each member spoke about their enthusiasm for the concert. Nakamura then closed the remarks by saying, “I hope you can feel the live music with your hearts and enjoy it,” leading into the fourth song, “Naked Story.” During the chorus—“(Naked Story) Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah”—she held the microphone out toward the audience, who answered with their voices and energetic waving. GARNET CROW concerts had traditionally been associated with listening intently during the opening stretch, but this show quickly created a friendly atmosphere: the first MC was given plenty of time for free-form conversation, and the performance invited everyone to sing, dance, and enjoy themselves together.

The fifth song was “Memories,” the title track from their latest original album, followed by “Yofuke no Ryuuseitachi,” Nakamura’s favorite from the newly released coupling-song best album, and then “Go For It.” After three steady, quintessentially GARNET CROW performances, the members returned to MC time, chatting openly about their favorite tracks and other topics related to the latest album, *Memories*.

The eighth song, “Eiyu,” was a favorite of every member. The grand, richly textured arrangement with strings and Nakamura’s powerful vocals created the kind of moving experience unique to a live performance. The next song, “Seijaku no concerto,” was another collaboration between the band and strings, offering a majestic, poignant, and beautiful harmony. As the venue was instantly wrapped in a solemn atmosphere, a deep bass sound rang out without pause. Looking toward support bassist Masato Ohashi, the audience saw him doing a charming little box step. Daisuke Ikeda, who conducted the “Lime Ladies Orchestra” strings and handled the string arrangement for this show, then performed a rhythmic and endearing dance of his own. Okamoto joined in too, and the visually entertaining intro burst into “Namida no Yesterday” at the start of the chorus. The audience’s excitement rose even higher, culminating in a full-venue sing-along during the chorus.

“Next is our ballad section, and we have prepared a special song for you. Please relax and enjoy listening,” Nakamura announced. The audience, which had been standing since the first song, quietly took their seats. AZUKI Nana, Hitoshi Okamoto, and Hioto Furui temporarily left the stage, leaving only Nakamura with the strings, bass, and drums. The next song was a special version arranged by Daisuke Ikeda for this concert, and Nakamura and Ikeda explained its arrangement before the performance. “Kimi Tsuresaru Toki no Otozure o” was arranged with an ensemble made up basically of instruments that played only the melody, without chordal instruments capable of sounding harmonies such as keyboards and guitars. Against the beautiful, expanding strings in the silence, Nakamura sang with a commanding presence that conveyed an even greater maturity as a vocalist than before.

As the concert reached its midpoint, Nakamura and the strings left the stage in turn. AZUKI, Okamoto, and Furui returned after changing costumes. Okamoto took over as host for a while, leading a relaxed MC about their clothes and SUPER LIGHT’s live DVD, and asking AZUKI questions about writing lyrics for the SUPER LIGHT project. They then performed “Umi Nari” from SUPER LIGHT’s latest album, *Now Printing...*. Okamoto had sung his own songs and GARNET CROW covers at previous GARNET CROW concerts, but this time he gave a heartfelt, passionate performance of a highly melodic and deeply poignant number.

Nakamura returned to the stage for the thirteenth song, “nonsense.” She had changed from the formal long dress into a cute white-and-silver mini dress sparkling with sequins, paired with navy booties and a matching hair ornament. A large pink bow at the small of her back was especially adorable. At Nakamura’s cue—“Everyone, lights ON!!!”—star-shaped penlights illuminated the entire venue as “Lonely Night” began. The stars swaying from side to side above the audience looked like countless shooting stars. A mirror ball spun overhead, perfectly matching the disco-tinged digital rock of the song. They flowed straight into “wish★” without stopping, bringing the venue even more closely together.

In the following MC, the members talked about the coupling-song best album *GOODBYE LONELY ～Bside collection～*, whose track list had been decided by fan requests. In response to calls of “Sing for us!”, they sang bits of “Nora” and “Mikansei na Neiro” along with Okamoto’s guitar. They then passionately performed “Mawarimichi,” which had received the most requests. After that, the main set sparked toward its finale. Strings joined again for the lively, distinctly live-sounding “live,” and in the following “Fall in Life ～Hallelujah～,” Nakamura moved from side to side across the stage for the first time that day, even striking a playful pose at the end. The final song was “Smiley Nation,” preceded by introductions of the support members. For the key “Smiley Nation” refrain, Nakamura held the microphone out to the audience and called, “Let me hear you even louder!” The entire venue joined in a chorus, closing the main set on a wonderfully comfortable and refreshing note.

As soon as the performers disappeared from the stage, the “Garnet Call” began. After a while, everyone returned in tour T-shirts, hoodies, towels, and other merchandise, ready for the encore. The first encore song was “JUDY,” arguably the most quintessentially GARNET CROW-like track on the latest album. In its dramatic development, Okamoto’s thick, powerful guitar solo left a particularly strong impression.

They then spent plenty of time on MC, introducing merchandise, sharing their thoughts on that evening’s concert, and discussing the latest news. At last, the final two songs, “Koyoi Eden no Katase de” and “Spiral,” brought the show to a close. During “Spiral,” Furui slung a keyboard around his shoulder and ran around the stage while playing alongside Nakamura and Okamoto—a rare sight. The song’s repeated performance, a live tradition in which Nakamura asks, “Can everyone still sing?” just when it seems to be ending, then repeats the chorus again and again, continued more than ten times that day. When it finally ended, everyone who had taken part wore refreshing smiles, feeling that they had given every last ounce of energy.

With a well-balanced structure that offered moments to listen, moments to watch, and moments to sing and enjoy together, it was such a fun concert that the three hours seemed to pass in an instant. Hoping for their next release and wishing they would hold another one-man concert soon, I left the venue.
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　(TEXT BY KAREN HAYAMA)

＜SET LIST＞
01. Misty Mystery
02. Rhythm
03. Genesis I
04. Naked Story
05. Memories
06. Yofuke no Ryuuseitachi
07. Go For It
08. Eiyu
09. Seijaku no concerto
10. Namida no Yesterday
11. Kimi Tsuresaru Toki no Otozure o
12. Umi Nari (SUPER LIGHT)
13. nonsense
14. Lonely Night
15. wish★
16. Mawarimichi
17. live
18. Fall in Life ～Hallelujah～
19. Smiley Nation
【Encore】
20. JUDY
21. Koyoi Eden no Katase de
22. Spiral