Es VOL.43 live report“livescope 〜THE FINAL〜”Osaka场(first half)

●○ From music freak Es Vol.43

【SET LIST】
01. Rhythm
02. Misty Mystery
03. flying
04. 夏の幻 (secret arrange ver.)
05. Last love song
06. 向日葵の色
07. Mysterious Eyes
08. Over Drive
09. closer
10. 空に花火
11. 夢のひとつ
12. 千以上の言葉を並べても...
13. 涙のイエスタデー
14. ロンリーナイト
15. wish★
16. U
17. call my name
18. 世界はまわると言うけれど
19. Yellow Moon
20. ふたり
21. Smiley Nation
22. 今宵エデンの片隅で
［ENCORE I］
23. バタフライ・ノット
24. Fall in Life ～Hallelujah～
［ENCORE II］
25. 夢みたあとで

With doors opening at 3:00 p.m. and the show starting at 4:00, the schedule was a little earlier than usual. Osaka was slightly cloudy that day, but the city was wrapped in warm, calm weather that felt like early summer. When I arrived shortly after 3:00, crowds had already gathered around the venue. Some were taking commemorative photos beneath banners that appeared to have been handmade by fans; others were gathered in groups, passionately sharing their memories of GARNET CROW. Many were already wearing the tour T-shirts. Some were smiling, others had tears in their eyes, and even before entering the building I could feel an unusually special atmosphere.

What must it feel like for fans to know that, after today, they will never see their favorite artists again? How would the four members receive those feelings, and how would they help the fans come to terms with them? Thinking about these things, I entered the first-floor lobby and found another crowd gathered around the expansive merchandise area. It was so packed that moving forward was difficult. When I finally made my way to the back, I found a large board covered with message cards from the audience to the members. “Thank you for everything!” “We’re going to miss you!”—one heartfelt cry after another. What struck me most was seeing the word “graduation” far more often than “breakup.” In response to YURI NAKAMURA’s comment at the March concert—“We have given everything we had as GARNET CROW”—many fans had chosen to see this as a “graduation,” rather than a “breakup,” and had surely decided to come today to send the group off brightly as fans. I could not help imagining that, and feeling once again that GARNET CROW had been able to continue all these years because they were surrounded by such wonderful fans.

I reached the main hall on the fifth floor about ten minutes before the show. The approximately 3,000 seats, sold out on the day tickets went on sale, filled before my eyes. At the scheduled 4:00 start, Hitoshi Okamoto’s silhouette appeared on the curtain as the opening SE played. His distinctive, richly textured distorted guitar rang through the hall, and the drummer counted in: one, two, three, four. Piano, keyboards, and bass joined in, the curtain fell, and at last the show began!

The much-anticipated first song was “Rhythm,” from their first album, 『first soundscope ～水のない晴れた海へ～』. A staircase had been set up at center stage. YURI NAKAMURA appeared at the top in an elegant black dress, projecting the same dignified presence as always while her commanding voice rang out. They followed with the minor-key upbeat number “Misty Mystery,” making a cool entrance in their familiar style. Then, during the intro to “flying,” the third song, Nakamura greeted the audience in her usual bright tone: “Good evening, everyone!! Thank you for coming today. Please enjoy yourselves!” During the chorus, her liberating vocals filled the hall like birds taking flight across the open sky. She moved to the middle of the staircase during the instrumental break after the first chorus, then reached the bottom after the second, gradually drawing closer to the audience. She answered the spectators’ spontaneous waves with a gentle smile.

After the third song came the first MC. “I hope we can make the most wonderful and most enjoyable memories together today, so please enjoy yourselves to the very end.” With those words, the nostalgic numbers “夏の幻” (in the secret arrange version that day) and “Last love song” followed. Between songs, cheers calling out “Yurippe!” and “Nana!” rang out constantly. Though the concert had only just begun, the voices grew increasingly hot and emotional; the members, however, seemed intent on delivering first-rate music while staying true to GARNET CROW’s identity. “向日葵の色,” both melancholic and powerful, with an overwhelming presence, was a masterpiece that seemed to symbolize their musical character despite being an album track. In an instant, the entire hall cast aside every distraction and became captivated by that one song.

As if to cool the distinctive afterglow, they moved into an extended second MC. Each member was invited to talk about memories from the group’s early days and about the anime series 『Detective Conan』, with which they have such a close connection. Hitoshi Okamoto, AZUKI Nana, and Hiroto Furui each carried on at their usual unhurried pace. Their MCs seemed mismatched yet intertwined with perfect timing—a weakness fans found irresistible—and laughter never stopped that day. After the excitement had run its course, they performed the bright numbers “Mysterious Eyes,” their debut song and a Conan opening theme, followed by “Over Drive,” used as a theme song for a Conan theatrical film. Hearing “Mysterious Eyes,” released in 2000, and “Over Drive,” released in 2010, performed side by side without either feeling old or out of place made me realize that every one of their songs is truly evergreen music. No matter how much time passes, they will surely continue to refresh and stylishly delight our ears.

Strings joined them next for the grand mid-tempo ballad “closer” from their latest album, 『Terminus』. In the MC before the performance, they explained: “We gave the album the title 『Terminus』 because we wanted our music to reach your hearts farther, wider, and deeper from this one terminal called GARNET CROW, and because we wanted our songs to reach more of you. We are very satisfied with how it turned out: a compelling album filled with a world that is very GARNET CROW, with both ballads and up-tempo songs.” “空に花火” followed, a collaboration between the strings’ beautiful, flowing tones and the solid, majestic band performance. I was swept away by the dignified brilliance of the performance.

Amid the unending applause, AZUKI, Okamoto, and Furui briefly left the stage. Nakamura then introduced the strings, МИР Strings, once again, as well as Daisuke Ikeda, who handled the string arrangement and conducting. They performed “夢のひとつ,” specially arranged for this concert. At the end of the song, Nakamura and the string section left the stage. The other three members, now in changed costumes, returned instead. They began with a relaxed conversation led by Okamoto, creating a friendly atmosphere that drew in the audience. And no GARNET CROW concert would be complete without Okamoto’s vocal segment. He carefully sang the nostalgic number “千以上の言葉を並べても...” over warm handclaps. Many fans look forward to hearing the guitarist’s appealing singing voice. Nothing has yet been announced about the four members’ activities after the breakup, but after hearing him sing that day, I am surely not the only person who hoped that Okamoto’s solo project SUPER LIGHT would continue.

Now the second half burst into life with a run of upbeat numbers! Nakamura changed into a gorgeous dress in white and orange, then jumped in during the intro to “涙のイエスタデー.” “Let’s get excited from here!” she urged, singing with adorable dance moves and looking wonderfully happy. When she pointed the microphone toward the audience during the chorus, the familiar mass sing-along began! The unity was remarkable, especially for a song that had enlivened so many concerts. “Let’s get even more excited! Hey! Hey!” she shouted, raising her fist as they moved nonstop into “ロンリーナイト.” These dance numbers from the group’s later years added depth to their live performances. They continued with “wish★,” another song now indispensable to their concerts, with the whole hall matching its choreography. Then, amid the swirling excitement, Nakamura wrung every ounce of strength from her body to sing the passionate number “U.” The applause would not stop for quite some time.

Perhaps because this was the LAST LIVE, there were many MC segments. Here, the members talked about the songs that held special memories for them among the 34 singles they had released, sharing stories from those days. Then they introduced “call my name,” saying, “This is a song we are very fond of as well.” It was unforgettable: the song performed first at their very first live show, and the first time the writer heard the live performance of a group that still had little public exposure.