Well, firstly, I've never been to Saitama Super Arena before. I hadn't even been to Saitama until last week. So, I get off the train and I start following people with Ayu goods. Yeah. For three hours, I wait with only 40 people. I'm like "lol No one's buying goods." Then, y'know, dancers walk buy... some lesser-known ones... then Shu-Ya, then Maro... then it's 12:15 and I think to myself, "I don't think I'm in the right place."
Nope, these people are just waiting for the dancers.
I get in line and only wait about 25min. Then I find Evolution7/4 and another AHS member (I forgot her name and I'm too lazy to look it up, haha). After enduring the cold for a while, we finally get inside.
Eeee!!! Yeah, the stage is the same, and I'm not fond of the smaller catwalk but whatever. I was back at an Ayu concert!!!!
There were two videos shown before the concert, with the second one actually opening the concert. The first was Timmy describing "Hotel Love Songs" - as in, the hotel itself. I think he was trying to sound like a fancy American (like, rich and proper and such) but his voice kept changing, haha. It's a very grandiose hotel, I tell ya! Looks can be deceiving, as we find out throughout the concert
The second video introduces the dancers, and then AYU!! Well, before Ayu comes out, we're introduced to the backup singers - I thought Princess had left, but I forgot her name is actually Yoko. Haha. We also have Timmy, the new guy Maccie, and the other new girl. I don't remember her name. Then the two videos are replayed (or maybe just the second one), with music and the dancers coming out upon their introductions in the video. Then AYU!!!
I'm not a big fan of Happening Here, and it was an okay opening. I think Ayu was a bit nervous at first (her voice was fine, and while she owned it, she wasn't like... completely owning it, y'know) but by the end of it she was really getting the crowd riled up. I was hoping for an opening like Rule or Last angel (performance-wise) but it was good.
During every scene change, we would first see a door sign, then Timmy would appear and open it. Most of the time other people were around, but sometimes it was just him by himself.
Now, the first two special screens... they were especially dark. I don't wanna start anything, and it could just be Ayu coming up with deep stuff, but watching those videos... In the second one especially, I think Maro was supposed to represent Mannie. But, in the first one, there was a lot of fighting going on. A lot of abuse, almost. And then in the second one, Maro left Ayu to go visit another woman (Midori, I think?) but they also get to fighting. Ayu knows what's going on, I'd say. I don't like to think negatively of Ayu and Mannie's relationship, and like I said, I'm not trying to start anything... but I know a lot of people are going to be speculating on those special screens.
I screamed a lot when hearing songs, but I was basically praying for "reminds me" to be performed. It's my favorite song off the album. I almost died when I heard the intro to it and saw it being performed. Ayu could have belted out the song, but she probably would have ruined her voice and sounded terrible. Perhaps it was just a first-day thing.
"Tell me why" was really good. She mostly stayed in the background during this and "reminds me" but would participate in the storyline a little bit.
When the intro to "appears" started, the arena erupted into chaos. APPEARS!!!!!! The beds from CDL (during "MOON") were used for this. Good vocals, good performance.
We've seen pics from the intro before "Shake It" and "STEP you" - Ayu with the glasses. The room Timmy leads us into is the "Staff Room", where Ayu and her team were being forced by Subaru (who looked like Hitler in the video) before they, I guess, seduced him. Then there's a switch and Ayu comes out in this sexy, cute maid-type dress!!
I didn't like "Shake It" at first, but this performance was good. During the "Shake it, sh-shake it, la la" parts, the girls were literally like shaking their butts. I was like, "well, damn". Haha. Then, like "appears", when the intro to "STEP you" began, the arena went crazy. Good song choices!!!
For the next intro... don't remember what room it was, but we see the guys shooting each other and then going into a dance-off. The laser effects were AMAZING. Kinda like AT09 and a few other concerts, but with so many more effects and colors. It was incredible. The dancing was really on-point as well during "NaNaNa". not during this performance, but during the whole concert as well. And, yes, it was performed at CDL, but people enjoyed "Sparkle" too. It was like being at AT09 again with the arena in-sync with the "NO NO NO"'s
Then we see a Maro solo where he's tap-dancing. It was incredible!! It was shown a bit in a video, but I knew "the next LOVE" was coming up due to it being written in the corner of the video. Now... I'm not a big fan of these songs. I don't think the people were in the audience, either. Usually with the songs, people are moving their lightsticks around and such... during these two songs, nobody was really moving. They weren't dancing. A lot of people were sitting down. (A lot of people around me looked bored.) The performances were good, yes, but I still don't like these songs. And the audience was just way too quiet during the songs, and I think Ayu could tell the audience wasn't that into them.
And then we get introduced to "The Garden". In the video at the beginning of the concert, the garden is nice with vibrant colors and such. In this garden... well, it's like the scenery from "Return Road". And then we hear the intro to that. Ayu's corset changed colors during the song, from... well, I don't know what it started out as, but it was blue at one point, then red at the end. Ayu stayed in the back for a lot of the song, but the dancers were dressed up in monk-like robes. You couldn't see their faces. One of them was slugging around, walking up to the rest, like Ayu did in the video. Then they switch, with Ayu looking around and that one hanging in the back. We find out that person is Shu-Ya. (I need to look at the lyrics and then re-think about the performance).
Then we hear the intro to "Ladies Night". I think we're being punked, as Ayu's done this before, but then it starts! Just like the performance from CDL - she comes down on that sparkly thing. The same outfit and everything as before. Then the intro to "SURREAL" starts, and of course, like I've mentioned with other classics, the arena goes wild. Same with "evolution". The arena is happily singing along with both these songs.
The curtain starts to go down, then the pianist starts playing, a backup singer starts singing, with Ayu going, "Sshhhhh!!" Haha. But she does an acapella mini "Love song" before erupting into the full song. I loved how it ended the concert in CDL, and I was happy to see the same during this one. (Also, it may have been changed before I posted this or could have been posted and I didn't change, but I noticed in the original post it's indicated there's a costume change between S~e~S and "Love song", but there's not. The curtain kinda falls but she doesn't change costumes.)
We sit in darkness for maybe five minutes before the "A-A-Ayu" video starts. The video makes us say "SKY TREE!", "SHU-YA!", and "Ayu!" repeatedly before the encore starts.
First, we see a "DANCERS CORNER!". The dancers do their dances to songs from the various releases of ayu-mi-x4 (monochrome, fairyland, For My Dear, among others). Then Ayu comes out, introduces Timmy and makes him speak some Japanese before singing "Letter". Basic, cute performance.
Then we jump right into "Boys&Girls". Ayu and the dancers throw balls out into the audience as the stage lights up in a rainbow of colors. She was so cute, continuing to sing when she was supposed to stop. I was laughing so much, but it was adorable.
An intro to "how beautiful you are" begins and the dancers and Ayu sit down along the edge of the rotating stage at the end of the catwalk. They hold hands as they sing. After the first chorus, they stand up but remain in the circle. Then they walk back and Ayu introduces the dancers once more. Then they end the song and that's it.
No running around the stage, no quieting the arena before "ARIAGTOU!!!!" No real conversations or such during the MC. Heck, not even enough songs! BUT, it was a fantastic concert. Not as epic as AT05 and AT10, but not as basic as AT08. We'll see how tomorrow goes
Also, Jedward (Irish boyband) was at the concert. I know nothing of their songs or personalities, but I recognize their huge hair and red blazers. Needless to say, I was freaking out. And those lucky boys, they got to sit in the front row!!!