Additional Thoughts on Super Space Time Tanabata Sonic
I have a lot more to say about this concert. Surprise surprise.
1. There’s this brouhaha about lack of a DVD release mainly via some Q&A coming from Victor/SEATBELTS, prior to the concert. While the answer was a vague “no,” and a relatively definite “no,” it’s good to know that it’s not an absolute no. At the same time, however, a crossover concert generally suggests licensing problems, and a crossover concert of this magnitude, with this many different performers…it would be odd if there weren’t any licensing problems blocking a full-on DVD/CD release.
2. In fact, some contemplated that said licensing problem might be why the song selection are the way they were. Some were cut REAL short (like, 3 bars long total, if even that, in the case of Kiseki no Umi), perhaps for the same reasons! Or maybe they just want you to buy We Are Kazeyomi! on DVD instead? After all, (heh After All) this show is Macross Plus x Macross Frontier x GITS x Bebop x Turn-A x a lot of other stuff. It’s one reason why this Tanabata Sonic is so Super…for bang per buck.
3. And given the bucks spent, it’s a hella loud bang. Just to clarify, my seats were about 30000 yen. At a healthy 95 yen per USD, that comes to about 316 USD. However I paid a lot more than that to cover proxy costs. Worth it? HELLS YEA. Imagine if you had a seat next to me at the retail price of 7777 yen…
4. Fighting for concert seating is a wash for these shows. I pity those who have to wade through not only fan club first-dibs, but pre-sales, general admission tickets and then online scalping. Such a PITA. I wonder if that’s true for US shows (a resounding no in my limited experience). I don’t think it actually cost any more to get a front-row type seat at the Nana Mizuki show though. May be a supply-and-demand thing.
5. On the subject of audio bootlegs, it’s out there. It’s likely the next best thing, so you really should get a hold of it if you’re interested in this show at all. Unlike what some fan forum people think, my opinion is that the more people get a hold of it, the higher demand for DVD/CD there will be. So spread the goodness. If I had the time to work on it I might even host some. As to where, I’d say go here and here and ask around. Words can’t begin to explain, but a low-quality audio recording probably could at least give a real glimpse into the wonderfulness.
6. More on DVD/CD–I know that there aren’t enough cameras at the show to justify a full-on DVD release. Just to compare, I’ve seen at least 3x more cameras at the Nana Mizuki show at Seibu Dome, and certain kinds of cameras (downward pointing, laterally moving ones) are entirely missing. The only ones I spotted at the show are there for projection purposes, and they were all stationary. It’s not to say there won’t be any recording as I’m sure they were recording, but it would be only for archival and not for sale. What I want to see more, though, are the behind-the-scene video clips they showed in brief…Well, if this was a musical, then there were enough cameras, perhaps, for a DVD. But for a concert like this you need a lot more than just those stationary cameras simply because the performers are all over the place, and up and down the catwalk. And you need close-ups. Sometimes everywhere at once. But none of this precludes a CD per se, nor clips available on a bonus DVD or something.
7. What does preclude it for CD release is the oddity of the performance itself. It’s a fairly interactive show. Some parts make no sense if it’s audio only. Of course they could just cut those parts out, but…well, it explains why they gave a vague “no” for official answer on a DVD.
8. Multi-lingual. It’s tough to use English to get a crowd riled up like that. Doesn’t stop them from trying however.
9. Media blackout. So far all the coverage of the concert post-concert are of the “fan” variety. The most pro coverage it has gotten are public blogs of the somewhat-famous people that attended the show. Like Steve Conte’s MySpace (being the most vibrant and detailed one of them all). Everything else is from die-hard fans like myself… What is up with that! It’s been almost a whole week! Even the Victor Entertainment Seatbelts site scrubbed the concert info page clean as if it never existed.
10. Makes you wonder about this guy huh? The Macross crossover concert is going to be a hellish licensing ordeal if that comes out on DVD. But at the same time, it’s probably going to have an Iijima x Nakajima duet and a Nakajima solo for Voices, LOLOLOL. And what is this, no Sharon Apple? Much more intimidating than a “Chick.”
XD
11. My favorite acts: Want It All Back, because it’s just smooth (minus the blunder). What Planet Is This ties with Iteza because both songs are arranged rather similarly actually… as applied to rocking out at a show. Except What Planet Is This has something (IMO) more precious. I really dig Torukia, and the way the people sang to it. I like how the crowd reacts to all the funky Maaya inserts, even if they tend to be diced up.
12. Yakusoku wa Iranai was the biggest surprise at the show, along with Platinum. Honestly I wasn’t surprised at all about Moon, but the surreality of it plus the fact that what makes it special is more cerebral than primal makes it slightly boggling to get my mind around the fact that it’s awesome. Once in a lifetime and all. And as some said, Megumi Nakajima sings a mean Voices. I suppose the duck song, too, but that was not totally unexpected. What made it so sweet is that it was Anata no Oto, which is one of my favorites from MacF.
13. Some disappointments are: way too many songs that are diced too short. Mostly just Genesis of Aquarion and Kiseki no Umi. Obviously Mai-neesan dropped Want It All Back was a little :/ and believe it or not Garden of Everything was nowhere nearly as epic as some may have imagined in their spare time. Really was hoping AKINO or …Akino Arai would make an appearance on stage (think one of them was in audience at least).
14. I (or anyone who was there, really) can grumble about their favorite piece not getting much play time, but com’on, if you’re that big of a fan odds are you like just way too many songs and one or more will get omitted. I’ve resigned my fate. Of course, at the same time the problem comes in when you’re not that big of a fan, and a lot of the awesome to this show will be lost on you.
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Oh, hit this link [last retrieved Jul. 13, 2009] to see how Yahoo Auction Japan is doing in terms of the concert-only sale goods. So far only two people have made an earnest bid on my extra book…
Thanks for posting your additional thoughts about the concert. Personally, I think the slice’n'dice approach to some of the songs actually gave the whole act a lot of additional character. Imagine if the entire concert just consisted of singing full-length hit songs one after the next! Um ok, that might have been good too :3 But they also wouldn’t have been able to fit in as many fan favorites.
On another note, I’ve managed to make myself even more broke by obtaining a concert T-shirt on Yahoo Auctions… D:
絶望した！財布の中身に絶望した！
Yea, it is a trade-off. But there was literally like, 5 seconds of Kiseki no Umi. Makes you wonder…