Anyone get to see L'arc~En~Ciel?
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MHtrStevie
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- 13 Jul 2002
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Otakon is (apparently) the biggest anime/J-Pop convention in the United States, which happens around the end of July every year in Baltimore, Maryland. It started in 1994 with 350 attendees at Penn State University, and last year (2003, when I last went) they had over 17,000 people attend, almost completely filling the Baltimore Convention Center! With L'arc~en~ciel in concert this year, I can't even fathom how many may have been there...
I did see the TM Revolution concert at Otakon last year, which was totally amazing... so I imagine it had to be an amazing appearance by L'arc this time around. If no one replies here with personal stories about the event, you can follow the banter at the Otakon board itself (I've been doing that)... here's a link to the thread with post-concert reports:
http://board.otakon.com/viewtopic.php?t=3985
Hope this helps... wish I could have been there!
I did see the TM Revolution concert at Otakon last year, which was totally amazing... so I imagine it had to be an amazing appearance by L'arc this time around. If no one replies here with personal stories about the event, you can follow the banter at the Otakon board itself (I've been doing that)... here's a link to the thread with post-concert reports:
http://board.otakon.com/viewtopic.php?t=3985
Hope this helps... wish I could have been there!
MHtrStevie
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- 13 Jul 2002
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For further reference, there is some post-concert reports/discussion going on in the forums at Tofu Records as well. In case people don't know, Tofu Records is essentially the U.S. arm of Sony Records Japan and has released the latest L'arc album "SMILE" into record stores in the Western world. Here's a link to that discussion...
tofurecords.com - This website is for sale! - tofurecords Resources and Information.
I'm still curious if any hardcore J-Ref posters were there... it'd be nice to hear some personal recollections here too!
tofurecords.com - This website is for sale! - tofurecords Resources and Information.
I'm still curious if any hardcore J-Ref posters were there... it'd be nice to hear some personal recollections here too!
MHtrStevie said:Otakon is (apparently) the biggest anime/J-Pop convention in the United States, which happens around the end of July every year in Baltimore, Maryland. It started in 1994 with 350 attendees at Penn State University, and last year (2003, when I last went) they had over 17,000 people attend, almost completely filling the Baltimore Convention Center! With L'arc~en~ciel in concert this year, I can't even fathom how many may have been there...
I did see the TM Revolution concert at Otakon last year, which was totally amazing... so I imagine it had to be an amazing appearance by L'arc this time around. If no one replies here with personal stories about the event, you can follow the banter at the Otakon board itself (I've been doing that)... here's a link to the thread with post-concert reports:
http://board.otakon.com/viewtopic.php?t=3985
Hope this helps... wish I could have been there!
Actually, as far as I can tell, it's only the biggest anime convention in the EASTERN United States. I think Anime EXPO in California is much bigger. Anyways, back to the discussion at hand.
I was there, and I DID get to see L'Arc in concert. It was cool. Hyde can't speak English that well. However, I also got to see the ANGELA concert at Otakon the previous day, and I must say that I was most impressed with them. I know most people will think saying this is a sin, but ANGELA's concert was much much better than L'Arc's. Besides, L'Arc was also being an *** about coming over, at least in the sense that they didn't want to do an autograph session at all. ANGELA, on the other hand, did three :-D.
Any other questions about the performance(s)?
- Yoshiaki Abe
MHtrStevie
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- 13 Jul 2002
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That was true up until last year (2003)... based on attendance figures listed at the con's websites for that year, AX2003 lists 17,000 attendees while Otakon 2003 lists between 17,000-18,000. I haven't seen figures for this year (considering Otakon just ended yesterday), but I think that's where the claim is now being made... the Otakon growth rate has been higher than AX the past few years, so you'd figure they'd eventually catch up. But at the very least, they are now equivalent conventions in terms of raw attendance and ability to attract the BIG guests. Anyway...Onmyoji said:
Glad to hear someone mention the Angela concert as well... I was intrigued seeing them on the bill, as I haven't heard much of their music. But I figure fan access has a LOT to do with stature in the industry... being a smaller act, it really helps Angela to have autograph sessions, not to mention handling the logistics of the event. Judging by the reports regarding getting into/out of the L'arc concert, I can only imagine the nightmare of trying to organize anh autograph session... what percent of the line for that session would have received autographs? Probably a MUCH smaller fraction than the line for Angela, or TM Revolution the year before...
Obviously TMR's a pretty big star in his own right, but his star's been on the decline for a while now... while L'arc~en~ciel is a band pretty much at its peak, hitting #1 consistently with each new single/album. Of course, TMR also seems like a genuinely good-natured person willing to go that extra mile to leave his fans happy, while L'arc does have a bit of a rep as prima donnas...
*dodges various stones and flaming debris thrown in his direction*
Sorry... I love their music as much as anyone, but not every celebrity is also the greatest person/people at heart. It's too bad that there wasn't an autograph session with them, but I can understand why on multiple levels.
What about the reports I've heard about the crowd at the L'arc show? I hear people personally talking about going nuts at the show, but also complaining that many fans were sitting and being quiet or only getting into things near the end. Some people even say that the convention staff had to try and whip the crowd up at one point... I'm curious because I think the impression left by the crowd in these concerts has a bearing on what will happen in the future. TMR's show went exceptionally well, which probably did a LOT to pave the way for the L'arc show... do you feel like the L'arc show went well enough to see continued efforts to bring more J-Pop acts over?
Thanks for the time! Nice to hear from someone on this forum about the show... and nice to meet you!
The reason L'arc even came was because of TMR. Tofu Rec. had a helluva time to convince L'arc to come, and it was only after the success of TMR's show, that they finally agreed.
And they'll be back, along with a lot of other artists outside of the realm of Tofu Records. Next year will be the premiere year of Jpop/Jrock in the states thanks to a few organisations efforts.
One more note just because: TMR is probably the kindest person on the face of the earth. He's just unusually nice. Its almost scary.
And they'll be back, along with a lot of other artists outside of the realm of Tofu Records. Next year will be the premiere year of Jpop/Jrock in the states thanks to a few organisations efforts.
One more note just because: TMR is probably the kindest person on the face of the earth. He's just unusually nice. Its almost scary.
- 3 Jan 2004
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I got to see it. =D Here's a mini review (you have to scroll down a bit in the entry): Public 'cause I said so.
MHtrStevie said:
Well, that's interesting to hear Otakon is the biggest(-ish) now. That's kind of cool. As far as Angela, they rock a lot (they're my second favorite band, if I didn't mention that), and I was really happy to meet, shake hands with, and talk to them, which was more than I could say ANYONE did with Hyde. Having popularity isn't always a good thing, it seems. As far as getting in/out of the L'Arc show, it was indeed a nightmare. However, I think that Tofu is going to continue to license at least J-rock bands over here in the states. There are only a couple pop artists they licensed so far, and only J-rock groups have had live concerts in America so far, so it seems they will come over first...
MHtrStevie
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- 13 Jul 2002
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Yeah, it really felt like something special happened when TMR appeared at Otakon last year. I wonder how much his success/warm feelings about the show paved the way for this relative glut of acts appearing this year... did the word get around? Certainly I know the direct bearing in terms of L'arc~en~ciel's decision, but what about DaI's show at A-Kon or the new one that's really bizarre, MAX appearing at AnimeFest? I mean, as far as I know MAX has absolutely NO connections to anime... they haven't provided a them for an anime at all as far as I know, something that all of the "headline" acts which have appeared so far have done.Winter said:
For those who don't know, MAX is a four-girl group out of the Okinawan Actors' School (see manga B.B. Explosion)... they started together with Namie Amuro as a group called Supermonkeys, but Amuro-san's rise in popularity culminated in her becoming a solo artist. The rest regrouped as MAX (Musical Active eXperience) in 1996, and have had a successful career... though, like TMR, I'd say their biggest success is behind them at this point. It'll be interesting to see how they fare as a con guest, again considering their lack of connection to anime (unless I'm forgetting something)...
If this year is any indication, I'd agree that next year could be the "Japanese invasion"... I'd figure the floodgates might open if L'arc returns to Japan with positive reports from Otakon too.
Once again, I must concur... he really bent over backwards last year, showing up at numerous panels, staying late at his autograph sessions and being pretty darn press-accessible. He left the same impression with me... extremely nice, especially for a celebrity of his popularity level.
MHtrStevie
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- 13 Jul 2002
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Well, I was speaking in relative terms... it's fun to think of some weird "Japanese invasion" like the British invasion of the 1960's, but I was only meaning that if TMR and L'arc have returned to Japan htinking it was worth doing what they did, then more than likely next year there will be even more giving it a go...Twisted said:
It's a weird paradox, isn't it? Anime's the force getting these groups over to the USA, and also potentially limiting their American fanbase... but it seems like that could be the limit anyway. It takes a unique personality, I think, to be able to appreciate music in a language one doesn't understand fluently (or even at all)... otherwise you'd probably have more than "Sukiyaki" to point to as an international J-Music success story.
But hey... who was predicting groups like TMR and L'arc would be doing concerts on the East Coast of the U.S. even as recently as a few years ago? It's an interesting time, to be sure...
- 21 Jun 2004
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Winter said:
Honestly, I can understand why they may have had a lot of apprehension about coming. They were set to perform as part of an American anime convention, not exactly a 200 city headlining tour. It's a start though. Couple that with the anxiety of travelling to the US to entertain people whom many of of do not speak Japanese and may not get your music, it can be a disaster. I know I'd be nervous.
Winter said:
And which bands may these be? Anyone we know besides Hikki? Could one of them go a little like this... B'z? God I hope so. Speaking of B'z, when they hitting the HoB in Vegas again? So L'arc and TMR will be back then? Will they play something more west coast or Vegas accesible? And what organisations are working on this?
Winter said:
I am nice to a fault myself, oh well.
Ant
Twisted
That man in the corner
- 15 Mar 2002
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antantrevolution said:
Hikki is on Toshiba-EMI so that's probably a no go, not sure which label B'z is on though.
Check out the Neo-Soul compilation on the Tofu Records website. Those are probably the most likely artists to be attending. Especially Crystal Kay, Ken Hirai and Chemistry.
- 21 Jun 2004
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Twisted said:
Well, Ken Hirai is cool, I think. It was a funny story actually, when I went to Japan last year, I saw Ken Hirai singing Sakura and I asked who the white dude was singing and my fiance laughed and said that he is full japanese. I thought it was odd, but I've seen stranger.
Ant
- 21 Jun 2004
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Winter said:
I've seen them, thanks
- 11 Aug 2004
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I got to see them! It was so cool ^-^! And funny as all else too. Too bad you couldn't be there.
Japanimaniac
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- 6 Oct 2004
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I got to see them. It was awesome. I felt bad for them at one point though, cuz Hyde's "engrish" got him in trouble. After asking if everyone was having fun, he asked if everyone ate crabs (Baltimore, Maryland. Blue crabs. Makes sense, ya know?) but apparently half the place thought he said "did you eat crap!?". The other half, who understood him (me included), screamed our agreement, and felt stupid as our voices echoed through the place.
But, the concert went on, they blew the place away, and a couple lucky people got to walk away with bananas (L'Arc fans know what I'm talking about). Great show.
But, the concert went on, they blew the place away, and a couple lucky people got to walk away with bananas (L'Arc fans know what I'm talking about). Great show.
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Alexandria
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- 2 Oct 2004
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Apparently there is going to be a jrock convention in 2005.I'm still checking it out to see what will be there.Apparently BLOOD has already agreed to come. Here is the web site: j-rock.info
Thanks for the url!
Just also wanted to say that I saw laruku@Otakon as well.... I was somewhere in the middle, so I couldn't really see them up close. But I'm so glad that there's gunna be a DVD release, I'll definitely be the first ones to buy!
-jubi
ps: the concert was crazy ~my eardrums were ringing during the concert; and even tho I didn't have the best seats, I can still see Hyde swingin' his hips... sooooo uber sexy!! ><
Just also wanted to say that I saw laruku@Otakon as well.... I was somewhere in the middle, so I couldn't really see them up close. But I'm so glad that there's gunna be a DVD release, I'll definitely be the first ones to buy!
-jubi
ps: the concert was crazy ~my eardrums were ringing during the concert; and even tho I didn't have the best seats, I can still see Hyde swingin' his hips... sooooo uber sexy!! ><
