JPop night and HALCALI live

With pop duo HALCALI appearing for the first time as principal guest at an anime event, the January 26th was a big day for Jpop fans in France.

Despite the late-January cold, the audience waited impatiently outside of the hall before the doors opened. After a short delay, a hundred people rushed inside.

The venue - bar & restaurant "The QIN" - was well-prepared with sympathetic staff who attended the two young ladies and their fans. The stage at the center of the room was large enough to accommodate the band and DJ, and video clips of the band looped on screens.

Anticipation was high by 8:30pm when HALCALI appeared on stage. The fans - interestingly enough a largely male audience with an average age slightly higher than for visual kei shows - massed in front of the stage screamed in joy at their arrival. This made the atmosphere quite different from what we're used to seeing in France.

Right from the first song, the duo got the crowd pumped up. They followed the choreography cheerfully and everyone else was already dancing to the irresistibly catchy music. Every song following after was charged with that same energy, never leaving the audience disappointed.

During the breaks there was a little interaction between the duo and their fans in French and Japanese, but the audience seemed to understand and responded so well that they didn't want to let them leave the stage by the end of the night. Tension was high right until the end of the show, but everything must come to an end and the concert finished at around 9:30pm.

After the show, there was a lottery for three lucky fans to have their picture taken with the band. Fans queued up for autographs or made their way home, leaving the night to end quietly with a few jpop music videos.

In conclusion, this event can hopefully pave the way for more Japanese artists to visit France and Europe at large - and their fans, who are waiting patiently.