Doremidan welcomed both the new year and a new member in excellent form.
The nostalgic sounds of The Beatles filled Ebisu Liquidroom with an excited buzz of anticipation. When the show began, a screen was lit up with a slide show introducing the members – each was greeted by appreciative cries from the crowd to offset their rhythmic clapping. As the title of the concert hit the screen, applause exploded, only to be drowned out by the opening chords of Time Machine.
With vibrant rainbow lights contrasting their recent, darker look, Doremidan transformed the stage. Instantly, hands flew into the air as vocalist Makoto screamed, “Are you ready!?” The fast-paced opener set the standard for the evening; the floor was vibrating under the feet of the crowd. Next, Blind Android was met with headbanging. Drummer Reika's red sticks flashed as the heavy beat drove the crowd wild. Meanwhile, newcomer Yuu wasted no time making his mark as he was soon found traversing the stage to play alongside guitarist Ken.
Deafening shouts met the sudden silence until Makoto stepped up to greet the adoring fans. He wished the crowd a Happy New Year despite the late date, and thanked them for being there to celebrate the band’s eighth anniversary. After some entertaining chatter, he declared, “Eight years! Congratulations! Thanks!” and then fired the crowd up for the next song: kibou toshi. There wasn’t a still hand in the house as the heavy piece took off like a rocket! The driving beat and infectious guitar melody had the venue rocking effortlessly.
kuroi kasen to ichiru no nozomi began with Makoto's order of “Jump!” and the crowd dove into the music headfirst. Then, taking a journey back with an older piece, the band played jishiki kajou, amai wana, and the fans clapped along to Reika's drumbeat. Before long, the entire crowd - and occasionally Ken - was bouncing from one side of the floor to the other and responding enthusiastically to Makoto's cries of “Let me hear your voices!”
Makoto sang out the catchy tune of Endroll, enjoying the crowd’s full attention. The guitars also shone throughout the number with a rocking solo towards the end, nicely contrasted by the vocalist’s gentler rendition of the chorus. After another short break, the set resumed with usotsuki serenade (Liar’s Serenade). The gypsy-like melody fit the title well. Showing off a rare talent for movement within the world of visual kei vocalists, Makoto made the opening actions look good as he led the crowd.
namida gumo's funky intro featured Yuu rocking out on his bass, coming forward as the song moved further along to gain deserved attention with his wicked playing. All arms were raised without exception throughout the number, and not a thought was spared for conserving energy as the crowd had the time of their lives. The standard only rose with wakareuta as wild headbanging was visible throughout the floor. The fans’ raised voices could be heard even over the driving crash of Reika's drums. The song culminated with a spotlight on the vocalist, bringing a sobering vocal finish to an exciting piece.
Working with the mood, maboroshi lamp brought back the intriguing gypsy sound with an inverted classical theme. Appropriate to the musical tableau, bassist Yuu took a seat upon his dais, posing suavely as he continued to play. The waltz interlude had the crowd daintily side-stepping until the guitar broke out once more with a grin-inspiring melody. The final return of the waltz theme led smoothly into the next piece, Parade. As the ballad began to settle in, soft lights trickled across the crowd until the spotlight came upon Makoto. At last, the audience was able to rest their bodies… but not their ears. The atmosphere grew intense as Makoto's vocal style became gruff and heavy, smoothly contrasting with the sweet music. A moment of appreciative silence passed before the band received a round of applause for the ballad, but with Makoto's encouragement, the place was jumping again in no time to the upbeat music of ame no platform. Then it was rocking back and forth to the heavy guitar riff. A sense of fun seemed to fill the air and a cry of “Thank you!” brought about another break filled with constant screams.
During the following MC, Makoto expressed his happiness to be able to give the fans such an extensive set. He had the crowd involved and responding as he spoke, seeming to bring the band and audience together.
The music took off once more with juusei, and the upbeat tune brought about a fast revival of energy. The mood only brightened further with Traveller as lights came up in the house, revealing a sea of movement on the floor. Yuu and Ryu could be seen dancing together to the cheerful melody, and the audience once more began side-stepping and clapping out the three-fourths-beat in utter unison. With a perky 90’s rock feel, suimin tengoku continued the bright trend as Ken executed actions along with the crowd, nurturing the fun atmosphere. The next song of the set was rensou game. United under the music, the crowd’s complicated hand actions were performed in splendid synchronization. Meanwhile, Yuu showed off his groovy side in the downright awesome bass solo.
After sixteen songs, it was time for another MC, during which Makoto expressed his feelings about the venue and the live. “Having fun?” he queried. The audience responded with positive enthusiasm. “I thought so. That’s why it’s fun for us, too.” Goading the crowd into firing up once more, Makoto re-ignited the audience's energy for the next song.
seishun rollover proved to be the highlight of the set. Excitement levels went through the roof in this crowd favourite. The floor seemed covered almost instantly by towels churning like windmills in raised hands. Makoto's voice rang out, the guitars went off, the drums drove on, and Yuu fell to his knees, creating a high-tension, thrilling atmosphere throughout the number.
wakaba no kioku broke out with strobe lights as the audience traversed the floor in familiar fashion. The catchy melody had Yuu flitting from member to member like a bee collecting pollen, whilst Ryu rocked out to himself. Soon, the band came forward to join Makoto while Reika's energetic form continued as a flurry of motion in the background. Makoto surveyed the crowed as it bounced to and fro. Then, with one last “Thank you!” he exited the stage, soon followed by the other members.
An intriguing technical blunder caused Chim Chim Cheree from the movie Mary Poppins to fill the void. However, just as the crowd started to enjoy the Disney mood, the music was cut…only to be replaced by the encore call at last - which was valiantly taken up by all voices without wavering once until Reika made his entrance once more.
The mystery was solved as Chim Chim Cheree rolled on again, this time to be joined by Reika's drumming, creating an innovative introduction to the drum solo. The following riff was punctuated with breaks to cue calls of “Reika-sama!” which the drummer skilfully manipulated before shifting into a swing beat. This time, he broke for a head roll, eliciting giggles from the audience, and led into another heavy riff with a repeat cue of “Reika-sama.” After a clap beat, the drummer gave a New Year’s greeting and then conducted the audience in a New Years’ celebration song.
Next, Yuu took over the stage with his explosive bass solo. Funky, groovy, sweet - call it what you will, the new bassist certainly proved his worth to the band before the re-emergence of the remaining members brought about tasogare trapezium. The blues melody was punctuated by all kinds of headbanging whilst Makoto watched, all smiles.
Without fading, that grin stayed in place for the next MC as Makoto warmly thanked everyone for the encore and joked about how the night was coming to an end so fast, despite such a long set. He then requested that everyone go flat-out until the very end.
“3, 2, 1, yay!” was the cue for everyone to break into movement once more during Hello!! Brandnew Day. Here and there, fans leapt into the air, the freedom of the song infectious. The cheerful harmonica solo couldn’t have created a friendlier atmosphere, and then with a peace sign directed at the audience, Makoto led the band offstage once more.
Not yet ready for the night to end, the crowd took up the encore cry again, louder than ever before. Not one to disappoint, Makoto was back onstage before long, full of thanks. Alone, he chatted away with the fans, teasing, laughing, and taking a memorial picture of the crowd from his mobile phone, crying, “They came! They came, it’s Doremidan!” when the other members appeared at last.
After asking each member to give their thoughts on Yuu joining the band, and their personal goal for 2010, the vocalist wound up the night. He explained that he couldn’t reveal the details, but without Yuu, they could not have been standing together on that stage. He then announced Doremidan's next one-man Sai, to be held at Club Quattro on March 31st.
Memories ～yuuen no kaze ni akogarete～ opened the final musical spot of the show, both guitarists shining through a solo section followed by a fitting bass rendition. Then, the floor became an outright mosh for the last few minutes with aozora generation. Everyone’s hands waved as one as the instrumentalists all showed their stuff. Then it was Makoto's turn, and he was joined by the voices of the crowd, clearly raised. Hands entwined, strangers and friends united as one in this last number.
It was time to say goodbye. Amongst the members’ "thank yous" and various antics including the artful ripping of Ryu's shirt, Makoto bowed deeply to the audience. Remaining behind by himself, he cried, “We’re counting on you this year!” before reluctantly leaving the stage at last.
After a long, energetic set, Makoto's final words stayed behind to bolster a satisfied audience. All in all, it was a successful anniversary and a brilliant showcase of the band’s growing talent with bassist Yuu.
Set List:
01. Time Machine.
02. Blind Android
03. kibou toshi
04. kuroi kasen to ichiru no nozomi
05. jishiki kajou, amai wana
06. Endroll
07. usotsuki serenade
08. namida gumo
09. wakareuta
10. maboroshi lamp
11. Parade
12. ame no platform
13. juusei
14.Traveller
15. suimin tengoku
16. rensou game
17. seishun rollover
18. wakaba no kioku
Encore 1:
19.Dr&BSolo/ tasogare trapezium
20. Hello!! Brandnew Day
Encore 2:
21. Memories ～yuuen no kaze ni akogarete～
22. aozora generation
