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Another year has past. The long awaited go to event in New York has finally returned to Gotham. What event is that? No, it is not the International Auto Show, that event is none other than the 2015 New York Comic Con. This year marks my second go around with NYCC. As always, I thank ReedPop for the opportunity to cover the event as press, for putting together Comic Con and for continuously improving it year after year.

This year’s guest list contained some major players. Naruto creator, Masashi Kishimoto made his first U.S. public appearance. Natalie Dormer (Margaery Tyrell, Game Of Thrones), her on screen brother Finn Jones (Loras Tyrell) and Keisha Castle-Hughes (Obara Sands) were there doing autograph sessions. The impressive list goes on and on. Comic con goers this time around will experience the newly opened 7 train 34th street Hudson Yard station, which will drop passengers off a block or so away from the Javitz center. Personally I prefer to walk from the 34th street Penn station. As a New Yorker, I would not bet my life on the MTA getting me anywhere quicker.

October 8th, 2015 - Day 1:
As I arrived at the Javitz center, things become familiar. Going through the doors and bag check was easy. I had my schedule mapped out with the NYCC mobile app and wanted to attend the Masashi Kishimoto panel. However, after repeated requests to the good people at Viz Media and received no response as to whether there was a RSVP list, I decided I’ll just see how bad the line was. Let’s just say, one look at that queue, I immediately did a 180 and made a B-line to The Block. It is fine, I am not a fan of Naruto at all, so personally I did not miss out. Sorry I couldn’t do a report on it for those who are Naruto fans though. I later spoke with a crew member of NYCC and he told me the Kishimoto panel was actually not as crazy as Viz had sold it to be. According to the crew member, there were a lot of seats left and I could’ve made it. Kishimoto’s panel was similar to Takeshi Obata’s last year, where he talked a bit about his work and then drew Naruto on the screen for the fans to see a master at his craft.

The Block this year is similar to last. Many vendors, many unique merchandise, many companies showing off what they are currently working on. It is always fun to walk through the Block. You do not know what kind of crazy cosplay will turn up aisle from aisle. Here are some pictures I took as I strolled through the sea of fans in the Block.

Heading over to the Artist Alley can be a traumatizing event. Walking past the lockers, the many Progressive insurance Unicorns will leave anyone with nightmares!

Back to the show floors:

Walking back to the show floors, I am greeted by this year’s go-to cosplay, Deadpool.

October 9th, 2014 - Day 2 and October 10th, 2014 -Day 3:
Sadly, I was not able to attend Friday or Saturday’s events. My cameraman Ray did make it on Saturday to ensure we do not miss any of the excellent cosplays on display. Also he was able to check out the Back to the Future Delorean up close, Jurassic World event and transforming into an Avatar character. Check out these gorgeous images from Saturday!

Photo by Stuart Ramson/Invision for Courtyard/AP Images

Photo by Ilya S. Savenok/Getty Images for Universal Pictures Home Entertainment

October 11th, 2015 - Day 4:
Sunday is the wrap up day of another great year for the New York Comic Con. What a pleasure it has been to attend this event and to cover it. On the last day, con goers usually go to unwind and do a little bit of shopping as vendors throw out discounts so that they do not have to lugged things back. I was looking at a Warglaive of Azzinoth and the vendor told me, one warglaive is $350, if you want 2 the price is negotiable. He did not want to carry it back. I do not blame him, they were pretty big blades. But there is also a problem with buying these blades. The conversation I had with the NYCC crew comes to my mind. He showed me the many weapons and Captain America shields that were left outside of the venue because they were deemed too dangerous to carry inside. These blades would never be allowed in NYCC as a prop. But whatever, somewhere out there, someone would likely be interested in having two of these blades on the mantle to showcase. I am not one of those people though.

Ray and I, decided to just walk the floors and take as many pictures of cosplayers as we can. We did look to shop, but a lot of the things I wanted were sold out. Ray did make a few purchases and got some good discounts on it. Anyways without further ado, here are the pictures from Sunday.

Some Issues That I Came Across:
I did this section last year, so I might as well continue on the tradition. NYCC 2015 was great. There were a lot of good, but along with the good, there were the bad. What was bad? The lighting at Javitz center. I was there till 6:30PM on Thursday and it had gotten dark early. In an event where video and photography is so important, why were the lights not turned on at the main entrance areas? I understand the Javitz center lets in a lot of sun light, but there was barely any day light left. A lot of cosplayers and visitors stay around the entrance for photos. Do these people a favor, turn the lights on so they get better pictures.

Another issue I had were panels. Did something happen from last year that these panels no longer hold some press seats? Do the organizers not realize that we are there to cover the MANY events that go on during the convention. We do not necessarily have a couple hours to line up, especially when panel times overlap each other. I am not saying press should get special privileges, but not even offer some stand in room? I had intended to go to several panels throughout, but ended up doing none. Time constrictions, no communications from the organizers and the lack of interest from these organizers to get some publicity. After speaking with the NYCC crew, who did manage to attend the Masashi Kishimoto panel on Thursday and told me there were many empty seats. I could have filled it, but it is what it is. Hopefully next year, panel organizers will improve on this year’s issues.

In Closing:
Big thanks to ReedPop for allowing Animesou.com to cover New York Comic Con 2015. And keep up the amazing work that you guys are doing over there! I also have to thank the many cosplayers that attended this event and posed for our pictures. You guys are the fuel that continues to drive this event and the time you guys put in, in your outfits are greatly appreciated. A thanks goes out to the vendors, artists, and fans that make this event possible. Let’s look forward to NYCC 2016, October 6th-9th. See you there!

Walkthrough:

You know the New York Comic Con was close when your phone blows up with panels and various news information. As a first time attendee, yes, a first time attendee in all my years of covering anime, I was pretty much opened to the event. I was going to enjoy myself as best as I could and hopefully, by the time it was over, I would have had a memorable experience. But, before we continue, first and foremost, I have to thank ReedPOP for running New York Comic Con and for issuing Animesou.com a press pass to cover this wonderful event. It was definitely an eye opening experience and I had a ton of fun. Now onto New York Comic Con.

October 9th, 2014 - Day 1:
Getting off the D train and stepping out the station at 34th street Manhattan, one could not tell Comic Con began. However, block by block as I dodge the sea of tourists and New Yorkers, the scenery began to phase change. Look there’s a Batman! Or is that Pikachu? Once I got to the Jacob K. Javits convention center, I have finally arrived. The nerves started tingling and palms started sweating; I had no idea what I was in for. I went through the blue entrance and through the lazy bag check. Seriously, what’s the point of making me open my bag if you are just going to take a glance. Anyways, I went through the RFID check point, took a few steps and stood there. I took a moment to just absorb the atmosphere. One thing I immediately noticed. Where is the crowd? Was I too late? I arrived at 5:00PM and it was not as suffocating as a Black Friday at Walmart.

Regardless though, I proceeded to head for “The Block.” Snapping pictures as I go, I did see many cool cosplays, some better than others; But props given all the same. Walking through “The Block” there were interesting showcases. From the live art that an artist was drawing to the newest PVC figures from Good Smile Company. I did not compile a list of “go-to” booths other than Viz Media and gumi, Inc. for their Brave Frontier mobile game. I do not know if I would have survived if I had planned out every booth that I must hit. There were so many of them, each one with unique showcases. It turned out to be a great idea to just do a walk through and pause here and there for certain showcases that caught my eyes. I had about an hour for sightseeing, before I had to attend Viz Media’s “The Future of Shounen Jump” panel with special guest manga-ka Takeshi Obata sensei (Hikaru no Go, Death Note, Bakuman, & All You Need Is Kill).

Viz Media Panel: The Future of Shounen Jump:
Earlier in the week, I RSVPed a seat at this panel as I knew I had to be there to listen to Takeshi Obata speak about his works and his views on manga. I hope it was not just me, but the signage at the Javits center was pretty bad. I spent a good 10-15 minutes looking for the panel location, looked at the signs and it pointed to different directions. At one point I was going to ask some staff for help but they were busy on their phones and did not seem like they were getting off it any time soon. I continued to pace around like a chicken with its head cut off. And finally decided to just walk all the way down the hall and see what was there.

Once I got to room 1A10, I saw a line that was probably the most lame attempt at a line. People rushed in and tried to grab the best seat available. And since I reserved a press seat for this event earlier, I proceeded to ask a staff, “Where should I sit?” This person had no idea and told me to ask the emcee of the panel. I walked over and asked, and he just said sit anywhere. Okay? Then what was the point of reserving in the first place? After I turned around I saw there were seats with “Reserved” on them. Uhh… the staff, any of them could have just pointed me to it. Yet, they seemed clueless or just did not care. It was messy and I was pretty ticked off about it.

When Takeshi Obata was introduced along with the other guests involved with Shounen Jump, there was a roar of applause. A girl behind me felt the need to tell those in her vicinity that she “loves this man” and for others to put their cameras down, because she needs to see Obata-san every second of the duration of the panel. The panel was entertaining and the audience got to witness a master at his craft.

Obata-san drew Ryuk and L on the projection screen. As he was drawing, he also tried to answer the three best questions from fans selected by the Shounen Jump editor and also other questions the emcee had lined up. Personally, I felt it was a bad idea. Obata-san was focused at drawing, and he was giving really generic and basic answers during that period of time. When he was answering questions prior to showing his abilities to the audience, his answers were well thought out and allowed the audience into his train of thought when he does his work. I knew the time was tight, because a NYCC staff continued to walk into the room and showed the panel members the minutes left.

Back to Comic Con:
I left the panel with about a minute or two left as I did not want to deal with the rush of people leaving all at once. After attending this event, I got a much better sense of appreciation for the work of a manga-ka. Viz seems to be doing great with Shounen Jump and if they keep at it who knows? Maybe it will be just as good as the Japanese one. One can only hope.

By the time I got out of the panel, it was 6:45PM. I had a full days of work and fatigue began to creep up on me. I took a walk through the rest of the booths all around the convention and saw many interesting items. Seriously, how can one not go broke in this atmosphere? I restrained myself and walked down the steps to check out the DC Comics’ Batman 75th Anniversary showcase, in which they displayed all the Bat suits in the movies over the years, with the next Bat suit empty except the head. Talk about getting people excited. I definitely cannot wait for the new Batman to come out, Ben Affleck or not. It was still “early,” and I had another panel lined up about “60 Years of Godzilla,” but I just could not stand waiting around at the press lounge for it, I decided to call it a day and come back the next.

October 10th, 2014 - Day 2:
I arrived at the Javits center around the same time as I did on Thursday and wow Friday was BUSY. The weather was great and with the long weekend ahead (for some people), it felt like everyone was out. I had some panels scheduled, but without reserving, I did not think I would be able to secure a seat in any of them easily. It was literally a sea of people everywhere. With a large crowd come some of the best cosplay yet! As I walked through the entire convention, left and right, there were people dressed up in their favorite characters.

I proceeded to head up to the press lounge to handle some personal business and saw Kevin Smith at the lounge area, that was a neat sight, I mean he had to show up seeing that his show on AMC IS called Comic Book Men and the Secret Stash is just based right out of Red Bank, New Jersey. After handling my business, I proceeded down the escalators and walked towards one of the entrances to “The Block,” I noticed a big crowd gathered. Curious, I went and slithered through. Lone and behold, it was X Japan about to give an interview right in the middle of the show floor.

I am not going to lie. I do not listen to their music and will not pretend to be their biggest fan. But it certainly was a cool moment to see the positive reception they got from the convention goers. Heck one guy was asking his friend what the fuss was all about, while his friend replied in an amazed tone of voice, that it was X Japan. In which the guy told his friend I do not know or care who X Japan is. Whether you like them or not, they were out to promote their concert at Madison Square Garden on Saturday October 11th, 2014. Twenty years ago, they made their U.S. debut and after tragedies and hardships, the band is still here. Respect.

Instead of waiting around for panels, I decided to take a walk around the Javits center to take pictures of the crowd and to check out some of the overpriced things vendors were selling. $55 for a cheap hoodie with the Survey team logo on it from Attack on Titan? Get out of here, someone must be drunk. On another note, I will get back on that drunk note in a bit. After completely finished doing the rounds on the whole show floor, it was time to call it a day again. It would be my last day at NYCC, as I had personal business to attend to for the final two days.

October 11th, 2014 - Day 3 and October 12th, 2014 -Day 4:
I was not at NYCC on Saturday or Sunday, however Animesou’s cameraman Ray Tse, did get a ticket for Saturday. My instructions to him were simple: find the best cosplays and document whatever you thought was interesting. He attended last year’s NYCC and was in love with it. But this year around, with the gloomy clouds hovering over New York City, it probably scared off some of the crowds. He did not think it was as good as last year’s convention, claiming it lacked fan interactive elements to it and the cosplay were of lower quality. In any case some of his pictures are below.

Some Issues That I Came Across:
In an event that is so for the fans, everything has to be all good and dandy right? Not really. While NYCC overall was great. There were some shortcomings. The staff was a bit unorganized, as experienced from my Viz Media Shounen Jump panel. The security was… like really? I know it would be dumb to have TSA style security, but if you are just going to do a lazy glance at people’s bags, what is the point? There was another issue. Alcohol. In general, there were no raging drunks, but I came across a dude who was really hammered and he was still holding two drinks. Usually I just ignore these people, but an escalator was stopped and he was walking up the escalator slowly, tipping over left and right. I could tell from his face he was messed up, how is this dude still holding beer? Weird.

In Closing:
Again, I have to thank ReedPOP for allowing Animesou.com the chance to cover this event. I also have to thank them for managing this event. It is not easy and they do a great job at it. On a side note, it was nice to learn that Paris will have their own Comic Con in 2015. I have to thank Viz Media for inviting Takeshi Obata and crew and allow a chance for the fans in the States to show their love for his works. I also have to thank the vendors, the artists, and the fans for making this event even possible. Let’s look forward to next year! October 8th - 11th, 2015!

Yoshiki Classical popped up in San Francisco on April 28 and it was one hell of a night.

Yoshiki is the drummer for legendary rock group X Japan and trained as a classical pianist when he was a wee boy.  Tonight he took a break from double bass rhythms and set up one of his Kawai Yoshiki Custom pianos on the stage of Davies Symphony Hall.  This is the home of the San Francisco Symphony and for this night became a hatching ground for hundreds of new Yoshiki fans to join the ranks of the thousands who were already there.

True to its name, the Yoshiki Classical World Tour consists of Yoshiki on piano and an accompaniment of six string musicians on violins, violas, and a cello.  X Japan’s vocalist Toshi popped up for a couple of cameos and even sang the song Tears on stage.  In the previous stop on April 25th bandmate Sugizo came out and played his own violin with Yoshiki.  This all hints towards X Japan’s new album which will hopefully come out this year.  A later announcement by Yoshiki marked October 11 as the next big Madison Square Garden show.

Here is the full setlist for the night:

Forever Love
Golden Globes Theme
Rosa
IV
Tears
Anniversary
(Intermission)
Amethyst
Swan Lake
Birthday Song
HERO
Without You
Kurenai
Art of Life
Endless Rain

As you can see there are many X Japan songs on this list.  They’re all adapted to the more delicate stylings of the strings and piano.  My favorite was Art of Life and it’s a great song in its own right, classical or not.  The original Art of Life is almost thirty minutes long and Yoshiki starts about halfway through with the haunting melodies of his piano.  Utilizing a laptop and soundboard he plays a piece and overdubs it with some more playing to make one hell of a performance.

By the end of the night there were many flowers thrown on stage and the cries of “We are X!” resounded through the room.  A US flag with some San Francisco graffiti made its way onstage and was held aloft by the superstar.  He may have been born in Japan but he’s made the United States his home all the same.

The next tour stop will be in a couple of weeks on May 21 in Moscow.  If you can go, I strongly encourage it.

May 21 (W), RU - Moscow - Crocus City Hall
May 23 (F), DE - Berlin - Tempodrom
May 26 (M), FR - Paris - Le Trianon
May 29 (Th), UK - London - Royal Festival Hall
June 6 (F), CH - Beijing - Beijing Exhibition Center
June 8 (Su), CH - Shanghai - Oriental Arts
June 10 (Tu), TH - Bangkok - Royal Jubilee Hall
June 13 (F), CH - Taipei - NK101 Taipei
June 16 (M), JP - Tokyo - Metropolitan Theater
June 17 (Tu), JP - Osaka - The Symphony Hall

Please check out yoshiki.net for more info and tickets.

Late last month May’n announced a concert in Los Angeles at the Musician’s Institute as part of her Dots and Lines 10th Anniversary World Tour.  Set for July 17, it marks her first return to the mainland United States since 2012 (concert report here).  I have to say I was a little bummed because the 17th happens to be a Thursday.  Considering that I’ve already taken a bunch of time off that month I would probably have to fly down day-of and take an early morning flight back in time for work.

Luckily for me that isn’t a problem because she later announced a second concert in San Francisco.  This one is set for July 20, a Sunday.  The venue of choice is Slim’s and it’s one I’m very well acquainted with.  We covered Stereopony’s concert there and I’ve seen many a metal show within those walls.  It’s a small venue but that just means you’ll be closer to May’n.  Maybe it’s just the fact that I’m in the press of the crowd that makes it feel small.

She’ll also be popping up at J-Pop Summit for a quick hello.  I’m a big fan of J-Pop Summit and have been going for the last four or so years.  They’ve had many a musical act ranging from Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, Kylee, the Akabane Vulgars, and LovendoR.  Best of all it’s free so head on over to Japantown for both Saturday and Sunday (July 19 and 20).

May’n’s first major debut was in 2008 as the singing voice of Macross Frontier’s Sheryl Nome  and she has continued to grow since then.  It’s almost hard to believe that six years have passed since then.  She’s most recently done songs for the anime series Blood Lad and Inari, Konkon, Koi Iroha and she shows no signs of stopping.  Her 10th anniversary tour has been running since February and has dates through November.

Tickets are $45 in advance (buy it from the box office to avoid a fee), $50 at the door, and $100 for a meet and greet VIP ticket.  An autograph is included.

I’ll see you there.

A list of the global tour’s future stops is as follows:

May 25 - Ibaraki, JP - Mito VOICE
June 1 - Taipei, TW - Neo Studio
June 2 - Taipei, TW - Neo Studio
June 5 - Kyoto, JP - Kyoto FANJ
June 7 - Fukui, JP -  Fukui Hibiki no Hall
June 8 - Toyama, JP - Toyama MAIRO
June 21 - Chiba, JP - Kashiwa PALLOZA
July 5 - Iwate, JP - Morioka Club CHANGE WAVE
July 6 - Akita, JP - Akita Club SWINDLE
July 12 - Yamanashi, JP - Kofu CONVINCTION
July 17 - Los Angeles, US - Musician’s Institute
July 20 - San Francisco, US - Slim’s
August 24 - Tokyo, JP - Zepp Tokyo
October 4 - Seoul, KR - V-HALL
October 31 - Shanghai, CN - Shanghai Center Theater
November 2 - Guangzhou, CN - Guangzhou Bud Theater

Later this April Yoshiki will embark on his Yoshiki Classical World Tour.  For many Yoshiki needs no more introduction than the following: X-Japan.  He is the leader and drummer for the Japanese rock megagroup.  He has become much more than just a metal musician over the years and his fingerprints can be seen on many other industries including comic books, headphones, and even Hello Kitty (the aptly named Yoshikitty).

As the name might suggest it is a tour orchestral in nature.  Yoshiki’s album “Yoshiki Classical” was released last summer and quickly shot up the charts around the world.  It includes covers of X Japan songs as well as others.  As for the actual contents of the tour it’s anyone’s guess; the mini-concert in February had a few things we’ve heard in this format and others we haven’t.  Consider the album a preview of what you might here.  What we do know is that it’ll be Yoshiki on piano with a string quartet accompaniment.

He has labeled it “part one” which hints at more shows to come.  If none are near enough to you right now there’s still hope.

The tour kicks off in Costa Mesa, California on April 25th and stops by my neck of the woods on the 28th.  It later heads to Mexico, Europe, and finally Asia.

Tickets, at least for San Francisco, range between $30 for the highest seats and $100 for the closest.  Not too shabby.

Check out yoshiki.net for more info.
Here’s a rundown of the dates:

April 25 (F), USA - Costa Mesa - Segerstrom Center of the Arts
April 28 (M), USA - San Francisco - Davies Symphony Hall
May 3 (Sa), MX - Mexico City - Blackberry Auditorium
May 10 (Sa), CA - Toronto - Queen Elizabeth Theater (CANCELLED)
May 21 (W), RU - Moscow - Crocus City Hall
May 23 (F), DE - Berlin - Tempodrom
May 26 (M), FR - Paris - Le Trianon
May 29 (Th), UK - London - Royal Festival Hall
June 6 (F), CH - Beijing - Beijing Exhibition Center
June 8 (Su), CH - Shanghai - Oriental Arts
June 10 (Tu), TH - Bangkok - Royal Jubilee Hall
June 13 (F), CH - Taipei - NK101 Taipei
June 16 (M), JP - Tokyo - Metropolitan Theater
June 17 (Tu), JP - Osaka - The Symphony Hall

February 15th.  A nice night for a concert.  San Francisco’s Regency Ballroom played host to the second stop of Kyary Pamyu Pamyu’s “KPP NANDA COLLECTION 2014 WORLD TOUR.”

Kyary, at the ripe old age of 21, is a pop force to be reckoned with.  Her trademark song is PONPONPON and it has made the rounds on Youtube and Nico Nico garnering tens of millions of views around the world.  She wasn’t always a singer but she’s definitely made a place for herself.  Kyary started as a fashion model and blogger and her eclectic style has entered both her music and the videos that spring from them.

The show started right on the dot at 8pm.  No sound check, no setup, just Kyary and her dancers ready to go.  We saw this group at the J-Pop Summit last year and they’re as much a part of the show as Kyary is.  They were dressed in a toy motif that matched the background props.  The crowd erupted in cheers when they hit the stage and the night just went from there.

Kyary’s music is infectious to say the least.  Electronic beats provided by CAPSULE’s Yasutaka Nakata filled the air and your head.  Even if this isn’t your thing you unconsciously start bobbing your head and moving your feet.  Staring the night was a few favorites like Invader Invader, Ninja Re Bang Bang, and Furisodeshon.  About halfway through Kyary introduced her newest single, Yume no Hajima Ring Ring.  It’s about graduation, the goodbyes to your friends and teachers, and the dreams and road ahead.  It’s only been performed live a handful of times and this is the second time for both America and anywhere outside of Japan.

Rounding out the set list were PONPONPON and Fashion Monster.  When Kyary says jump, you jump, and damn, the floor moved.  I’m not sure what it’s rated for but all those bodies created enough kinetic energy to make it bounce.  After Fashion Monster ended and Kyary exited with the stage going dark the chants began: “Kyary, Kyary, Kyary!”  I was tempted to yell “on-ko-re!” in Japanese fashion but knew it wasn’t needed.    The final two songs were Candy Candy and Chan Chaka Chan Chan and they had the message of “goodbye, farewell, may we meet again.”  A great way to end things.

Overall it was a fast set composed of 20 songs spanning roughly 90 minutes.  The posted schedule had the show slated for 8-930pm and they did not veer from it.  The meet and greet was to start at 10pm which gave fans 30 minutes to buy from the very slammed merch table.  This seems like the perfect time to mention Sidestep, a relatively new app for both iphone and Android which allows fans to pre-pay for merch and pick it up at show.  Fans can even have items shipped directly to your house which can come in handy if a certain size sells out at the show or you are unable to attend.  I picked up one of the white tour shirts as my “proof of existence.”

Not too many of the shows I see at the Regency Ballroom sell out but Kyary managed to do it.  It definitely felt that way too; way more packed than what I’ve seen in the past and that’s not even taking into consideration that a good number of them were upstairs.  Fans were dancing and having a great time.

There was a light rain that continued throughout the night.  Even the rain knows not to mess with Kyary til after her concert.

The next stop on the tour is in Los Angeles at Club Nokia on Sunday.  This is followed a short break til the next trio of North American performances in Chicago, Toronto, and New York.  After that is another break followed by a jaunt to Australia and Hong Kong, Europe, and then back to Asia to finish things off.

Kyary, please come back to San Francisco.  I’m going to need another fix.

Costume #2

Costume #3 for the Encore

The full list of performances is as follows:

February 13 (Th), USA - Seattle - The Showbox
February 15 (Sa), USA - San Francisco - The Regency Ballroom
February 16 (Su), USA - Los Angeles - LA Live (Club Nokia)
March 5 (W), USA - Chicago - House of Blues
March 7 (F), CA - Toronto - Sound Academy
March 8 (Sa), USA - New York - Best Buy Theater
March 23 (Su), AU - Sydney - The Metro Theater
April 5 (Sa), CN - Hong Kong - ROTUNDA 3
April 25 (F), FR - Paris - Bataclan
April 27 (Su), DE - Cologne - Gloria Theater
April 29 (Tu), UK - London - Shepherd’s Bush Empire
May 17 (Sa), JP - Tokyo - Zepp Tokyo
May 18 (Su), JP - Tokyo - Zepp Tokyo
May 30 (F), TW - Taipei - Taipei International Convention Center
June 21 (Sa), SG - Singapore - Japan Music Festival
June 28 (Sa), TH - Bangkok - Bangkok Convention Center

Please check with each venue for time and ticketing information.

Kyary’s official English Facebook fan club is located here:

http://www.facebook.com/KPP.FC

Her twitter is at:

https://twitter.com/pamyurin

The full setlist:

OP - VTR
1. Nanda Collection
2. Invader Invader
3. Mi
4. Ninja Re Bang Bangbang
5. Kyary An-An
6. Furisodeshon

Inter Mission

7. Pamyu Pamyu Revolution
8. Mottai Night Land
9. Sungoi Aura
10. Kura Kura
11. Super Scooter Happy (Capsule cover)
12. Yume no Hajima Ring Ring
13. Saigo no Ice Cream
14. Tsukematsukeru

Inter Mission

15. Kyary no March
16. Cherry Bonbon
17. PONPONPON
18. Fashion Monster

Encore
19. Candy Candy
20. Chan Chaka Chan Chan

Album/single statistics:

Moshi Moshi Harajuku: 3 songs
Pamyu Pamyu Revolution:5
Nanda Collection: 9
Mottai Night Land: 2
Yume no Hajima Ring Ring: 1

Posted in Articles, Features, Convention / Event Reports | 1 Comment »

Kyary Pamyu Pamyu World Tour 2014 - “KPP NANDA COLLECTION”

Thursday, February 6th, 2014

In about a week Kyary Pamyu Pamyu will begin her global concert tour titled the “KPP NANDA COLLECTION.” About six months ago Kyary stopped by San Francisco for the annual J-Pop Summit and participated in a four-act concert alongside LoVendoЯ (led by ex-Morning Musume’s Reina Tanaka), local Japanese-American singer Kylee, and beatbox master Daichi. Kyary made it a point to announce that there would be another tour and that San Francisco would be included. Her previous tour came as close as Los Angeles but for a lot of us that’s a bit too far.

For those of you unfamiliar with her, Kyary started out as a fashion blogger and model. In mid 2011 she added musician to her repertoire and released the single “Ponponpon” which exploded across the internet and currently has over 60 million views on YouTube. Her musical style can be described as electronica-pop and her three studio albums have become more and more popular throughout the world. During 2013 she began to spread globally with features in the French magazine Elle and the Wall Street Journal among other things. Her most recent album, 2013’s “Nanda Collection,” debuted at number two on the Billboard Top World Albums chart and at number one in Japan. A quick way of describing her is “Japanese Lady Gaga” and Kyary has even mentioned Lady Gaga and Katy Perry as a couple of her inspirations for both music and fashion. Her music is produced by Yasutaka Nakata, driving force behind CAPSULE and producer of the group Perfume.

The KPP NANDA COLLECTION begins in America at Seattle’s Showbox on February 13. A quick jaunt south to San Francisco’s Regency Ballroom on the 15th is followed by Los Angeles’ LA Live (Club Nokia) on the 16th. After a two week break it then heads east to Chicago, north to Toronto, and finally New York City. If you’re even remotely near any of those locations I suggest you come and see her. Future concert dates are in Australia, Hong Kong, Europe, and finally returning to Asia. The final tour date is on June 28th in Bangkok, Thailand.

We can expect mainstay songs like Ponponpon, Fashion Monster, and Invader Invader. There is a possibility that Kyary’s new single, “Yume no Hajimarinrin,” will be part of the show. It officially drops on February 26th but was performed last month at her KPP Magical Wonder Castle shows.  Kyary’s trademark dancers should also be on deck and they’re always fun to watch.

As of now tickets are available for all the US dates minus the Seattle show which is sold out. From experience I can say that The Regency Ballroom in San Francisco has a good sized capacity and will probably have tickets available even on the night of the show. If you want to be sure go and buy your tickets ahead of time either through AXS or in person at The Warfield to avoid a service charge. Tickets are reasonably priced in the mid-$20s and for the truly dedicated there are VIP tickets for the San Francisco ($100) and Los Angeles ($150) shows. The VIP package includes both entry with a balcony seat as well as a post-show meet and greet. At the meet and greet staff will help take your photo. Sadly, no autographs. All other tickets should be assumed to be standing room only.

The full list of dates is as follows:

February 13, USA - Seattle - The Showbox
February 15, USA - San Francisco - The Regency Ballroom
February 16, USA - Los Angeles - LA Live (Club Nokia)
March 5, USA - Chicago - House of Blues
March 7, CA - Toronto - Sound Academy
March 8, USA - New York - Best Buy Theater
March 23, AU - Sydney - The Metro Theater
April 5, CN - Hong Kong - ROTUNDA 3
April 25, FR - Paris - Bataclan
April 27, DE - Cologne - Gloria Theater
April 29, UK - London - Shepherd’s Bush Empire
May 17, JP - Tokyo - Zepp Tokyo
May 18, JP - Tokyo - Zepp Tokyo
May 30, TW - Taipei - Taipei International Convention Center
June 21, SG - Singapore - Japan Music Festival
June 28, TH - Bangkok - Bangkok Convention Center

Posted in Articles, Features, Convention / Event Reports | No Comments »

DIR EN GREY Tour 2013: Ghoul

Wednesday, November 20th, 2013

I first saw DIR EN GREY many years ago on the recommendation of a friend. It was different from what I usually listened to but it was a good different. Kyo’s growls and haunting vocals amidst Die and Kaoru’s guitars sound, if you’re open to them, magical. A beastly magical. Kyo is the main draw of the band; he’s a unique one and people are drawn to him. It’s hard to put them into just one musical genre; there’s a mix of death, melodic, and progressive metal, and sometimes just straight rock.

It’s been a while since I last had the opportunity to see them in person. Their last concert that came out to this side of the country was cancelled as Kyo was diagnosed with vocal node dysphonia. In other words, he was unable to fully output what he is known for. The growls, grunts, howls, screams, and even the clean vocals that make up a huge part of DIR EN GREY were in jeopardy. I’ve seen other bands thrown into chaos because of the loss of a vocalist (possibly the most crucial piece of a band) and what happens afterward truly shows the strength of a band. This hasn’t been Kyo’s first run in with throat troubles and it probably won’t be the last but hopefully it will never stop him.

Much as they have in other tours they will be playing at San Francisco’s Regency Ballroom. Located in the heart of San Francisco at the intersection of Van Ness and Sutter Street, it’s been a long time home to the band whenever they stop by. If you’ve never been to a DIR EN GREY show be prepared for a war, especially if you want to be at the front. The front, and particular the fence, is a battleground. If you’re not comfortable with being smashed on all sides by fans you should stay towards the rear of the establishment. There might have been the illusion of space when the opening act played but it’s going to get very intimate.

Expect to hear a few songs from the albums UROBOROS and DUM SPIRO SPERO. Songs from their newest EP released in April, The Unraveling, will be featured as well. One thing you can always count on is the song “The Final.” It’s a fan favorite ever since it was released as part of the 2005 album Withering to Death. On a side note, DIR EN GREY has some of the best band t-shirts I’ve had the privilege of buying. There’s not even a question of whether or not I’ll buy one when I go to one of their shows.

Coincidentally the night of their 2010 San Francisco concert with Apocalyptica was also the night of a massive gas explosion near my house.  Over three dozen houses and numerous lives were lost to the eight-alarm fire.  For that night, at least, I rocked my ass off. Not much else to do when you can’t go home. Throw yourself into the music because what you’ve got might not be there anymore. That’s how you should face every concert. Get out there and have fun.

DIR EN GREY comes to San Francisco on November 23rd at The Regency Ballroom (1300 Van Ness Ave). They are accompanied by French band Dagoba. Tickets are $28 at the door. This is followed by the final stop of the tour at the House of Blues in West Hollywood on Sunday the 24th.

This post will be updated after the show.

Posted in Articles, Convention / Event Reports | No Comments »

New York Comic Con 2013

Saturday, October 12th, 2013

Let me start out by saying, this is not a written article about the convention; sadly, I could not attend. What this is is a photo album of the events that occurred in the New York Comic Con 2013. My friend and fellow Animesou’s camera man was able to attend and I asked him to take pictures of the event, and because of that, we are able to see what went down at Comic Con on Saturday, October 13th. Without further ado…

Hatsune Miku, see her everywhere these days.

Batman vs Bane! with Mazinger-Z.

Shingeki no Kyoujin, Mikasa kawaii!

Sword Art Online, not surprised these made an appearance.

Doctor Octopus, looks like nobody wants to mess with him.

Henchman 21, Venture Bros.

Sergeant Hatred, Venture Bros.

Shingeki no Kyoujin cosplay.

Hello ladies.

Fullmetal Alchemist.

FLCL.

Catwoman, meow.

I guess its a $30 surprise.

Adventure Time.

Pretty packed.

I think someone called the Ghostbusters.

Whoa, 1995 flash back.

Nice lights.

Claptrap, Borderlands.

Resident Evil.

Bane couldn’t handle the real Batman!

Green Hornet and Kato.

Zelda’s Midna decided to show up.

Hold up, stop checking under Spiderman’s hood.

Mad Moxxi, Borderlands.

Metal Gear Revengeance.

Raiden.

She’s getting into Wolf.

MGR group picture.

And that’s a wrap. From what Ray told me, he had great fun at the event. He felt as if he was at Disneyland. I do hope those who were able to attend New York Comic Con had loads of fun as well. Hopefully next year around, my schedule will allow me to attend and write about my first hand experience.

Posted in Articles, Features, Convention / Event Reports | 1 Comment »

Ghost in the Shell: ARISE

Thursday, July 4th, 2013

Ghost in the Shell: ARISE, the newest installment of Masamune Shirow’s Ghost in the Shell franchise, began airing the first of its films in theaters just a few days ago.  Set as a prequel to the stories fans already know, Arise will be four fifty-minute episodes. The first of the episodes, titled “Ghost Pain,” will be released on July 26 on Blu-ray. Long time series partner Production I.G. handles animation duties. When I noticed that ARISE was on the Anime Expo premier list I had to get this up before then. Production I.G.’s Kazuchika Kise and Mitsuhisa ishikawa is also on tap for attendees.  There’s even a panel where you can ask questions on Saturday.

Ghost in the Shell was one of the first exposures to manga I ever had (and also one of the first things I ever had confiscated, but that’s another story) so it holds a lot of memories for me.  Through it I purchased quite a number of Masamune Shirow art books and did all I could to track down as much of his art as possible (and back in those days it wasn’t very easy).  The franchise is one of my favorites of all time and it’s one of those things I just can’t get enough of.  When I heard early this year that Arise was coming I was immediately pumped.

So what we have is familiar yet unfamiliar for existing fans.  You have Batou, you have Motoko, you have Aramaki, but they’re different.  They’re veterans and yet they are not so much as we know them for.  Motoko has an all-new design with a haircut very unlike the one we’re used to. Her voice, along with many of the others, is different.  Maaya Sakamoto gives life to Motoko, taking over for Atsuko Tanaka.  This actually isn’t Maaya’s first time as Motoko; in the first and second films she voiced the Major in her days as a child.  For that matter, this younger brand of Motoko is a lot less the seasoned warrior as shown from her words and interactions with others.  She’s still as much a bad-ass as we remember in terms of combat abilities.

Ghost Pain opens with a standoff between the current personnel of Public Security Section 9 led by Aramaki with Major Motoko Kusanagi of Unit 501.  S9 is in the process of exhuming the body of 501’s Lieutenant Colonel Giichi, Motoko’s superior officer, who naturally takes offense to that and the corruption charges against him.  It devolves into a cybernetic melee when a third party jumps into the fray.  We then follow Motoko as she attempts to track down what happened the night Giichi died and whether or not he truly was corrupt.  Along the line We run into a frustrated Togusa while he is still working for the metropolitan police and Paz from his undercover days.  Batou even joins the fun and spars a little with Motoko (and handily gets his butt kicked).

Arise is set in 2027, a few years after World War IV. Full-body cyborg soldiers that were designed for the war are still learning to reintegrate with a peacetime world.  Motoko, as one of these full-body cyborgs, has much to deal with including the fact that the military outright owns her body and the technology contained within.  They are walking weapons and tabs must be kept on them.  This, along with other things, stood out for me as implications for the future of warfare.  If soldiers do become full cyborgs, what happens to them if they want to exit the service?  Do they have to pay back the costs of the body?  Do they have to buy a separate, “civilian” body for transfer (and how much will that cost)?

The walking bombs are another point of contention.  Suicide bombers are frowned upon today.  Once science advances to the point that robots have small self-contained power sources and high-speed non-wheeled mobility systems will robot bombs become more prevalent?  Right now the technology is far behind (see DARPA’s “Big Dog” which clatters along and requires a gas-powered engine) but that can’t hold forever. In Arise, both of these are non-issues.  Imagine a wave of robots whose sole purpose is to run at you and explode. Nothing quite as horrifying as that.  They can infiltrate at will into crowds without fear or need of extraction.  Oh, did I mention they can run like spiders and leap trenches? At least the controversial UAVs today watch more than they destroy things…

No Ghost in the Shell would be complete without a walking, talking, robot tank, and today they are the Logikoma or “Logistics Conveyer Machine.” Being in the past these are nowhere near as advanced as the Fuchikoma or Tachikoma we know and love but all the same they have that happy-go-lucky -koma flare.  When given the order to disappear it takes it quite literally and turns on its optical camouflage with childlike glee instead of the implied “go somewhere else.”

A partnership with Microsoft to help promote the Surface tablet was revealed a few months back and I was curious to see just how they’d be using it. The first bit of product placement happens less than a minute into the film (just a small flash on a digital billboard showing the Surface logo).  The tablet itself is used by Motoko as a data terminal.  It’s actually not that blatant a product placement; if I didn’t know that there was a partnership I wouldn’t have given it a second thought.

In the meantime you can catch a manga version of Arise titled “Sleepless Eye (Nemuranai Me no Otoko)” written by Junichi Fujisaku (screenplay veteran of the two Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex seasons, Appleseed XIII, and Real Drive, all Shirow created works) in monthly Young Magazine.  It too depicts the early days of the people who would eventually come to be known as Section 9 including the first encounter of then-Ranger Batou with Motoko Kusanagi.

The next episode of Arise is titled “Ghost Whispers.”  A release date has not been announced.

Make sure you watch through the end of the credits!

As mentioned earlier, Anime Expo is going to show it this Saturday, July 6. If you’re in Los Angeles and have a badge you might want to check it out.

Posted in Articles, Features, The Watcher (Previews) | 1 Comment »

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