Macross Crossover Live News Reel
This post will be updated as news comes in. Please click the links for the full article.
Tochiro via Macross World, October 17 concert:
-May’n's new song for the upcoming theatrical release, MONSOON, is great live as well. Kindof a Madonna/Sharron Apple mashup.
Kouryakukan blog, October 17 concert:
At the beginning is Sheryl on Stage.
“Listen to my song!”Northern Cross
Don’t be Late
Pink MonsoonRanka appears after this.
Sou da yo
Anata no Oto
Seikan HikouThen Sheryl and Ranka.
What ’bout my Star
Triangler Fight on Stage
Lion
Knightwing via Macross World, October 17 concert:
I absolutely love this Ranka and Minmay doing a duet of Tenshi no E no Gu with a piano accompaniment and to be honest I enjoyed so much as many songs, the audience had opportunites to be involves in the song. (I made terrible mistake on Light the Light song when Yoshiki asked audience to sing together).
Pippa from comments below, October 18 concert:
And oh my god Akino Arai! A four piece string quartet, guitar and a piano. Amazing. Although for WANNA BE ANGEL they also had backing music for the bells/drums/synth stuff. She was perfect. What a goddess. She said thanks to Macross she had received messages from people all around the world and has been able to perform in Paris and Berlin (so we international fans got a mention!!) and she was truly happy to have met with Macross.
Tochiro via Macross World, both dates:
May’n was the first act and started off with 3 songs including the new single PINK MONSOON. I really like this song for some reason. Yes it’s very 80’s… but in a good kind of way.
Then Megumi Nakajima came on-stage, opening with SOU DA YO (another new song from the theatrical release) and another two songs. We then got a couple of duets between the two (ie, TRIANGLER).
All the Frontier songs were great although there was no mixing things up and no Medley – these were pretty much straight up album versions. They were all done flawlessly although personally (having seen them done a few times before) the big highlight was the new new songs.…
Myung (Sunday)
I had my suspicions going in on Sunday. The last Macross event which Kasahara had performed at was the 15th Anniversary Concert – a concert notable for having both Kasahara and Akino Arai perform. So, would she show again this time?
Yes, it turned out that she would. And she would be utterly amazing.
I had heard Nakajima cover VOICES at Tanabata Sonic and thought she did a wonderful job. She totally owned the song – both paying homage to the original and making it her own at the same time. But after hearing Arai perform it, I have to concede that she is still the original and best. She sang possibly the best version of the song I have ever heard, accompanied by a string quartet while playing the piano. Despite being 50 (!) her voice hasn’t changed a bit. This was all the more obvious during her second song WANNA BE AN ANGEL. There were no vocal Macross Plus songs done at Tanabata Sonic other than VOICES so, once again, WANNA BE AN ANGEL was something I never imagined I’d get to hear live. And damn it was perfect. Brought the memory of listening to it on an old cassette walkman on the way to highschool back in the day flooding back.
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October 18th, 2009 at 6:44 am
Megumi & Mari together omgggg *lovelove*
October 18th, 2009 at 10:03 am
Man, I would love the hear the Northern Cross on this one…and Pink Monsoon live. *u*
October 18th, 2009 at 9:54 pm
OMG OMG OMG OMG IT WAS FOUR HOURS LONG! I NEARLY DIED FROM DANCING AND SWEATING!! OMG AKINO ARAI SANG VOICES AND WANNA BE ANGEL FROM MACROSS PLUS AND OH MY GOD WHY CAN’T I STOP WRITING IN CAPITAL LETTERS?!?!?!?!?!
It was fantastic. I felt so priviledged to be able to go. Pretty close to the stage as well on the stands to the right hand side of it. Great, great, view.
Did I mention Akino Arai came?!?!
October 18th, 2009 at 10:05 pm
By the way, the composer of ‘Ai Oboeteimasu ka’, Kazuhiko Kato was found hung in his hotel room this weekend after committing suicide. Today Mari Ijima said that she was told by the manager(?) of his death after yesterday’s concert. Actually she had known before but had performed anyway.
It seemed that she had last spoken to him only three days before his death. She spoke a little about how they hadn’t always seen eye to eye (perhaps due to Mari’s aversion to Macross and Minmei in the past). But she felt as if she hadn’t really shown him how grateful she was to him. There was stuff I didn’t understand here but it seemed like she was saying that when she spent all those years running away from Minmei she hadn’t shown her appreciation for ‘Ai oboeteimasu ka’ etc. She got a little tearful. I think she said that someone told her that they were sure he had already known that she was grateful even if she never made it clear. It seems like they were quite close?
I may have misunderstood but I think they said something like ‘Hikaru died too but I’m still here, Minmei won’t die!’.
She played Ai Oboeteimasu ka acoustic on the piano and everyone sang together. She said that when she had performed this song yesterday it felt as if he was here with everyone so we should all sing together to say ‘hello’. It was really moving. Mari stopped singing and the audience sang to her piano at the end. When she finished she teared up and then waved good bye as she bowed and left the stage. It was…incredible. I wasn’t too impressed with her voice on the other Minmei songs…they are 25 years old after all. But Ai Oboeteimasu ka? and Tenshi no e no gu were…amazing. Incredible.
Later when she came back on with everyone for the encore she said that it had truly felt like he was here and that the tears had just flowed.
Megumi impressed me too. Cracking good stuff.
Also got emotional at Light the Light!!! The seiyuu for Basara and Minmei joined Firebomber on stage to sing (I didn’t realise they could sing so well too!) and the audience joined in. Magic moments all round.
Oh yes!! It was May’ns birthday…? Megumi and Aya Endo brought out a cake and we all sang happy birthday to May’n!!
October 18th, 2009 at 10:08 pm
By the way…May’n's dancing isn’t much to write home about ^^;; I love her but the girl just hasn’t got the dancing vibe going on. Maybe with a bit more practice? Although, saying that. They brought out four male dancers for ‘baby pink monsoon’ and I was hoping for sexy times but they just did break dancing locks around May’n while she stayed in one spot. No sexy times there.
Although on the screens they showed longer clips from the new Sheryl stage show from the movie
October 18th, 2009 at 10:09 pm
And oh my god Akino Arai! A four piece string quartet, guitar and a piano. Amazing. Although for WANNA BE ANGEL they also had backing music for the bells/drums/synth stuff. She was perfect. What a goddess. She said thanks to Macross she had received messages from people all around the world and has been able to perform in Paris and Berlin (so we international fans got a mention!!) and she was truly happy to have met with Macross.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:48 am
I just saw on Arai Akino’s blog that she was a “secret guest” at the Macross Crossover Live thing-y so I came over here to see if anyone had written anything about it. And lo and behold… Pippa, you’re so lucky!!
October 19th, 2009 at 9:49 am
Thanks Pippa!!!!!!! That sounds super! Akino Arai came!!!
October 19th, 2009 at 10:14 am
> I may have misunderstood but I think they said something like ‘Hikaru died too but I’m still here, Minmei won’t die!’.
I think you heard correctly Pippa. The voice actor for Ichijo Hikaru, the main character of the first Macross series, died in a car accident (? I think that was it) a few years after the series aired.
October 19th, 2009 at 10:18 am
^ Actually, Hikaru’s seiyuu committed suicide.
October 19th, 2009 at 10:28 am
Also, Akino Arai’s blog entry that kaijuu_m was talking about:
http://ameblo.jp/viridianroom/entry-10368039495.html
I’m not the one to judge Mari Iijima or how she’s treating her past link with Macross, but I like Akino Arai’s view about it more. She acknowledges the importance of her having worked with Macross, and is thankful for it. And I do like her work outside of Macross, which sadly is not what I could say about Mari Iijima.
I believe that we are only what we are through our own choices alone, and that we should try never to burn any bridges.
/rambling
October 19th, 2009 at 8:15 pm
To be honest I think Mari has made her peace with Macross and Minmei, she even joked about having ordered a Minmei costume (it didn’t arrive in time) and asked the make up/stylist to put a curl in her hair like Minmei’s. She seems to be comfortable in her own skin as it were. She’s also really pretty *_*
I know, tell me about it!! I can’t believe Akino Arai came. I had a small hope in my heart before the concert but assumed Mamegu would be singing Voices as usual then…the goddess herself appeared.
October 20th, 2009 at 1:25 pm
@raile: Thanks for the correction. Hmm, so I wonder what other voice actor from the 80s I got him mixed up with…
@Mai: Granted, Iijima and Arai became involved with Macross under different circumstances. Iijima started her career as Minmei when anime was still the kiss of death for any pop artist who wanted to be taken seriously, whereas Arai’s pop career was already on hold when Macross Plus came around and she was working as a studio artist.
@Pippa: “…then…the goddess herself appeared” LOL. I’m especially envious that you got to hear “Wanna be~”. She’s been performing it a lot lately, and I’ve been curious as to how because one would think she needs a chorus of Gabriela Robins to pull it off!
October 20th, 2009 at 11:41 pm
Aloha from hawaii! All i want to know is when is the concert (both dates plz) going to be released on DVD? please please let it have interviews and footage of setup and rehearsals n junk. some tid-bits on the happenings of the performers. till then, im on stand-by.
October 21st, 2009 at 10:50 am
18th Oct was May’n Birthday!!!!, I should go on concert on that day.
But well it was great to see all those singers and voice actors again.
Now start saving for possible concert next year (may be happen after second version of MF movie released)
December 20th, 2009 at 1:34 pm
I would love to hear Information High on a proper sound system at a concert or a club. That song is one of my favorite; all time! Always makes me dance and think about the party days. Did Yoko Kanno sing that one?
May 16th, 2010 at 10:22 pm
This concert was amazing! I am so happy I was able to attend. I was also pleasantly surprised by the “surprise guests”. I was there on the 17th, so I saw the singer for Macross II’s Ishtar instead of Akino Arai. This was also exciting to me since, despite its non-canon story, Macross II was actually my introduction to Macross. I was so happy when the Macross 7 seiyuu came on stage. I knew Nobutoshi Kanna had an awesome singing voice from his other character songs, and it was great to hear him sing with Yoshiki Fukuyama! The other character duets were super as well.
I came here to check for word on the DVD, and alas, nothing. I really want to get it so I can relive that awesomeness. XD