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Akishibu project Return to Their Origins: Jū-nin Jū-shoku Live House Tour Finale at Akasaka BLITZ!
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Akishibu project returned to the site of their beginnings for the finale of their Jū-nin Jū-shoku Live House Tour at Akasaka BLITZ on June 11, 2017! With the graduation announcements of Yuuna Arakawa, Natsumi Ishikawa, and Saori Funaki just days earlier at Shibuya WWW on June 7th, it was also the end of their first and last tour as a 10-member group.
Following the greeting and announcements from backstage by Hinako Kera, the performance began with video introducing the members as makeup was applied to their faces, the fans cheering and waving their penlights to the music. Akishibu project appeared at the second level of the stage and streamers burst out as they got off to a heated start with “Summer☆Summer”. The energy in the audience shot up several more notches as the performance bounced along with “Candid Love”, the members kicking up their feet and swinging their arms to the light melodies and calls of the fans. The string of cute flirty songs continued with “EVERYDAY!!” before giving way to the crunching guitars and brittle pianos of “Creation”, pillars of CO2 erupting around the members as the strutted around the 2-level stage.
Akishibu project welcomed their fans to the evening, met by cheers and applause on the final day of their first tour as a 10-member group. New members Ruka Okonogi, Yurina Kato, Mizuki Tsushiro, and Mahiro Hoshino had grown more confident in the 2 months since their debut, their voices louder and clearer than they had been on the first day of the tour.
The summery sounds of fireworks exploding ushered in “Setsu Natsuri”, Akishibu project waving their folding fans through the increasingly humid air inside Akasaka BLITZ. In spite of this, Saori shouted for the fans to make things even hotter for the following song “Midarekami Fighting Girl”, the overwhelming response coming immediately for one of the group’s more popular songs since their early days. The series of fan favorites continued with the breezy “Gachikoi Revolution” and sparkling synthesizer melodies of “LOVE & PARADISE” as the members wagged their fingers at the crowd. Bright beams of white light zipped through the venue as Yue Miyatani sang the opening lines of “Change The World”, leading the others through the digital dance rock song’s frenetic choreography.
For “Manatsu no Serenade”, Akishibu project was joined by a group of young children as their backup dancers who stayed with them for “Eien no Whitees”, their peppy collaboration song with OKAMURA, wielding their toothbrushes like penlights. The multi-generational collaboration drew to a close with “Be yourself” in a flurry of swinging fists and kicking feet as the fans clapped and jumped along.
Columns of CO2 blasted out of the stage again as Akishibu project went into overdrive with “Akishibu Way”, moving around the stage fiercely, the voices of the fans growing louder as they shouted out the MIX and called out to the members. The energy spilled over into the next song “Answer” as Akishibu was propelled along by the enthusiasm of the crowd and the temperature continued to rise. Whirling their towels to “Restart”, there was little that could be done to cool down the heat, especially when Saori reached over to high-five a few fans in the front of the stage, her and the other members finishing the song by tossing their towels into the audience. Hinako announced that they had reached the last song of the set list “Kagayaki License”, the fans extending their hands toward the stage in kechas and and bouncing along to the bubbly synthesizer melodies. Giving their thanks and taking their bows, Akishibu project left the stage.
After a few minutes of encore calls, Akishibu project returned wearing the shirts specially designed for the tour finale, tossing autographed balls into the audience as they sang “Dream in a sea”. Yuuna and Saori switched things up by using a plastic bat in an attempt to swat theirs further towards the back of the venue.
The members took turns sharing their feelings about the tour and the finale, Yuuna, Natsumi, and Saori adding their thoughts on their impending graduations. Fighting through inexperience and lingering nervousness, the new members tried their best to put their thoughts into words.
After taking a commemorative photo with the fans behind them, Yue announced that the next song would be the last one of the tour, adding how she believed that their dreams would come true. Unsurprisingly, the final song of the evening was “New World”, one of Akishibu project’s most beloved songs. Multicolored beams of light mixed with the rising clouds of CO2 and the glow of penlights as the members and fans seemed to be united for one brief moment in time. Joining hands and taking their final bows, Akishibu project closed the door on their first and last tour as a 10-member group.
Once again Akishibu project begins a new chapter in their story. They will return to Akasaka BLITZ on July 27, 2017 to bid farewell to graduating members Natsumi Ishikawa, Saori Funaki, and Yuuna Arakawa. While it is never easy to say goodbye to an idol, as the representatives of Akihabara and Shibuya, Akishibu project will continue to grow and evolve as they strive to make their dreams come true.
Photos by Nathan Gey
Set List
01 Summer☆Summer
02 Candid Love
03 EVERYDAY!!
04 Creation
05 Setsu Natsuri
06 Midarekami Fighting Girl
07 Gachikoi Revolution
08 LOVE & PARADISE
09 Change The World
10 Manatsu no Serenade
11 Eien no Whitees
12 Be yourself
13 Akishibu Way
14 Answer
15 Restart
16 Kagayaki License
E1 Dream in a sea
E2 New World
Yuuna Arakawa, Natsumi Ishikawa, and Saori Funaki Graduation Live
July 27, 2017 (Thursday)
Akasaka BLITZ
Related Links
Akishibu project Official site : http://akishibup.net/
Akishibu project Official blog: http://lineblog.me/akishibuproject/
Akishibu project Official Twitter: https://twitter.com/AkishibuProject
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Kai Okudara
Writer, researcher, photographer, foodie, KSDD
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