#kngnn

[putschki1969]

「Wakana Classics 2022 ～Christmas Special～」 Kimi no Gin no Niwa

Everyone, please enjoy! I thought this was a very lovely concert with quite a few beautiful performances. My favourites are probably 442, オレンジ, myself, 時には昔の話を, 君の銀の庭, 標, 明日を夢見て歌う and Flag. Still bummed that they cut the Christmas songs T_T

FOR ❗PERSONAL USE❗ ONLY CREDIT me and LINK to my page if you share/use BUY and STREAM Wakana’s work

◆First Press Limited Edition Type A Bonus Content： ●Live DVD 「Wakana Classics 2022 ～Christmas Special～」（~86min） ＜Setlist＞ 01.約束���夜明け 02.442 03.オレンジ 04.夕焼け 05.myself 06.時には昔の話を (Cover) 07.愛にできることはまだあるかい (Cover) 08.君の銀の庭 (Cover) 09.標 10.明日を夢見て歌う 11.Flag 12.Happy Hello Day 13.記憶の人 14.magic moment

◆First Press Limited Edition Type B Bonus content： ●LP Sized Package ●LP Sized Photo booklet ●Poster（B2 size) ●LIVE CD 「Wakana Classics 2022 ～Christmas Special～」（~86min）※same tracks as the DVD + FC exclusive track (流れ星)

Live DVD 「Wakana Classics 2022 ～Christmas Special～」 »»——  CLICK ME 🎁 CLICK ME ——««

LIVE CD 「Wakana Classics 2022 ～Christmas Special～」 »»——  CLICK ME 🎁 CLICK ME ——««

FOR ❗PERSONAL USE❗ ONLY CREDIT me and LINK to my page if you share/use BUY and STREAM Wakana’s work

[seasonreaper]

Kalafina 27 Week Challenge - Week 23: 5 Least favourite songs?

The dumb three armed Wakana incident felt appropriate.

Good news is, Kalafina is generally pretty damn good even when they’re not that good. Hell, up to 2014 they were almost infallible and that’s six years of mighty fine musical output. But like anything, they aren’t perfect and occasionally they make some critical mistakes and, like pretty much every other band that I’ve ever listened to (bar maybe two or three) out of the thousands I’ve heard in my life, they’ve got some terrible songs in their repertoire now.

Obvious choice here is Believe because it’s fucking abysmal, but everyone knows my opinions on that if they’ve ever spoken to me about Kalafina or seen my posts before, so I’ll leave it at that, and Heavenly Blue is practically the same song but slightly better and at least sounds semi-alright live. The fact those two ended up on Far on the Water whilst Alleluia and Kimi no Gin no Niwa didn’t is still the stupidest thing Kalafina (or more likely SME) have ever done in their career.

Blaze also fits nicely in this category for being the most absurdly forgettable sounding thing to exist, or at least it would if I could ever remember what it sounds like. I come to the same conclusion each time I hear it but it rapidly leaves my mind each time, probably before the song’s even finished. Sadly it’s likely that if they release a live for the 9+ONE tour that it’ll be similar to the released setlists so far and Blehze will be right after Ongaku, which will mess things up. Probably not as bad as following god-tier Alleluia with Believe like on the Arena Live which was the equivalent of being given the most delicious gourmet cake in the world then having someone take a shit in it right as you’re about to start eating, but ugh.

Now however, I have a dilemma. I’ve only listed three songs so far, and I need five. There are a handful of other songs I don’t care for much but they’re a small, somewhat rundown house compared to the rat infested sewage hole of the previously mentioned pieces. The kind of thing that you can appreciate in some way if it’s what you’ve got, but you’d much rather choose from a vast array of better things which, in Kalafina’s case, are a dime a dozen.

That said, I’ll probably have to go with snow falling and Mirai. The former is far too bland, whilst the latter just kind of irks me in the wrong way I guess. That said both are rearrangements of soundtrack pieces, neither of which I cared for much in the first place, so I guess not liking the Kalafina songs based on them is no surprise. Probably a weird opinion but I think Credens is the worst song on the soundtrack for Madoka, excluding the yet-another-overuse-of-Ave-Maria-yet-again inclusion.

Pretty much everything else ranges between listenable to all the way up to unbelievably good, with a lot being towards the upper end of the scale. Many of the lowest tier ones on the remaining list are also improved by live performances (ala Hokage) or could’ve been a lot better if they were just a minute or two shorter (ala Mune no Yukue, Ring Your Bell). Even with dolce being hyper-forgettable I can at least remember kind of enjoying it when it’s being played, so that’s something I guess. Everything else though? Good stuff. And when there’s only 3 songs I can’t listen to and a tiny handful more I don’t enjoy much out of a hundred or so in a nine year career, that’s pretty damn fine.

[sprinterxkyrie]

Snippet of Kalafina’s 「into the world」on yesterday’s ep of Rekishi Hiwa Historia :) Sorry for LQ ^_^

[cumaakuaja]

Kngnn.

[putschki1969]

Yuki Kajiura Live Vol.#19 Kaji Fes.2023 Day 1 & Day 2

As mentioned earlier this week, I FINALLY received my Kaji Fes 23 Blu-ray LE box! BANZAI! Got to watch both days on my big screen, it was amazing! The audio has definitely improved, it's not as dull as it was in the TV broadcast. And of course we got almost all the cut songs in the home video release. That KnGnN performance was better than I had remembered. Joelle was a great fit here and they all blended together nicely.

I certainly don't want to withhold anything from you so I've uploaded my BD rips to the [2024.05.29] Yuki Kajiura Live Vol.#19 Kaji Fes.2023 Day 1 & 2 Google Drive folder. The link can also be found on my "Yuki Kajiura/FJ LIVES HQ Masterpost" so be sure to check that out!

♪ PLEASE ENJOY ♪ ❗FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY❗

While you can no longer order the LE box-set, you can still purchase the regular Blu-rays! I highly encourage everyone to support YK and buy the official releases! Day 1 @ CD Japan Day 2 @ CD Japan

❗Attention❗

Before I get any complaints on the matter. Please be aware that there is a download quota limit to every Google file. If too many people are downloading a file, the limit will be temporarily exceeded and you'll get an error message. There's nothing I can do about that. Usually, my posts don't get too much traction so I'm assuming not a lot of people are actually downloading my stuff but of course there are probably some lurkers and I obviously can't stop anyone from reposting my download links to other sites. As a bypass you can try downloading the entire folder as ZIP. In most cases, that should work.

[putschki1969]

Into the World - Kaji Fes. 2023 Day 2

Some more in-depth Kalafina thoughts inspired by several discussions in the reply section of my latest live report about Kaji Fes. 2023 Day 2. "Into the World" was probably the Kalafina cover that left the most lasting impression on me. From what the girls have shared in various interviews, this song represents a beautiful end to an eventful stage of life and a slow transition into uncharted territory. At the time it was written, Kalafina's disbandment and the subsequent start of their solo careers were probably on no one's radar but ironically, it couldn't have been a more perfect match for the whole situation. The final few performances of the song (when everyone involved must have already been aware of what was about to happen) have a particularly strong impact on me and the same can be said about the covers they have done as solo artists/FJ. This is easily my favourite cover because the strong extra vocals add so much texture to the song. It's one of those Kalafina tracks where I mostly prefer the studio version because the girls tend to sound a bit shaky/shouty during live performances so this was overall a bit more polished I think. The harmonies are really good here. Also, I loved seeing Keiko get so emotional towards the end (even though it did result in her getting a teeny, tiny bit shouty again :P)

"Magia" was my second-favourite Kala-cover. It worked wonderfully to put the focus on Hikaru and highlight her prowess as a singer which is unfortunately something that none of the other Kalafina songs of the evening managed to do. I wish they had chosen songs with a stronger emphasis on Hikaru's voice like "ARIA", "One Light", "Mata Kaze ga...", "in every nothing", etc... Also, I did have some issues with Joelle sounding a bit too overpowering during certain parts. There are Kalafina songs where she manages to blend in better but here, her vocals just stand out too much, especially when trying to harmonise with Keiko.

"storia" has never done Hikaru any favours I'm afraid and this performance is no exception. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE "storia" but that's mostly because I am obsessed with the WaKei chorus. Joelle does a good enough job here but as I have mentioned in my report, I am way too hung up on Wakana to ever be able to appreciate another singer stepping in for her during parts that I love.

I honestly don't remember much about "KNGNN" so I guess I will have to wait for the BD release. It's yet another song that doesn't exactly flatter Hikaru though so that's a shame.

As I have never felt a strong connection to "TTB", the performance doesn't really do anything for me.

On a random and more or less unrelated side note, I LOVED this moment of Keiko showing a tiny bit of vulnerability here at the very end of the concert. It's rare to see her in tears on stage.

And let's not forget that precious HiKei moment right after this. Them holding hands. Keiko leaning on Hikaru's shoulder. Keiko smiling brightly but clearly relieved that it's over - "owatta".

[such-a-downer]

I have only watched the kalafina part for now but I'll drop my two cents on that:

Magia was superb, though i kinda feel that hikaru is either straining or eaten up by emotions at certain parts. And i think she her hair always gets in the way 😆😆, she could've used some hairpins. She sounds great overall 💕 and the end chorus where she and keiko were the focus makes a very nice highlight for me. Joelle still kinda feel out of place in some parts. I wiiiish they included TTTTMTM or MataKaze.

As for storia, this song for now is much better for Joelle. She blended well with the others and it was enjoyable, I admit. She did a nice job here. I would like to hear and compare it with KnGnN but I'll to wait for that... Hikaru is amazing × 2!!! Nice to hear that kind of voice of her again!!! Yuriko and Keiko got some nice blending. HiKei eye contact always gets me everytime.

I think it would have been better if the chose Believe instead of To The Beginning. I like the song and it's one of those songs where I can't unhear Wakana's voice. One more thing is that even Joelle has wider range as others say, she looked like she was trying too hard to hit some parts ala Wa chan style . Like the "shinjite" during first chorus. Lol even Wakana mess up that part sometime (i.e. mezamashi 2016 iirc). And i was upset that they took away Hikaru's "hajimari e" 😥. I wish they put in Kaori for this song instead.

Wakana's voice reminds me of glass. I do think her singing style sounds very nasal but, you can't pick up another delicate treasure like her down the road. Sure, Joelle is a great singer but I think they should have put in more thoughts on which songs will make her blend well. Kala songs (especially those that came from PMMM or Black Butler anime) where Wakana's voice stands out definitely don't do well with singers who don't have similar singing approach/style. Like for example, in Kalafina x Lisa cross stage, their performance of One Light was powerful. Hii chan and Lisa blended well. But the rendition of KnDnSN (black butler), was kinda grating to the ears and made it pop-ish. It's a song where even when you don't know the lyrics, you'll feel the dark theme because of Wakana's very soulful singing. I think they should have chosen Blaze back then.

It's also a bit of a shame that they didn't chose other song that will give more spotlight to Yuriko. She needs more appreciation. Such a sweet heart 💕

My eyes were always on keiko and hikaru and i can't say that it didn't hurt me 😭😭. Their skinship on stage is now etched on my mind 😂🤣.

And i missed Hikaru's dramatic gestures. And ooooh don't think i didn't see that part in magia– she and keiko looked like they were tempted to do their signature hunch move before the last chorus 😂 hikaru's arm was even in front and moving slightly 🤣. Heart and body will never forget, i guess.

I'll add more once i saw the others. I'll skip some song since it's hard for me to get to listen to the other guest vocalists. But i like Eri Ito 🤩

Ps.: Thank you very much for sharing this!!!!! 💕

Kaji Fes.2023 Day 2 FULL Video

»»——  CLICK ME 🎁 CLICK ME ——««

❗FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY❗ ❗CREDIT me if you SHARE on other sites❗

Yes, finally we have a recording of Day 2. Even though I was there for Day 2 back in December, I was still excited to experience the whole thing again. Unfortunately, I never got to write my report so I guess I will use the opportunity to share some of my memories and current thoughts.

Here goes nothing┗(•ˇ_ˇ•)―→

street corner: Looks like they cut this. I am surprised because they had a much longer slot for Day 2 (3 hours instead of just 2) so I was sure they would be able to squeeze all of it into the broadcast but apparently not. Oh well, can't say I am said about that because being confronted with the accordion right from the get-go at the live really didn't leave a good impression on me. I had pretty high expectations for the whole thing and this intro left me more than underwhelmed. Thank God we transitioned right to "希望の光".

希望の光: Now THIS is the intro I was hoping for. What a gorgeous melody! I wasn't familiar with the track but my God, I got goosebumps all over. I literally felt this in my entire body. The gradual build-up to a more grand-scale symphonic arrangement towards the end really impressed me. I am just obsessed with the uilleann pipes and the Celtic sound. I honestly struggle to get beyond this because I keep rewinding the video.

prelude to Act 1: The look on my face when I heard those first few notes. I was shooketh. I most definitely did not expect them to do the Kalafina block this early in the live but I knew that if they were doing the Madoka instrumentals, the most logical thing would be to transition straight into a Kalafina track. While I have never watched the anime, these are melodies I hold very dear to my heart so I loved this. It was also a great pleasure to hear Eri Ito live for the first time. I will never get enough of Yuki's more classically trained vocalists. it's such a pleasure to listen to them.

Numquam vincar: After "prelude to Act 1" this was no surprise at all but damn, I am so glad they played this. I've never actually had the chance to experience this track live even though they obviously performed it numerous times during Kalafina live intermissions. What a pleasure to be there and truly feel the epicness of that intro. Once more I was covered in goosebumps.

Magia [quattro]: At this point I knew it was coming but it was still a shock to my system. Like I said earlier, I was sure that they would wait until the very end to do the Kalafina block (that's what they had done for earlier lives) so I thought I had some time to prepare myself and get into the groove so to speak. My body certainly wasn't ready so maybe that's why my brain couldn't properly compute the whole thing. I remember not being as hyped as I expected to be and that made me kinda sad. I am so grateful that we are getting this recording and a blu-ray release because I feel like I couldn't fully appreciate the performance while I was there. Getting to see it again is a real treat and I must say, I like this much more than the previous FJ "covers" we have gotten of this song. Hikaru and Keiko sound so perfectly in tune and I just love their powerful delivery. For the most part, I don't mind the higher harmonies provided by Yuriko and Joelle. Although during some parts (e.g. mayowazu ni yukeru nara), I feel like Joelle and Keiko don't harmonise very well together but whatever, it doesn't bother me too much. On a random side note, I wasted way too much time wondering about why I thought that Keiko's arms looked kinda naked until I finally realised that the puffy sleeve pieces of her outfit were missing.

storia: I did not expect this to make it onto the setlist but I am a big fan of the song so I was happy when I heard the first notes. Overall, I think I like this version well enough although I will admit that my favourite part has always been the chorus with Keiko and Wakana so it is a bit jarring to hear Joelle for these parts. Don't get me wrong, Joelle sounds great and I feel like the harmony between her and Keiko works better here than during "Magia" but still, it can't quite touch my heart. I mean, just thinking of all the Kalafina performances where Wakana and Keiko gaze lovingly into each other's eyes while they sing the "yasashii uta o kimi to utaitai" line makes me tear up. Nothing will ever be able to replace that for me. A few days later I attended Wakana's concert where she also performed "storia". This may sound ridiculous but hearing those performances more or less back to back almost felt as if the three of them had been reunited. Even though this might have been a coincidence, just the idea of this little connection had me in tears.

君の銀の庭: Oh, another cut song. Thank God we are getting the Blu-Ray. I will be honest with you though, I am quite sad that they chose two Kalafina songs that I don't particularly like. I couldn't get as excited as I wanted to be. I think I had no complaints about this performance, enjoyed everyone's vocals and didn't really notice Wakana's absence. But I guess that's because I wasn't a big fan of the song to begin with :P

to the beginning: It will forever be a mystery to me why this is such a fan favourite but oh well, let's not linger on that. In some way, it's almost a blessing in disguise for me to not have such a strong emotional connection to these songs because it helps me appreciate the new versions a lot more. No matter how skilled of a singer Joelle might be, if I am invested in a performance with a prominent Wakana part, there is no way anyone will ever live up to that. It's 100% a me problem, I realise that but I doubt I will ever be able change that way of thinking. Anyways, this was a perfectly fine rendition.

海と真珠: Don't think I've ever heard a Junna song. Not a huge fan of her voice, it's just too generic for me. But there's something about this song that I like, especially that those hey-hey woah parts. The chorus is decent too. It's not a track I would skip but also not something I would actively seek out.

太陽の航路: Not my cup of tea. I can tell that there is a nice melody hidden in the chorus but it's a bit too fast-paced for me.

time to sail!: Yet another cut. I loved this. Was already familiar with it from a previous recording so I really appreciated getting to hear t live. It's somewhat of a very epic and grand-scale version of "Umi to Shinju" which I am only realising now XD

The main theme of “L.O.R.D”: Can't tell you how very much I am in love with this song. The first time I got to experience this live was in Taiwan back in 2019. The song is so fucking good, I will never get tired of it. I was utterly blown away by Joelle's vocal prowess. I know it always sounds like I am low-key bullying her but that's really not my attention. I am just forever too hung-up on Wakana to ever be able to accept anyone else taking up my favourite parts of her.

I talk to the rain: Can't wait to hear this again on the Blu-ray.

a song of storm and fire: In my report for Day 1 I did talk about tis and "salva nos" being my first introduction to Yuki Kajiura's music. I feel so privileged to have finally been there for a live performance. Needless to say, it was everything that I could have asked for. Watching the recording now doesn't even do it justice. It was so much more powerful at the venue.

ring your song: This always brings tears to my eyes. The melody is just so beautiful and when they all join in, it's literal perfection.

ことのほかやわらかい: God dammit, I really want to like this song because in theory it should be right up my alley. I mean, the instrumental intro is to die for, it's so promising but then it's just all over the place and I can't get into it T_T

夜光塗料: Not a huge fan of ASCA unfortunately and I do not care for the song either.

雲雀: Surprisingly fond of this. Very nice melody. Can see myself listening to it on a regular basis.

君が見た夢の物語: Not much to say about this except that I enjoyed Keiko's lower harmonies. It's not a bad song per se so I probably would have liked it more if it didn't have ASCA on main.

everlasting song: This is always fun although I do enjoy the version without FJ ASUKA more. I know that sounds horrible considering it's literally her song but I will never be a fan of Yuki's vocalists with a more generic voices. Wakana's "kimi no me ni..." will forever be my favourite!!

世界の果て: No thoughts really.

優しい夜明け: Joelle is a much better fit for this See-Saw song than Yuuka. Very enjoyable.

君がいた物語: A favourite of mine. Do I prefer the version with Wakana? Of course! Do I have fun with this version too? Yup!

Rainbow~Main Theme~: This was a nice treat. Very fond of KOKIA as a vocalist and this is just a super beautiful song. Have always liked it.

風よ、吹け: Not as smitten with this new KOKIA song but it's nice enough. I certainly wouldn't skip it

lotus: Wow, two Hanae cuts! How rude!!

inverse operation:

目覚め: I do love the Wakana versions but I also enjoy versions with other main vocalists. And of course, Hanae does an amazing job.

夕闇のうた: I know this didn't leave a good impression on me when I first heard it and I can't say I feel much different about it now.

荒野流転: This upcoming FJ Yuuka corner didn't do anything for me, it was the point where I started to get really tired and distracted. It was a struggle to still pay attention even though these were all more up-beat songs.

Silly-Go-Round: Nope.

cazador del amor: Meh.

nowhere: The only song I actually enjoyed from this corner. ASCA thankfully used a voice that I didn't find too grating (which can't be said about rito, JUNNA and Lino). Almost wish I had stood up for this performance and the next because Keiko was spending a lot of time on the left side of the stage (I had an arena seat pretty close to the stage on the left) but I probably wouldn't have had a good view of Keiko anyway so I preferred to just watch the screen. And to be honest, I am not the type of person to stand up and do some weird moves anyway so it was probably for the best. No need to embarrass myself in front of people who actually know how to move their body.

zodiacal sign: I mean, when is this ever not an absolute pleasure?

into the world: I was hoping to see Hikaru again since almost all the other guest vocalists had had a second appearance and yay, she came back on stage for the final song before the encore! "into the world" was such a perfect ending. I definitely got choked up, especially towards the climax of the song when Keiko was really putting all of herself into it.

red rose: Not my favourite but a good track for all the musicians to shine again.

Parade: It's my favourite song from the album and a fitting ending for this behemoth of a concert. At this point, everyone was close to tears after Yuki's little speech so that made it so much more moving. Love, love, love!! Right after they all take a bow and everyone is leaving the stage, I am glad they zoomed in a bit on Keiko who was wiping away some tears and leaning on Hikaru. That moment killed me at the live.

[putschki1969]

SETLIST Yuki Kajiura LIVE vol.#16 ～Sing a Song Tour～ Osaka Day 1

Source

[putschki1969]

Yuki Kajiura LIVE vol.#16 ～Sing a Song Tour～ FINAL DAY

As expected, there were no big changes to the setlist but they did switch back to the other Kalafina set. So instead of Magia, du, KNGNN and itw they sang storia, sprinter, Tsuioku and ttb. They also sang アレルヤ (Alleluia) during the encore but I don’t know when exactly. Maybe instead of “open your heart”?

No cameras unfortunately but that would have been too good to be true. There was an announcement regarding a new upcoming FictionJunction song for Princess Principal but alas, it’s a collab with a singer called “shuri”, I was hoping for a Keiko solo because her voice would have fit the jazzy vibe of the anime perfectly. 

overture〜Beginning(千葉紗子カバー)

記憶の森(Fictionjunction YUUKA)

MC

Distance

fields of hope(機動戦士ガンダムSEED DESTINY挿入歌:初カバー)

宝石

凱歌

MC

moonlight melody

ひとりごと

約束(FictionJunction YUUKA)

storia(Guest Vocal Hikaru)

sprinter(Guest Vocal Hikaru)

MC

追憶(Guest Vocal Hikaru)

to the beginning(Guest Vocal Hikaru)

MC

eternal blue

stone cold

MC

胸の行方(Guest Vocal Hikaru)

En 目覚め

En zodiacal sign

En MC

En open your heart?

En アレルヤ (Guest Vocal Hikaru)

2021/08/15 Tweet by KEIKO staff

"Yuki Kajiura LIVE vol. # 16 ~ Sing a Song Tour ~" has officially ended!  Although there were various restrictions, we were able to finish all performances safely. KEIKO participated in every performance and gave her all. Thank you to everyone who came to the lives and who helped in making them possible. (Source)

2021/08/15 Tweet by Hikaru

This time I was asked to participate as a guest vocalist to sing covers of Kalafina songs! Singing Kalafina songs for the first time in a long time, the feeling of harmonising with amazing voices, the feelings of having KEIKO on stage right next to me...The encouraging performances of the FBM members and the tension and excitement of singing accompanied by Yuki Kajiura-san’s piano playing. There are really no words to describe all of my emotions, I really don’t know what to say so I put all of my feelings into my singing. It was that kind of performance. I feel like we have made it possible to sing these Kalafina covers now. I was able to share a lot of feelings during our "conversation" with everyone. I hope that such a wonderful opportunity will come again ... I will do my best to carry on with my H-el-ical// activities so that I can be prepared when that time comes! Once again… Thank you to everyone who made this wonderful experience possible, happy music, happy moments, intimate "conversations" ... The last photos of this tour: Together with all vocals and another shot with YURIKO KAIDA who I hadn't taken a picture with yet (Source)

For the first time in a long time I have had Keiko-san next to me on stage. With the help of Keiko-san, who always takes care of me, I was able to put all of my strength and myself into the Kalafina covers! It was a lot of fun (Source)

2021/08/15 Tweet by Korenaga Koichi

Kaji-chan, Happy Birthday! (Source)

[putschki1969]

2021/07/29 Tweet by KEIKO staff

Tokyo Day 2 of 「Yuki Kajiura LIVE vol.#16 ～Sing a Song Tour～」is done!  Here’s a close-up of KEIKO chatting with today’s guest vocalist, Hikaru-san. This moment filled with smiling faces feels completely different from the coolness which is conveyed while they are singing #YKL16

Thank you to everyone who came to Nakano Sunplaza. Please look forward to August 15. (Source)

2021/07/29 Tweets by Hikaru

I had a guest appearance at the Tokyo performance of『Yuki Kajiura LIVE vol.#16 〜Sing a Song Tour〜』！Nakano Sunplaza Hall. Thank you to everyone who came to the venue. Thank you to everyone who supported us from afar! Today was filled with countless nostalgic moments. 

Kajiura-san has already mentioned it in the past, I got participate as guest vocalist in order to perform coveres of Kalafina songs together with the others. There is still one performance left so I can’t share any details regarding the songs...I was able to feel like we all created today’s songs together.

Today I asked Joelle-san to take a picture with me when I met her in the hallway (Source)

And as always, some pictures with KEIKO-san. *laughs* One second we are talking with a serious expression on our faces and then, all of a sudden we break into laughter. I feel like taking a picture of me like this, fooling around and laughing freely, is really only possible when I am together with KEIKO-san… #YKL16 #けーひー (Source)

2021/07/29 Tweet by Yuriko Kaida

(Source)

2021/07/29 Tweet by KEIKO

I hope everyone got home safely. I really love these quiet moments when I can reminisce in all the precious memories and feelings from tonights. In my everyday life I usually don’t experience such intense emotions so the times when I am immersed in music are very special, I want to treasure them. Also, I felt overcome with love for Hikaru who was a guest vocalist tonight. Thank you! KEIKO #YKL16

(Source)

Yuki Kajiura LIVE vol.#16 ～Sing a Song Tour～ Tokyo Day 2

As expected, no cameras today unfortunately. There is still hope for August 15, maybe we will get some footage of that. But at least we will get a stream for yesterday’s live. I am very curious about some of those other performances which are part of the regular setlist.

We are back to the original Hikaru setlist from Osaka so I am guessing the third Tokyo live (final concert of the tour) on August 15 will have storia, sprinter, Tsuioku and ttb (just like the Aichi performance) instead of Magia, du, KNGNN and itw. Mune no Yukue is the same in both versions of the setlist.

Setlist (Source)

overture〜Beginning(千葉紗子カバー)

記憶の森(Fictionjunction YUUKA)

MC

Distance

fields of hope(機動戦士ガンダムSEED DESTINY挿入歌:初カバー)

宝石

凱歌

MC

moonlight melody

ひとりごと

約束(FictionJunction YUUKA)

Magia (Guest Vocal Hikaru)

destination unknown(Guest Vocal Hikaru)

MC

君の銀の庭(Guest Vocal Hikaru)

into the world(Guest Vocal Hikaru)

MC

eternal blue

stone cold

MC

胸の行方(Guest Vocal Hikaru)

En 目覚め

En zodiacal sign

En MC

En open your heart

[putschki1969]

Japan Travel Diary 🎌

Okay, here it is, a more or less thorough report of my Japan trip in January (which mostly consisted of doing Kalafina-related stuff so I thought it might be interesting for some of you XD). Sorry, this is like 5 million years overdue. @mello-chi‘s comment about looking forward to my upcoming Japan trip reports actually reminded me that I still had this post in my drafts so I thought I better finish this now before I have to write another one XD

Without further ado, let’s get to it 〈(•ˇ‿ˇ•)-→

January 14 (Sunday) This was my first ever non-direct flight to Japan so I was not looking forward to it. I boarded my plane at around 10 am (Austrian time), I arrived in Paris at around noon and I landed at Narita Airport at around 9 am the next day (January 15 - Monday). Here’s a rare selfie of little me waiting to board the plance wearing my beloved Cakey bomber jacket by Lily Brown (it kept me warm during the flight ^_^). PS: Excuse the excessive use of filters in this pic. I was wearing no make-up.

You know what I find annoying, they have all these Japanese artists like LiSA and Nana Mizuki in the plane music library but absolutely NO Kalafina. Why?? And no, you don’t need to answer that, it was more of a rhetorical question anyways. I know of course that for some weird reason Kalafina aren’t as popular as those other artists….but still, so frustrating… I ended up watching a ton of movies :P I really envy people who can sleep during a flight.

January 15 (Monday) I didn’t do much that day tbh. I was too exhausted from my flight. I am glad they let me check in early at my hotel (which was in Kanda btw – very convenient location for tourists if you ask me) After I had freshened up a little at the hotel I did make a short trip to Akihabara to check if I could find any second hand Kala goods. That day I found a Blue Day wristband, a KNGNN postcard and a cheap Consolation Pamphlet (something I had always wanted but I never felt like paying the full price on CDJapan). Throughout my stay I managed to find quite a lot of stuff actually but more on that later. Here’s a sneak peek tho XD

January 16 (Tuesday) This day was dedicated to shopping. I think I spent almost an entire day in the Shinjuku/Harajuku/Shibuya area. I bought a bunch of Disney stuff and Pikachu merch for my sister and nephew respectively and then I searched through all the Kala-clothing stores trying to find some WaKei outfits. I am super happy because I got my hands on this cute patchwork skirt by Redyazel, the one that Keiko wore quite recently for the Songful Days promo video. I also bought a matching top because they had a special “buy 2 pieces and get 30% off” deal. I can never resist deals like that even though they actually make you spend even more money in the end XD (sadly, they didn’t have the turtleneck sweater that Keiko is wearing here)

After looking through each and every Lily Brown store in Tokyo I finally found this =>The long cardigan Keiko wore in Nikko (it’s so cute and warm!).

Aside from that, I didn’t really find anything else. I came across the Fig&Viper pullover Keiko recently wore but meh, that’s not really my style and it was still quite expensive. I also saw the Mila Owen dress that Wakana wore a while back but it just wasn’t worth the money (and now I regret not buying it T_T).

January 17 (Wednesday) In the morning I went to visit the lesser known Shinagawa Aquarium which – sorry Wakana – was VERY underwhelming and I can totally understand why it’s not as popular as the other one. The only cool thing was the free shuttle bus, it had a cute design. The aquarium itself looked quite run-down and it was much smaller than I expected. But hey, I met Shirowani-san and I got to touch a dolphin which was pretty epic. Of course I had to eat the parfait that Keiko ordered when she was at the aquarium together with Wakana back in the summer time. It was really yummy but it definitely wasn’t the best day to eat it because afterwards, I was freezing my butt off. Oh well, the things I do for Cakey XD

I really wanted to buy the cute shark backpack but it was just way too expensive T_T Forever sad...Now I regret not buying it. Then again, it’s not really my style.

In the afternoon I met up with my friend Pae and I finally received my goods from the Harmony events and the Acoustic Tour. BANZAI! As for the Harmony event merch, I got the black t-shirt, the blue parka and the keyholder. From the Acoustic Live goods, I got the pamphlet, the clearfile and the postcard set. (I love the black t-shirt SO MUCH! I have worn it a lot since I have gotten back)

Together Pae and I went on a quest to find more Kala-goodies and I got lucky once again. I found two old singles, a limited edition of Magia and a regular edition of Hikari no Senritsu (one of these days my singles collection will be complete XD But I have to be patient because I just don’t wanna pay full price for singles >_>). Aside from that I also bought the limited edition of the Seventh Heaven album which includes the live DVD. They also had a BEST Red Day cup for sale at Radio Kaikan (one of the many tokutens from back in the day) but meh, I didn’t feel like getting it. I wonder if any of you bought it? They also had a FOTW and 9+ONE pamphlet and a few other CDs (but I already own all of those so I ignored them). After my meet-up with Pae, I made a trip to Roppongi to eat at my first out of many Kalafina-restaurants/cafés. That’s when it started raining heavily (so annoying) but at least I found the place rather quickly (thanks to google maps!) I went to the very popular Tsurutontan where they serve huge bowls of udon!! I ordered Katsu Curry Udon (my favourite) and some yummy fried dumplings on the side (OMG, they were SO FREAKING GOOD!!)

The food was delicious but it was a little too much for me. XD Curry soup is much more filling than regular soup. And I underestimated the dumplings quite a bit, they were also super filling. I had intended to go to the Manon Mimie store afterwards but I wasn’t feeling like getting drenched in the rain so I headed back to my hotel. I guess it’s a good thing I didn’t end up going because I messaged the store that night and asked them if they still had the Cakey clothes in stock and turns out they don’t *forever sad* I should have tried to find a way to order it back then when the pretty skirt and sweater were still in stock.

January 18 (Thursday) The first half of this day was dedicated to visiting the Imperial Palace. If you arrive early enough you can make a same-day reservation for a tour so that’s what I did. It was an interesting tour for sure and the weather was amazing!!! After the tour was over I decided to walk to Budokan since I was already in the area. I wanted to check out the venue to make sure I wouldn’t get lost on the day of the concert. At that point I was getting quite tired (and super hungry) so it was time for yet another Kala-food-experience. I took the subway to the Akasaka area and paid a visit to the gorgeous café/restaurant/bar La Maison Kioi (the place where the girls had their special SPICE off-day interview). It was so fancy and pretty. I ordered a crazy expensive Afternoon Tea Set but it was totally worth the money, it was incredibly yummy!!! Once I had eaten each and every single piece of food on that tray, I made my way to Shibuya/Harajuku to do some more shopping. This time I came across this gorgeous red skirt that Wakana has been wearing quite frequently. I think I never actually made a post about this skirt o.O A fellow fan on twitter discovered it right before my trip to Japan and when I saw it in the store I obviously couldn’t resist. On my way home I made another stopover in Akihabara and I found the limited edition of the 5th Anniversary Live Selection album. Had to get it of course XD

January 19 (Friday) On Friday I bought my 3-Day-JR-Tokyo-Wide Pass to do some traveling outside of Tokyo. It was another gorgeous sunny day, perfect for touristy stuff ^_^ The first place on my list was Kamakura. There’s lots of nice stuff to see but I mainly wanted to go there because it was the destination of Keiko’s 60 km walk on New Year’s Day back in 2014 (OMG, has it already been four years!!??) One of these days I wanna do that kind of thing as well. I went to see the big buddha of course and I also checked out some of the surrounding shrines and temples. At first I wanted to go to Enoshima as well but then I decided against it, didn’t really feel like going there. Not a fan of beaches anyways. I took the train back to Tokyo but got off in Yokohama (the second place on my list) where I also did some sightseeing. But first I needed to restore my energy so I had some late lunch in Yokohama Chinatown at Jogenro (the restaurant where Wakana ate her shark fin course – she went to the place in Tokyo tho). I really wanted to try the shark fin lunch menu but they wouldn’t let me order it since it is meant for two people T_T Such a shame! The only downside to traveling alone, getting food is troublesome. Then again, if you have company it’s even more of a hassle because it’s hard to find something that everyone likes. Also, tbh, I probably wouldn’t have been a huge fan of the shark stuff anyways so maybe it was for the best. Either way, since I couldn’t have my shark lunch, I decided on one of their regular lunch menus. Wahhh! So tasty!! I love Chinese food! It was too much tho, so many different things to eat, I almost exploded towards the end but I really wanted to finish everything. I hate wasting good food. In dire need to walk off all the calories I had just put into my body, I explored the rest of Yokohama. I walked to Mirai Minato to check out the two Red Brick Warehouses. Back in 2011 and then once again in 2014 Kalafina performed their Christmas Lives at the Red Brick Warehouse. They have mentioned on multiple occasions that this is a very special place for them. Of course I also had to ring the bell of happiness. ^_^ I couldn’t leave Yokohama without riding the Ferris-wheel so I did that in the evening when the sun was setting. I had a great view of the city up there. Later on I managed to take some nice pictures of the colourful and sparkling Ferris-wheel at dusk. And that’s a wrap for my first day-trip outside of Tokyo.

January 20 (Saturday) On Saturday I took the train to Nikkō. One of the main reasons I purchased the JR Wide Pass was because I wanted to take the Shinkansen to Utsunomiya. It’s much more convenient than the other options. And then I got to ride the Nikkō Line which looks really cool. I think you all know why I traveled to Nikkō XD I wanted to see the venue of Kalafina’s World Heritage Special Live. During my last Japan trips I already got the chance to visit Nara and see Kōfuku-ji but I had never been to Nikkō before. And hey, even if Kalafina hadn’t performed there I still would have liked to see Tōshōgū, it’s absolutely gorgeous. And *weeee* I got to witness a traditional wedding. Everyone was all dressed up and the bride looked stunning!! Afterwards I explored the area for a while and walked around a lot. (I walked so much during my Japan trip) I was considering going to see the waterfalls as well but I thought it might not be the best season to experience it in all its beauty and glory. I’ll come back some day soon, I promise! In the afternoon I returned to Tokyo and I once again found myself in the Roppongi area to eat some Kala-food :P Literally the only reason I went to these fancy schmancy areas was to eat at Kalafina restaurants/cafés. This time I ate at “The Counter Roppongi”, the place where Keiko had her YOLO burger meal this winter. I wanted to order the same burger that she had gotten but turns out it had all kinds of weird ingredients (like mushrooms >_>) so I ended up ordering a chicken burger XD I think that might have been the best burger and some of the most delicious fries I have ever eaten. Really impressed! The only thing I could have lived without was the overly sweet brioche bun. It just doesn’t go well with savoury food. I don’t understand why you would use a brioche bun for a burger, doesn’t make sense to me at all o.O Is it a Japanese thing? Or maybe an American thing?

January 21 (Sunday) I took the special Holiday train to Kawaguchiko because I wanted to get a clear view of Mount Fuji. The mountain was still visible while I was on the train but slowly but surely clouds started gathering around it and by the time I had arrived at my destination, Mount Fuji was hidden completely T_T It’s a real shame. The sun was shining and the sky was blue, it was literally perfect weather but each and every cloud in the area had decided to cuddle up to Mount Fuji. I think I made the mistake of taking the later train. I should have taken the train at like 7am or something. Apparently chances of seeing Mount Fuji are highest before 9 am and I think that’s true, I am sure I would have gotten a good view if I had been there earlier. I was there at like 9:30-10:00 and that’s just too late. Oh well, we all learn from our mistakes. In two week’s time I will be closer to Mount Fuji than I have ever been XD I didn’t want my trip to be wasted so I still took the ferry across the lake and of course I took the Kachi Kachi Ropeway which ascends to an observation point near the summit of Mount Tenjo, from where Lake Kawaguchiko and Mount Fuji can be seen. Riding that cablecar was rather unpleasant because it was jam-packed. I wasn’t aware you could even squeeze that many people into a cablecar. I got some nice views despite there being no sign of Mount Fuji. Afterwards I bought a bunch of souvenirs for my coworkers and took the train back home again. I really love all the train designs! So cute! Since I still had my JR Pass I thought I’d use it for a few trips along the Yamanote Line. I was trying to avoid using my Suica as much as possible as long as I had the JR Pass XD One of my stops was Ikebukuro. I am not a huge fan of the area but I still wanted to see if I could find anything interesting. Bought some more Pikachu merch for my nephew at the Pokemon Center and then I did some window shopping. A girl-group was performing at Sunshine City while I was there but I didn’t stay long enough to figure out who they were. People were going crazy about them tho so I guess they might have been popular. Who knows. Either way, with all these people occupied the shops were pretty empty so that’s definitely a good thing (especially on a Sunday where it’s usually busy as hell). For dinner I had yummy Coco Curry (for once not Kalafina related :P).

January 22 (Monday) a.k.a. Crazy Snow Day This was the day of our tumblr fan meetup. Probably the worst day we could have chosen but hey, what can you do? And it’s not like any of us could have known that it would snow so heavily. It’s almost funny because I am always in Tokyo when crazy snow storms happen. I was there in 2014 as well. XD Thank God I am more or less used to snow (which is something that can’t be said about most of my fellow-fans that were at the meetup). I took things slowly that day since I was already stressing out about the meetup. I went to Akihabara again and this time I found a FOTW wristband in one of the second hand stores. BANZAI. Back in 2016 when I went to see the FOTW Special Finals I actually forgot to buy a wristband. This has annoyed me for the longest time but I didn’t feel like buying it online so yeah, this was definitely a lucky find. Yippie!! Then I went to Don Quijote to buy some more souvenirs (mostly chocolates). I’ll be eating all this stuff foe the next few weeks. :P So far my favourite purchase is Hokkaido Melon Kit Kat. The BEST Kit Kat I have ever had! It’s so DAMN amazing, I regret not buying more T_T When I got back to my hotel I had to figure out a way to squeeze all the chocolates into my luggage without everything getting crumbled on the flight back home. I think I managed pretty well. I had some sandwiches for late lunch and then I headed to Shinjuku to do some more (window) shopping and to wait for everyone to arrive at the Karaoke place. Sorry again @okeuphemia, we totally kept missing each other at Lumine Est. And sorry to everyone else who had a hard time finding Karaoke Kan. I know it must have been quite the hassle for some of you, especially in this horrible weather. But thankfully, almost everyone managed to get there (eventually). My apologies to Jimmy who didn’t make it! Maybe next time (if there ever is a next time :P) I hope you all had a good time at the meetup. There were way more people than I originally expected and we had some hardcore karaoke singers amongst us (you all rocked btw!!) so we weren’t really able to talk properly but I think it was still nice for most of you. Sorry if I seemed a bit awkward, I am just not very comfortable being among such a big crowd of people. I am glad a few of us decided to leave early and grab a cup of coffee, it gave me the chance to get to know some of you a little bit better. It’s really nice to finally know who is hiding behind those tumblr nicknames (shout out to @audiojapanstyle for just being a super nice and comforting presence!) And hey, such a funny coincidende, that day I found out that @theraspberrybushes  and I stayed at the same hotel. We ended up going back together in the heavy snow.Sorry for always rushing ahead. >_<

January 23 I pretty much covered the entire day in my live report but I haven’t talked about my after live activities yet so I guess I will do it here. Originally I had just planned to go back to the hotel to get some sleep. After all I was supposed to fly back home the next morning so I wanted to get some much needed rest. However, my friend Pae convinced me to go have dinner with a few Japanese Kala-fans. I am glad she did because it was actually very nice. But once again, there were way more people than expected (slightly overwhelming – even Hachimaki was there; it felt like I had been invited to an elite Kalafina fan meet-up XD). We went to a Chinese restaurant and had some yummy gyoza. Literally the entire place was filled with Kala-fans XD We didn’t stay there for long so thankfully I didn’t get home too late. Right before we left I managed to REALLY embarrass myself when one of the Japanese Kala-fans approached me. I wasn’t aware he wanted to talk to me, I thought he was trying to get past me or something so when he started talking I turned away from him. Pae had to literally drag me back to him and then I realised he had wanted to start a conversation. Major fail. That’s why I keep telling people that I suck at social interactions. Oh well, we ended up talking about Vienna, seems like he travels there quite frequently for work. Having dinner with all these fellow Kala-fans was a really nice end to an already amazing day. I even have a couple of pictures to remind me of that little meet-up.

Okay, this is officially the end of my travel report. Congratulations to everyone who read the whole thing. I hope it wasn’t too boring. I have lots of Kalafina activities planned for my next trip so I am super hyped ヾ（〃＾∇＾）ﾉ♪

[putschki1969]

Hello, I hope I'm not bothering you with this question but... What Kalafina music video do you think would be good to request for a reaction to? I guess something that would leave a great first impression. The channel I know of do have some background on music so it's not all appearances and melodies only! Unfortunately, the MV has to be available to watch on Youtube D:

Hello!! (*＾▽＾)／

No worries, you are not bothering me at all! (＾ω＾)

Your question proves to be quite difficult to answer though. You’d be surprised by how little of Kalafina’s music is available on Youtube (especially when it comes to their PVs/MVs). However, there is a KalafinaVEVO channel where you can watch about 90% of Kalafina’s officially released PVs. I can only hope that the channel you are talking about is not based in the US because as far as I know most of KalafinaVEVO’s videos are region-blocked in the US.

Nevertheless, here are my top-five choices 〈(•ˇ‿ˇ•)-→

1. Magia

Both the song and the PV are very edgy and they will be sure to leave a lasting impression.

2. 輝く空の静寂には/ Kagayaku Sora no Shijima ni Wa

I just love the aesthetics of this PV. It was the first Kalafina music video I ever watched and it immediately got me hooked.

3. 百火撩乱/ Hyakka Ryouran

There’s no denying that Kalafina’s newest PV is amongst the most gorgeous. The traditional Japanese vibe really sets it apart from their other music videos.

4. ひかりふる /Hikari Furu

Okay, let’s be honest, there’s nothing happening in this PV (as is the case with almost every Kalafina PV XD) but that is part of its charm. This music video is breathtaking in its simplicity and it forces you to pay close attention to the vocals (which is always a good thing when it comes to Kalafina).

5. It’s a tie between メルヒェン/ Märchen and 君の銀の庭 / Kimi no Gin no Niwa

As of right now, Märchen doesn’t seem to be available on Youtube so I’ll have to go with KNGNN. I feel like these two PVs come closest to actually telling a story (however trippy it may be XD)

I hope this reply was helpful! Please note that these are my personal choices, other people might disagree with me. I am definitely curious about that reaction video!

[putschki1969]

Part 4 (last part) of my KNGNN scans.

[putschki1969]

KNGNN pamphlet Part 3

[putschki1969]

Kalafina KNGNN pamphlet scans Part 2

[putschki1969]

Also, I FINALLY got my “Kimi no Gin no Niwa” Special Live 2014 pamphlet with my order of RYB, BANZAI!!!!! And since I’ve not seen any scans of the pamphlet before, here you go!! ^_^ (in fact, I think someone has posted one scanned page a while back but that’s it o.O) Here’s a link to CDJapan!!! it’s pretty cheap and totally worth getting!!!! The girls are just SO SO gorgeous!!

Part 1