Quick! Answer this question! What do Perfume, Kazuyoshi Saito, Okuda Tamio, and Maximum the Hormone have in common? NOTHING! Except that they are all now apparently collaborating in a concert tour with Perfume!
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I mean wow, talk about an interesting combination! Normally I don't talk much about Perfume's concert activities (though many moons ago I went over the setlist for their JPN Tour) but I feel like this is definitely something to be talked about. As usual, a new year has come and Perfume has announced a live tour titled Zutto Sukidattanjake~ Sasurai no Men Kata Perfume FES!! (yeah, I'm gonna need awhile to get that full title memorized in my brain). Pretty normal for Perfume, as they usually tend to hold at least one tour a year but what's so special about this one is that they're not the only ones doing it. Over the months of May and June, Perfume will hold concerts in three different revenues, each one with a different artist. From May 29 to May 30, Perfume will hold two concerts Kazuyoshi Saito in Tokyo. From June 4 to June 5 (which happens to be the birthday of yours truly) Perfume will hold two more concerts with Okuda Tamio in Nagoya. And finally from June 17 to June 18 Perfume will hold their final two concerts with Maximum the Hormone in Osaka.
The concerts will be set up in a "battle of the bands" style in which Perfume will perform with each separate artist and do god-knows-what-because-I-have-absolutely-no-idea-how-this-is-going-to-turn-out. What I find unusual about this is that Perfume hand-picked each of these three artists, saying, "Maximum the Hormone-san, who we have determined since long ago that ‘if we ever hold a live with other artist, it would be them!’ Our senior from the same hometown, Tamio Okuda-san who has performed our ‘Laser beam’ at Itsukushima Shirine, and Saito Kazuyoshi-san who we have loved one-sidedly for a long time. Since we're finally being given the chance to do this together, we hope we'll also have the opportunity to brazenly collaborate in some way here!!" I think it's nice that Perfume is at the point in their career at which they have enough influence and popularity that they have the opportunity to collaborate with artists they've looked up to fro some time. It's kind of like something I hope to do one day when I somehow have enough influence in the blogsphere that I can collaborate with other idol bloggers whom I extremely admire and look up to but never actually talk to because... because... eh... was I talking about Perfume or something?
Anyways! I have to say I was really surprised at the announcement of such a concert tour. I know that in the past Perfume has performed with some random artists on various TV programs (such as their performance with Speed a few years ago). But this is more than just a random appearance; this is a full-blown concert with an assortment of artists that are extremely different from the style and look of Perfume. I don't know much about any of the artists they picked to perform with but I do know that none of them perform techno music. In fact, I probably need to do some listening into these three artists to get an idea of what their musical styles or like and how those styles will work with Perfume's. Like I know that Maximum the Hormone is a rock band... and Perfume is a technopop group. While a rock band drives their performance in the use of instruments and live vocals, Perfume does the opposite in that they usually lip-sync and their performances are less focused on the instrumentals and more on the visual appeal. So I wonder how such distinct styles will match up together; will Perfume sing live? Will the other performing artist do covers of their songs?
I know that this Okuda Tamio guy performed a cover of Laser Beam so I wouldn't be surprised if these artists did some Perfume covers. And who knows? Maybe Perfume in turn will do some covers of the other artist's material! I think what's got me so excited about the announcement of a collaboration tour is the sheer fact that we don't really know what to expect from a tour of this nature. In the past, I've grown pretty accustomed to the typical awesomeness that are the Perfume Tours and I know what they usually consist of. Snazzy outfits, sleek and eye-popping visuals, and a sense of efficiency that comes with Perfume. I wouldn't say that this formula's bad by any means (not at all, it's absolutely wonderful) but I am legitimately curious what the style and look of this tour will feel like. I feel like there are so many directions and possibilities these collaborations opened that just about anything will be surprising! I think it's awesome that Perfume is stepping out of their techno bubble to collaborate with some other artists who have styles so different from their own.
And do you know what else is awesome about this tour? One of the performances is on my birthday. My flipping birthday! My birthday in which nothing good ever happens (no seriously a kidnapping, an assassination, a war, and a funeral all happened and/or began on my birthday). On June 5 Perfume will be holding their second concert in Nagoya with Okuda Tamio and Nia will be eating cake! I know it's a silly thing to get excited about since I wouldn't be able to get to the concert without a passport and tickets and money but it's such a happy coincidence! I'd like to think of it as a kinda-sorta birthday present! In a weird way... But anyways, I'm really psyched about this tour even if it is shorter than the group's other tours in the past. Honestly, I kind of like that it's a bit shorter too. Maybe because Perfume is planning something else in their spare time? Such as... an album? Yes, there have been talks around the Perfume fandom of an album coming out this year and personally, I think now is a good time to release an album. The group has released three singles and I don't want another single-heavy album like JPN.
But there's also something inside me that feels like this won't be the year they release an album. I don't know if that's just me trying not to get my hopes up or if it's legitimately my instincts, but I'm going to try and stay rational about the chances of a new album. And there's the chance that Perfume might do a collaboration with one of the artists they're performing with; that's an even more unlikely theory than the album but it is an interesting one! I'd actually really like to see Perfume do a musical collaboration with another artist! Man, could you imagine Perfume singing with a rock band? Eh heh... me neither actually. I'm not sure how that would turn out... For now, I'm just going to relish and imagine what the concert tour is going to be like. I wish I could go to one of them just so I could be one of the first to see what's going to happen! But I can wait; I've always waited in the past for Perfume and I can do it again! May has yet to come but I'm sure it'll sneak right up on me, especially with all the other stuff I'll be writing about in the world of idols! Until then, I'm extremely looking forward to this Perfume concert tour!
I mean wow, talk about an interesting combination! Normally I don't talk much about Perfume's concert activities (though many moons ago I went over the setlist for their JPN Tour) but I feel like this is definitely something to be talked about. As usual, a new year has come and Perfume has announced a live tour titled Zutto Sukidattanjake~ Sasurai no Men Kata Perfume FES!! (yeah, I'm gonna need awhile to get that full title memorized in my brain). Pretty normal for Perfume, as they usually tend to hold at least one tour a year but what's so special about this one is that they're not the only ones doing it. Over the months of May and June, Perfume will hold concerts in three different revenues, each one with a different artist. From May 29 to May 30, Perfume will hold two concerts Kazuyoshi Saito in Tokyo. From June 4 to June 5 (which happens to be the birthday of yours truly) Perfume will hold two more concerts with Okuda Tamio in Nagoya. And finally from June 17 to June 18 Perfume will hold their final two concerts with Maximum the Hormone in Osaka.
The concerts will be set up in a "battle of the bands" style in which Perfume will perform with each separate artist and do god-knows-what-because-I-have-absolutely-no-idea-how-this-is-going-to-turn-out. What I find unusual about this is that Perfume hand-picked each of these three artists, saying, "Maximum the Hormone-san, who we have determined since long ago that ‘if we ever hold a live with other artist, it would be them!’ Our senior from the same hometown, Tamio Okuda-san who has performed our ‘Laser beam’ at Itsukushima Shirine, and Saito Kazuyoshi-san who we have loved one-sidedly for a long time. Since we're finally being given the chance to do this together, we hope we'll also have the opportunity to brazenly collaborate in some way here!!" I think it's nice that Perfume is at the point in their career at which they have enough influence and popularity that they have the opportunity to collaborate with artists they've looked up to fro some time. It's kind of like something I hope to do one day when I somehow have enough influence in the blogsphere that I can collaborate with other idol bloggers whom I extremely admire and look up to but never actually talk to because... because... eh... was I talking about Perfume or something?
Anyways! I have to say I was really surprised at the announcement of such a concert tour. I know that in the past Perfume has performed with some random artists on various TV programs (such as their performance with Speed a few years ago). But this is more than just a random appearance; this is a full-blown concert with an assortment of artists that are extremely different from the style and look of Perfume. I don't know much about any of the artists they picked to perform with but I do know that none of them perform techno music. In fact, I probably need to do some listening into these three artists to get an idea of what their musical styles or like and how those styles will work with Perfume's. Like I know that Maximum the Hormone is a rock band... and Perfume is a technopop group. While a rock band drives their performance in the use of instruments and live vocals, Perfume does the opposite in that they usually lip-sync and their performances are less focused on the instrumentals and more on the visual appeal. So I wonder how such distinct styles will match up together; will Perfume sing live? Will the other performing artist do covers of their songs?
I know that this Okuda Tamio guy performed a cover of Laser Beam so I wouldn't be surprised if these artists did some Perfume covers. And who knows? Maybe Perfume in turn will do some covers of the other artist's material! I think what's got me so excited about the announcement of a collaboration tour is the sheer fact that we don't really know what to expect from a tour of this nature. In the past, I've grown pretty accustomed to the typical awesomeness that are the Perfume Tours and I know what they usually consist of. Snazzy outfits, sleek and eye-popping visuals, and a sense of efficiency that comes with Perfume. I wouldn't say that this formula's bad by any means (not at all, it's absolutely wonderful) but I am legitimately curious what the style and look of this tour will feel like. I feel like there are so many directions and possibilities these collaborations opened that just about anything will be surprising! I think it's awesome that Perfume is stepping out of their techno bubble to collaborate with some other artists who have styles so different from their own.
And do you know what else is awesome about this tour? One of the performances is on my birthday. My flipping birthday! My birthday in which nothing good ever happens (no seriously a kidnapping, an assassination, a war, and a funeral all happened and/or began on my birthday). On June 5 Perfume will be holding their second concert in Nagoya with Okuda Tamio and Nia will be eating cake! I know it's a silly thing to get excited about since I wouldn't be able to get to the concert without a passport and tickets and money but it's such a happy coincidence! I'd like to think of it as a kinda-sorta birthday present! In a weird way... But anyways, I'm really psyched about this tour even if it is shorter than the group's other tours in the past. Honestly, I kind of like that it's a bit shorter too. Maybe because Perfume is planning something else in their spare time? Such as... an album? Yes, there have been talks around the Perfume fandom of an album coming out this year and personally, I think now is a good time to release an album. The group has released three singles and I don't want another single-heavy album like JPN.
But there's also something inside me that feels like this won't be the year they release an album. I don't know if that's just me trying not to get my hopes up or if it's legitimately my instincts, but I'm going to try and stay rational about the chances of a new album. And there's the chance that Perfume might do a collaboration with one of the artists they're performing with; that's an even more unlikely theory than the album but it is an interesting one! I'd actually really like to see Perfume do a musical collaboration with another artist! Man, could you imagine Perfume singing with a rock band? Eh heh... me neither actually. I'm not sure how that would turn out... For now, I'm just going to relish and imagine what the concert tour is going to be like. I wish I could go to one of them just so I could be one of the first to see what's going to happen! But I can wait; I've always waited in the past for Perfume and I can do it again! May has yet to come but I'm sure it'll sneak right up on me, especially with all the other stuff I'll be writing about in the world of idols! Until then, I'm extremely looking forward to this Perfume concert tour!