The most surprising moment at Yoasobi’s Never Ending Stories concert at the Hollywood Bowl came when its composer Ayase commented that it was the first time a J-pop group had performed at the historic venue. You’d think someone of Utada Hikaru’s stature would have beaten them to it. But after poking around the internet, I confirmed that was the case. Congratulations to Yoasobi on their great achievement, a testament to how popular they have become.
They have definitely made me a fan through their anime-related forays. It’s rare that I ever see a J-pop group’s pre-anime catalogue, but their catchy melodies captivated me. It’s even weirder for me to still enjoy their later releases. So when they announced a concert in Los Angeles, I was totally on board.
In another life, I would be participating in this event alone, pencil and notebook in hand. This time it was a totally family affair. I went with my wife and my 7-year-old accomplice. We’re talking about a 7-year-old boy whose musical inclinations include a healthy dose of Maaya Sakamoto, various Vocaloid tracks, and, of course, Yoasobi. I would even go so far as to say that your knowledge of Yoasobi’s work eclipses mine by a good margin. Since this was their first concert, their expectations were quite high. So, on a warm August afternoon, we, along with many other Yoasobi fans, descended on the Hollywood Bowl, leaving not a single seat unoccupied.
With the stage set, Yoasobi released his anime opening megahit: oshi no ko“Idol”. Ikura’s high-energy delivery made the audience vibrate with excitement. My son was equally fascinated, not only by the voices, but also by the lighting effects and images on the rear screen. It made such a powerful first impression on him that he declared “Idol” his favorite moment. The anime continued to pile up; Ikura followed with “The Blessing” (Gundam: The Witch of Mercury) and “UNDEAD” of the Monogatari series.
After a brief interlude, Ikura prepared the audience for the next song by having everyone repeat “mou Ikkai!” That signaled that “PLAYERS,” a song used to commemorate the launch of the original Playstation, would come next. Fans in the know enthusiastically released the iconic and effusive “Mou ikkai, mou ikkai!” at the beginning of the chorus and join the lines of “Play, you and I, set in the legacy” to create an electric atmosphere.
And speaking of electricity, after a cheerful “Look at me!”, Ikura asked if people had heard of Pokémon. That elicited an enthusiastic roar, even from my son. Those in the know raved about the energetic “Biri-Biri” and my son happily enjoyed the entire Ikura performance.
At this point, Yoasobi dropped his ties to the anime and game and moved on to his original catalogue, beginning with the saccharine sweet “BABY.” During the next song, “Probably,” Ikura asked the audience to turn on their smartphone flashlights. The resulting sea of light across the Bowl felt magical. So much so that Ayase commented on how beautiful it looked from where she was on stage.
Throughout all of this, Ikura was fantastic. His crowd management skills were perfect as he took advantage of the entire stage and even the front of the garden boxes to keep the crowd energized. Her job as emcee, thanks to her command of English, contributed to the performance by giving the audience more context about the songs and Yoasobi’s overall mission of growing J-pop abroad. And finally, her voice was solid, especially her dreamy, melancholic solo introduction of “Ano Yume wo Nazotte,” which was absolutely moving.
However, that wouldn’t be Ikura’s only solo! The second surprising moment of the night was when he appeared with an electric guitar to start a riff from the opening of “Butai ni Tatte”. I was impressed by his guitar work! Finally, the main show ended with “Gunjou,” which I felt was a perfect selection to keep the crowd excited and wanting more. Part of that was due to the chorus, which had many people (including my son and I) singing the lines:
shirazu shirazu kakushiteta
Hontou no koe wo hibikasete yo, time
Minai furi shititem
Tashika ni soko ni aru
Once “Gunjou” ended, both Ayase and Ikura expressed their gratitude for all the fans’ support and they and their bandmates took a photo with the crowd before leaving the stage.
It was at that moment that I was perplexed to see people starting to get up from their seats. Maybe I’m an old-timer (and admittedly on the older end of the age spectrum), but since the house lights hadn’t been turned back on, an encore was obviously coming up! Oh ok. The wait for an encore felt longer than usual, prompting some scattered cries of “Mou ikkai!” from time to time. But most people stood their ground and waited.
To keep the audience from getting restless, Hollywood Bowl camera operators kept people entertained by showing some fan reactions on screens adjacent to the stage. A standout feature was when a young girl proceeded to wield her flashlights while performing Aqua’s routine during B-Komachi’s concert in oshi no ko. That was a pleasure and she was showered with cheers.
Yoasobi eventually returned for the encore because of course they would. Ikura promised two bonus songs and then launched into the energetic “Adrena.” That choice increased my anticipation for “Yoru ni Kakeru,” which turned out great and managed to close it out.
The concert was a delight from start to finish. For someone who’s been out of the loop due to life events happening in all directions, it was nice to get away to enjoy an artist I’m very fond of. Being able to share this experience with my son, who really enjoyed the concert and can’t stop talking about it, was a bonus.
Song List
- Idol
- The Blessing
- NOT DEAD
- PLAYERS
- Look at me!
- Biri-Biri
- BABY
- Probably
- Harujion
- Sukida
- Kite
- Orion
- the brave
- Monster
- Seventeen
- Anus Yume wo Nazotte
- Butai ni Tatte
- Gunjou
- Adrenalin
- Yoru ni Kakeru