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Live Report: Tohjinsai”, new style of Momoclo’s 2 Day Omatsuri Live!!

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On July 26th and 27th Momoiro Clover Z held a solo live concert “Momoclo Natsu no Bakasawagi 2014 Nissan Stadium Taikai –Tohjinsai-“at Nissan Stadium in Kanagawa. During those 2 days, more than 130 thousand fans at the venue and via movie theater broadcast participated in the concert. As a fan of Momoclo, I would like to deliver you a detailed report of that 2 day concert!!

The concept is “Omatsuri”

Momoclo had previously performed at this venue for their “Momoclo Natsu no Bakasawagi World Summer Dive 2013” last year as well. The theme of the last summer live was “the Fusion of Idol and Sports”, but this year they changed the theme to “Omatsuri”, a more Japanese styled one. Originally Momoclo made a debut with the concept of Japanese style, so this is like a homecoming for them. In the opening movie of the live, members said that they wanted to make their “Tohjinsai” one of the most famous Omatsuri in Japan.

Based on this idea, a huge shrine (about 20 meters high!) was built on the main stage, surrounded by pines and other Japanese style structures such as arched bridges, and outdoor food stalls creating a magnificent atmosphere.

As you expected, the set list was also in line with the concept. The live started with the track of “Ameno Tajikarawo”, a rock tune referencing Japanese mythology. During the track “D’ no Junjyo”, which MV was filmed at Japanese castle, the members performed a cool theatrical fight scene against an army of ninjas using the set of huge shrine. They also performed other Japanese style tunes such as “Nippon Egao Hyakkei” and “Momoiro Daiko Dodongabushi”. Essential summer songs, “Wani to Shampoo” and “Koko ☆ Natsu” were also performed while members sprayed water onto the fans with water guns. These were the core tunes that were played at both the two days of the live, and they strengthened the concept.

The costumes of the members also fitted the concept. The 5 theme colors of each member have not changed of course, but they showed a lot of cute Japanese style costume such as Japanese shrine maiden, cutely-arranged happi coat (people wear them on the day of Omatsuri), or Judo uniforms. They performed tracks from their newest single “MOON PRIDE”, which was made for the “Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Crystal”anime while wearing sailor moon-themed costumes.

A lot of guest performers also lent their power to the concert’s maturity. At the beginning of the live, traditional performers such as Iwami Kagura (Shinto style dance), Iwate Toramai (Tiger dance), Awa Odori, Yosakoi, Kasa Odori danced in line while “Overture” played, accompanied by strong Japanese drums. Girls from Stardust promotion in happi coats, and other dancers such as Hanayagi Syachu also danced Momoclo Ondo during the intermission.

Support of many professional guest performers

Plenty of professional guest performers also made special appearances, bringing additional excitement to the concert. From the beginning of the concert, a lot of Japanese traditional performers appeared on the stage, creating a mystical atmosphere. During an intermission for costume change, Mr. Kawakami (Chief Manager of Momoclo) appeared and introduced Momoclo Ondo (Momoclo Dance Song), which was composed for this day. Dancers of Ondo, from Hanayagi Syachu and Yosakoi, took the stage, dancing to the music while encouraging fans to dance along with them. As such, even the time during the costume change of members of Momoclo was well planned.

Supporters of large Momoclo live for some times also helped the stage this time too. Thanks to “Downtown Momoclo Bands”, some tracks became really “live” one: for example, the rock tune “Kuroi Shumatsu”, or medium-tempo arranged “Hashire!”. Active performance of Samurai Rock Orchestra excited the atmosphere. Girls from 3b junior section in Stardust promotion (Juniors of Momoclo!) made their appearance during tracks such as “Hagane no Ishi” or “Roudou Sanka” and danced alongside the members of Momoclo.

The MC part was also colored by some guests. On the first day Genichiro Tenryu, one of the most famous Japanese professional wrestlers, appeared and made a battle of “No smoothness at speaking” with Momoka Ariyasu. On the second day, celebrity impersonator Korokke, and Shigeru Matuzaki (regular guest of the Momoclo live) made a surprise appearance to announce the date and venue of Momorio Christmas 2014.

Weather

Weather on the day of a Momoclo concert is sometimes strange, but has always yielded to their side. Often there would be bad weather on the morning of a concert, especially when it’s held outdoors. Recently, on the day of the outdoor live in Kagawa Prefecture, it was rainy. However, in the last minutes before starting time, the rain stopped and they performed their live at a special location: a mysterious temple-shaped stage outside in front of the beautiful sea under a blue sky. Another example is the day of an outdoor music festival. Due to heavy rains the performance of an artist at another stage was delayed, which caused festival goers to rush to the stage of Momoclo. Some fans call these phenomenon miracles. Of course they were just coincidences, but the luck of Momoclo should not be underestimated!

The Omatsuri live on the first day was performed under clear skies. It was a hot day, so fans were able to enjoy the “Omatsuri Live in Summer”. In contrast, weather on the second day was a little bit different. In the last few minutes until the live start, a local thunderstorm arrived at the venue. Management could not help but delay the start of the live for 1 hour due to safety concerns, so a lot of things including the set list had to be changed. In fact, the stage director said “some deleted, and other added just before the start. I was nearly crying.” However, just before the start of the first track “Ameno Tajikarawo”, the rain stopped and a huge rainbow appeared in the sky! “Ameno Tajikarawo” is originally one of gods in Japan who restored shines of the world. It was the best staging for the live.

This 2 day summer concert at Nissan Stadium was the first large-scale live since the one at the National Stadium (Kokuritsu) in March. Therefore, this Omatsuri Live should be a challenging one for them. First of all, Live at Kokuritsu was their (second) dream, so they had already made their dream come true at Kokuritsu to some extent. The journey for the dream was ended, so they should allure their fans only through their performance. Secondly, the capacity of the stadium is simply larger. Thirdly, uncertainty of weather made the live more challenging one this time.

However, they showed nice performance at a high level. About 13,000 Momoclo fans,including myself, completely enjoyed the Omatsuri. I felt that the team of Momoclo set a new standard for their summer concerts.

Momoclo’s 2 Days Omatsuri Live opened the summer. Enjoy this summer!

Setlist (26th July):

Main part:

0. Overture

1. Ameno Tajikarawo

2. Wani to Shampoo

3. Kuroi Shumatsu

4. D’ no Junjyo

5. Dou Dou Heiwa Sengen

6. CONTRADICTION

7. Naitemo Iindayo

8. Nippon Egao Hyakkei

9. Momoiro Daiko Dodongabushi

10. Koko ☆ Natsu

11. Kimi to Sekai

12. Saraba Itoshiki Kanashimitachiyo

13. Roudou Sanka

14. My Dear Fellow

15. Neo STARGATE

16. LOST CHILD

17. MOON PRIDE

18. Gekkou

19. Konouta

20. DNA Rhapsody

21. Hashire!

Encore part:

22. Ikuze! Kaitou Syoujyo

23. Hagane no Ishi

24. Kiminoato

25. Moretsu Uchu Koukyoukyoku ~Tohjinsai Edition~

Setlist (27th July):

Main part:

0. Overture

1. Ameno Tajikarawo

2. Wani to Shampoo

3. DNA Rhapsody

4. D’ no Junjyo

5. Dou Dou Heiwa Sengen

6. Hagane no Ishi

7. Naitemo Iindayo

8. Nippon Egao Hyakkei

9. Momoiro Daiko Dodongabushi

10. Koko ☆ Natsu

11. Tsuyoku Tsuyoku

12. Chai Maxx

13. My Dear Fellow

14. Momoclo no Nippon Banzai

15. Neo STARGATE

16. MOON PRIDE

17. Hashire!

18. Kuroi Shumatsu

19. Kiminoato

Encore part:

20. Ikuze! Kaitou Syoujyo

21. PUSH

22. Hai to Diamond

24. Saraba Itoshiki Kanashimitachiyo ~Tohjinsai Edition~

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Author nori nori: is a fan of Ayaka Sasaki (A-rin) of Momoiro Clover Z since the first glance of her IDOL performance on YouTube in 2011. Hoping to be of some help them in becoming world-famous group, and world-famous "A-rin"!

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