Finally, the trip anchor. And in lucky Part 7 at that! Essentially, it was the very reason that I got to run about Tokyo doing and seeing all sorts of things in that beautiful autumn week. My autumn trip, built around an autumn concert. That concert was "SUPER JUNIOR - RYEOWOOK Special Live～秋宴～UTAGE", or in short, Utage.
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| The simple but stunning autumn-themed stage. |
Of all the overseas concerts/performances I attended in 2022, this one was special because of the effort it took to get there and all the help received and friendliness experienced along the way. And of course, the sheer quality of the performance itself. Fair warning: this post will cover events, processes and observations surrounding the concert so there are many many words and few photos hahaha. I guess this mighttt be a little boring to the external reader but hey, I'm my main audience ^^
Opportunity
Rewind to one fine day in Aug 2022, just a few days after my birthday (when a friend floated the idea of a Japan trip). While there was some attraction to the idea of a Tokyo holiday since it'd be a first, I was still feeling rather indifferent. Guess I wasn't dying to chiong to Japan the moment it reopened. But on that day, there was suddenly an announcement on the SJ JP twitter regarding a "Ryeowook Special Live" and that the ticketing lottery would begin on that day itself. The announcement came out of the blue and was somewhat low key, but it was electrifying.
It's like something was coolly saying to me: "so, you needed a reason to go?"
And indeed, a reason it was. Ryeowook is my current favourite Suju member. If buying tickets were as simple as clicking and paying, I'd have done that in a heartbeat. But there were a few more hoops to jump through. In a way, things would've been so much easier if the concert were held in Seoul but no complaints about the chance to visit another location xD
Securing tickets
So this section wouldn't have existed if ticketing were the usual fastest fingers first. Maybe it's just coz I noob, but I gotta emphasise how difficult it felt to consume Japanese products or services from outside Japan, especially if there was no specific international option. I kinda had to bash my way through an end-to-end process designed to prevent ticket scalping/unauthorised distribution and err, promote equality (?).
Quirk #1 (few more to come later) about Japanese concerts is the aforementioned lottery system. Basically one applies and hopes to get a ticket. How easy it is to score a seat is demand-dependent. Lotteries may open in a few stages with the first usually reserved for official fan club members. There might be general sales if there's anything left at the end.
Anyway, I couldn't apply for anything haha. The first lottery was for ELF-Japan members (the official Japanese SJ fan club). Signing up for the fan club required a Japanese address and phone number. This in itself doesn't prevent foreigners from signing up, but I had no handy contacts in Japan. So I waited for the second round... and found that it was also a lottery that required a Japanese address and phone number -.- At that time I started to wonder if the system was designed to keep foreigners out or smth.
Then, I spotted signs on other ways that foreigners could secure tickets! Some request/let (求/讓) listings had started to pop up under certain hashtags. The reason for this was that each person was allowed to apply for up to 4 seats in the lottery for each of the 3 show timings. People usually applied together with friends and were trying to sell off their duplicates. Cue reaching out to strangers online~
So yay there were tickets that I could actually purchase! But in parallel, I'd hit another roadblock in the form of Anypass, the official ticket distribution platform. Basically, this app was a must for entry into the concert with tickets purchased online. To prevent unauthorised distribution etc., any sort of ticket transfer between different parties has to be done on this app where every account is verified and tagged to a valid phone number (thankfully, international numbers work too). And then there was me having trouble signing up xD I thought it was gonna be a dealbreaker, coz all the verification SMSes and calls seemed to be failing, until I tried topping up my international credits out of desperation. Good thing that that worked, and that I could understand Japanese numbers enough to listen to and type in a verification code after the call went through!
By that time, I was already in various conversations with international strangers. This included some who had successfully completed the ticketing process and were kind enough to guide me through the weird complexities. As luck would have it, I also spoke to an angel of a Japanese ELF who (1) knew Chinese (简体字, luckily) and (2) pretty much voluntarily become my ticket coordinator for this concert :') She liaised with other Japanese sellers on my behalf to secure tickets for the 2 evening shows I was planning to go for. This was one of the reasons I was bursting with gratitude by the end of the trip. Gotta mention that I had to rely on google/papago translators for all the Japanese... and also the written Chinese... it's been too long xD Along the way, I picked up a Singaporean buddy as well!
All in all, I made friends (or contacts, at the very least)! It helps to have a clear common interest, in this case, in a Korean boy group haha).
When I secured my Utage tickets, Tokyo 2022 sparked into existence✨
Waiting
Gotta say, there had to be some mutual trust since I was buying tickets off strangers - both parties had to show up for the deal to work out. But it was less of a risk for me since the agreement was to pay cash at the concert venue, after the tickets were handed over digitally. At that time (early Sep), there wasn't even 100% certainty that I could show up in Japan haha. I'd heard of other cases where sellers were reluctant to hold on to their tickets for foreigners instead of releasing them back into the system. Not unreasonable really. Can say I was very lucky to meet J-ELFs who were trustworthy and so ready to help/sell to me without asking for upfront payment.
The next thing I did was to book a hotel for the entire week surrounding 2-3 Nov. Free cancellation, yay! Then, came a week's worth of checking the news obsessively for every announcement surrounding Japan and monitoring flight prices. The prices climbed steadily the whole time and I could actually have saved a bunch more if I were a little more decisive haha. Thinking about it, the $25 Scoot multiflex was such a gem. That price bought unlimited flight reschedules in the event that Japan did not fully open in time. If not for that, risk-averse me might have indeed waited to opening announcement day and paid double. The lesson here is to spot worthwhile hedges and leverage them as early as possible.
Fast forwarding~ I had plenty of fun pre-Utage (see Parts 2-6 haha). But there was also an undercurrent of uncertainty. When South Korea went into mourning after the Itaewon incident, there was some doubt on whether the concert would carry on. The daily teaser posts had stopped. Other Korean performers also cancelled their own events in Japan at last minute. Well, nothing to be done then but to wait patiently. Still, I was determined to ensure that Tokyo 2022 would be a fulfilling holiday, even without the anchor event. In the end, there was some confirmation that the concert would carry on as planned and it was such a relief to finally head to the Tachikawa Stage Garden on 2 Nov. One more reason to be thankful that the concert was held in Tokyo rather than Seoul.
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| At gloaming while waiting to enter, standing along this little pathway lined with red trees. Remember, trees across Tokyo were just starting to turn red at that time. So it felt like there was a concentration of autumn around the venue, befitting of an event titled 秋宴 - literally autumn party/feast! |
Show time!
I had to think of what to write here since no form of recording, AV or written, can recreate the experience of a live performance. The best I can do is to share some of my favourite bits. It's also quite serendipitous that the concert recording was broadcasted just around the time I started drafting this post. So I got to polish my memories~
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| View from my seat during the first performance (2 Nov, evening)! Considering that seating was completely random (more on this later), it was great fortune to be seated close enough to make out Ryeowook's jawbones haha. |
Despite not generally being an aesthetic/design-minded person, my first thought upon entry to the concert hall was literally "this is beautiful". In a few ways in fact. First, the stage and backdrop graced by a (fake) tree dressed in autumn. It wasn't an overly showy concept or anything, it was simply fitting. Second, the official concert logo on 2 screens flanking the tree. In promotional materials, the still logo was set on a white background. In the hall, this was changed to a black background which emphasised the red and gold motifs, which were also animated to glow. Third, the animation of glowing, red maple leaves falling across the logo gave a very elegant 3D effect. Last but certainly not the least, the "waiting" music. I don't usually care much for piano music but this piece completed the picture of entering a lush, tranquil autumn wood. I was in a state of bliss while waiting for the show to start for the first time.
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| Even through the lousy GIF quality, the glowing, twirling 🍁 remain outstanding. |
As for the performance, the whole damn thing was magical. There was a great variety of Ryeowook's own songs in both Korean and Japanese and covers. Here's some of my favourites:
- Like a Star: The single most beautiful set. Thinking about it, this was prob the only song with additional stage setup. Strings of lights were used to create the impression of a twinkling, starry field in a deep night ⭐
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| Screenshot from the official recording. Watching live, it was an amazingly ethereal view that produced goosebumps. |
- Citrus (by Da-Ice): Impact. The stage was dark and silent when Ryeowook opened the song with a sky-piercing high note and sang the first bit a capella. Total chills. Unfortunately the official recording did not include this song due to copyright, so here's an (ahem) unofficial version.
- Nandemonaiya (by Radwimps): Yes it's that song from Your Name! His voice suits this song very well and he actually covered it on his youtube channel before. At the concert, the cherry on top was the live band. For a song I've listened to many times (original and cover), this was a definite way to level up the experience. Again, unofficial version.
- Dance time! (a medley of Edison by Wednesday Campanella, Habit by Sekai no Owari, Mr Simple, SPY and Oppa Oppa): Wow where to start. As much as I appreciate power vocals, it's always the upbeat songs that are the most enjoyable during concerts! The first two were trendy Japanese songs. It was very impressive that he sang and danced all the way through without stumbling, especially Habit which was almost a rap :o Then we were treated to a mini Super Show including the legendary SPY! It was an OMG moment for everyone when the iconic trumpet sound played at the start coz Suju is notoriously allergic to performing this song hahaha. And there was Ryeowook performing a snippet of the original version all by himself xD
- Sakura no Hana ga Sakukoro: This was the first encore song and one of my favourite types of music. It's not as common to get goosebumps from a happy, uplifting song compared to those soaring ballads, but it happened here on all 3 shows. It was a nice touch to have confetti burst out at the final chorus as well! I managed to collect some when I was seated close enough :D Oh yes and the tree changed colours temporarily to pink since this song was spring-themed. Then Ryeowook snapped his fingers and it went back to red xD
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| Another capture from the recording. More falling, floating, glowing motifs back on the screen! But sakura petals instead as we rewinded to spring for a bit. |
- My Dear: This was the final encore song for the first two shows. It's also my current favourite out of Ryeowook's solo works and top of my spotify top songs for 2022! Was especially glad to hear this one live :') It's one of those songs that "fits my ear" easily, with the same smooth comforting feeling as chinese ballads from the school days.
Special mentions:
- To Me (first show): The concert wasn't CD-perfect. There were times when emotions overflowed, and this particular stage was prob the most affected coz he choked up and couldn't sing most of the song. But it happens that the lyrics of this song speak of personal strength and conviction. At the end of the show, the people who were already on their way out rushed back to their seats when the lights dimmed again and the band retook their positions. Ryeowook walked out again and thanked the band for agreeing to do this extra stage, coz if he didn't do this, he wouldn't have been able to sleep that night haha. And he nailed it.
- The Little Prince (final show): This song appeared only once in Utage, at the very end of the final show. Before the concert, I'd assumed that Ryeowook's solo debut, signature song would naturally be part of the setlist. I guess all the other stages were stunning enough to hold their own that I didn't even realise its absence. He's prob performed this song hundreds of times by now, but it was my first and only time so far hearing it live. And he said he prepared this special stage coz, even though there were two other planned stops in Japan, he didn't take being able to meet his audience for granted. I appreciated this consideration. This song and the title were meant for him, and for me, this was a very fitting end to a masterpiece of a concert.
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| I wanted to retain as much memory of this concert as possible. That included finding the best way to make a souvenir out of the red/gold confetti from the encores! |
Everything else that was interesting
I'm not done yet hahaha! There really were so many things worth remembering from the 1.5 days I spent in Tachikawa.
First up, during pre-trip planning, practical me had decided to go for just the two evening shows on 2 and 3 Nov, leaving the daytimes free for exploration. "Should be good enough", I thought... I ended up going for all 3 performances, including the 3 Nov matinee which was never part of the original plan. After the first show, SG buddy and I congregated outside the hall in a very excited state and decided then and there that we weren't gonna miss a single thing xD It was THAT good.
The fun didn't end there. The Tachikawa Stage Garden is a small, intimate concert venue and I was blessed to get decent views throughout, i.e. no third floor seats. But my seat during the matinee performance was by far the best and closest to the stage. For an unplanned thing, it really paid off big time!
This is probably a good juncture to mention Quirk #2 - the random seating. What we're prob used to is variable ticket pricing depending on section. But Japanese concerts seem to have only 1 price for small venues or maybe a premium/regular split for larger venues. So depending on luck, the same ticket could literally yield a seat right in front of the stage or at some ulu corner of the hall. On top of this, the seat designations are only released very close to the performance day. I guess this is all to prevent snatching and scalping of good seats in advance - everyone gets equal chance at being lucky or unlucky xD
Back to the unplanned matinee show, for which tickets were completely sold out online :O The attendance throughout the 3 shows was really good with hardly any empty seats. But for the matinee, there weren't even people reselling tickets anymore. Could be because it was on a public holiday. That's why I found it very strange that there was an announcement that morning saying that same-day tickets (当日券) would be on sale at the venue... We were definitely taking the chance anyway. So SG buddy and I got there and joined the line where we had a rather nerve-wracking wait as a stack of tickets was used up just before our turn. We surmised that there were still some left, since the Japanese staff kept speaking over their walkie-talkies and going up and down to count the people in line. Couldn't understand a thing, but they were prob seeking confirmation before releasing another batch of tickets. And knowing Japanese culture, they prob would've had the politeness to dismiss everyone if the tickets had really run out. True enough, the staff eventually pulled out a fresh stack! We paid in cash - 230000 yen cobbled between the two of us. (Youtrip the rest of the way!)
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| Outside the venue, marveling at our unbelievable luck. In an era of e-ticketing, especially within a hyper-streamlined Japanese system, this was like a unique piece of treasure. |
Here, I need to emphasise how precious a souvenir that pink slip of paper was. Since the regular ticketing channels were all online, this was probably the only way to get a physical ticket! However, the best surprise came when I saw the seat numbers. Rows 13 and 14 - prob as close as we commoners could've hoped to get to the stage! We were totally expecting to be seated somewhere far and high up given the last-minuteness of it all. One plausible explanation could be that these tickets were reserved for invited parties who didn't show up in the end. In any case, I was beyond thankful hehe. The matinee ended up being the single largest impact to my itinerary, bumping a few plans away >.< Should've expected this really, what was I thinking xD
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| My best view out of the 3 shows! From my live show experiences so far, it can sometimes be a risk to sit close to stage where there is little or no gradient. I was fortunate enough not to be behind tall people, and was actually seated next to a camera haha. |
I can say with conviction: no regrets at all going for all 3 shows. Just one last Quirk to share over here. It's a standard thing for photography and video recording to be disallowed or restricted during concerts. But Quirk #3 is that Japanese fans don't break the rules. This is why it is extremely rare for Japanese concerts to have fancams, and the ones I've seen were taken exclusively by foreign fans. Official DVDs/broadcast recordings cover only one performance at best, and not everything at that (as demonstrated in this case). No two live performances are the same. So the only way to experience all of it is simply to be there. I'm very glad I was for Utage.
Personally, I wasn't about to risk video recording though... My phone was hardly equipped for this task anyway. But I did manage to get myself some nice, fairly clear audio recordings which I listened to all through the flight home.
Oh yes, should also mention that due to covid restrictions at the time, cheering and screaming wasn't allowed :( Only clapping. It definitely dampened the atmosphere since the bulk of the audience consisted of Japanese fans who don't break the rules. Little bursts of sound escaped the audience whenever Ryeowook did something unexpectedly cute or emotional but that was about it. The next time the Sujus perform in Japan (SS9 in Mar), covid should be well on its way to insignificance (touch wood), and hopefully they will be able to hear the full strength of the crowd without restrictions.
In conclusion
Ryeowook really shone in Utage. There was nothing stopping me from being there, so this was a concert that I wouldn't have missed for the world. He went on to do two further winter-themed concerts (Rokka ~六花~) in Osaka and Fukuoka around Christmas time, with modified setlists from Utage. Of course I was tempted. But as much as I would've liked to be there and hear those amazing live vocals again, it was the season for enjoying real life around family and friends, not to escape from it! Anyway, the flight prices in Dec were extremely prohibitive haha. It was also fortunate that more foreign fans were able to attend by that time, and there was a healthy supply of Rokka fancams xD
I guess I really like live music and it's something I'm prepared to spend money on. Unfortunately, Singapore is a non-existent stop for these Suju solo/subunit concerts. So if I want to experience them, I'll have to travel for it. My experiences in 2022 (Fan Letter, SS9s, Utage) have proven more than worthy! So this is something I'll continue doing for as long as I'm able to and as long as the singers I like continue performing. Still waiting to see what surprise announcements come up next heh.
But wew 2023, it's been so busy so far so writing time has definitely been squeezed. This Part went on longer than expected as well haha. Part 8 up next, going back to the regular travel itinerary and another of my favourite locations on the trip!
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| Hopefully I'll have the opportunity to see this giraffe again in future, maybe dressed for another season :) |
