Comes from Heriko^,^

Dir en grey at the Warfield—San Francisco, CA July 2, 2007

            On July 2, 2007, part of my dream had come true; even though Dir en grey was only one of the opening bands for the Deftones, I felt that they had really captured most of the audience. The performance was at the Warfield Theatre in downtown San Francisco. There was a considerable amount of people on the floor, but surprisingly not many had reserved seats up in the balcony where I was. I was not sure if the empty seats were for Deftones fans who did not want to sit through the opening bands, or if the concert did not sell out.

            I attended the concert alone, so I showed up a little early to buy merchandise and explore the concert hall a bit. Doors opened at 6:30, and the concert began at seven. The concert hall was a decent size; a lot bigger than Rams Head in Baltimore, but not nearly as big as, say, Yoyogi Stadium in Tokyo. The crowd seemed somewhat eclectic; a lot of people who looked around my age, and then a few younger-looking fans. I assumed most of the "older" people were there for the Deftones, while later on I realized that a lot of younger fans were actually Dir fans. There was not a huge selection of Dir merchandise, but I expected that; there were three shirts with different designs, a sticker, and a wristband.

            My seat was in the front row of the balcony, closer to the right part of the stage. I was pretty excited to be at that spot, since I knew Die always played on that part of the stage. The people sitting around me were definitely all Deftones fans—during the opening bands portions (including Dir), the couples were really not into the music. It kind of annoyed me, but then again, it WAS a concert featuring Deftones as the main event.

            Fall of Troy came out as the first band; they were one person short from February, which kind of surprised me. I did not pay much attention to their portion of the concert, since I was not impressed with their previous performance. I had earplugs in at this point, too, so I really only watched the guys and their stage acts. The skinny, curly-haired guitarist was entertaining at times, but he did not seem too into the concert. Their portion of the concert was only around 30 minutes long, which seemed incredibly short to me. No matter, though…as soon as they announced that they were finished with their set, I grew very excited. Even though it was to be the third time for me to see Dir in concert, I still felt a rush of excitement.

            As soon as Dir walked out on stage, I was so tempted to jump out of my seat...but, since the people surrounding me did not appear to be Dir fans, I just stayed in my seat and screamed for the band from my seat. Their "opening processional" was accompanied by G.D.S., which pumped up the crowd like in the previous times. Once G.D.S. was finished, Dir performed a total of ten songs, making their portion of the concert last almost an hour. During their performance, I kind of felt that the concert was half-run by Dir, since they played for so long (and there seemed to be a good amount of Dir-only fans there).

           Dir performed mainly tracks from Marrow of the Bone, but of course threw in a few "oldies" from withering to death. and VULGAR. Some of the songs they performed during the INWARD SCREAM tour, which I did not mind at all! Kyo danced a bit during a couple of songs, which made me crack up. The whole band seemed a bit more relaxed for this concert than for INWARD SCREAM, probably because they weren't the headlining band! Kyo appeared to be in good spirits, too, so I was glad to see that. My view of Die was slightly obstructed by spotlights, though; I was kind of annoyed about that. Overall, I enjoyed the concert (setlist and notes follow).

            And I received a nice surprise to end the night—while I was in line to buy merchandise before the show, I noticed a small handwritten note posted up by the merchandise table saying: "A member of Dir en grey will be signing autographs after their set." I asked the merchandise guy to explain the note and he said that they were going to have a table set up in the lobby with one of the Dir members signing autographs! I was excited to hear about this, but I also felt a little wary about the offer, since at Family Values Tour last year, they lied about the fact that Dir would be signing autographs. So, I kept my excitement in, trying to not let myself feel too disappointed if the same thing were to happen again.

            Well, after Dir's set I rushed out of the concert hall into the lobby; noticed a slew of fans also thinking the same thing I was. Yes, it appeared that I was probably one of the older Dir fans at the concert—the people who were in line behind me all looked like they were in high school or younger. We all formed a long, winding line out in the lobby, waiting for whoever was going to sign for us. I chatted a little with some fans, but we were all mostly preoccupied with who was going to do the autographs. During the waiting period, I also wrote a small, simple note on the inside of my notebook saying "Please sign here, Dir en grey; Thank you very much!" in Japanese. It was kind of cheesy, but I figured it would help whoever was signing.

            Once the line started moving, it moved relatively fast; I did not even get to see who was signing the autographs until I was around five people away from the table—when I saw a glimpse of the auburn hair, I knew it was Die. I think at this point in time, I went into a small bit of shock since I had been hoping to meet Die since I first started listening to Dir's music five years ago (I only managed to shake hands and speak rusty Japanese lines with Shinya and Kaoru at Family Values last year). When I was only one person away from being in front of Die, the security guys told me to get my notebook ready for Die to sign, so I opened it up, not even fully realizing I was going to be standing in front of one of my idols in a moment.

            My turn came, and I approached the table, feeling a little shaky and apprehensive. I placed the notebook in front of Die and noticed he smirked a little while reading my note and signing his name in big letters on the notebook page. I did not even think to say anything to him since I was so speechless; after he signed, he looked up at me and smiled a little, I smiled widely, and we both bowed our heads at each other (we were so Japanese to each other, haha!). Then, I had to be shuffled out of the line since the security guards were trying to move us along quickly. I was in shock and had to let the moment sink in a little more...did I really meet Die so quickly? I stood around in the lobby for a few minutes, watching Die finish signing autographs (and I was also waiting for my ride to arrive, too, so I was not being a total weirdo). Once the line was finished, the guards ran Die downstairs back to the backstage area…he left so quickly, but I guess moreso because security was afraid of rabid fans mobbing Die.

            Well, that was a great surprise ending to my long day. I really hope to see Dir en grey again in concert (and I have a feeling I will). I hope one day I can maybe help them out in some way, whether through being their translator or helping them market their music in the US. I know probably all fans wish for something like this to happen to them, but hey, it does not hurt to dream a little. At least I am not saying I hope to be Die's wife, although that would be nice, too.

Setlist and Notes:

1. Repetition of Hatred: Great opening song with Kyo screaming his signature scream. I really love opening guitar parts; Die and Kaoru really played this part well. At the end of the song, Kyo started dancing kind of like an Egyptian (when Die/Kaoru are playing the final guitar chords).
2. GRIEF: I do not think Kyo even really sang the chorus, since it sounded all like gibberish, but I did not care that much. He looked like he was enjoying himself, and I loved when the other guys sang the "Headless bodies" line.
3. Lie Buried with a Vengeance: When I first listened to the album back in February/March, I did not really like this song much. However, with the live performance last night, the song really grew on me, especially with the last bit of the song. For some reason, I really like Kyo's screaming in MARROW, which seemed to turn off a lot of fans. Maybe I am just a little odd.
4. Disabled Complexes: Kyo danced during the beginning of this song, too; at this point, he had taken off his shirt, so he was showing off his chest and singing out his heart. Listening to the guitar melodies live really gave me goosebumps.
5. ?-saku-: Right after Disabled Complexes, Dir jumped into saku with full force; Shinya was banging those drums like crazy! I have always been amazed at his drumming skills; he seems to have a much more advanced/professional drum set than any other band I have seen.
6. THE FINAL: One of my all-time favorite Dir songs; I was glad that Kyo sang the full chorus the second time through, since he usually drops out of the chorus the second time to let fans sing it. I think he sang the song all the way through because the crowd kind of bored (well, the Deftones fans seemed bored anyway). I always sing along with this song when they perform it in concert.
7. dead tree: Right before this song, Kyo performed one of his accapella solos, but I could not really hear much of it since people were screaming. He sang slightly different lyrics for the first part of "dead tree," but overall the song was performed very nicely.
8. Merciless Cult: Another one of my favorite songs; this was the second time for me to hear the song live in concert. I kind of wish Kaoru/Die would yell louder at the chorus parts, but they only manage to sing the part weirdly (hard to explain).
9. THE DEEPER VILENESS: Hoho, I was hoping for this song to be performed! When I first read the lyrics for this song, I started laughing out of pure amusement. Kyo's lyrics are deep and emotional, but the lyrics for this one somehow just made me laugh because they sounded so angry. All the guys screamed very well during this song.
10. The IIID Empire: Closing song; Toshiya and Die went a little nuts during this performance. I completely missed what the impetus was, but one moment I saw Toshiya on stage, the next, he was out in the crowd and it looked like the fans were about to drop him, so the security guards had to push him back up on the stage. I am not sure if Toshiya meant to jump out like that, but he seemed a little disoriented after the incident; he looked like he got his foot all caught up on some cords and some of his helpers had to loosen his foot from the cords. Die did something similar, except he was smart to stay on the little ledge that was left. I had a really good view of Die at this point, so I was quite happy. This was a great song to close with.

I was hoping for "Ryoujoku no ame" or "OBSCURE" to be performed again, but oh well. Overall, I still felt Dir's performance was just as strong as before, and this time I actually wrote down the setlist, which will help me remember the concert a lot better.

他又要来中国了……而这次又是带着新的精选碟《I Am Falling Now》，实在是充满了诱惑……记得高中时第一次听他的Snow White，整个人都仿佛掉进了洁白色的童话世界，那是一种难以言喻的感觉，很平静，却又明显的带着忧伤，尤其当我闭上眼睛时，真的听到Maxi在耳边低语，是那么亲昵，那么虚幻，那么真实。
04年的北京之旅想必是让这个帅气的德国小子很难忘吧，不然怎么这么快（对于他来说真的算很快了）又来中国呢
并且是北京上海深圳的巡演，好想去看>,<
Maxi的眼神通透敏感，天生的忧郁感怎么遮都遮不住……即便是笑也有淡淡的哀伤从中流露出来，看Maxi的照片是一种享受，一种让你无法不调整呼吸的享受，再怎么烦躁不安，和他对视几秒便OK了……总之，我是这样的……

给你一些期待Maxi的理由：
烟灰散尽
       首先是因为我是他的头号拥护，觉得光收集他的唱片还不够解瘾。其次是因为已经有不止一个我信赖的人不止依次地向我硕果，他在北京那次现场，是他们那年一整年看过的，最棒的演出。其三，一个英俊的男人十指漂亮地弹着键盘唱歌是我这个夏天能够联想到的，最优美且难过的画面——他离我真远，离那些异性恋同性恋双性恋小孩大人们都那么远。他的情歌很动听，可是，真不知道，是唱给谁听的。

啥啥啥
        Maximilian Hecker如今不仅是德国最有潜力的独立唱作人，也在世界范围内拥有大把的乐迷，其充满古典韵味的钢琴，温柔的假声唱腔，以及直入心底的感情基调，正在这个嘈杂的世界上抚慰那些需要慰藉的心灵。他的音乐重点不在于技术的运用，通常只是几个简单的和弦，但其阴郁伤感的气质以及通透的假声，却营造感性的氛围，以情动人，而不凭空炫技。现在，这样的纯真情感就将要近距离打动你了。真的很想去看一看，尽管这样的现场肯定不会像摇滚演出那样激情，但我有多久没有静下心来，好好地迷醉一把了呢？心情有时是急需沉淀的，而对于这个德国男人的情感穿透力我是毫不怀疑的。演唱会还有几天的时间了，还是整理整理心情，准备去迎接温柔的洗礼吧。

MAR
        五月份在网上得知Maximilian Hecker要来中国巡演的消息，心跳当即漏了半拍，随后决心一定要奔赴三场演出的其中一场。通过口袋音乐的预售，我拿到了7月22日在上海绝对浩室的演出门票。轻轻抚摩门票上的Maximilian，我的心也不禁微微震颤，觉得自己离这位忧伤诗人的心又近了一步。是的，Maximilian是忧伤的，一种暴露在阳光下又让人欲哭无泪的忧伤一种深沉情感积淀出的忧伤，一种不用刻意表现便在他柔和声线中，在沉重敏感的字里行间缠绕的忧伤。他并没有声嘶力竭地去诉求什么，只是沉默着描绘一幅又一幅明媚而感伤，悲情却乐观的画面。他兀自沉郁，却不知观者也为之迷醉。有很多不开心的日子，是Maximilian抚慰着我度过；也有很多个辗转反侧的夜晚，是Maximilian让我双眼湿润着睡去。我对Maximilian是感激的，而且我想和我怀着同样心情的还有许多人。他保护了我们脆弱的梦，继而把希冀的光芒挥洒在我们身上，让我们在这个冰冷世界中行走时，还能感到些许暖意。而也正因为某中相似的期待，Maximilian来了。
      还记得他2004年在北京演出的时候，只是一直低着头弹奏着面前的键，每当人群靠近时，他还会低声说：“不要靠得太近，我会很紧张，所以我只好闭上眼睛唱了。”就是这么一个羞涩却感情细腻丰富的大孩子，我想象着他在台上双眼轻闭嘴唇微启，弹着钢琴唱歌时略现琉璃的身影，想象泪水携着微微发酸的疼痛漫漫涌起，想象被那美丽的黑洞所吸引却又安详的心情，我知道那一刻我们的怯懦也终将被救赎。

张骞
       听到Maximilian的第一首作品是《Anaesthesia》，如此安逸，像悬挂在夏日里的窗帘。而真正爱上他则是因为那首《Polyester》，我也许无法形容出MV里那个面容惨白的清瘦的Maximilian的神韵，却能在仿佛中依稀可以触及他深陷的双眸。每一次停止的奔跑，戛然而止的放纵，都会令人向往湿气一般诡异的迷茫。从《Infinite Love Songs》到《’ll Be A Virgin，I’ll Be A Mountain》，他都在景致中成长，除了优美电压的旋律之外，音乐里有很多心情式的随意性。也就是这样，他才可以陪你开心，陪你忧伤，而掌控这一切的因素，又是水样澄明。他或许只是一个圣洁守护者罢了，并不需要偾事嫉俗，只要蜿蜒的歌唱。祝愿到现场看的每一位歌迷都能看到一个梦想中的Maximilian :)

4.孤独に死す、故に孤独。 
 比较流行!比较电子!比较抒情!比较陶醉!比较NB! 
 BASS延续了蛇最近的怒涛情绪= =令人以外的是那么温柔的京唱到最后居然也能吼出来.要说他的能力真是没人能及了.我想欧美的大牌也没几个能做到这个地步的了.他就是爱现自己的小嗓子~~吉他的旋律很诡异,很跳跃.有中虚幻又难 以捉摸的感觉.电子合成的人声相当点睛!从six Ugly时代我就对此十分着迷了.相信MEMBER们也发现了这个 好东东.呵呵呵呵~~~~结尾部分类似哭泣的声音太无敌了!还有就是最后的吉他效果.不得不赞叹的日本的设备!当然,设备是人用出来的.这就说明他们真的成熟了.如果把这首歌打个比喻,那就是一个充满荆棘的螺旋状无底深渊.京的声音就是引诱人们进入这深渊 的诱饵.让人无法自拔的妖媚的声音= =
5.爱しさは腐败につき 
 很古老的旋律响起,吉他充满了沧桑的以为.知道BASS的进入,让曲子开始进入主题,沉重的爱的黑洞中.京的声音也厚重了很多,每一句都渗透着深切的感情.所有的旋律都让人听到心碎.这首伤心的作品在这个时候出现可以说时机把握的相当准确.流 行的味道比上一首更多.混响似乎可以再增加一些.不过这么干净利落的作品实在少见.我个人觉得,他们的大部分作品都很'脏'.这 个'脏'并不是说他们的声音处理的不够完善,而是故意处理出来的音色.或者说是他们运用效果器方面的习惯.再加惯用的节奏型,整 体出来的效果.而这首却完全不同了.最后结束的感觉有点像.这种可以互通的时间感和空间感让一直喜欢他们歌的饭听了一定会十分怀念吧.还有一个比较强烈的感觉，就是蛇君确实用功多了.不像上张ALBUM中的和弦都只是一直用一种手法.这次可以听到清晰的变 化了.值得表扬~~(这跟他的愤怒有直接关系么?) 
6.Jesus Christ R'n R 
电子.迷幻.放克.硬说. 
 当他们用这首曲子将以上的元素一点一滴的陈列在我面前时,我几乎激动的无话可说了!这首的歌词在京的诗集中就有出现 .当时看到这首诗的插图时就已经深深被打动了.可见他想表达的是一种极端的讽刺与怜悯.单说音乐,我能力有限,实在无法定义.. ..可以说,这首作品让我全部的注意力都集中到了京一个人身上了.当我试图去聆听其他配器时,他的声音便会再把我拉回他身边.那 邪美的诉说,那纤细的和声,将他的邪恶发挥到了及至,也将他对这个世界的特有的爱展现无遗!他的爱已全部寄托在对世界的斥诉之中 .中间那段日本男人才会发出的强悍的吼声,就是他独断专横的音乐最好的体现....最后,让我用仅存的一点理智来体会配器,效果 器运用相当纯熟的是D还是K?我现在还无法分辨= =电子效果和鼓机做出来的效果也是一如既往的出色.实在舍不得往下听