MORRIE ONE-MAN SHOW “SOLITUDE” Season 4 Episode 26 at YOKOHAMA O-SITE

MORRIE held his fourth one-man tour from April 1st through May 13th. On April 29th, his musical journey returned to YOKOHAMA O-SITE, the intimate all-seated venue he has always chosen since the first season of SOLITUDE.

MORRIE appeared on the stage with a white electric guitar. Clad in black, he started to sing the first song Last Day in his rich voice and beautiful falsetto. The singer invited fans deep into rapture with the resonating sound of his guitar. Next, MORRIE played Kampeki na sora, a song containing a mix of adoration and hidden irony.

“The world is full of wonders: that the universe exists, and that one’s being exists. I will continue to speak of it until you awake to that truth, not by understanding, but by intuition,” MORRIE casually spoke to the fans during the performance of Unchained. “Where does a deceased person go after death?” He asked while strumming his guitar. Then, he returned to singing again as if he was projecting his voice to a realm beyond finitude. His final guitar stroke of B flat major symbolized liberation.

MORRIE switched his guitar effector after that song, and he received a new electric guitar from a staff member. “Welcome to Episode 26. The previous episode made me feel as if I was migrating through a purgatory. Are you cold? We can turn off the air conditioning or you can dance to warm yourself up,” he said, making the fans laugh. “One day, a person said to me that he could feel a wind blowing when he listened to my music. He understood it well, and I intend for my music to be that way,” MORRIE commented about his musical style. Later, he played Goodnight Reverie. The sensation of soft, yet cold wind blowing in the dark night could be felt through the sound of his gentle voice.

After that song, suddenly, he changed the topic to classical music. He spoke about Franz Schubert and one of his masterpieces, Ave Maria. “I do not know all the lyrics,” he said, but he started to play an introduction of Ave Maria on his guitar. The venue was filled with a sense of amazement as MORRIE hummed the song’s melody. “I got to come to my senses,” MORRIE said after the song, setting his foot on the effector switch on the floor. Then, Killing Me Beautiful started to play. His clear high note drew up his mindscape of a dry desert, and it also indicated the presence of his muse.

“SOLITUDE started two years ago. I’ve come far since the first time. SOLITUDE is kind of like a life’s work to me,” MORRIE said. He also added that he cut his guitar strings during the show in Kobe. “I rarely cut my guitar strings,” he said.

In a later part of the show, MORRIE played covers. First, he covered David Bowie’s Space Oddity. The fourth season of SOLITUDE also brought something new: MORRIE covering a Japanese artist. He selected Inoue Yousui’s Aozora, Hitorikiri, which was released in 1975. “I used to listen to this song on the radio, and I liked it,” he recalled. Lastly, he covered Calling You, which is a famous theme song of the movie “Bagdad Café.” MORRIE gently yet passionately sang of the hot, dry wind that brings on anticipation of a sweet release in the future.

During the show, he spoke about different topics, such as the Biwa (Japanese lute), The Tale of Heike, and also about a spiritual experience when he heard the sound of wind bell that no one else could hear. He said the sound of the wind bell eventually ceased. “I was not scared,” he added. At the end of the show, he played his new song Hikaru Kouya. With the beautiful sounds of a 12-string guitar, his voice dramatically described a solitary journey of a man running through a field filled with Japanese pampas grass by his horse, and his inevitable end under the crescent moon.

During the encore, MORRIE played DEAD END’s Luna Madness. He once again spoke to fans in the middle of the song, telling them he would start creating a new album. Uncharacteristically, he cut his guitar string again, but the small accident made fans feel closer to him. “Thank you for coming today,” MORRIE bade the crowd farewell.

Set List

01. Last Day
02. Go Under
03. Kampeki na sora
04. Unchained
05. Panic no Me
06. Goodnight Reverie
07. Killing Me Beautiful
08. Kage
09. Disquieting Muse
10. Space Oddity
11. Sinen
12. Aozora,Hitorikiri
13. Calling You
14. Sen no Yamiyo ni
15. Hikaru Kouya

Encore

16. Luna Madness