The pillows and noodles returned to Seattle, and entertained a very enthusiastic crowd.
On September 9th, the pillows and noodles returned to Seattle on their UTATANE TOUR 2011 and played in front of an excited crowd at El Corazon, Seattle. Both groups attracted plenty of local fans, most Washington State-based fans and a few from out of state.
After much excitement, the show opened with hybrid two-member group, All Ages with one member from San Francisco, Derrik Soares and the second member Tom Yamshita from Nagoya, Japan. Tom sported a high mohawk and wore the most amusing expression on his face with a mixture of excitement and exasperation. Almost immediately after the first song started, the crowd was drawn to the members on stage. All Ages sounded like a fresher, revamped blink182 and Good Charlotte combined with an endless supply of energy and sweat.
Yokatta was fairly energetic: Derrik asked the crowd to shout “yokatta” at certain moments of the song and the crowd reacted by shouting “yokatta.” Afterwards, he jokingly said that the Japanese word had a different meaning in English — jokingly of course — and made similar jokes throughout the night.
The next song Words of Love was said to have been written in remembrance of the Touhoku disaster earlier in March and the lyrics conveyed a sense of acknowledgement of the deep bond between the US and Japan while paying respects to the victims. This theme of the bond between the US and Japan wafted into the meaning behind the tour and was one of the reasons for playing in the US.
All-girls group noodles rocked the stage first-hand, opening with classic hits, Cover me Shakespeare and I wanna be your special. The drummer, Ayumi, put her whole body into drumming and it was a breathtaking moment to watch.
Subtle harmonies paired with interesting guitar riffs painted most of straw. Afterwards, vocalist Yoko introduced the band, saying “Welcome to the Nap Tour. We came here three years ago. Long time no see,” in broken English and laughed. Then the members prepared for the start of the next song, Bond. At the height of the chorus, the entire audience moved with the rhythm of the song and sang along.
Towards the end of the noodles’ set, the songs grew faster and rockier with newer tracks, We Are noodles From Sentimental and LOVE MY LIFE, among others. The crowd simply adored noodles and showed their appreciation by moving around and dancing. Then in the following song She, her, the tempo dropped and sounded like a rock anthem. The audience swayed and let their bodies cool down after dancing nonstop throughout most of the earlier songs. noodles ended their set with Ingrid Said.
Set List:
01. Cover me Shakespeare
02. I wanna be your special
03. straw
04. Bond
05. Graffiti
06. 45
07. Velvet Underground
08. We Are noodles From Sentimental
09. Grease
10. LOVE MY LIFE
11. She, her
12. Ingrid Said
Headlining act the pillows opened their set with long-running crowd favourites, Dance with God and I think I can. This was the most anticipated set of the night and many members of the audience were excited to hear classic hits heard in and made popular by the TV anime, "FLCL." Although the pillows opened with Dance with God, the best reaction came from the following track, I Think I can. Many were ecstatic as soon as the opening chords were played and in response, audience members chanted the repeating line “I think I can” throughout the laid back rock song as loud as possible. The floor shook and wobbled as if it were about to break from the movement.
With at least half the crowd moshing, most of the audience had grown sweaty within the first song; it didn’t matter. the pillows impressed fans with newer material, with Comic Sonic and Funny Bunny and still received the same reaction of awe and utter excitement.
After a short chat with the audience about enjoying their time in Seattle so far, and after Yamanaka quickly gulped down some water, it was time. Whenever there is a the pillows live in the US, fans usually expect to see and hear Little Busters. And they got just that! As soon as the opening chords were heard, many started jumping for joy and moshing at hearing one of their favourite tracks. The floor shook violently from all the movement inside the venue and the heat from the large number of bodies rose. Both tension and uncontrollable joy washed over the crowd: Little Busters was a song for the fans and the crowd reacted as such. It was an incredible sight to see.
Hybrid Rainbow and Advice received similar, high-tension reactions from the crowd, with almost the entire standing crowd jumping in excitement to the rhythm of the songs. Both were fast-paced and breathtaking to see live while surrounded by a swarm of bouncing bodies.
Only a few moments had passed after the closing chords of Advice: the pillows members had left the stage and the crowd began cheering for an encore performance. Little time passed, and the three members plus a support member returned on stage and rocked out with the final two songs, Ride on a shooting star--the ending to "FLCL," a definite classic -- and LAST DINOSAUR
Even though a fair amount of the pillows fans were there to hear songs heard in "FLCL," the live attracted plenty of attention from local fans and had a good turnout. Young, old, diehard and fresh fans, all had come to support the pillows in Seattle.
Set List:
01. Dance with God
02. I think I can
03. Doggie Howl
MC
04. Cannibal
05. Blues Drive Monster
06. Rookie Jet
MC
07. Comic Sonic
08. Funny Bunny
09. Swanky Street
MC
10. ONE LIFE
11. LITTLE BUSTERS
12. Hybrid Rainbow
13. Advice
Encore
01. Ride on shooting star
02. LAST DINOSAUR
