Thoughts on a-nation '09

[kotora]

Originally Posted by spanishfan

I want to be that girl ok but i can't believe she has so many space to move, there are two girls specialy that seems to be just standing watching the show... japanese people are boring

I really enjoy this show, so much energy from Ayu, I wanna see it again

If you cry like that and get on TV, please let everyone know. We would make gifs for you.

[Chibi_Venus]

Gosh, she's like that girl who cried over Sanjaya at American Idol.

[waterballoon]

All right, here we go.

First off... I finally understood why Ayu was given all her songs on the broadcast while the rest were cut to 2. IMO, Ayu = climax of a-nation, like seriously.

Rule:
The opening was made of win... ninjas scurrying around and the traditional Japanese music in the back... just wow. And it opened with a bang. Pretty epic performance, and Ayu's ad-libbing at the end was so awesome too! Maro & Shu-ya looked really hot.

A Song For xx:
Amazingly, for a performance that was exactly the same as her previous lives such as AT 08 and a-nation '08, I really enjoyed this. Her vocals were amazing and I really really really liked the way she's singing this song now.

BLUE BIRD:
I am so jealous of her stomach/waist in that blue dress.

I think it's an okay performance... but it's really nostalgic. It's BLUE BIRD!

Sunset ~LOVE is ALL~:
Ha, again, I think this is an okay performance... she sounded a little weird and I LOL-ed at her facial expressions after the first chorus. XD

TO BE:
This takes the cake for the best performance... I love her voice here omg! And when Shu-ya came in, my heart stopped for a second cos his arms so smexy and his tanned bod...

But I really like this performance... it feels like a long time since Ayu has sung this well imo.

Boys & Girls:
Omfg, when the cart first came out, I thought, "Wedding Cake!!!"... it's so huge and really epic! And it turned out to be a ship of some sort lol.

The energy level was high and once again, I liked the new style she's singing B&G. Less shouting; more singing. I like.

Sunrise ~LOVE is ALL~:
I screamed when she flashed the Tohoshinki towel! And then, at that moment, seeing all the Ayu and Tohoshinki towels swung around... there's something really moving about that.

The energy level got higher and it's like... wow really, and when she got off the ship and started running about... omg!!!

And I think it's from Sunrise that my body started to shiver... and I feel like crying.

July 1st:
This was all right too; I just really missed this song as well. XD

P.S: Ayu & Shu-ya did the same movements.

I think this is really her best a-nation performance yet... really good and she outdid herself imo. TO BE was especially well sung!

I also realized that I really missed Ayu lol. It's been ages since I've listened to her songs, or watched her live, or felt her tugging at my heartstrings. Way to go~

[TeddyGrahams]

OMG awesome A nation! She literally rocked the show!

Highlights~ Definitely To Be and Rule and SUNRISE!
To Be was the best vocally, I cried!
Rule was just pure awesome with ninjas and what not.
Sunrise was just FULL of ENERGY!

Haha I love ayu.

[nanakopy87]

i never knew that sunrise LIVE will be that good.its much more better than the cd and also the performance she did in the tv shows

[PEARL]

Ayu looks like Peco.
Ayu's performances looks like she owned the concert.
This A-nation looks like Ayu-nation which i like.
Rule was power.
Sunrise was fun.
Ayu owned Japan.

[y_nathz]

^ but Shu-ya ruined TO BE
*punch me Shu-fans XD*

[jbrat2219]

Ayu owned the show! Definitely one of her best performances. I'm going to give some of the other artists the benefit of the doubt because many of them only got one or two songs broadcasted. But if they were truly as great as Ayu was this year, they would have gotten more air-time!


a-nation = ayu-nation xD;

[y_nathz]

^ lol yeah people talking bout this too
ayu-nation with guests from avex trax XD~

[Not~Yet]

Very nice and stedy show Her vocals were at least quite pleasant even during her bad vocal moments, which I don't think there were many. I have to say that while watching this live I really realized that Ayu really has that "professional singer diva" feel to her. I don't mean that diva part in a negative way, but in a way that is hard to explain.. xD I guess everyone can see it just by watching. Like, she is very calm and elegant and has that certain aura to her. It's easy to see she's been in the same situation thousands of times before. Oh and I know this is nothing new to her but I wan't to say: I just LOVE it when she does those rocker moves/performs in a "rocker" way... xD Like when she does that slight headbanging once a while.

Rule: Like I've said before, I love this outfit. Though I think the boots should've been darker red but well that doesn't really matter.. I was really expecting amazing vocals because of all the comments I read, but she sounded just good. Not great, definitely not bad but, well, good. The adlibbing in the end was mindblowing though. I loved the beginning with the ninjas. I agree with whoever said the lightshow should've been bigger and crazier xD
A Song For XX: I absolutely loved her vocals here. Even though last year's performance was stunning with the rain and all, I have to say I think I prefer this one because she reduced the amount of dramatic moves and expressions, so it was a little bit more genuine imo.
BLUE BIRD: I loved it. It was a little bit odd in the beginning with the dancers seeming to do just some random dance moves around, but when the choruses kicked in it was just great. The performance reawakened my love for this song.
Sunset ~LiA~: I didn't like this as a studio record and was pretty bored throughout the live version too.
TO BE: Yet another performance that I loved... She did seem to exaggerate a bit during choruses but it was a very beautiful and touching performance. ...Until Shuya popped out of nowhere to the background to jump around like a very drunken rabbit. Did I say Ayu's figure looks stunning in this dress yet?
Boys & Girls: I love the platform thingy. Otherwise a very basic, good performance of B&G that got the audience pumped up.
Sunrise ~LiA~: I love this song...! And the tohoshinki towel part was so hilarious and fun even though I'm not their fan. Seemed to really make the audience more connected with her Such a feel-good performance.
July 1st: This was also very basic-Ayu and a really nice performance. I liked it.

I'd say this concert made my love for her a tad bigger. xD

[ihulk2]

Originally Posted by DEEP RIVER

Wow...I just realized...that To Be totally stole the show from ASFXX vocally....what happened? @_@ How did Ayu suddenly become so great vocally? Definitely my favorite performance of the night.....cept....OMG get out of the camera stupid flailing old man x_x

Its good to see Ayu close to her best again. She's been like looking tired, her concerts late last year weren't even close to what she's capable of delivering, what with her injury and all.

I've been watching her eyes and her left hand express her emotions throughout this performance. Her eyes are focused and her "eye of the tiger" look is back. Her left hand speaks volumes instead of being just limp or going through the motions.

I've not seen that depth of feeling since the live performances of Mirrocle World last year.

Catch her expression before she launches into the chorus of To Be. Her eyes narrowing and lightly bouncing on her heels and you'd know she's about to kick ass, to nail every note even if it kills her.

I can't wait to see what Ayu's lined up next..... minus that "flailing old man".

[njanjayrp]

Originally Posted by ihulk2

Its good to see Ayu close to her best again. She's been like looking tired, her concerts late last year weren't even close to what she's capable of delivering, what with her injury and all.

I've been watching her eyes and her left hand express her emotions throughout this performance. Her eyes are focused and her "eye of the tiger" look is back. Her left hand speaks volumes instead of being just limp or going through the motions.

I've not seen that depth of feeling since the live performances of Mirrocle World last year.

Catch her expression before she launches into the chorus of To Be. Her eyes narrowing and lightly bouncing on her heels and you'd know she's about to kick ass, to nail every note even if it kills her.

I can't wait to see what Ayu's lined up next..... minus that "flailing old man".

It's funny, but I've noticed that as well. The way her eyes and face were reminded me of her LOVEppears days a lot, I am not sure if it's the bangs, but she seemed different than during the past few years.

[Tony G]

ASFXX's vocals blew me away. So perfect, one of my favourite vocal performances of that song.

I also really enjoyed TO BE and Sunrise. Sunset and Blue Bird were kinda boring.

Rule wasn't bad - but I think she does it better on the tour.

Overall, I think one of her best a-nation performances. On par with 05.

[se7entheaven]

BEST A-NATION !!! -period-

she really proves she's the queen! oh my god

Rule : AWESOME. I LOVE how she opened the show.

ASFXX : GREAT...I dunno how to compare with last year's as there's no rain this year ^^

BLUE BIRD: Cute and sweet

Sunset : Kinda boring, her vocal in the CD is way better...but still kinda emotional

TO BE : Now I know why people like this, it's one of the hi-lite of the show. she's perfect. I wonder why she sounds better in TO BE but not Sunset. AND SHE SHOULD JUST SING ALONE!!! Without shu-ya there...gosh...

B&G, Sunrise, July 1st: These are just...WOW WOW WOW. sooo super energetic!!!

[Chibi_Venus]

That's it, I must look up this performance of "TO BE" that everyone's raving about.

EDIT: After watching it on YouTube, I finally feel in the loop and ready to give my opion. XD

Rule: Great opener for a-nation! I really loved her body language after she finished the a cappella. It gave an air of, "Yeah, I own." lol I was mesmorized by the dancing performed by the dancers during the last few choruses, and I got chills at the end.

A Song for XX: Fantastic performance, really. But I agree with everyone else on the fact that nothing will beat last year's performance. But don't get me wrong! It was still great! (And, God, that verse before the second chorus never fails to blow me away.) Actually what I really liked was the extended camera time she got. I enjoy seeing her actually sing through a whole chorus without seeing a shot of someone else or the audience.

BLUE BIRD: O_O That choreography is BEAUTIFUL! Seriously, this is really showing me how seriously she takes a-nation. It's not just some little summer concert she partakes in. I love the effort she puts in! And, ooh, everyone's hands at the end was beautiful!

Sunset: The only I don't care for is her "breathy" sound. She used it in the studio version and now I hear it in every TV performance. =\ I don't like it... Other than that, nice performance.

TO BE: Her wave. God, she looks cute already. ^^ *watching the first verse* God, I miss this song... *continues watching* Wow. The verse before the chorus? The first part. GREAT. *continues* Oh, my God. I'm going to cry. This is... ugh, I don't want to use the word beautiful. It's an understatement. *continues* O_O I had to stop and rewind when she did that "waratte ta yo-o-o-o..." I dropped everything I was doing and went, "Oh, my God!!" WOW. I'm so glad I watched this.

The last three songs were fun to watch. I like the platform. ^^

[Larien]

I've only just watched Rule and ASFXX performances, but wow. Ayu, I'm so sorry my faith in you ever diminished. You are a goddess, and you're my hero. I think the ASFXX performance did it. It was so powerful - very much like the one from last year, I believe (or was it from countdown live?). AYU!!


I'm also not as disappointed in the costumes as I thought I would be. They looked pretty crummy from the Deji Deji Diary pictures, but they actually work quite well on stage. I'm still adjusting to the fishtail dresses - I do hope there will be some hoop/princess-skirted ones again, someday! - and a style that emphasizes Ayu's chest.

Originally Posted by Chibi_Venus

O_O I had to stop and rewind when she did that "waratte ta yo-o-o-o..." I dropped everything I was doing and went, "Oh, my God!!" WOW. I'm so glad I watched this.

I had almost the same reaction! That was so unexpected, but wow!

[maikaru]

I remember when everyone said To Be would be very boring... haha.
Interesting!

[chloeM]

i only watched the Rule... very nice... i dont like the air that's all~

[AyuGAME]

just watched the entire show
ayu definitely own this show...she is just so cool...she is diva but she still looks humble...
Rule performance definitely highlight of the show...its really COOL!!!
To be performance is really nice too...i think people like her vocal, because she didn't use too much vibration when sing this...and i think her singing way is kinda different too than she used to...
ITS JUST SO COOL!!!

[Rainbow141]

I've yet to sit down and just watch it, but I've taken a look at the tracklist. Kinda disappointed she didn't sing Sparkle, but oh well.

I'll try to watch this later.