09-09-09

Just came back from seeing GLAY live tonight, and they were absolutely amazing! I’d even say they were better than last year, but maybe that was because I was closer to the stage this time, and they played more of their older songs that I’m familiar with rather than all the new ones they played off of their VERB album. The concert was held at The Fillmore, just like last year, and Miwa and I got there just an hour before the show. They had opened the doors earlier than they had last year, so although I’d been expecting to take my place at the back of a six-block-long line, we were able to get in right away. We even had time to go buy some merchandise (they were selling GLAY 2009 Tour t-shirts) before claiming our spot, standing pretty close to the stage (only about 15 feet away!).

GLAY rocked The Fillmore as hard as they rock Tokyo Dome, even though the venue was 100 times smaller. They went through several of their famous numbers, including Yuuwaku, GLOBAL COMMUNICATION, VERB, More Than Love, Survival, Starless Night, among others… and of course my favorite, HOWEVER. Miwa and I were jumping, screaming and fist-pumping the whole way through, along with our friend Jason, whom we ran into, and his friend and two random older Japanese ladies who came all the way from Japan to see GLAY perform up close. At one point, TERU saw us and smiled and pointed at us, which was the highlight of the entire concert for all of us… haha* We were exhausted and sore afterwards, but it was so much fun! Their encore song was I’m In Love, which set a great tone for the end of the concert. At the end of the concert, TERU promised again that they’d be back — he made the same promise last year and lo and behold, they kept their word so we’re hoping they’ll be back in San Francisco again soon! In the meantime, I wish them the best on the rest of their short but much-anticipated tour in the U.S., which will be two performances at the House of Blues down in Los Angeles this Friday and Saturday. I love that GLAY performs so well live and always puts forth their best for their adoring fans, whether the audience is as massive as in Japan or as humble as the crowd that still managed to pack the Fillmore tonight.

GLAY released a best album earlier this summer, entitled The Great Vacation ~ Super Best Of GLAY, and spread out over two volumes (3 discs each). It includes most of their big hits over the past 15 years that they made their major debut. You can get a preview of it here.