pinkspider8

   After waiting for almost what seemed to be an eternity, THe PiNK SpIdER finally got her Glay Makuhari Expo '99 SURVIVAL videotape. The VCR worked overtime as the maniacal PiNK SpIdER gorged herself on the visual feast. After viewing the videotape for the zillionth time, THe PiNK SpIdER's mind started to wonder and focused instead on the antics of Glay during their superb 'live' performance.

   Here are some of the observations of THe PiNK SpIdER when she watched the Makuhari Expo '99 SURVIVAL - how many of the classic moments have you identified?

1. The opening scenes consisted od some of Glay's rehearsal for hte big day itself and THe PiNK SpIdER was breathing real hard to see Takuro not wearing any shirt - he was even suntanning at one point on the stage! AND he has quite a great body. Also, just before the gang went up to the stage, Teru looked to the camera and blew a kiss and even winked! THe PiNK SpIdER is convinced that this marks the start of one of the best Glay concerts that she is about to watch.

2. Happy Swing : Teru blew a kiss to the camera. THe PiNK SpIdER was sent into ecstasy with this spontaneous gesture. It marked the start of a great 'live'.

3. Kuchibiru : Teru shook his bon-bon! This salsa-inspired antic sent the fans wild, including THe PiNK SpIdER. The already searing temperature notched up a few degrees higher there and then. Teru hugged Hisashi from behind when he sang "Cool & Tough! She's at liberty!" - an indication of whom he is singing perhaps?

4. Glorious : Hisashi, in a show of exuberant mood, smiles and jumps!

5. Shutter Speeds No Teema : The mandatory Jiro speech before the start of this song - each time THe PiNK SpIdER listens to it, she gets a different feeling from it. Hisashi joined Teru in singing "Who gets gets" from the same microphone while Takuro and Jiro shared another microphone to sing at the same time. An interesting pairing up! At the end of the funky song, Hisashi struck a really cool pose (think of the pose of javelin-throwers just before they throw the javelin - only much cooler!) THe PiNK SpIdER here starts to hyperventilate.

6. More Than Love : At the point when Teru sang "8 beat de Jump..." he jumped and so did the fans! THe PiNK SpIdER jumped too - the 'live' atmosphere was just too infectious. Then it was Jiro's turn to shake his bon-bon!!! What's with this hot Latin antic?? Nevertheless, THe PiNK SpIdER loves it all the same - especially from Jiro. Hisashi really gets into the mood here - he kissed the fretboard of his guitar in such a sensuous manner - what an ice-cool sex symbol!

7. Moving to the main stage in a mini trolley bus, Glay sprayed the fans with water on this hot summerday and Teru seemed to be teasing the fans with his microphone (though it can't be heard). Supersoakers were employed for this and Glay looked like little boys being let loose in a playground! They were simply adorable. Note however, this scene is only evident at the very end of the tape where the camera zooned into what they were actually doing.

8. Just before SURVIVAL started, Jiro was smiling happily and talking to Teru, both laughing away merrily - Teru seemed to be saying "Ichiban tanoshii" to Jiro. Then, Hisashi, Jiro and Takuro took turns to scream into the microphone - they can give Teru a run for his money for being the best screamer here.
Another classic Glay brotherhood scene was played out halfway into the song - Jiro walked to Hisashi and both faced each other to play their guitars while Teru faced Takuro to sing, with Takuro mouthing the lyrics to him as well.

9. At the interval during Ikiteku Tsuyosa, Hisashi was drinking and pointed to the camera at the same time. Such cheekiness!

10. summer FM : THe PiNK SpIdER loved the beginning where Hisashi played the acoustic guitar propped on a stand - he was 101% concentration and coolness personified. The funniest part came at the end of the song - Teru was supposed to sing "Teru me, sweet FM" but instead, he sang "Teru Me, Bayfm", complete with a mischievous grin! This elicited lotsa laughs from the fans and made THe PiNK SpIdER giggle in glee too. Bayfm must be so pleased.

11. Freeze My Love : A Hisashi and Takuro solo where they faced each other in absolure concentration - pure ecstasy for the guitar enthusiast!

12. Lady Close : There were several classic moments scattered throughout this song - First, take note of the big screen which showed Glay performing during their indie days - this is a classic moment in itself. Note this part on the screen where Teru sings "toge no aru mede" - the exact same gesture (Teru pointing to his eyes) was duplicated by Teru during the 'live'. THe PiNK SpIdER was amazed - Teru didn't change much, did he? =D
Jiro sang the part "Sweet Junk" and he even pointed to the camera and said "Woh!", all the time grinning away. Jiro is reallly in a good mood. Also, another highlight was when Teru and Takuro ran towards each other from opposite ends of the stage and slapped a high-five to each other! That was so touching.

13. Two Bell Silence : Here, Jiro did his semi-robotic walk towards an amused Hisashi while playing the bass. He really is having a whale of a time! THE classic moment for all Hisashi and Jiro fans out there - Jiro walked towards Hisashi and leaned on him and Hisashi did the same by leaning on him too and both were grinning so widely. This show of brotherly affection debunks all rumours that they can't get along well. A warm tingling sensation shot up through THe PiNK SpIdER's heart..... Awwww.......

14. Misery : Jiro gestured to Takuro to follow him to the other end of the stage at which they faced each other to play - Excellent! At one point, Jiro purposely shook his head violently to the camera and laughed! What a joker!

15. Yuuwaku : The Hisashi and Jiro duo strikes again in a dual-guitar "jamming" session - both of them look really adorable when they do that. In an unusual show of cheekiness, Takuro pointed one end of his guitar to the camera while playing and smiled - a thousand hearts must have melted then.

16. Come On!! : By the time Glay performed this song, they were extremely hyped up. Jiro banged his head against Teru in a jest and Teru decided to join in the act and both bobbed their heads in unison. Teru shared the microphone with Jiro for him to sing "Come On!!" as he usually does. For a brief second, the scene flashed to Hisashi and THe PiNK SpIdER wasn't sure if she saw him perched on a railing - her heart skipped a beat for fear of Hisashi falling off again.

17. ACID HEAD : Teru shakes his bon-bon again but since it's only a half-body shot, THe PiNK SpIdER's mind shoots into overdrive. Teru let Hisashi sing "ACID HEAD ACID HEAD" this time and Hisashi has a really sharp cute voice. Teru himself was bursting with excess energy and he did a little dance of his own - the Teru jig... And yeah, that was first rate screaming by the maestro himself at the end of the song!

18. I'm In Love : A touching Jiro/Hisashi/Teru speech. Why didn't Takuro speak as well?

19. Kanojo No "Modern..." : Takuro was at the other end of the stage when Teru sang "kagirinaku uso ni chikasuite wa..." and he ran at full speed towards the standing microphone just in time to make it and scream "BANG! Sex.Drive.Rock & Roll!". THe PiNK SpIdER swears that that sprint was a new Olympic record! By the way, this reminds THe PiNK SpIdER of a similar attempt by Teru in the Big Egg concert (Shutter Speeds No Teema) - the only difference? Takuro made it in time here!

20. Biri Biri Crushmen : Teru stole the thunder here by lifting up his shirt and flashing his tummy! HOT!!!

21. Burst/Rain/Burst : Takuro was squatting and looked as if deep in thought (similar to Hisashi in Big Egg) and Hisashi strikes yet another ice-cool pose during the interval just before Burst gave way to Rain. And Teru ran gleefully (there is no other way to describe this stitching-inducing run) to the microphone before playing the acoustic for Rain (slow version) and looked really like a little boy! Teru also teased the fans with "Shokku (shock)?? Kakkoii desu yo? Yappari, Glay de PUNK Ja." when the punk version of Rain suddenly stopped. THe PiNK SpIdER struggles for breath at this point.
For Hisashi fans : Hisashi resumed the punk version of Rain by walking to the front steps of the stage and did his solo in godlike fashion!
When Burst resumed, Hisashi was high and screamed. Teru lent his microphone to him to scream again for the benefit of Hisashi fans and boy! Hisashi sure can scream! Jiro here did a little Jiro-jig of his own too and the 'live' ended off with fireworks emblazoning the sky.

    Just in case you are one impatient fan who stops the videotape when the credits roll, THe PiNK SpIdER advises you to watch on because there are more classic moments behind :

- Takuro drenched himself with water and threw the resulting empty bottle to the fans.

- Glay together with Sakuma and Toshi lined the stage and jumped in unison as they usually do. They also thanked the fans.

- More scenes of the expensive fireworks!

   However, there are a few flaws nonetheless. The overall sound quality was not that good given that it weighed a whopping 30 tons because the system kept making screechy noises - Teru was drowned out whenever this happened. Also, THe PiNK SpIdER felt that the video could have shown more of Glay than the fans and the scenic view of Makuhari.

   All in all though, this is a fantastic concert by Glay and certainly on of the most memorable ones. THe PiNK SpIdER felt that Glay really got into the act and put in their best for the fans. This is the happiest performing Jiro that THe PiNK SpIdER has ever seen for he was practically either smiling or grinning from ear to ear evey moment of the concert. Hisashi too smiled very often and gave the viewing fan lotsa cool poses to drool over. Glay showed what they are capable of and THe PiNK SpIdER was thrilled to bits.

   Some of THe PiNK SpIdER's favourite songs here in this concert either for the standard of performance or for the number of classic moments include :

- Kuchibiru
- SURVIVAL
- Freeze My Love
- Lady Close
- Two Bell Silence
- Come On!!
- ACID HEAD
- Kanojo No "Modern..."
- Biri Biri Crushmen
- Burst

Some trivia to note :

Event space : 18.5 ha
PA System : 30 tons
Implements : 4650 tons
Lighting : 15,000 spots
Fireworks : 1,500 shots
Staff : 7,500
Tour Bus : 5,000
Securities : 3,000
Policemen : 320
Nurses : 104
Mass Media : TV - 35
                     Newspaper - 15
                     Magazines - 50
Highest temperature reached : 33.6 degrees