NANA MIZUKI LIVE UNION 2012, Session 14 at Chiba!

Live Union @ Chiba hajimarimasu~!

So, I took very long in writing my report yet again..... gomennasai. orz I have been busy beyond belief. First with starting my life in Japan, and then with school (no mercy for me ever since the first day xD). Finally had a quiet night at my apartment today, so I decided to dedicate it to finishing my LIVE UNION Chiba report! What better way to start chronicling my Japan adventures than with this? o(＾∇＾)o

(WARNING: very long entry)

Goods

It seems I am destined to face different tough weather conditions each time I go queue for Nana goods. Last time it was the rain storm, and this time I got baked by the sun for quite a few good hours... and even got awesome burns on my arms as a reminder. xD Anyways, I went to queue for the pre-sale, as I figured the place would be packed on the actual concert date and I think I definitely made the right decision. I went a bit wild with my purchases, as I had saved all the "fun" money I had received as a graduation present for this occasion (I've been saving for my studies in Japan like such a mofo that people have to tell me specifically that the money they've given me is meant for FUN xD). I also finally joined the fan club since I have an address in Japan now, ahh the blissful moment~!

The loot! :3

And then.... onwards to the actual concert day! As is only right, I went to eat curry before the concert in honor of Nana-sama! \o/ I was a bit worried about what the weather was going to be like today, as it did not look too promising in the morning when I woke up... and then it actually even rained right when I got to Chiba too. >.< Luckily it totally cleared up after that. Nana's hare onna powaahh!

Inside QVC Marine Field

This was my first time being on the arena for a Nana concert, so when I made my way to my seat I was pretty stoked. Turns out my seat was in a pretty decent place on the last row before the walkway across the middle of the arena (for the fans to use to get to their seats). Might be that you'll be able to see my backside bouncing like crazy on the BD/DVD release.. xD  Also, before the concert began, there was a helicopter flying around on top of stadium, made me think how awesome it would be if Nana had made her opening appearance from there, but I knew that was a bit unrealistic.. Anyways, now..... raibu hajimaru yo~!

The concert

In the opening video, we see punk Nana going out and there the members of Cherry Boys are graffiting on the wall and being very punk too. Once their great graffiti is complete, Nana makes her way to it and adds her own input to the wall, the graffiti being a symbol of their unity, naturally. Once Nana finalizes the graffiti and leaves, it is time for....

SET LIST:
01. POP MASTER

02. 時空サファイア (=Jikuu Sapphire)

03. Love Brick

MC1

04. 76th Star

05. SUPER GENERATION

Cherry Boys Showcase

06. METRO BAROQUE

07. Bring it on!

MC2

08. ROMANCERS' NEO

09. 天空のカナリア　(=Tenkuu no Canaria)

Team Yoda Showcase

10. Chronicle of Sky

11. PARTY! PARTY!

12. DISCOTHEQUE

MC3

13. 絶刀・天羽々斬 (=Zettou.Amenohabakiri)

MC4

14. Brand New Tops

Pirate Nana -short movie

15. Synchrogazer

16. NEXT ARCADIA

MC5

17. BRIGHT STREAM

18. Sacred Force

19. ETERNAL BLAZE

20. Justice to Believe

MC6

21. 宝物 (=Takaramono)

Encore:

22. FEARLESS HERO

MC7

23. ONE

MC8

24. 星空と月と花火の下　(=Hoshizora to Tsuki to Hanabi no Shita)

MC9

25. POWER GATE

Yay! Nana made most of my Union song wishes come true, which truly made me a very happy bunny. xD Now, onwards to a detail account of everything~! Sorry if this ends up being long-winded like usual, I just can't help my fangirliness whenever I write these reports... Also, I have to warn you that all the MCs and their order got very fuzzy in my head so some things might be located in the wrong place... sumimasen. Feel free to correct me. At latest I'll fix things when the BD/DVD comes out and I can check how well I remembered.. Anyway! OKGO!

Outfit # 1- Punk

Kawaii~! :3

01. POP MASTER

Nana appeared from a pod of some sort! Hurray! \o/ Having POP MASTER as the first song of the live really sets the mood high from the first second, at least for me, since I really really love this song live. Considering how the focus of this live is in energetic songs, this definitely was a good pick for the beginning. This song has now pretty well explored all locations on a set list, being encore for LIVE JOURNEY, being in the middle for LIVE CASTLE, and now being the opener of LIVE UNION. What will we be getting next time Nana-san~? Anyways, I was yet again participating in full-power from start to finish and screaming "Are you OK?" from the top of my lungs... so holy shit was I sweating so badly already after this song! Regretting a bit that I only brought one bottle of water with me, as I am starting to be scared about my survival in this heat.. :3

02. 時空サファイア (=Jikuu Sapphire)

Yay! I was really waiting to hear this song live! I was a bit afraid at first, since I have a curse concerning this song. Every time I hear the opening melody I hear an old man say in my head something like "ano goro wasuremitai cha", because the first rip I had of this song had that at the beginning due to being from one of the commercials.. T.T BUT! For the first time ever it didn't happen to me. I was sooo happy! And Nana was also so happy singing this song that it made me even more happy! "Time to say I love you" really killed my weak heart.

03. Love Brick

Woo~! Love Brick! I really like this cheerful combo as the start of the concert. The chorus of this song contained a nice little treat for me - we got to sing in canon with Nana! I found that really awesome and was enjoying every moment of it with all  my heart (I mean seriously, who wouldn't wanna sing "baby I love you" to Nana?). \o/ I think this will probably become one of my favorite live songs, it was so much fun.

MC1

Welcome to LIVE UNION Session  14~! Nana talked about how this was her first outdoor concert since LIVE UNIVERSE and how she had been worried about the weather for today, as a while ago it seemed like it was going to be very bad weather, but then it gradually started getting better the closer to the concert date it got.... and, ta-dah! All clear now! She also asked if we had seen the helicopter flying above the stadium before the start. Yes I did Nana-san~! \o/ Apparently it was Team Mizuki in the helicopter. And then...

Outfit #1 - Revamped

Legggsss.

04. 76th Star

HOLY HELL YES! YESSSSSS! The one song I really wanted to hear in LIVE UNION, 76th Star!! I was so ecstatic from start to finish and I think when the song started my eyes even welled up with tears because I was so ridiculously happy. Nana and Team Yoda even came to perform this at the center circular stage which also rose up into the air a bit so I actually had a pretty good view of this (I dunno, I was maybe 25 meters away?). I. Seriously. Love. This. Dance. For the first chorus and one verse Nana graced me with a good view of her lovely behind (well, not her actual behind ofc, but just the frill of her skirt going left and right and up and down and and and.. *is hypnotized and drowns in nosebleed*). I was in a trance for the whole song anyway and probably had a very stupid blissful expression on my face when I was doing the clapping bits in the chorus. So thank you very much for this Nana-sama. m( _ _ )m


05. SUPER GENERATION

I have to say that after the amazing SUPER GENERATION experience in LIVE CASTLE -King's Night- (-Museum Style- and a cappella at the very end), I really didn't think I would get to hear it again very soon. Instead though, I ended up hearing it again on my very next concert, luckyy~! This song never ceases to put a smile on my face, especially this time, as I was feeling a bit tired and frustrated after all the things I had to somehow get sorted when I got to Japan and SUPER GENERATION reminded me to feel strongly about my dream yet again. If I hadn't been able to attend LIVE UNION, I don't know how well I would've coped with everything, so thank you Nana-sama! <3

Cherry Boys Showcase

Hahahaha, oh my god their hair! Their haaairr! The Cherry Boys look like they have some sort of crossover of Elvis hair and an afro on their heads. xD And holy hell, their badass poses were so hilarious. This video was so much fun! Can't say I remember too much about their song though, since I was too busy staring at their amazing hairdos..

Outfit #2 - Pirate

Gakkoiii~!

06. METRO BAROQUE

METRO BAROQUE has been constantly growing on me ever since its release, so I was really looking forward to hearing it tonight. And now after hearing it live I love it even more. xD The piano melody really makes my heart skip a beat, as does the way Nana sings this song. I really love how Nana seems to be transported into the world of the song every time she sings it (ok, she does that with pretty much all the songs she sings, but yeah...) and as a result I get completely absorbed too. Very much of an experience!

07. Bring it on!

I know I heard this during LIVE JOURNEY already, but hearing the opening melody start up never ceases to make me very excited. In fact, it made me so excited that I nearly forgot I had heard it live before! Nana's always so powerful and badass when she sings this song, and this time was no different. I think this is the badass corner of the concert, I can feel it.. What might be coming next?! :3

MC2

Nana introduces the new violinist (who isn't that new anymore considering how he's been part of the whole tour xD), Kado-D! I am so unimaginably happy about Nana having a full-time violinist for LIVE UNION, but I just wonder, why do her violinists change so often? Also, I think there was some talk about how Kenny's here today, since he had been busy most of the live. Yappari, Kenny nanbaa waan! Nana also mentioned how amazing it was that she has three guitarists here today, and considering that fact the next song was a perfect continuation~!

08. ROMANCERS' NEO

For some reason I didn't expect to hear this song today, but I was really happy I did! Sure, I did hear it in both LIVE CASTLE too, but I just really really love this song. Ahhh, the guitars! I find Nana's aura during this song to be really amazing, it's a unique sort of badass-ness, somehow different from the badass-ness she displays while singing some of her other songs (like Bring it on! that came just before this), and it makes my heart beat faster every time I hear it live. Well, it does have that effect on me to some extend even when I am listening to the recording. Thank you for singing this for me again, Nana-sama. m( _ _ )m

09. 天空のカナリア　(=Tenkuu no Canaria)

I somehow totally forgot that this song was a part of the LIVE UNION rotation. Thus, even though this is one of my favorite songs (and my #2 favorite violin song from Nana) it took me a while to comprehend that this was really the song that Nana started singing. Very odd sensation that was - somehow I just couldn't grasp the song, I just knew inside me that I had really really wanted to hear it for a long time and that I was about to burst from joy. xD Once realization hit me though, oh boy~! It really didn't cross my mind that I might be hearing this tonight. I felt so blessed. I think my eyes teared up..... Unless it was sweat in my eye, which was very possible too.

Team Yoda Showcase

Sailor Team Yoda! We see Team Yoda introduced in pairs as usual, this time with various items related to sailing (such as barrels and ropes and so forth). The song was really nice, though the one in LIVE CASTLE will remain as my favorite. I was also happy that Team Yoda was actually on stage during this unlike in CASTLE. And once the introductions were done, out came Nana in........

Outfit #3 - Oriental

Kyaahh~!

10. Chronicle of Sky

CHRONICLE OF SKYYYY! Ever since Nana performed this in LIVE GAMES (somehow its impact on me was greater than LIVE FEVER's Chronicle of Sky), I have been wishing to witness this song+dance with my own eyes very badly! I seriously felt like a little kid with candy while watching Nana perform all my favorite parts of the dance (even more so because of this outfit, it mesmerized me~). Tears of girls turn into courage~~! I was a bit worried that Nana might get tangled in the hems of her overcoat thing, but she handled it very skillfully so I had no need to worry. xD

11. PARTY! PARTY!

Man, I was really waiting to hear this live! Tho I was slightly dismayed at the silence of the audience. :< After Love Brick I thought it would be really cool to have us sing the "like this", "oh yeah", "I like it" for Nana, but nope nothing of the sort happened. I contemplated whether I should just do it myself, but I didn't wanna be considered the impolite idiot foreigner doing her own shiz.. Dx ANYWAYS! I was so happy to finally get to hear this and see the choreograph. I was not disappointed. Mmm, Nana's leg spreading~! Ahh, and bang bang~! I am sorry but I cannot make a more coherent description of this, I have retreated to my own little planet to relive this moment again. PARTY! PARTY! really has a special spot in my heart. xD

12. DISCOTHEQUE

CHURU CHURU CHURU PAYA PA! Singing this is always as fun as the first time. I even for once had a pink glow stick for this! I came completely prepared, hallelujah! \o/I think having PARTY! PARTY! and DISCOTHEQUE  follow each other worked really well, energy-wise and also name-wise. xD Proper dosage of partying, eh?

MC3

Nana talked about how her new song Lovely Fruit would be the ending theme of a new Toriko and told us to wait a bit longer to hear it. I think she talked about LINKAGE here too, not sure though.

Suddenly, in the middle of Nana's sentence, the opening melody for Zettou.Amenohabakiri started playing. Eeeeeh? Tom-kun made a blunder and got a proper telling off from Nana. xD Afterwards Nana goes on to say about how the next song is powerful song of a strong girl... and of course no one can guess what song it might be ~!

13. 絶刀・天羽々斬 (=Zettou.Amenohabakiri)

Oh man, it was really awesome to get to hear this live. I've really loved all the songs Nana was involved with in Symphogear and I got the shivers when she started singing this. Tom-kun's little mistake definitely didn't lessen the effect of the song on me at all (or if it did, I cannot even imagine what would've happened to me if he hadn't made the mistake xD). I was half expecting Noise to appear and Nana to kick their ass and save us, that's how powerful the way Nana performed this song was.


MC4 

And since having just three guitars is too weaksauce.... Aniki joins the fray! How epic is that? He should've come for ROMANCERS' NEO already though!! xD Nana then explains the basic moves for the towel song, which is coming next. Simple and easy to follow. Me and my one heart, one mind! -towel are ready!

14. Brand New Tops

Today's towel song~! I feel no fatigue whatsoever when I wave my penlights around for over 3 hours, but it always intrigues me how tiring it is to wave the clump of towel above your head. Regardless, nothing would ever stop me from waving my towel around like a madman till the end of the towel song and beyond~! The towel choreograph to Brand New Tops was very easy to follow and very fun. Somehow it also felt like time sped up and this song just passed really fast. Damn you time, don't speed up when I'm at a Nana concert!! T.T

Pirate Nana -short movie

Okay first off, I have to say that for some reason this video is mostly a fuzz in my head. I don't know why, since I always pay like 777% attention to everything in Nana concerts. But yes! Adventurer Nana! Even adventurer Nana can't handle tomatoes. xD Nana goes on to read out loud a letter she wrote..... and what do you know! The ending of the video has been altered from what it was before and Nana started talking about a ship. Could this mean....? It has to, right....?

Outfit #4 (flying Nana~)

Amazing moment :3

15. Synchrogazer

We were very sure by now that there was going to be a ship, so I was quite surprised when what we got was a flying Nana instead. Surprised and in glorious awe. Nana pulled a fast one on me though, since the ship did appear sneakily from the right side of the stage while I was mesmerized by flying Nana approaching and then it dawned on me that the ship was going to meet her at the back of the arena. EPIC! After LIVE CASTLE I didn't think anything could come close to being as amazing as the Lion was for me, but man, Nana's ship was breathtakingly stunning! And I really thought it was awesome that she didn't just ride the ship, but also flew. The combination made it all the more glorious. Also, I have to say I really love hearing this song live, it's so epic and and fast and strong that it just blows me away every time. Looking back on LIVE FIGHTER, I must say that Nana has now conquered flying and singing completely. No doubt about that.

Outfit #4 (Nana in her ship~)

The ship!!! the ship!! UNION STAR IKIMASU~~!

16. NEXT ARCADIA

I really wasn't expecting to hear NEXT ARCADIA again so soon! But I am happy I did, since I love this song so much. The energy and happiness that radiates from Nana whenever she sings this totally rubs off on me too. And I really love the faces she makes while singing this (refer to LIVE CASTLE -King's Night- to see what I mean). They just melt me away completely, ahh~! Ehum. *gathers herself*


MC5

Nana talks about the ship (which is called UNION STAR btw). Apparently it wasn't very certain if using the ship would work out because it was so big. xD Glad it did though! It was an amazing sight. Nana really wanted to have a ship in the concert, since the Marine Field was beside the ocean. Nana then proceed to talk about the Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha The Movie 2nd A's and how she went to see it with some of the Cherry Boys. They were all very taken by the movie. The next song is of course the natural follow up of this conversation...


17. BRIGHT STREAM

I got the shivers when this started playing, I have really been looking forward to hearing this live ever since Nana released it. Such a beautiful song. >.<! And just as I expected, the live version totally blew me away. Definitely one of those songs in which Nana pours even more emotion than usual. I think I could've cried........ if there was any water left in my body after all the sweating. xD I am so close to selling my soul to this song, it has definitely made its way to the top few in which songs are the most beautiful Nana songs to me.


18. Sacred Force

YES!!! Considering how difficult this song is to sing, I was really dying to hear this live too. And I have to say I was really impressed. Not that I was expecting anything less from Nana than perfection.... but I was still impressed. Nana really is the most talented singer I have ever come across. <3 ... And I don't think I will be attempting this song in karaoke anytime soon. ^^; Muzukashisugiru~!


19. ETERNAL BLAZE

EtaBureeee~! Ahh, the sea of orange~! It is always so breathtaking to witness. And it never ceases to amaze me how everyone just suddenly switches onto full-power mode, in order to make it the best ETERNAL BLAZE experience ever. I have to say I was so happy to get to use my new hardcore orange penlight for this tonight, made it all the more special to me. Somehow nothing makes me happier than getting to be a part of EtaBure and I always look forward to it ridiculously much. It is just simply magical. Doesn't matter how many times you've experienced it before.

20. Justice to Believe

Love, it's in my justice~~! Took me a while to absorb what song this was at first, since I was so tuned into the Nanoha royal flush that was going on before this, that my brain got confused when something broke the chain. xD Somehow I had forgotten this was on the UNION rota too.. was great getting to hear it though, and it went well with adventurer Nana. She should have a sword battle again sometime when she performs this, I'd like to see it! Well, I did get Nana with a sword in LIVE CASTLE, so I am quite satisfied.

MC6

And now we've reached the point that we never wanted to reach - time for the final song. Nana looked back on the whole tour and all the good memories, how she had her 100th concert and how she went to more places than before. All in all a very wonderful experience for Nana-san I am sure. And then it was time for one of the songs I had been most eagerly waiting for, the one through which Nana expresses her heartfelt unity towards everyone of us....


21. 宝物 (=Takaramono)

This has definitely been one of the songs on top of my want to hear live list (on how many songs have I said I really wanted to hear them live in this post.. hmm? xD). It is so beautiful and heartfelt, and definitely even more so when you are there with Nana when she sings it. I wonder if we'll ever get to hear this again with Nana playing the piano herself? That would definitely be one of the best moments of my life without a doubt. Though, I don't think she will do it. :3 In any case, this if anything, is the perfect song considering the concept of unity and I am so overjoyed that she chose to sing Takaramono for this reason also. Once again I was about to cry, as this song reflects very well how I felt now having come here to Japan and having left many loved ones behind. Even though I have set out on my journey, their smiles still are the most important thing to me. <3 

私は歌を歌い続ける
この瞬間　大切に
あふれる笑顔達
私にとって　それが
宝物

<3


Encore call!

NAA-NA! NAA-NA! Somehow I felt that the encore call was sort of lacking in power, perhaps the aftermath of such a hot day? xD I was determined to keep going till the end, and finally~~

Outfit #5  - Encore

Nana with CHI-BA+KUN!

22. FEARLESS HERO

Fearless ! Boku wa motto tsuyoku naritai~~! I think I wasn't as excited about this as I should've been, I blame Dog Days' and its abundance of fan service for it. >.< Gomennasai Nana-sama! I really do love this song though, and it worked really well as a starter for the encore set! The hopeful tone and message of the song (and the happy Nana singing it) really set the atmosphere for the rest of the night. \o/

MC7

Shassu call! I really need to get/make myself a white headband soon, so I can show my support to smile-gang too. Lives just always sneak up on me before I have time to think about it properly... >.< Nana was really happy about how many people listen to smile-gang! And then she introduced the Chiba mascot that would be joining her for the next song, and a large red doggie with its tongue poking out of its mouth appeared on stage.... It's CHI-BA+KUN!
 

23. ONE

This song also made me feel very united tonight, I mean with Nana and the mascot on stage and the audience singing along quite a lot too. Definitely encore material. The lyrics for the audience were displayed on the screen, which was neat and a bummer at the same time. Neat because it really made it feel like a proper sing-together session, and a bummer because of the fact that people couldn't remember the lyrics (if they did, there'd be no reason to display them). Hearing Nana sing this song live, made me love it a lot more than I did before. I guess for me, the other songs on the single kind of took most of my attention..... Sumimasen. T.T I'm really glad that I got the Animal Wonder shirt, wee~!


MC8

Today, when it rained a bit before the live, Nana said she saw a rainbow and somehow I thought that was very fitting. I mean, Nana, if anyone, should be the one blessed with rainbows! \o/  She went on to say how great it was that the sky was now completely cloudless and since it was now darker, we got to share a starry sky together tonight.... aaand, because of that, to commemorate this special moment, the next song would be....

24. 星空と月と花火の下　(=Hoshizora to Tsuki to Hanabi no Shita)

Whoa, this song I definitely was not expecting! It's such a perfect choice for tonight! Sasuga Nana-sama~! I cannot describe with words how beautiful this moment was, getting to share the starry sky with Nana-san. It felt like she put everything she had into singing this song and it touched me very deeply. I was nearly on the verge of being properly moved to tears (again) when the fireworks began. One after another, after another, after another..... from behind the stage, outside of the stadium. So breathtakingly beautiful. Nana definitely created a very unique and powerful "happy to be alive" moment with this and I finally felt that I was exactly where I was meant to be without any doubt in my mind. When the fireworks seemed to have ended, she still surprised us with one massive firework as the grand finale of the song. I felt like I was in a dream. Hontou ni arigatou gozaimashita Nana-sama! m( _ _ )m

Such a beautiful moment, I will never forget it. <3

MC9

Nana asked whether we liked the fireworks, to which everyone shouted yes with all their heart. Nana then told us that there was actually one bad side to the fireworks, and that was the fact that, being on stage and also facing the other way, she herself did not get to see them at all. I seriously felt my heart break for her at this moment. (´Д｀。) She continued by saying that to her, the most important thing was that she was able to bring a smile to our faces with the fireworks and that we enjoyed them - that was the thing that made her happiest. Uguu, my poor heart can't handle this much Nana love... Krhm. So yeah, then next.... the very last song.

25. POWER GATE

We were hoping the pirate ship would appear again for this (or at least something else spectacular) and Nana delivered! The ship returned! And this time Nana made the whole trip around the arena on it instead of just half, which was nice since now the people on the other side got to see Nana close up too. ^^ I have to say POWER GATE always delivers quite a finale to a concert. I was so pumped up and absorbed into participating in the song that you wouldn't believe it. As much as the ending "Woo-wo-oo POWER GATE"s are my most favorite part of the whole song in a live experience, I so didn't want the song to end.... as that meant the end of the concert. Nanaaaaaa~! (´Ａ｀。)

Okay, and I think this was after POWER GATE and not before it (since I remember thinking that there wouldn't be any more announcements today, which hints that it came later than I expected)..... Nana announced that she will have a new live in January! At Saitama Super Arena! And not just any live... A FULL ORCHESTRA LIVE! HELL YES! I cannot believe how lucky I am to be here to experience that this time around!! I think one of the things I've regretted the most, is the fact that I was not here for LIVE GRACE. So yeah, I really am truly ecstatic now!! She couldn't have made me any happier tonight than she did. Oh my god, I am already getting shivers thinking about getting to hear Risouron with full orchestra - please make it happen Nana-sama! /o/ Ehum, but anyway... onwards...

Shooting Stuff 

Time to shoot little CHI-BA+KUNs into the audience! Yay! I was sort of hoping that I could maybe have a chance of getting a try to catch one tonight since I was in the arena, but holy hell did Nana's bazooka shoot them ridiculously far. Even Nana wasn't expecting it, and thus some of them ended up going in places where no one was even seated. Whoops. xD They were looping the instrumental version of LOVE BRICK in the background while Nana did her shooting, and I was overly happy when she started singing along when she was done and we got to relive some of the LOVE BRICK experience again! Definitely a perfect ending to a perfect night. 

After concert 

.... I'm sure I don't need to say this, but after the concert I was dying of thirst. Dx Chiba was so packed though, that I ended up going all the way to Shinagawa without any nourishment. The train was incredibly packed too, but when a seat became available this one Nana fan was kind enough to let me take it. So, if you, good sir, ever happen to stumble upon my blog - hontou ni arigatou gozaimashita!

And with that, I shall end my report on the finale of the LIVE UNION summer tour.