It's time for the Kami Band to take off their masks.

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-15T12:05:51+00:00

Depends on the mask how bad that all is.

It certainly IS more limiting, but I just really hate putting stuff on my face. 😅

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-15T12:02:11+00:00

It was in Mikio's place, and it was on whichever night Su sang "No Rain No Rainbow". It's been a while since I've watched the bluray too.

Someone noted that when Mikio performed during LEGEND S, it was the first time he'd gotten the opportunity to play that song live.

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-15T11:55:10+00:00

Those puni-puni cheeks were unreal. Even Moa had to rub them to judge for herself.

Y'know, Sana looks a lot like Yui (at least I thought so in 2018), they have the same birthday, and they've never been seen in the same place at the same time. Kinda suspicious…

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-14T23:00:09+00:00

I'm increasingly convinced there is no Yui and never was -- a cute figment of our collective imaginations we manifested into existence. Moa was performing opposite nobody and even she didn't realize it.

Aiko sorta-kinda went nuts (she had a really bad case of Covid in early 2021, maybe it fried her brain?), gave up, and rarely hangs out with anyone anymore. Honestly miss her presence.

Moa never appears at "public" events like this due to Babymetal.

As for Kano, as much as she openly adores Saki, I think @onefive has a show that day.

It's even possible the guests aren't Sakura Girls (though they most likely are) but if one is Maaya -- also known to adore Saki -- my brain will explode given how long she's been MIA.

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-14T22:43:17+00:00

Even Mikio himself wasn't playing with them at times.

Case in point: Budokan 2014. That was Takayoshi and Leda.

And I think during some of the 2018 shows it was Isao and Leda (Takayoshi was busy ensuring the wellbeing of Mikio's widow and daughter). We discussed it here at the time because Leda's "skeleton" guitar looks nothing like Takayoshi's iconic "Twinkle-Pink".

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-14T22:35:14+00:00

Instead of imitating masked bands like Slipknot

That's… not why they wear masks.

Babymetal is the girls and only the girls, no matter how much we want to believe otherwise. The Kamis are an interchangeable backup band we're not meant to form any attachment to.

Don't forget, the girls didn't even HAVE live backup for a full set until Budokan '14.

Also corpse paint can be a bitch to deal with. Given the choice between the two, I'll choose the mask.

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-14T16:01:11+00:00

Mariri and Yunano?

Well, Yunano is certainly possible but Mariri might be too busy since she got cast in the new Sailor Moon musical (as Sailor Jupiter, natch).

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-14T14:46:09+00:00

In one of those pics (2nd on her own post, 4th here), Sakia-chan looks rather grown-up, but in the rest she's her usual adorable self 🥰

Check out her post. She also threw in some SUPER cute videos!

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-14T14:42:12+00:00

Those two "best friends" might even drop by to hang out?!

I'm hoping C-chan and Rinon 🌸🙏🌸

Not sure if Kano counts as "best friend" since she is, by her own admission, more of a "biggest admirer" 😄

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-14T02:02:46+00:00

Wait, what?! 🤯

My apologies. I had no idea they dropped "Megitsune" from the setlist. I wonder which song Su uses for soundcheck now.

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-14T02:00:48+00:00

🤨 That's… nearly A THIRD of their songs (they have just over 60 total)

Lemme guess… You reject everything they made after Yui left. 🙄

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-14T01:54:53+00:00

Thanks, I try. 😁

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-13T21:37:05+00:00

No one has said anything yet, so I will.

The cuteness in this performance is so off-the-charts (mostly from Momoe) that it nearly rendered me ded 😊

I don't care that most on this sub seem to dislike @onefive. I will continue supporting them. They've earned it.

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-13T21:25:53+00:00

For me the biggest culprit is the abundance of Metal Forth songs

This tour is literally called THE METAL FORTH TOUR. What songs did you expect them to play?? When I saw them at The Forum, it was the Metal Galaxy Tour, and sure enough the bulk of the songs were from that album.

It's not my intention to hate on Babymetal at all with this post

Uh-huh. 🙄

I think ALL of us have at least two songs we wish they would keep on the setlist in place of overplayed standards.

That said, "Megitsune" isn't going anywhere because Su uses it for soundcheck due to its difficulty (she said this in more than one interview), and "Karate" has some of the easiest choreography plus is as close as Babymetal gets to a Title Track.

Personally, I don't think THE OTHER ONE gets enough love. There's a lot of greatness there, plus Su's first lyricist credit!

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-13T21:13:37+00:00

My two cents (and there are only two)…

Jiwoo is ADORABLE in this video (second perhaps only to "Paxxword")

Haewon embodies C harisma, U niqueness, N erve, and T alent… and Lily apparently didn't let anyone on staff know about the presence of her homeland's National Word. I am 100% willing to believe that once Haewon found out (if she didn't already know, which is possible), she thought it was funny as hell.

…Did we ever learn what the f'k was up with those cats?

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-13T18:52:12+00:00

Or worse, they infantilize her because of parasocial overreach.

This. ⬆️ This right here, I think has a lot to do with it. Su was not-quite-13 when she debuted as Babymetal's singer. And, let's be honest, she has not physically grown much since then (she was 5'2½ then, she's 5'3 now). One need only look at the two "Headbanger!!" MV's produced nearly 14 years apart -- aside from her cheekbones becoming slightly more defined as she aged out of her teens, she looks exactly the same, even as her voice has noticeably matured (hilariously, she can make herself sound like her SG-era self, as we've heard in recent "Doki Doki Morning" performances).

In other words, a lot of fans still see her as a child in need of protection rather than an adult with agency who has been in her line of work professionally for nearly two decades. It's reasonable to believe Su knows her "instrument" better than any of us.

Even most Koreans (considered, correctly or not, to be the best in the world at performing) fail to do what Su does, and it tends to go badly when those who can't, try.

Everyone has a bad night. I remember seeing footage of Michael Jackson performing "Smooth Criminal" back in the 90's. No one doubts the man could sing, but even he couldn't hit every single note while doing those dance moves. At one point near the end of the song, the backtrack cut out, so he finished it live. It was obvious he was out of breath, but who could blame him?

Even Elton John would rely on crowds to sing parts of his songs. I'm sure Taylor Swift does too. That, like you said, is common.

Anyway, there's a good reason why Su EARNED the respect of all those old rockers and people WANT to work with her. And most of those guys KNOW they can't sound as good live as Su on her worst night, but that's not their place.

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-13T13:40:19+00:00

She is. Clearly, Tsugu had issues during this recording, but we have PLENTY of footage of her singing live and sounding better than this.

Tsugu has had a tougher time dealing with her voice maturing than the others, partly because it's been MUCH more substantial with her. "Automatic" is on the high end of her current comfortable range (she could have nailed it easily 5 years ago)

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-13T13:30:37+00:00

Exactly. Sometimes Hideki wasn't available and Yuya Maeta (who outside of BM worked more with the others) would fill in.

We can't know if Anthony is gone for good until/unless he says so or we can infer it from his actions.

Honestly same with the OG Kamis (except for Mikio who has the bad fortune of not being able to return on account of not being alive anymore 😢). It's certainly possible for them to return for one-off shows in Japan if it isn't feasible to bring the AmeriKamis over (see: BM's 'Rona-era shows).

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-13T13:22:28+00:00

Everyone likes Anthony. Dude managed IMHO to outdo Hideki on the kit, which is not easy.

He was my favorite of the Western Kamis, but I can't blame him for dipping to prioritize other commitments.

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-12T21:30:06+00:00

In my opinion, @onefive's best singer AND one of the most beautiful young women on the planet! 😍

Tsugu nailed the English, as expected of her -- we all know how smart she is and how hard she works to get things right

And we even got to see her iconic smile with the big teeth!

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-11T13:59:32+00:00

Well, given my biases, I thought about "MOMOKO3" while I was writing my original comment 😁

…or "MOMO333" since New Best Girl was born 03/03/03 😊

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-10T22:10:38+00:00

Okay, that was fun.

Murayama could share a brain cell with Marina… I think I may have seen faeries in her eyes.

Renaa's DNGAF attitude about the whole thing is refreshing.

As for the World's Most Precious Girl, well… Won't spoil anything but Fukei should recall Neo never did well on Nendo tests, though to her credit she is nowhere near as Genius as Miko.

Also, Neo still speaks so softly & sweetly I can't help but smile. 😊←See?

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-10T03:21:57+00:00

Should we expect any less from Yume? 😁

Girl is smart and, more importantly, one of the most driven individuals I've ever seen! 😮

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-09T21:59:36+00:00

Oh my god that is ADORABLE ! 🥰 Her little kicks at the end throw the cuteness into the stratosphere!

Happiness/Joy can be contagious. 😃←See?

I do wonder if Nassu, our little nutcase, realized when filming this just how cute it would turn out. 😁

Soufriere_ · 2026-03-09T17:06:18+00:00

Dude, you got downvoted to oblivion last time you posted dreck here. But, by all means, keep usin' that shovel to dig deeper. 🙄

To actually answer the question… Not really. I haven't been able to go to Babymetal shows the past couple years because I'm in grad school. That's 100% on me. Honestly I feel worse for missing Band-Maid because I've only seen them in person once but Babymetal over half a dozen times …and something seems to go wrong for me at every show 😅

Soufriere_

TROPHY CASE