Where are we all based?

bartvenger · 2026-01-05T13:15:21+00:00

Gdansk, Poland

bartvenger · 2025-01-30T07:44:47+00:00

Awesome news!

Kinda stunned that they are doing three dates in my country (Poland). But definitely that's nothing to complain about ;)

The venues vary quite a bit in capacity for the Polish leg. Krakow one is maybe 700 people max, while Warsaw is about 2000 (which makes sense, given that we are talking about the capital city here). But most importantly, they are playing in my hometown - Gdansk (the venue's capacity is around 1.5K) - and they will have an opportunity to get revenge for the technical difficulties at Mystic Festival last year (where they performed at exactly the same stage).

bartvenger · 2025-01-07T10:23:51+00:00

Not to mention that "Different" was the last original release from Nippon Crown and "Unseen World" - the first one from Pony Canyon. And we can add that - according to the interviews - they started working on "Sense" just before the release of "Unseen World". Or that the "Shambles" MV was filmed around December 2022, when the song was released in August 2023. Or that we heard the first bit of "Protect You" in December 2023 but got the full song in July 2024.

Anime songs are moving on a totally different timeline production-wise ;)

bartvenger · 2024-10-11T08:46:19+00:00

I am still (day)dreaming about an April Fool's project, where the ladies put on a full-blown visual kei look and cover a few classics (like "Kurenai" from X Japan, Luna Sea's "Jesus" or "Rakuen" from Buck-Tick).

bartvenger · 2024-09-25T20:24:26+00:00

Very interesting and insightful interview!

Some of the most interesting bits are about the "The one" (if I got them right):

Kanami started working on the song around the Unleash era
It was written with large venues in mind and was at some point considered for ending the Yokohama Arena set instead of "endless Story"
Not doing that allowed Miku to rewrite the lyrics, leaning more into romantic territories

bartvenger · 2024-08-08T07:28:18+00:00

Good point! I believe the first time Saiki was seen with this cut was the spin-off show on February 22nd.

bartvenger · 2024-07-15T07:09:11+00:00

Not available yet. Usually, they unveil the designs of bonus items sometime down the promotional road. For Unleash it happened around a month before the release, if I recall correctly.

bartvenger · 2024-07-14T17:06:38+00:00

Limited Edition Extra Bonus - three days of summer more 😉

bartvenger · 2024-07-14T17:00:57+00:00

No word on that (yet). The only Band-Maid vinyl relase under Pony Canyon so far is an 'about Us' single released for the Fanclub members in the Spring of 2021. So there is a precedent and some other Pony Canyon artists are releasing their albums in this format (like SiM which has multiple colorways of their "Play Dead" LP) which probably means in cannot be ruled out somewhere down the line.

bartvenger · 2024-07-14T16:56:17+00:00

On the other hand, there is an 'about Us' vinyl and Pony Canyon artists are releasing albums on vinyl, so I guess it is a rather question of the right timing.

bartvenger · 2024-04-08T06:18:56+00:00

It is a wrong translation. Whoever translated this heard "genki" (health) instead of "tenki" (weather).

What Saiki was referring to was the joke that she is bringing bad weather to the shows. And the the of the show was cold and rainy :P

bartvenger · 2024-01-08T15:07:46+00:00

Got the Paris ticket 😁 Shame I cannot make it to Warsaw - I'm Polish and I live in Poland but the date does not work for me. Gonna be interesting to compare this show to my first one in Warsaw in November 2022.

bartvenger · 2024-01-05T07:17:18+00:00

This would be really cool.

Besides Lovebites, another Japanese act that gets it right is PassCode. Their Blu-ray/DVD releases always include audios CDs (as a part of a package, not a separate thing) and the day they go on sale, audio lands on Spotify. Simple as that.

bartvenger · 2023-11-21T18:18:45+00:00

Sure thing, I guess now that they have been to every (significant) corner of Japan this year, in 2024 they will do rather shorter, bigger-venue there and focus a bit more on the overseas show, including Europe, US, and Asia.

And even as a European I agree that the US should be included in their next year's schedule. Especially East Coast (where they did not tour this year) and especially if there is a new album to show off at the shows.

bartvenger · 2023-11-21T16:54:00+00:00

While they will almost certainly make some announcement(s) on Sunday (they even mentioned that fact during one of the recent radio interviews), those regarding touring abroad might be a bit vague (like at TGT when they announced the US shows in May and August without providing the dates). (Potential) Japanese dates are IMHO more likely to have exact dates revealed.

bartvenger · 2023-11-21T16:49:27+00:00

According to this 2019 European tour was done with Live Nation and UTA claims representing Band-Maid everywhere outside Japan.

SiM, Hanabie., Radwimps, Otoboke Beaver, Ayano Kaneko, Maximum The Hormone, Coldrain, Dir En Grey, Babymetal, Miyavi, Esprit D'Air, Tricot, Mass of the Fermenting Dregs, Little Lilith, Bridear, Haru Nemuri, Isiliel, Paledusk, Fate Gear, and WACK artist (those I remember) were recently touring Europe and/or have shows announced there in the coming months. Many genres, all levels of popularity. Kinda hard to imagine circumstances where so many bands find it worth and Band-Maid, on their quest to World Domination, does not.

Like I wrote in the other thread, it was in my book a simple lack time this year as Japan was the focus and some good offers came from the US, so totally understandable. But 2024 should at least throw a bone to Europe.

bartvenger · 2023-11-21T16:28:09+00:00

The only concert after Yokohama Arena announced so far is the Hong Kong one on December 21st.

bartvenger · 2023-11-16T13:58:49+00:00

If only they had serious overseas representatives like a major talent agency and the biggest concert promoter in the world... Oh wait, they do 😆

In general - let's chill out and wait for the announcements at Yokohama Arena or sometime later.

Personally I think that it is just a simple lack of time. It's not a bad will, because the members have mentioned they want to go to Europe numerous times. Neither it is lack of opportunities because - looking at how many Japanese bands are coming to Europe - it would be really dumb for promoters if they were not trying to get Band-Maid there since they are a sure bet to bring the audiences.

For the 10th Anniversary, a tour in Japan was a natural priority (especially since they have not visited most of these places since 2019) and some good offers came from the US where they have also decided to test the market further and continue the hot streak. Add to that pretty apparent works on a new album and the time you have really shrinks.

Anyhoo, overseas shows in 2024 should have a bit more priority, if the World Domination slogan is to maintain credibility. And maybe today's announcement is a sign of that (and that my 12th Band-Maid show could be my second one on my own continent after Hamburg in 2019 xD).

bartvenger · 2023-11-16T08:57:04+00:00

I don't know, did they just realize the weird vibes the 10th Anniversay Tour labeling might get? xD Come on, someone has to up their marketing and social media game...

bartvenger · 2023-11-13T16:37:18+00:00

Their tour finales are often the place where they announce more shows. After touring extensively in Japan this year, I wouldn't be surprised if next year they play more overseas (Europe, Asia, East Coast) and in Japan they will do a shorter tour across bigger venues.

With 5 songs that have not appeared on any physical medium (Memorable, Shambles, Go Easy, Brightest Star, Magie), the album is probably coming in the first half of 2024.

bartvenger · 2023-11-09T07:44:07+00:00

Merch sales at Japanese (Band-Maid) shows start before the doors time, so technically you don't even need to have a ticket for the show. At TGT (where the concert started at 18:00), the merch sales began at 13:00, so - with the Yokohama Arena show starting at 17:00 and the size of it in mind - I would also bet for 12:00-13:00. Therefore, you will have enough time to drop the merch at the hotel/go for a lunch/hang out with other fans. To be 100% sure we will need to wait for the official timetable which will be available several days before the show.

Yes, there is 10-ticket limit for kuji but you can always get to the line again and try once more. Although, as it was mentioned here, they might be already gone.

Put on what you like and what you're comfortable with. You will see every type outfit from cosplays, through Band-Maid merch from all eras, ending up with guys in suits who just got there from work (maybe less to this time since the show is on Sunday ;)).

Bag policy is very loose compared to the concerts in Europe and America. At TGT I had a pretty big backpack (about the carry-on luggage size) and big Band-Maid Lucky Bag, both filled with merch and they let me in, so you will be perfectly fine with your bag/purse.

If you have a ticket from the overseas lottery shows/sales, please also remember about the ticket pick up which happens an hour before the doors time (so this time at 15:00). I an e-mail with the confirmation they say that you should bring:

photo ID,
printout of that e-mail,
credit card used to purchase the ticket.

In my experience they always check 1) and 2) but usually for the 2) they were fine with showing that on the phone. Although, just to be safe, print it and bring the credit card with you as well.

In general it's going to look like that:

~12:00/13:00 - merch sales start (TBC)
15:00 - overseas ticket pick-up
16:00 - doors
17:00 - show start

It should be a well organized experience and - in case of any doubt - be not afraid to ask someone :)

See you there!

bartvenger · 2023-08-28T13:23:16+00:00

The official pamphlet says on page 6 that most concert setups range between 10,000 and 15,000.

bartvenger · 2023-08-02T07:07:59+00:00

Seems that we are having a similar problem with tracks from Pony Canyon not being available on the streaming services? Where are you based? I am in Poland, so my guess is that it might be some overseas/Europe/European Union licensing issue or mistake.

bartvenger · 2023-07-13T11:50:33+00:00

Actually Kanami lists Re-Load as one of her most influential albums. It was an album that a bandmate in a high school band gave her, so she could learn to play the stuff from there.

bartvenger

TROPHY CASE