On boats, fish and concerts

I'm really kind of bad at the whole updating thing, aren't I? Apologies, Silent Readers, as always. Things are cosily chaotic in my world as always. Ups and downs, back and forths, and it's hard to really know where my mind is at. While that's pretty liberating, I feel a little like I'm lost at sea, just paddling any which way and hoping that whatever current carries my boat will eventually carry me to some peace of mind. It's been a bumpy couple of weeks.
I was hoping for August to bring more clients at work, thus making October a far more fun month for me cash-wise, but with the whole Obon thing it's really bummed me out in terms of cash. So far this week was far better than last week, but being a new instructor without too many regulars is kinda biting me in the ass at this point. I hate feeling stressed about money. I hate feeling poor. It puts so much stress on me, and I haven't felt like doing anything really. I just obsess about bills and money and work.

One thing that did take my mind of stuff was going to Sonicmania with T on Friday, to see my beloved Sakanaction and the legendary Kraftwerk. It was pretty awesome. The locale was out in Chiba, which, given the whole hour it took to get there from my place, felt like the middle of nowhere, and decked out something awesome.

Excited derp-faced people!

Even more excited derp-faced people!

In terms of concerts, Kraftwerk opened up with a really neat 3D show - although I've gotta say at least 40% of it was identical to the one I saw that time way back when with the Philosopher, only with the band standing in front  of it. It's hard to think that day was like seven months ago. It both feels recent and a million years away. I kept thinking about napping on that giant cushion on the floor with him, and it was both comforting and sad at the same time. Still, it was a great concert, and nicely done. Can't say I'm not happy with that.

Behold the Japanese workaholic robot.

The Sakanaction concert though? Well, I love this band with all my heart. When they came out with a totally dope remix of Ame(B), I thought I was going to faint or die or just disintegrate. It was amazing. I'd seen God, and his name is Ichiro Yamaguchi.

It's so weird, seeing bands you like. I remember them coming on stage, and just thinking: "They exist. They really do exist in real life." and marvelling at how amazing it is that it's actually real people that make the music that I've been listening to daily for three years now, and how great people are sometime. Knowing that you're part of something that can make things as awesome as music that inspires many thousands just makes my heart swell a little. Seeing my heroes on stage just kinda blew my mind.

...with image quality so bad it's almost like a shot of Bigfoot.

Can I be you please? Kthxbai.

I've gotta say though, that festival concerts never really are that great. For one, they're kinda short. Sakanaction only played for an hour, and probably not as energetically as they could've, given their gig in Sapporo the next day. T was disappointed. "It's not like it was bad," he said, "but it wasn't as great as I expected it to be. It felt lazy and like they were holding back." I kinda agree, although for me it just made me want to see their real concert all the more. Hopefully, when they release their new album, they'll tour again, and I'll get to feel enraptured then instead. Both T and I were struck by the fact that the coolest person on stage wasn't Ichiro Yamaguchi (love him as I do), but Emi Okazaki, the totally awesome keyboardist. I mean, what's not to love when she comes in with an awesome bob hairstyle, super cool glasses and a black and white draped mini dress? That's like everything I want to be right there.

Anywho, although they didn't play all their best stuff, they did play some of my favourites, like Music, Rookie, Identitiy and Mikazuki Sunset, and they really knew how to play and sing, which always makes me a happy camper. Two concerts were enough to make both T and me feel pretty worn out though, so we spent the next hour or so getting some strawberry crepes and bubble tea from some scantily clad girls at a booth (discussing the chubby one's enormous tits. Seriously, they were like the size of my head. It was amazing) and just taking in the atmosphere, before walking to the station before the one directly by the concert hall, as we rightly assumed that it would be disgustingly crowded there when everyone gathered for the first train at 5 a.m. Walking through a Japanese suburb at the crack of dawn, napping on a bench in front of the station with a feeling of complete security, and watching the sun rise over the station and the telephone wires was really an experience in and of itself.

Getting home at the crack of dawn was less fun, but I spent all of that Saturday in a kind of burnt out, sleepy haze. Fuck trying to do anything dramatic on a day like that. That's a day for instant noodles and catching up on streamed tv.