Dr. Shades's INCREDIBLE Perfume experiences, a 4-part saga
Posted: Wed Apr 24, 2019 10:57 pm
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The chronicles of Dr. Shades's incredible PERFUME experiences, Part I of IV:
THE LEAD-UP
Or, Perfume is FAR more popular than even **I** thought
Having the choice of an 8:31 a.m. flight or an 11:30 or so flight from Salt Lake City to San Jose, I opted for the former so I could get in line sooner and thereby get a better spot in front of the stage. I knew that when I landed it'd be far too soon to check in to my motel, so I pretty much only flew with the clothes on my back, a book to read while in line, and a fanny pack to hold my concert ticket, boarding pass, etc.
I hired an Uber ride for the very first time and was a little confused about how I was supposed to pay for it, but I eventually got it figured out (the payment is automatic, it turns out).
I arrived at the venue just a little before 10:00 a.m. local time. Sure enough, there were people already in line. I was #34. The reason I know is because, as a courtesy, a guy was handing out face cards with sequential numbering written on them so that if anything happened we could prove where we were supposed to be in line (more about this guy later). The third person ahead of me, and maybe the rest of his group, had been there since about 7:30 a.m. So who knows how early the people at the very front of the line had arrived!
I soon noticed that there was a table set up near front of the line with a huge custom-made vinyl banner featuring the following picture:
Everyone had an open invitation to come sign it with the intent, of course, that it be given to the three members of Perfume after the show. I went up and signed the extreme lower-right. I wrote, in Japanese, "I flew in an airplane 945 kilometers just to see you!" Then, in English, "I love you!! --Shades."
As you well know, when it comes to talking about Perfume, I'm used to it happening only on here on this message board and me being almost the only one doing the talking. Not long after signing the banner, though, I had the bizarre experience of hearing complete strangers talk all about Perfume in conversations that I wasn't a part of at all. 'Twas a first for me. I also got to see people wearing official Perfume swag, of which I myself don't have any. For example, the two people in front of me were wearing the official jackets from Perfume's last tour. I was envious.
It was quite a while before anyone else showed up after me. The sun came out from behind the building across the way, and I would've been cooked were it not for the kind person behind me who loaned me an umbrella before walking off into the shade. I spent most of the time reading the book I brought (Dan Brown's Origins). A few hours later I started talking to some of the people in front of me and learned a few facts that rather shocked me.
I imagine that you all think I'm quite the Perfume fanatic. Well, I'm here to tell you that there were people in that line, and at that concert, who put my fandom to absolute SHAME. Who make me look like an extreme lightweight. A Perfume peasant, if you will. For example, here's a picture of me flanked by two guys a little bit ahead of me in line:
(I apologize for having forgotten to suck in my gut.)
Why did I have my photo taken with those specific two, you may ask? Well, a few years ago they were featured in a YouTube video that had been recorded from Japanese T.V. You see, JapanTV has a regular feature titled "Why Did You Come To Japan?" wherein they interview obvious foreigners at the airport in the arrival area, asking them. . . well, you can probably guess based on the title of the segment. Anyway, a camera crew happened to catch these two guys, and their response was that they'd come to Japan just to see Perfume in concert. This rather shocked the interviewer. I know all this because I saw the YouTube clip.
Perfume's choreographer (more on her later) has a friend who saw that segment. He or she told the choreographer, then the choreographer told the members of Perfume themselves about it, then during their weekly radio segment the three of them shed tears over it!
Anyway, the guy on the right lives in Seattle and knew he had to be the first one in line on sheer principle. So he got in line a full 48 hours in advance! (For the Seattle concert, that is.) I know because a picture of him there was posted to one of Perfume's Facebook groups. The weather was bad at the time, as it often is in that city, so he and his friends bought tents to stay dry.
Okay, enough trivia. Talking to the two of them more, I got clarification of a rumor to which I hadn't given much credence because it sounded just a little too far-fetched. But here's the deal: Apparently Perfume are WAY more popular than even **I** had thought. Remember those YouTube videos wherein Perfume is in front of a vast swath of humanity packed into the very largest arenas in Japan? Well, all those attendees are not the general public. They're not even all members of the fan club. You see, Perfume is SO incredibly popular that they simply can't sell tickets to the general public. They can't even sell tickets to every member of their fan club. To get tickets, one has to be a member of the fan club, then one becomes qualified to enter a ticket lottery, and only IF you win that lottery do you earn the right to purchase two tickets.
So, yes, all those masses of people in the concert videos? Those are only members of the fan club, and only members who were fortunate enough to win the ticket lottery. And it's not just in one venue; it's that way in EVERY SINGLE CITY in which they perform, all over their home country.
Freakin' WOW.
I had purposely dehydrated myself by drinking nothing all day so I wouldn't have the urge to use the bathroom in the middle of the concert. I took a pre-concert restroom trip a half hour before the doors opened--the people around me were kind enough to save my place in line--then took three photos on my way back. This first shot is of the corner of the block, looking northwest toward the end of the line:
You can't see the end because it snakes around the block.
This photo is after rotating the camera to look southwest toward the front of the line:
This shot is looking behind me from where I was in line, having stepped a few, uh, steps to the right to get a better shot:
The doors opened at 7:00 p.m. The line surged forward, then, to my dismay, they split it into about five sub-lines, one in front of each entry door. So I ended up with more competition for the front of the stage than I had anticipated.
END OF PART I (it only gets better)
The chronicles of Dr. Shades's incredible PERFUME experiences, Part I of IV:
THE LEAD-UP
Or, Perfume is FAR more popular than even **I** thought
Having the choice of an 8:31 a.m. flight or an 11:30 or so flight from Salt Lake City to San Jose, I opted for the former so I could get in line sooner and thereby get a better spot in front of the stage. I knew that when I landed it'd be far too soon to check in to my motel, so I pretty much only flew with the clothes on my back, a book to read while in line, and a fanny pack to hold my concert ticket, boarding pass, etc.
I hired an Uber ride for the very first time and was a little confused about how I was supposed to pay for it, but I eventually got it figured out (the payment is automatic, it turns out).
I arrived at the venue just a little before 10:00 a.m. local time. Sure enough, there were people already in line. I was #34. The reason I know is because, as a courtesy, a guy was handing out face cards with sequential numbering written on them so that if anything happened we could prove where we were supposed to be in line (more about this guy later). The third person ahead of me, and maybe the rest of his group, had been there since about 7:30 a.m. So who knows how early the people at the very front of the line had arrived!
I soon noticed that there was a table set up near front of the line with a huge custom-made vinyl banner featuring the following picture:
Everyone had an open invitation to come sign it with the intent, of course, that it be given to the three members of Perfume after the show. I went up and signed the extreme lower-right. I wrote, in Japanese, "I flew in an airplane 945 kilometers just to see you!" Then, in English, "I love you!! --Shades."
As you well know, when it comes to talking about Perfume, I'm used to it happening only on here on this message board and me being almost the only one doing the talking. Not long after signing the banner, though, I had the bizarre experience of hearing complete strangers talk all about Perfume in conversations that I wasn't a part of at all. 'Twas a first for me. I also got to see people wearing official Perfume swag, of which I myself don't have any. For example, the two people in front of me were wearing the official jackets from Perfume's last tour. I was envious.
It was quite a while before anyone else showed up after me. The sun came out from behind the building across the way, and I would've been cooked were it not for the kind person behind me who loaned me an umbrella before walking off into the shade. I spent most of the time reading the book I brought (Dan Brown's Origins). A few hours later I started talking to some of the people in front of me and learned a few facts that rather shocked me.
I imagine that you all think I'm quite the Perfume fanatic. Well, I'm here to tell you that there were people in that line, and at that concert, who put my fandom to absolute SHAME. Who make me look like an extreme lightweight. A Perfume peasant, if you will. For example, here's a picture of me flanked by two guys a little bit ahead of me in line:
(I apologize for having forgotten to suck in my gut.)
Why did I have my photo taken with those specific two, you may ask? Well, a few years ago they were featured in a YouTube video that had been recorded from Japanese T.V. You see, JapanTV has a regular feature titled "Why Did You Come To Japan?" wherein they interview obvious foreigners at the airport in the arrival area, asking them. . . well, you can probably guess based on the title of the segment. Anyway, a camera crew happened to catch these two guys, and their response was that they'd come to Japan just to see Perfume in concert. This rather shocked the interviewer. I know all this because I saw the YouTube clip.
Perfume's choreographer (more on her later) has a friend who saw that segment. He or she told the choreographer, then the choreographer told the members of Perfume themselves about it, then during their weekly radio segment the three of them shed tears over it!
Anyway, the guy on the right lives in Seattle and knew he had to be the first one in line on sheer principle. So he got in line a full 48 hours in advance! (For the Seattle concert, that is.) I know because a picture of him there was posted to one of Perfume's Facebook groups. The weather was bad at the time, as it often is in that city, so he and his friends bought tents to stay dry.
Okay, enough trivia. Talking to the two of them more, I got clarification of a rumor to which I hadn't given much credence because it sounded just a little too far-fetched. But here's the deal: Apparently Perfume are WAY more popular than even **I** had thought. Remember those YouTube videos wherein Perfume is in front of a vast swath of humanity packed into the very largest arenas in Japan? Well, all those attendees are not the general public. They're not even all members of the fan club. You see, Perfume is SO incredibly popular that they simply can't sell tickets to the general public. They can't even sell tickets to every member of their fan club. To get tickets, one has to be a member of the fan club, then one becomes qualified to enter a ticket lottery, and only IF you win that lottery do you earn the right to purchase two tickets.
So, yes, all those masses of people in the concert videos? Those are only members of the fan club, and only members who were fortunate enough to win the ticket lottery. And it's not just in one venue; it's that way in EVERY SINGLE CITY in which they perform, all over their home country.
Freakin' WOW.
I had purposely dehydrated myself by drinking nothing all day so I wouldn't have the urge to use the bathroom in the middle of the concert. I took a pre-concert restroom trip a half hour before the doors opened--the people around me were kind enough to save my place in line--then took three photos on my way back. This first shot is of the corner of the block, looking northwest toward the end of the line:
You can't see the end because it snakes around the block.
This photo is after rotating the camera to look southwest toward the front of the line:
This shot is looking behind me from where I was in line, having stepped a few, uh, steps to the right to get a better shot:
The doors opened at 7:00 p.m. The line surged forward, then, to my dismay, they split it into about five sub-lines, one in front of each entry door. So I ended up with more competition for the front of the stage than I had anticipated.
END OF PART I (it only gets better)
