TaQ concert

[Oogami128]

I had originally posted this on Bemanistyle, but I then thought that perhaps some people here might like to read this, too, so here goes:

Okay, despite having something of an intestinal virus (that I've still not completely shaken) which made me pop diarrhea medicine pretty much every hour while in Shibuya to prevent having to go to the bathroom during the show, I was able to make most of TaQ's concert.

Since I was able to come down to Tokyo with a friend who drove and paid the highway tolls (due to being short on cash this month going by train would not have been an economical decision, nor driving even), I was obligated to visit his family there and I did meet some cool people. When we finally left for Shibuya from Hachiouji, it was already after 10:00, so the show had already started. By the time we got to Shibuya and finally found Vras (since I was stupid and forgot to bring the map), it was already after midnight, all of TaQ's CDs were sold out (since everybody and their mother bought like 3-5 copies each), and my friend and I walked into the main club where TaQ was already halfway through his last song of that particular session (Summer Vacation). It was still awesome seeing the crowd go wild chanting "TaQ, TaQ, TaQ, TaQ!" while TaQ himself was shirtless and hoisted up by members of the audience like a deity being revered (not too far off). After that the other DJs did their own thing and TaQ retreated back into the lobby where he was signing CDs. When I finally got to him in line and asked him in Japanese if he could sign at least an index card I happened to have on me, he told me in perfect English (you'll find out why in a minute) that I could still pay for CDs then and they'd be shipped to me ASAP, and he promised me that he would sign them. Ecstatic, I paid 6000 yen for two copies, shook his hand, and joined my friend again near the interior and just chitchatted for a while.

Well, about an hour later, TaQ was heading back into the main part of the club, and I gave him words of encouragement. He then came over to me and asked, "Hey, man, what time is it?". I responded, "It's 2:34." I then asked if he was going to perform Holic, since that's my favorite piece by him. He said that he had already done Holic the past nine concerts he's given at Club Vras, so he thought it was time for a change. After I told him that I majored in music composition and thought his music is overall the best in IIDX, he seemed quite pleased by that and we started talking about music in general (since he still had some time before he had to go back on stage). He told me something quite interesting; after I said that, while my compositions are more art music in nature, I was thinking about trying some techno just to play around a bit, he told me not to bother, since techno is going out of style. He told me that he's altering his style now to adhere to this new trend (which can be seen particularly in Distance, the non-IIDX song [that he had originally written for IIDX, but Konami didn't think it would fit too well]), and that perhaps, if I wanted to play around with some club music, to try trance instead. After we finished discussing music, I asked him where in the US he was born, since his website mentions he was born in America. He told me Silver Springs, MD. I then told him that was quite a coincidence, since I used to live in Waldorf, and the coincidence stretches further in that he then moved with his family to Mainz, Germany, while I had lived with my family in Frankfurt am Main during roughly the same time. Anyways, after that, he had to go back to work, so I shook his hand again and wished him the best of luck, and had left with the impression that TaQ was one of the coolest guys I had ever met.

So, after intermission, TaQ opened with Distress, much to the delight of the crowd (actually, EVERYTHING was to the delight of this crowd), followed by Gravity, Schlagwerk (where the audience, myself included, joined in with "This is frick UP!"), Voltage, Electro Tuned, and Traces. Keep in mind too that these were all the long versions of the songs, save Distress, which evidentally is no longer than the IIDX version of it. I thought almost all of the songs benefitted from the longer runtimes save perhaps Gravity, since Gravity just seemed to ramble on forever. But after all of this, TaQ started to perform .59 (live), but of course the performance would not be complete without *gasp* DJ Taka, who had just happened to wander on the stage at that very moment. After that was done, TaQ and Taka were hoisted above the crowd and given a thunderous applause, and that, my friends, was probably the highlight of the show. After that, TaQ introduced his new work Distance, a few isolated parts of which reminded me a little bit of Quasar, making me think that perhaps Quasar was the compromise that TaQ, Taka, and Konami came to (though Distance is not by OutPhase, it's by TaQ only). It was pretty good, no doubt. After that, TaQ was given one more round of applause, and it was time for me and my friend to go to a ramen-ya to have something to eat, which I promptly threw up (I was able to make it to the bathroom, fortunately).

So, aside from the illness, it was an awesome time. I'm glad I went.
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BABY, YOU'RE SOLID GOLD!

[Kaleigh]

That sounds cool, not only being at the concert, but getting to meet him too? Wow...

EDIT: Forget being all calm about it. *screams* YOU MET TAQ! YOU MET TAQ!
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[wraith985]

soo...who's jealous? *raises both hands*

good times.

[Poochy]

*raises both hands and left foot*

I wish I could meet him. When I get the chance to go to Japan, I'm going to sit around in front of Konami's building around lunch hour. There's always the chance that TaQ will walk outside on lunch break.
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Math problems? Call 1-800-[(10x)(13i)^2]-[sin(xy)/2.362x].

Don't make me mad, I know karate!
(Not to mention a bunch of other Japanese words.)

[rmz]

Wow. Lucky, lucky, lucky, lucky, lucky. I would've killed to be at that concert, much less _meet TaQ_. That's cool, though
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[Kyle_Snyder]

Ah man! I wish I could have been to a TaQ concert. I like a lot of his songs. My 3 favorite songs by him are Traces, Symbolic, and Still My Words. Did he perform any of those songs at this concert?
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Champion of SP-Trip Machine ~Jungle Mix~

[Pyroblaze]

TaQ has a site? WHAT IT IS I WANT TO BUY CDS
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NINZA wrote:

pyro ur a FAG

[CStarFlare]

www.cu-net.jp/taq/

^TaQ's website

Wow, Oogami, sounds like you had a blast. And you even got to talk to TaQ. How exciting. Too bad you were sick at a time like that... at least you were able to hold out until the concert was over, eh?

I'm shocked and appalled that you didn't ask him about 7th Style, though.

If Distance is ANYTHING like Quasar, I'll eat it up and never let it leave my body. Also, if you do feel like playing around with club music, I think it'd be cool to hear what you come up with.

[Oogami128]

Yeah, I was really kicking myself the next day when it had occured to me that that would have been THE PERFECT OPPORTUNITY to find out something solid about 7th Style CS >.<. But, what keeps me from blowing my brains out is the fact that perhaps TaQ might not know, or would not divulge, the details either. It may be all in the hands of the higher ups. Couldn't have hurt to have asked, though, but I guess I was too excited about meeting him and I wanted to know more about him and his opinions on music rather than a videogame.
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BABY, YOU'RE SOLID GOLD!

[cmcm]

I WAS BORN IN THE SAME PLACE AS TAQ



W000000000
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COLD ROCK A PARTY.

[Aven-G]

[DJTyrant]

dude, did you happen to take any pictures of the event or know any place where any are posted?

thanks anyways for sharing this once in a lifetime story with us, I'm glad you had a great time evne though you were sick.
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OLR!|Facebook | LiveJournal | Berrorth - 80 NE/Rogue | YouTube

[Twisted Silence]

Out of curiousity, how did they pronounce TaQ?

I've always said "Tack", but I have a feeling that's the gaijin in my saying that.

Is it "TAH-kyu"? That makes sense because of the Q at the end of his name...
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YOU SUPPOSED TO ACT UP RUNNING WITH A BLACK AND FUCKIN MILD

[PopisDeaD]

going to a TaQ concert and meeting him is sooo cool!! him and taka should do a song together...i wonder how it would sound liek...
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TeAm*PinkSnaiL [is dead]

[001 MadStepz]

sync......summer vacation......quasar....

[Phrekwenci.com]

i saw jenny rom in concert.

i stabbed myself in the face.
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[Phrekwenci.com]

[......]

I have a question that I have been wanting the answer to for a while now.
How did TaQ perform the songs? did he have a turntable up there and he mixed the songs or did he have the songs on a vinyl and he just played the vinyl or how?, can you give me a detailed discription. Thanks in advance.

[TiVotj]

Awesome! I too would like to know how he "performed".

[Kerf]

;_;, dude, that is so sweet.. wonder what he looks like XD.. but damn, seeing him live and meeting him... lucky