Back from Sakura Con a couple weeks ago, and my b/f has finally posted his pics from the Smile.dk concerts:

http://ryusen.smugmug.com/gallery/7878543_Zkab7

Man, it was great. Their concerts were part of two dances on two different nights: one was at the "Fuzzy Fuz Ball" (don't ask) and the other was at the Starship Sakura Dance (whose premise I have even less of an understanding than the Fuz Ball). The concerts were the same, same song list and costumes, except for a slight costume change Veronica did for the last set on the second night. There was a cleared dance floor right in front of stage and then rows of seats some ways back. Guess where most of the audience was. ^_~

The performances were about an hour each, not including the 15-minute break. They involved a few costume changes. First was their "regular" outfits, second was what I call their "Japanese" set in which they quickly slipped into kimonos (right onstage, too, although hidden behind Japanese umbrellas), then the third after the break with metallic-accented corsets and skintight leather pants (or faux leather, not sure). The playlist in no particular order:

- Butterfly (naturally)
- Domo Domo Domo
- Golden Sky
- Coconut
- It's in Your Melody
- Dancing All Alone (kimono mix; danced in their kimonos of course ^_~)
- A Geisha's Dream
- Tomoe
- Koko Soko
- Dragonfly
- Do Be Di Boy
- Japanese Boy
- Summer Party
- Hummingbird
- Temptation Island
- Nothing's Missing
- Future Girls (this was the first song in their "metallic" set)
- Boys (this was near the end)
- Mr. Wonderful (also near the end)
- Petit Love (the final song! ^_~ )

They had para para dancers for some of the songs (all of whom my b/f apparently cropped out of the pics he posted, hehe), three shirtless guy dancers (made especial use of in "Boys," of course), and a solo female dancer who came out for only 2 or 3 songs. On Saturday, they had a Q&A -- I really wish I'd remembered to bring a recorder because I was sitting right by one of the speakers and could have gotten a great transcript of the panel. But sadly not. Then there were two autograph sessions, only the first of which I went to, in which I got the "Party Around the World" CD autographed. I actually wanted to get my "Golden Sky" CD signed, but I hadn't realized they'd changed members after that, so I felt weird having Hanna sign a CD that she wasn't part of. ^_~

...And on a totally different note, me in my Lana Skye costume! And I actually look relatively decent! ^_~

http://ryusen.smugmug.com/gallery/79431 … 3975_H9Fei

We weren't able to dedicate a time to get full-body pics of me because my shoes didn't fit as well as I thought and my feet were killing me by the time 3 p.m. came around for the Phoenix Wright photo shoot. I was going to cosplay on Friday and Saturday but ended up doing so for Friday only. Because ohhhh did my feet hurt like crazy after that. Definitely need to get better shoes before wearing this costume again. ^_~

Holy cow! I would LOVE to see Smile.dk in concert, but funds are pretty strict right now. Nice job on the costume, too!

Man, I gotta get around to tracking down some of the pop I listen to. I imagine Smile.dk's older stuff is pretty hard to find. Lee Jung Hyun's CD's evade me, and ROmantic Mode is practically unheard of nowadays. So sad. ;_;

Still, totally jealous of you!

Definitely sounds you like a good time, Schala!  Those are some awesome pics there; those kimono outfits they're sporting are tres-chic.  How were the new performances of the classic Smile songs?  I'd love to hear how Coconut, Mr. Wonderful, and Dragonfly turned out in particular.

It's probably somewhat judgmental for me to say so, but someone has to say it: Veronica's certainly gotten heavier these days.  Unless she's expecting..... in which case, one wonders if she should be up and performing at all.

Love those Phoenix Wright cosplay shots, too.  Your Lana Skye is particularly great looking, and so is Edgeworth.  And I like that one girl with the Kitaki-style apron and fox-earred hairdo. :D

Wow, that sounded like an awesome set list, and the production seems to have been much more elaborate than their concert last year. The only songs I'd add would be "Tokyo" and "Happy in Love." And maybe replace "Nothing's Missing" with "Maybe."

About the Q&A session, did anyone happen ask them what's up with the new 2008 remake of "Butterfly" that was supposed to be on the Doki Doki single? And was there any news on any future albums/singles?

There's a video of "Dragonfly" up on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukI1Cv9PyyE  I'm not too keen about the background dancers...

As for the weight gain, she must be in her mid 30's by now, and she did have a baby a few years ago. Besides, it seems that almost all 90s eurodance acts have gained some weight since their heydays. Well, except for Pernille Georgi.

Yeah, and especially for kimonos that were meant to be put on in a matter of minutes, right onstage. As for the classic songs, I have to admit that I've never been able to tell the difference between the voices of all the Smile women ^_^ so to me, the performances with Hanna sounded just as good as with the original singers.

Hehe...I agree with Shdwrlm. At the Q&A, not only did Veronica mention that she has a 5-year-old, but also that it's been 10 years (!) since Smile's first album. And as high school reunions can show, 10 years can add quite a bit of weight. ^_~ My b/f also remarked that they were older than he'd expected. Still, I thought they looked really good. Even Hanna, who is rather plump around the bottom, look pretty darn good in those skintight pants. Wish I could look as good. ^_~

AAAHHH TOO MUCH YOUTUBE REMINISCING. Blast it Shdwrlm! ^_~

One thing I hadn't noticed on the first night (or maybe they didn't do it on the first night, I don't know) because I was right up against the stage were the two huge screens on either side of the stage. They showed the official videos to the songs that had them. For some reason it never hit me that they'd actually made videos to their songs.

Thanks ^_^ I forgot to say, I didn't make the costume myself. I *really* wanted to go as Lana but I knew I'd never be able to learn to sew something complicated like that in time, so I commissioned it. I did make the medals myself, though. ^_~ The costume came out great if rather bulky. I look far bigger in the costume than I am in real life. ...At least, I certainly hope I'm not actually that big in real life. ^_~

LOL...You know, there were actually two people wearing aprons. I didn't get a good look at the other person, and obviously I totally missed the fox hairdo on the second person, so I couldn't figure out who they were until I flipped through the Gyakuten artbook that I also bought at the con. The Wocky/Boss cross person threw me off because Wocky never does wear an apron in the game. First I thought it might be Maggey or Maya in their waitress outfits.

Someone did ask about the rumored remix album. As far as I remember, Veronica said they're working on it. When someone else asked about possibly re-releasing older CDs, Veronica said copyright issues prevent them from doing that since they're with a new label, hence why they're remixing some of the older songs, so they can release them on their own. Other than that, nothing else about future releases. They apparently go on tour quite often in Asia, so that probably would delay a new studio recording.

Someone asked about why they mention samurai so much in their song. Veronica's answer: Because we love samurai. "They're so manly!"

Then of course it was AFTER the session finished that I thought of the question I was REALLY wanting to ask: What's up with the apparently message in "Don't Believe You're Leaving"?! ^_~