Hearing Kanami sing together with Saiki is amazing. Absolutely love that performance.

the contrast between the two versions of this song really do show how great a composer Kanami is and how amazing Saiki is as a singer

@@nogarddragonkin Mincho did NOT compose this song "Kentaro Akutsu" did he also did Thrill Shake That and most of Maid in Japan but our little Pigeon DID do the lyrics (which she is eternally embarrassed about)

@@DavidMISAMISAMISACook I think nogarddragonkin was talking about "Puzzle" and not "Smile"

@@2abug ahhh that makes more sense ta 2

During Anemone, Saiki almost cries.

Puzzle live version + Puzzle (acoustic) live in one session maybe?

@@Slippy6582 There's no avoiding it, it has to be done :)

@@GaryHolloway-810 In one session or two, Yes. HAS to be done :)

@@bartyslattfast I think she does at the end.

Saiki says that she doesn't like Miku, but they seems to share the special bond at the same time. Saiki must have so much respect to Miku as a lyricist and tries to convey everything Miku puts into words. And the way they harmonize so perfectly and beautifully, like they can sync through music.

You and me both Robert.

I'd like them to acapella as they all have good voices.

There's no sad in Band-Maid -- especially if you go to bed with your headphones on. {[-!-]}

@@TomClark-Futoura I have 2 pairs of in ears. (Sony) for cranking the volume up full blast. (JVC) late at night when I'm tired & I don't mind crushing them a bit. So I guess I have a crush on BAND-MAID.😏

@@GaryHolloway-810 We Maidiacs might want to invest in hearing aid stocks at some point. 😳 BTW - it looks like Splendor was as we expected.

@@TomClark-Futoura Yeah I heard Xagor & Patron had some real technical issues & it buffered quite a lot apparently :(

Awww since you were happy I'm sure it made you "Smile" 🙂

You're not the only one

Daydream and Smile is tied for first.

She is awesome

She has the most beautiful Alto tone which as you said is not typical of most Japanese vocalists.

It's amazing that she can access that power while sitting down too.

I totally agree...one of a kind....I could listen to Saiki all day long

The fact that Saiki and Miku can harmonize at times perfectly adds yet another another level of Saikis and Mikus talent.

Saiki tends to be forgotten when people talk about Band-Maids genius. She has been honing her vocal skills with training and practice over the last few years and is as is everyone in the band essential to their sound.

@@philipcable7518 And to think she had surgery done for polyps, which could've ruined her voice, yet she not only got back to where she was, but got better. That doesn't happen often for singers after surgeries.

@@War624 So did Koba at the same time.

I sometimes forget Miku writes the lyrics, thanks

@@RyanMear our little Flappy pigeon really is the glue in band maid in so many ways

@@RyanMear There's an interview where she says something like "I started writing because what Kanami brought up the first time was very disturbing, there was a dead dog in it". 😂 Thanks to that dead dog we get to experience the inner workings of that brilliant pigeon's head. If you ever get curious about it, there's a spreadsheet on the Band-Maid Reddit with a section all about translated song lyrics. It is really worth a look-see.

Thanks!

@@RyanMear yeah, Ryan - what Mr Lu said :D Back when they got together as a band, all of them had expectations of how it would be going. It was pretty much clear what they wanted to write and perform their own music. Miku was the one who had the contract with the label, so the management kept the last saying for a while. Most maidiacs nowadays have the opinion that the label didn't "allow" their stuff etc. I - honestly - think, it was the right decision at the time. They weren't "ready" yet. My point is based by a couple of earlier interviews, they liked the songwriters they worked with, they had a say in the process, they picked and "modified" the provided material themselves. And they continued to work with some of their earlier outside song-writers even later - after they wrote the majority themselves. "Smile" is such song - it's composed by the "Thrill" songwriter, but came years later... There are a couple more - "Tienowa" for example They tried writing their own stuff from the beginning however. Let's simply say the label dismissed a lot of it because it wasn't good enough. Band-Maid did say that they learned A LOT from the outside writers in the beginning. Kanami wanted to be known as a song-writer first (!), and then as a guitarist. Three of them tried writing the lyrics. Saiki couldn't put her ideas/feelings into words. Kanamis lyrics were so weird what they simply agreed she shouldn't be writing them. They told that story a couple times, she wrote something about a cute puppy, how much she loves it... and then it died (+ illustration of a tombstone with a little corpse besides) - looking at it now, it sound SO much like Kanami XD. So Miku tried - and happened to be quite talented at it. In fact - she even wrote or co-wrote lyrics WAY BEFORE they started releasing own compositions ("Thrill", "Freedom" are examples you heard already) That you might not know however... Mikus lyrics are very technical. It's not easy to sing at all. The is a good reddit post, going into details. The technicality just goes over our heads as we don't understand the language. Saiki is the one who suffers the most :D Saiki complains A LOT at first of how Miku constructs it, so Miku basically needs to explain and show it first (but she lets Saiki go first on her own, to see how she interprets it). There were a couple songs they mentioned ("Catharsis" fe) where Saiki complained so much and Miku herself failed at singing it, so she went and rewrote parts of it XD But for both Miku and Kanami - if Saiki says "it sucks", then were is little open to discussion - they rework or start all over again. Saiki is also the deciding voice in the end, she calls it when one song is "finished", they just keep working on it, until Saiki says so... It's really down to - Saiki doesn't play around, no cutesy wordings, she is a straight shooter, if it sucks - it sucks ;) (however she mellowed down a bit over years, they say it's MISAs influence, as she is the nicest one, and her and Saiki hang out a lot)

Great realization of the trust between bands members. It its very important.

Just guessing, but if I was as conscientious as Kanami and as busy as Miku, I would use Miku's guitar lessons and practice sessions as rehearsals and vice versa.

It’s about us.

Choose me was also a "B" track to the Daydreaming single, so I think you might be on to something 🤔

Haha. Great comment but you accidently misspelled Gary with "Me". Lol

@@GaryHolloway-810 LMAO again.🤣

It's a testament to Miku who saw the bigger picture, put her ego to one side and stepped back and learned rhythm guitar.

@@philipcable7518 very true! But the fact remains that their manager at the time wanted Saiki at first to look good holding a guitar, she didn’t look good holding one! Miku stepped up to the plate and said she’d do it! Meanwhile, Kanami said to Miku that if she’s gonna hold a guitar she might as well learn how to play it!! Today, she’s badass

I love how they went from a produced thing to a venerable BEAST in music.

@@Muzicman-ut3jr 100%

@@RyanMear This was mostly due to them pushing for more control as their popularity grew. As with most artists no one sees how hard it is behind the scenes

I hope so! This BAND is ....aMAIDzing.

@@RyanMear ...😜😂

@@RyanMear Love it - they can go light as a feather duster and then clean your clock!

It was so good.

She sings with such a frantic sense of urgency

The live version from the Shibuya Feb 14th, 2020 Blu-ray is great.

Daydreaming

Smile was the original love letter to the fans according to Miku.

Daydreaming

WhaaT?

@@RyanMear My reaction to a T! 🤣

@@RyanMear Miku has deceptive range. She has that chirpy anime affect when she speaks but she can go quite low and higher than Saiki. There is no video (yet) but check out her solo song Sayonakidori (number 7, on the Unseen World playlist on their page), Kanami made her work for it. She also gets a little guitar solo too.

Miku might use an octave drop on her mic but even so the harmonies that she and Saiki weave give me chills

Wonderland is great and Miku's harmonies are what sells it. She can sing higher than Saiki and can match her falsetto without actually using a falsetto.

Mirage, anemone and wonderland are awesome, too.

I listened to Page a lot when my dad died last year. Helped me get through a difficult time.

@@YabusameUK i also listen to all of their mid tempo songs while reminiscing good memories with my late sister

@@Frozenhalf.Zednalri , I lost my sister in 2019. It was unexpected and I was such a mess. I know your pain.

Thank you MISA for Awkward.

She was having problems on one of the online concerts too. She just carried on like the absolute professional she is.

They use Westone custom EAS 30 IEM’s.

@@philipcable7518 She was definitely irked though.

If you mean the early Engadget performance or the Mochtocheez songs it's a "cajon", which is basically a box with a hole in it.

@@markyg236 it is indeed a "cajon", I couldn't remember the name but it plays just like a washboard ;) hehe

@@prutgardin666 👍

Cajon

Thank you so much for checking them out!

They’re so young at that performance.

@@GaryHolloway-810 Cool I'll check it out.

Let's hope this prediction comes true as well!

Akane is using Rods (every brand has a name for them, I think that one is Pro Mark's). They look like a bunch of twigs bundled together with tape instead of a solid piece of wood normal drumstick are made of. They are very soft on cymbals and that helps on acoustic songs. Cymbals take a long time to die out after being hit and that tends to drown out soft guitars. They can also hit very hard on drums but not as hard as sticks and Akane is classy, so she knows what she's doing! 👍

Yes, well put

@@YourMusicStore Thanks Mr Lu ;)

@@YourMusicStore That's interesting - thanks.

@@YourMusicStore Akane's control is just mind blowing. Her cadence and jazz style flare set her apart from other rock drummers.

Kanami doesn’t like to sing and definitely won’t sing lead.

Why would you use Google Translate when there is a somewhat decent translation available online.

Oh wow! I'm actually in Plymouth. I lived in South Bend for awhile, worked in Elkhart at DSE music

@@RyanMear that's cool blueberry stomp band maid is absolutely the best band out there been a fan for awhile now 2015 ) this so cool oh my favorite song by band maid ( all of them) but before yesterday it a live version I wish you could react to puzzle live acoustic but it's not available plenty of othe songs and bands flip kinda rock grunge the love toxicity album one of the best I've listened to I'm 60 and all I listen to is all female bands from Japan around 20 or so groups be well

I have access to Puzzle live acoustic....