The metal/ dance/ J-pop fusion phenomenon, BABYMETAL, are back, releasing a live album of their first ever UK arena show. BABYMETAL has come so far in a relatively short space of time, doing well for their 17/18 ages. They’re a band I’ve wanted to see live for a while now, as so much goes into their live performances, and it looks insane. This album is the next best thing.
BABYMETAL’s live shows are something else, but when listening to the opening track, I was concerned that the performance may not translate well to just audio. If you’ve seen the BABYMETAL ‘Gimme Chocolate!!’ video (with those views, odds are, you have) you wonder how they sing, dance, and run around all at once. When I first heard the album I was worried that I’d like the band a little less, having just the audio, and none of the crazy stage stuff to go with it. The album opens with ‘BABYMETAL DEATH’, and before there’s any singing, you can hear the crowd cheering for the trio. A voice is then heard, saying “A long time ago…”, which although possibly pointless, really made me feel like I was there, watching them – which I guess is the point of a live album.
Su-Metal does an outstanding job singing on all of the songs, and as the prologue said, their music really does transcend language barriers. It doesn’t matter that not all of the lyrics can be understood, that doesn’t take away from the fact that their music is great. The live band also does a really good job backing up the band, something which you may overlook seeing BABYMETAL live due to the trio’s performance. They play with impressive skill, especially in ‘Ijme, Dame, Zettai’, ‘Awadama fever’, and ‘Karate’. In fact, picking a favourite from the album is incredibly difficult. Their set is filled with favourites from both their albums, and all in all, it’s a kick-ass track list.
[youtube v=WIKqgE4BwAY]Songs like ‘Awadama fever’, ‘Gj’, ‘Gimme Chocolate!!’, and ‘Doki Doki Morning’ worked especially well live. The sound balancing is perfect, not one instrument outweighs the other (which can be a danger of live albums), so you can clearly hear everything that’s being played. With extremely mosh-able breakdowns, call and response vocals, and catchy rhythms, you can tell it was a fantastic gig.
The only negative about this album would be the last two tracks, ‘THE ONE’, and ‘Road of resistance’. These tracks, at 10:22, and 12:53 respectively, didn’t necessarily translate well to the album. I’m sure they would have been great live, but there was a lack of actual music. This meant I was just left waiting around for someone to start playing.
Overall, it’s a really good live album, and is only going to make you want to see the iconic band live.
[youtube v=6YmLiQmoYeY]See BABYMETAL on tour supporting Red Hot Chili Peppers this month:
Monday 5 December London The O2
Tuesday 6 December London The O2
Thursday 8 December Glasgow The SSE Hydro
Saturday 10 December Birmingham Genting Arena
Sunday 11 December Birmingham Genting Arena
Wednesday 14 December Manchester Arena
Thursday 15 December Manchester Arena
Sunday 18 December London The O2