Aqours Brand New Wave trip report

So to start off, AX announced Aqours super late this year, like two or three weeks after they had last year. So everything for the trip (badge, hotel, flight) was more expensive lol. Also this year they performed at The Novo which seats like 2400, when last year's venue sat ~7000 and didn't sell out. Luckily with the power of multiple browsers and devices, I was able to get a general ticket for both performances (Friday night and Saturday afternoon). I got balcony seats both times because I wasn't going to camp for a good pit position and I knew I couldn't last standing in a mosh pit like that.

On Day 1 I arrived to the line about an hour and a half before the live, and got inside after about a half hour of waiting. BTW, even if the sales system for live goods was a bit iffy due to demand this year, it beat waiting in the sun for 6 hours.  I galaxy brained bringing an empty water bottle to fill in the bathroom since I didn't want to pay for hecking water. I was seated far to the right side of the theater, enough that I couldn't see all of the large screen at the back of the stage and had some of the front corner obscured, but the top-down angle was great. The live started a bit later than scheduled but I think no one's surprised at that lol.
First song was Bokura no Hashittekita Michi wa…, which is the same song they started with at 5L. I don't have many opinions about this song since it's a movie song and kinda standard Aqours sounding, though I like how it starts with just the 1st and 2nd years and the 3rd years come in later. Also for me it was completely overshadowed by the next song! Thrilling One Way!! It's one of my top three favorite full group songs and I screamed my throat sore during the chant at the beginning and end. After that it was straight into Aozora Jumping Heart which I've seen so many times at DVs that I didn't realize I’d never seen it live before lol.
Next up was the standard introduction MC. No "do your Rubesty" this year, though. So far the setlist had paralleled 5L but I didn't fully realize that. Next songs were Mattete Ai no Uta and Shoujo Ijou no Koi ga Shitai, both nice and also songs where I realized how much choreography you don't see during solo lines in recordings since the cameras focus on who is singing. There was a very brief instrumental intermission before the girls returned with a slight costume change and performed Sky Journey. After that (which if I remembered the 5L setlist shouldn't remembered) was my number one favorite song, Daydream Warrior. It was amazing finally being able to see it live! Todokanai Hoshi Dato Shitemo was after that. The next intermission was one of the animated sequences from 5L, about trying to find a fiancée for Mari lol.
Brightest Melody, in the respective costume, was next. They even did the "throw the coats off" thing. This is also the most memorable part is day 1. About a third or halfway through the song, I started feeling woozy like I was going to fall over. I bent a bit and grabbed the chair in the row in front of me, but the feeling didn't stop. Looking around I saw my seat neighbors also looking confused, and then the (kinda obnoxious overall) guy next to me asked if an earthquake was happening.

Yes, in fact, an earthquake WAS happening.

The girls finished Brightest Melody and left the stage, and that's when it was pointed out the lights and TVs hanging from the ceiling were still swaying some. A lot of people made tweets or texts or phone calls to say they were ok or to talk about what happened. An announcement said they were pausing the live to make sure everything was ok and nothing else was coming. It was about a 10 minute pause before they came back on stage and Anchan cutely asked if everyone was ok :3 I honestly think them continuing the song to the end helped with not causing any panic in the crowd.

There was another short MC here, then Koi ni Naritai Aquarium was up. Ofc sitting on the side my participation in the Yousoroad was to hide my light lol. It ended up ok, there was a road but there were enough lights to the sides that it didn't stand out as much as it could have. Also there was a taiga scream. Next was Kimi no Hitomi o Meguru Bouken, my final top three favorite song. I’d seen it last year but since it's one of my favorites I appreciated it being done again. Same with the following song, Mirai no Bokura wa Shitteru yo (I didn't cry this time lol). Then the ending MC with thank yous and "this is totally the last song" speeches, and the classic Kimi no Kokoro wa Kagayaiteru Kai? were done.

That totally set up for an encore, and since the house lights didn't come on it was obvious. The chants on this day were ok, some people really complained about "NA casuals" not doing "A-KU-A".

The group ran back on stage for the encore in the usual live t-shirt and skirt outfit and did Hop? Stop? Nonstop!, the last major full group movie song and probably my favorite of the three. The following MC was them thanking us for the encore and saying they'd like to show us their appreciation in song. Another nice set up to go into the next two songs, No. 10 and Thank You, FRIENDS!! No. 10 is important for two reasons - it's a rainbow song, and with Arisha absent, the crowd in her color band has to yell "NANA" during the count. Both were successful! I was in that section and I yelled it pretty loud lol. Then the girls grabbed the 5L towels and performed their newest song, Jump up HIGH! I didn't have a towel (breaking the most important rule of the universe) so I just spun my blade in a circle during those parts. Funny how they sold a towel last year when there were no towel songs but didn't sell one this year...

Finally, they ran to either side of the stage for thank yous and bows. When they did the final one, Aikyan did her usual "grabbing" of the audiences hand :3 I didn't do anything special in the area after we were let out, just walked the long way back to my hotel and met up with PXMacaiah and went to dinner outside of downtown.

On to Day 2! I was at Aimi's talk stage in the exhibit hall beforehand so by the time I powerwalked to the venue there was no line to get in. This time I was seated in the middle section in the very last row, so I had a great top down view of the entire stage. The people in front of me kept jumping though, until the guy to my right told them to calm down lol.

Only setlist differences were switching out Aquarium for Happy Party Train and Kimi no Hitomi for "MY LIST" to you!, both identical to what 5L did. Of course being in the center today my role in HPT was to hide my light. The Kananrail was better than the Yousoroad! Also the encore chant was better sustained, and the "NANA" during No. 10 was much louder.

At the end on both days they said they're happy to have come four years in a row to LA (three of which were performances) and they hope to come back next year. I have a hate-like relationship with AX, but if Aqours is there, I'll be sure to do my Rubesty to attend.