Description
Liam Gallagher’s solo concert at Toyosu PIT on August 22, 2023, generated such wild enthusiasm among fans that the term “Toyosu Knebworth” was coined. This was also the final show of his world tour accompanying his third album, “C’MON YOU KNOW,” which was the culmination of his solo career. At the time, we released a super high-quality audience recording exclusive to our store, “TOKYO 23,” and received feedback that it was the best compared to other label releases. This week, the previously unreleased in-ear monitor matrix recording and the audio from “TOKYO 23” have come together in a fateful encounter, and the legendary Toyosu PIT concert is finally available as a literally official-quality soundboard recording! The audience, who had no idea about the Oasis reunion announcement the following year, generated the same wild enthusiasm and singalongs as in the UK! The mere fact that the one and only rock star Liam Gallagher appeared in a small-capacity live house is incredibly rare, but the sheer impact of this love-filled night being reborn as a stereo soundboard recording through the ultimate in-ear monitor matrix is astounding! Even if you already own the previously released version, this is an absolute must-buy, ultimate masterpiece! Even now that the Oasis reunion has become a reality, the excitement of Liam’s solo live performance in Toyosu in 2023 remains undiminished. After all, it was his first performance in Japan in a long time after the COVID-19 pandemic, and for fans all over Japan who were suffering from severe live concert withdrawal symptoms, it was truly a night that quenched their thirst. Moreover, in contrast to last year’s Oasis Tokyo Dome performance, the fact that this live show took place at Toyosu PIT, which has a capacity of only 3,000 people, further enhances its specialness. (Perhaps due to the overwhelming singalong at the venue, as will be discussed later, a COVID-19 cluster actually occurred there.) It had been a long time since his last visit to Japan, and the venue had a capacity of 3,000 people, so the sheer excitement was immediately spread through social media. In fact, there are still many fans who can’t forget that frenzy. Following the great success of Liam’s solo Knebworth performance held early in the same ‘C’MON YOU KNOW’ tour, the expression “Toyosu Knebworth” was coined to refer to this day, which is the best proof of this! It was at this time, while the excitement was still high, that ‘TOKYO 23’ was released. It was a truly superb audience recording, exclusive to our store, and despite being released on CD-R, it became a masterpiece that was met with great acclaim. It’s no wonder that there were many voices saying, “I want this on a pressed disc.” After that, the XAVEL version ‘DOWN BY THE BAY TOKYO’ was released, making full use of in-ear monitor recordings. In addition to the high sound quality unique to in-ear monitors, the release generated considerable buzz due to it being a long-awaited pressed disc. However, because it was an in-ear monitor recording, the click track was quite loud in almost every song, and not only was it a constant popping noise, but more importantly, the mix was quite dead, which unfortunately meant that the enthusiasm of the audience on the day, the atmosphere of the venue, and certain instrumental sounds (e.g., female chorus or sound effects within songs) were hardly conveyed. If you compare the choruses of “Stand By Me” and “Wonderwall,” where Liam leaves the vocals to the audience, with this release, the shortcomings of the mix become quite clear. That’s where this new release comes in! The basis for it is a matrix created by a fan using previously unreleased audience recordings and stereo in-ear monitor recordings (different in-ear monitor recordings). By adding the audience recording from the classic album “TOKYO 23” to the matrix, we have created the ultimate matrix soundboard recording that truly captures the best of both worlds! In creating this matrix, both the fan-made version and the “TOKYO 23” recordings were analyzed and separated into individual parts using the latest AI technology (17 tracks in total from both sources!), and then matrixed after optimizing the treatment down to the smallest detail. While the fan-made matrix recording had a greater sense of presence than the XAVEL version, it suffered from a problem where the drum sound was altered as a side effect of trying to completely eliminate the click track. This is due to the fact that the click track tends to be recognized as one part of the drum. Therefore, for the drums, instead of using the track from the fan-made recording, we replaced it with the drum part from “TOKYO 23,” brilliantly restoring the raw and natural sound that is characteristic of the original drums. Also, since the bass sound image was somewhat thin in the fan-made matrix recording, we replaced it with the bass part from “TOKYO 23.” However, thanks to the thorough remastering and mixing, you should be able to listen to it without any sense of incongruity. This process alone required an enormous amount of effort, but the audience recordings from “TOKYO 23” also truly shine. The three guitars, which are precisely positioned on the left, center, and right, have gained even more dynamism. You can say goodbye to the issues that are common in titles using in-ear monitor recordings, such as the “strangely monitor-like thinness” and “certain instruments being excessively loud”! Barley Cadogan’s powerful guitar solos, which were previously somewhat buried, have been vividly revived, and the female chorus, which was a live performance element unique to Liam’s solo work, has been balanced to a natural degree. Furthermore, the sound effects of the boys’ choir that play in the intro of “More Power” are also incredibly clear. As a result, the IEM recordings and two types of audience recordings have undergone careful remastering and gone through the ultimate matrix process, transforming into a live album that sounds as if you are listening to an official stereo soundboard recording. This is truly amazing. The moment playback began, the Stone Roses’ “I Am The Resurrection” blared throughout the venue, vividly bringing back the excitement of that day. Despite it being a studio recording that had been playing in the venue before the show started, the Japanese fans were already singing along to the song in a massive chorus. This opening alone is guaranteed to get your heart racing. After that, there was a huge singalong of “Liam, Liam, Liam!” Then Liam and the band members finally appeared on stage, and the performance began with an overwhelmingly clear sound. The venue’s energy reached its peak with the first two songs, “Morning Glory” and “Rock ‘n’ Roll Star.” There was absolutely no problem with the click track, which is the biggest weakness of in-ear monitor recordings, and it was a perfect stereo soundboard that could be enjoyed comfortably from beginning to end. You could even clearly hear the female chorus by Frida Touray and Rahh, who created a wonderful atmosphere in songs such as “More Power,” “Roll It Over,” “The River,” and “Champagne Supernova.” Listening to Liam’s clear and defined vocals and playing, it’s clear he’s in top form, foreshadowing last year’s fantastic Tokyo Dome performance. It’s evident that the groundwork for the later Oasis reunion was already perfectly laid at this time (in fact, guitarist Mike Moore and keyboardist Christian Madden, who had participated in Liam’s solo work, also joined the reunion tour). Yet, the unique energy of Toyosu is clearly conveyed, from the massive singalong during the chorus of “Shockwave” to moments when the entire venue becomes one with huge singalongs during songs like “Stand By Me,” “Roll With It,” “Wonderwall,” “Champagne Supernova,” and “Live Forever.” And then there was the breathtaking performance of “Roll It Over,” a rare and long-awaited addition to the Oasis repertoire, and the encore performance of Jimi Hendrix’s “Are You Experienced?”! The latter, in particular, was an extremely rare performance, only shown twice—once in Toyosu and once in London—making its value immeasurable. Toyosu PIT, Tokyo, Japan 22nd August 2023 Remaster & Matrix of In-Ear Monitor & 2 Audience Recordings Disc 1 (49:55) 01. The Stone Roses – I Am The Resurrection [PA Introduction]02. Fuckin’ In The Bushes 03. Morning Glory 04. Rock ‘n’ Roll Star 05. Wall Of Glass 06. Shockwave 07. Better Days 08. Stand By Me 09. Roll It Over 10. Slide Away Disc 2 (49:20) 01. More Power 02. Diamond In The Dark 03. The River 04. Once 05. Cigarettes & Alcohol 06. Roll With It 07. Wonderwall 08. Champagne Supernova 09. Live Forever 10. Are You Experienced? Liam Gallagher – lead vocals, tambourine, maracas Jay Mehler – guitar Mike Moore – guitar Barrie Cadogan – guitar Drew McConnell – bass, backing vocals Adam Falkner – drums Christian Madden – keyboards Frida Touray – backing vocals Rahh – backing vocals
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