Typhoon Mario "Can't Stop" CNBLUE Live In Manila

Outside, neighboring towns and cities are submerged in a flood. Typhoon Mario is making his presence felt in a not-at-all-subtle manner. All the way in Hawaii, Arashi Blast is happening (which is verrrry fitting). Inside the SMART Araneta Coliseum, the show went on. Which is a good thing, because I braved the foul weather to travel all the way from Baguio to catch this concert that I have been looking forward to in months. Thank you, CNBLUE and the organizers for not letting Typhoon Mario stop “CAN’T STOP” from happening!

(I’m trying real hard to keep this from becoming another image-heavy post, but I’ll be honest: when I transferred photos from my camera, I found 600+ photos (mostly Jonghyun-centric. My camera seems primed that way.) and trying to whittle it down to 100+ is P-A-I-N-F-U-L.)

The show starts at 8pm, but I only went inside the Coliseum at a few minutes past 7. These large boards were all over the place, even around the Gateway area. Ignore the COLSIEUM misspelling, haha!

Noticeably, there were a lot of vacant seats, which we presumed to be because of the Typhoon Mario rendering many roads leading to the Coliseum to be “impassable” due to flooding and heavy rains. But, as they always say, the show must go on, and I’m just darn glad I was there to witness it.

At the back of the SVIP area was where the concert’s technical staff was set up. They are responsible for the lights and the background/screen of the stage. I must say, just like the previous concert, they did their job very well. Such pros.

The con began 10 to 15 minutes past the hour of 8. *applause all around* I’ve experienced having to wait more than half an hour before a K-con starts so this was definitely a welcome change!

It was sooooooooo good to see these four again!

Yonghwa – Not really loving the hair, but he rocked it all the same. I suppose it’s his look for the Three Musketeers drama he’s doing? Anyway, he is his usual take-charge self, whipping the crowd up into a frenzy. Gotta hand it over to the guy. He knows his stuff, he works the crowd, he’s all over the place, and he’s fun to watch. Gotta love how he is obviously into what he’s doing, and does not care how he looks doing it. He just doesn’t care about anything but the music!

Of course, Yonghwa wouldn’t be Yonghwa without the usual dose of restrained and dry humor. The smirks and self-deprecating jokes are subtle you may miss them. But they’re there all the same.

And Jonghyun… what can I say. I’m shamelessly biased.

He is his usual laid-back self. The yin to Yonghwa’s yang (or is it the other way around?), he is the calm in the storm that is the stage. But you feel his presence. IMO, he’s the one delivering balance to the stage and each performance. I think I can be forgiven for having my eyes, ears, and camera trained on him most of the time.

Jungshin on bass is another calming presence. He’s exactly the type who can take over when Yonghwa takes a step back for a much-needed break. He’s also quite hard to pin down for a decent photo, because he rarely keeps still. His banter with the audience (and with Minhyuk), as well as his interactions with Jonghyun are always fun to watch.

At one point, before performing “Let’s Go Crazy”.

Jungshin (JS): Are you ready to crazy?

Audience: Yes! (with laughter at the grammar)

JS: Are you ready to crazy?

Audience: YES! (more laughter)

JS (sorta picks up): Sorry. My English skills… (scowls, shakes his head)… no good. I’m Korean.

Obviously. 🙂

Oh, and this night also happens to be his birthday.

And the baby is clearly growing up, but he’s still endearing as the youngest in the group. Minhyuk does not hesitate to play the cute card, speaking to the audience in Filipino (“Salamat sa pagpunta ninyo dito kahit na may bagyo”) and flashing that equally cute smile. He looks so innocent, but then when on the drums, HE TOTALLY WHIPS IT.

There was a point where Jungshin pumps up the crowd before starting another set.

JS: Are you ready!?

Audience: YES!

Minhyuk: I’m not.

Hah.

The boys played for around 2 hours nonstop (and no costume changes to shorten their time on stage!), taking breaks only to grab some water. They played their hits from the time they started (“I’m A Loner”, anyone?), until their recent release “Can’t Stop” mini-album. I particularly enjoyed their performances of “Can’t Stop”, “Cold Love”, and “Sleepless Night” from their latest release.

Of course, I am still disappointed that they did not perform “Teardrops in the Rain”, but they more than made up for it with some semi-acoustic sets, featuring Jonghyun’s dreamy voice.

It was a high-energy concert. In fact, I realized I was on my feet for two straight hours! It seemed a crime to be seated when the boys were soooooo into it!

Audience participation was amazing. You’d think the place was filled to the rafters with the screaming. My left ear was practically ringing because the young lady seated beside me was a hardcore Minhyuk fan, and she had no qualms about letting anyone know it.

They returned for an encore which, if I’m not mistaken, lasted for more than 20 minutes. The white shirt…. I COVET. When we stepped out afterwards, I was looking for anyone selling the shirts (because that was how it was in the past) but FOUND NONE. ARGH. Somebody. Help. Me. Get. That. Shirt.

The birthday mini-celebration. Jungshin was so into it. 🙂 (And you’d hear Filipinos singing the Birthday song in Korean. Wow.)

Another moment worth noting (at least for me) included Jonghyun showing a bit of his playful side, when his shy self is pushed a bit to the periphery. At one point he messed around with Minhyuk at the back.

At the end of the show, as they were saying their goodbyes, Yonghwa promised that they’d return to Manila, amid words of “very very Salamat” and “very very Mahal Ko Kayo”.

I am very very sure I will do my darnedest to catch them yet again when they do.

They closed the show with a photo taken with the audience.

It was such a fun, fun, fun show. I could not be blamed for forgetting that there is a storm raging in other parts of the country. Even for a little more than a couple of hours, being blissfully ignorant was very much welcome, especially with the help of these four fabulous individuals and their music.

In a way, I also thank Typhoon Mario for somehow making this concert even more memorable for me. 🙂