ATARASHII GAKKO! took the stage once again in California, this time at Crunchyroll Expo. This marks the third time they have performed in America.

The set list was more or less the same as the one at San Diego Comic Con, but this allowed me to focus more on the movements and the individuals themselves, and of course, use my camera. I enjoyed seeing songs like "Koi Geba," "NAI NAI NAI," and especially "WOO! GO!" again.

Now having experienced them twice, I stand by my original assessment that they're a hurricane on stage. High-speed movement, flapping hair, and all the energy that a raging storm can provide. Well worth your time. Please refer to my initial article for further details; I won't be rehashing much in this one as I would just be repeating myself.  Let me say this, though: you should see them.  You've got a few more chances, so don't waste them.

One thing I noticed while reviewing my photos is just how emotive the girls are. In San Diego I got the hint of it but only when able to capture them in still photo does it become clear. In a past life I was an animator and one of the things we learned was to exaggerate movements. When you're going at such a high speed, the exaggeration looks normal. ATARASHII GAKKO! utilizes the same principle to great effect. This does mean it can be difficult to get a good facial expression on all of them at once, and many a photo now lays on the cutting room floor.

The girls clearly have a lot of experience dancing; they exhibited many different styles to a skillful degree. They once said that they wanted to incorporate Japanese dance into their own routines and I can definitely see the influence. Traditional Japanese dance has certain arm movements and those elements have been included in ATARASHII GAKKO!'s own.

For a few songs the girls wear the gakuran coat reminiscent of ouendan cheer leaders, and when you consider that the group's Japanese name is "ATARASHII GAKKO NO LEADERS," it definitely fits.  The gakuran itself started as merely the jacket for schoolboys in Japan but has morphed into something bigger than that, especially in pop culture.

This also served as the maiden voyage of my new camera, a Canon R5. There are a few quirks I have to figure out with the AF but it more or less did the job spectacularly. I did have to spend a bit of time googling mid-set to figure out why I was unable to utilize the high-speed shooting mode (answer, for any of you who might face the same issue: turn off dual pixel raw).  ATARASHII GAKKO! was definitely a worthy test for my camera.

As a reminder, ATARASHII GAKKO! is not done with America just yet. In a week and a half's time, you'll be able to see them in San Francisco's Great American Music Hall. After that, The Roxy down in Los Angeles. Finally, Pasadena for 88rising's Head in the Clouds festival.

If you had fun, and I'm sure you did, that's your second, third, and fourth chances to see them again.

Crunchyroll Expo continues throughout the weekend on August 6 and 7. Tickets are sadly sold out for the weekend.

Tomorrow's headliner will be SiM, famed for "The Rumbling," which was used as opening theme for Attack on Titan's final season. On Sunday we'll be treated to a performance by the third and final headliner, BURNOUT SYNDROMES.

Thank you to Crunchyroll for making this event possible.  New Crunchy City Music Fest is turning out great, and I hope it is something that will be a staple from all Crunchyroll Expos going forward.