Loneliness and Rock and Roll with Band Observer

No wonder Kita didn't tell her his name when she first met him. Akie suddenly realized.

While the discussion here was coming to a conclusion, the store manager, who had been doing something in the corner, came back.

"So, has it been decided?"

"Yes!" Hongxia nodded, "It's decided!"

"Is Goto okay?" the manager looked in Goto's direction.

"Eh!" Goto Ichiri trembled as if he had received an electric shock. "I I I I I will do my best!"

"Don't be so nervous." The store manager shook his head. "Am I that scary?"

The store manager's eyes swept over the several members of the band who were about to finish their performance...

…Finally it stopped on Togawa Akee.

"...Ms. Manager." Akie also felt a little unnatural.

Is it my illusion? I feel like the store manager is looking at me in a strange way...

Did I do something that would make her feel uncomfortable?

The tall store manager looked down at Qiu Hui but said nothing, which made the latter even more confused.

"...I hope everyone can have fun."

Finally, the manager shook his head and turned away.

Although she still didn't understand where the other party's abnormal attitude came from, Qiu Hui had no choice but to give up.

Chapter 38 Performance Plan

After finalizing the work-related matters with the store manager, it was time to end the band’s internal discussion.

"We've discussed the quota issue, now let's talk about the first performance itself!"

Hongxia knocked on the table to get everyone's attention.

"Although we have been practicing for a while, it still feels like we are too scattered and it is hard to achieve the desired results. For this reason, I think we should take advantage of this meeting to determine our goals for this period of time!"

She pulled a whiteboard from the wall and wrote "Goal of ending the band" in large letters on it with a marker placed in the groove.

"What do you think is our most important goal right now? What is our secondary goal? What are the things that can be done or not, and can be postponed for the time being? Please speak freely!"

The goal...

Qiu Hui began to organize her thoughts.

Now, if we give everyone in the band a list of common tasks in RPG games, then the following two things will undoubtedly be listed in the "Main Quest" column.

First, "complete the first public performance."

Second, "earn enough performance fees by working part-time."

In addition to the above two main tasks, there is also a "side task" which is theoretically optional but also has an extremely important position: "Complete at least one original song."

Even if they don't write their own songs, simply relying on covering other people's songs to complete their first public performance is also an option for a group like the End Band, which is composed of high school students.

“When we were practicing before, we just randomly picked songs to play together. It was more like playing than practicing,” Akie said. “So if I were to give the primary goal… I think the most important thing is to choose two or three songs and focus on practicing them until we can perform on stage.”

"That's a very prudent idea." Nijixia nodded, "So what song do you think is better, Akiie?"

"Let's find one or two songs that are very popular recently." Qiu Hui suggested, "On the one hand, it can attract the audience to some extent. On the other hand, the most popular songs are probably not too complicated. Even if they are very complicated, there will be people who specially write simplified versions of the scores for fans to play. It is a more suitable choice for us."

"That makes sense. So what should I choose..."

"…Compared to this, what about the original song?" Ryo asked.

Her expression was somewhat serious and she seemed to be very concerned about this issue.

"It depends." Akie answered straightforwardly, "If you can write it smoothly and practice it to a sufficient level, then go for it. If not, it's okay if you don't go for it... although I prefer to have at least one original song."

"What exactly do you mean?" Liang asked.

"If we just play covers, the band's 'personality' won't be reflected. In order to distinguish the Ending Band from any other group, I think original songs are necessary." Akie stated in a very high-sounding tone.

Covers of hits can attract attention, but only originality will be remembered.

For me, who wants to create an idol-like persona, original songs are naturally necessary.

Of course, this is not a reason that can be said in front of everyone, Qiu Hui thought.

Liang nodded thoughtfully. I don't know how she understood this.

"…So, um…the part-time job thing, shouldn't be that quick for now, right?" Goto Ichiri asked timidly.

"Of course. After all, no one knows how much money will be needed before the show is over. There is even a possibility that the ticket sales from our first show will be enough to pay off the performance fee."

“Ah, you’re right, that’s exactly what happened… eh hehe…”

It seems that Goto Ichiri is yearning for a bright future where he doesn't have to work part-time.

“…Hehehe, I’ll play my guitar here…Oh no!”

"Guitar what?"

"Guitar...guitar...guitar technique!" Goto Ichiri explained in a panic, "I'm going to play hard so that the ticket sales will continue to increase! Then I won't have to work part-time! Hooray!"

Hongxia nodded with satisfaction and continued writing on the whiteboard.

「Choose a cover song」

「Complete original song」

"Practice hard!!!"

"That's about it!" Hong Xia put down the marker, "So, what do you think about the 'popular song' we're going to choose?"

"I don't know." Ryo was the first to say nothing. "I've been paying attention to the music charts in Saudi Arabia recently, but I don't have any idea about the popular trends in Japan."

"I always feel like the songs I like don't match the trend..." Goto followed suit and surrendered, "It would be terrible if I had to choose, right?"

"I don't really know what the trends are." Qiu Hui covered her face. "Well, how about just looking for a few songs from streaming media or YouTube charts..."

When she said this, she suddenly thought of something.

Didn't you happen to come across "B Komachi"'s song in karaoke before?

The suspense novel based on the core character of the group who disappeared after retiring was recently adapted into an animation. The work itself performed well, but the theme song of the animation was even more popular than the work itself...

"I suddenly have an idea. Does everyone know 'アイドル'?" Akie asked.

"That song!" Kita Ikuyo nodded, "It's quite popular. It seems to be played everywhere on the streets! In fact, I sang it with my friends at karaoke, so it should be fine!"

If even someone like Kita thinks it's popular, then it should be okay, Akie thought.

"So let's choose this one?" Nijixia asked, "Kita also said it's okay."

"I don't care." Liang shook his head. "The style of every song by that group sounds similar recently. It's not difficult for me."

"...Didn't you say we should choose a pop song?" Goto Ichiri asked, "That's the theme song for the anime, right?"

"Pochi, you even know that it's the theme song of the animation, so why don't you know that it's even more popular outside of the animation?" Akie said with a smile.

Even though it is the same thing, we can come to very different conclusions depending on our perspectives.

"I think it would be better to perform two songs for your first time on stage. You will not be able to finish it if you try too hard." Hong Xia suggested, "Let's save the remaining one for the original song!"

"Then it's decided." Akie also nodded.

Now that the repertoire has been decided, the next thing to do is very clear.

Since Kita and Nijika were not responsible for the original music, they started to study cover songs first.

The remaining Ryo, Ichiri and Akie focused their attention on new problems.

"Well, let's decide first."

Liang was the first to bring up a new topic.

"Do you plan to write the lyrics first and then compose the music, or do you plan to write the lyrics according to the music?"

Chapter 39 Adolescence Syndrome

"As a lyricist, to be honest, I prefer to write the lyrics first and then compose the music." Akie suggested, "This way, we can express ourselves more freely as lyricists, but we will have to trouble Ryo to adapt to our ideas. Is that okay?"

She expressed her opinion very bluntly, and Ryo responded in an equally blunt manner.

"That's totally fine. You and Pochi can do whatever you want. There's no need to worry about me."

"In other words, no matter what we come up with, Ryo is confident that he can write a song to match it. Am I right in understanding that?"

"I do have this confidence—"

Liang had no intention of being humble on this issue.

"——But it would be better if you could discuss your ideas with me before you start writing the final product."

Before I start writing, I’m actually talking about now.

"In that case, let's decide on the general direction here," Akie suggested, "This way Ryo can know the general tone in advance."

"That's right. Then, let's start the second phase of the meeting here. Pochi?"

Ryo looked at Goto, who had been silent since a while ago.

"Don't you have anything to say?"

Goto Ichiri lowered his head somewhat at a loss, subconsciously avoiding Ryo's gaze: "As for me... um, my opinion is actually fine, right?"

"How is that possible?" Qiu Hui pointed out, "As a member of the lyric writing team, your opinion is also irreplaceable."

"But, but..." Goto was depressed, "I... I actually..."

At this point, I can’t even say “I can’t think of anything”!

I was so carried away by Kita's praise that I took on this mission...

…As expected, retribution came so quickly!

What should I do? I originally thought that since Qiu Hui was there, I could just agree with the topic raised by the other party...

Akie looked at Goto, who was hesitating and unable to say anything, and smiled gently.

"I understand. After all, we don't even have the most basic direction right now. Even if we ask you to 'speak freely', I guess you don't know what to say, right?"

She looked at Ryo and Goto beside her and continued, "Actually, I already have an idea about the general direction of the original song. Since everyone is in high school, let's use 'youth' as ​​the topic..."

"No! This is absolutely not allowed!"

Goto Ichiri expressed his opposition very firmly.

Witnessing her intense reaction, Qiu Hui just smiled calmly.

"I didn't know what to say just now, but now I've made my position clear, right?"

"Ah? That's right..." Goto Ichiri realized belatedly.

It's not good. When I heard the word "youth", some bad memories came to my mind and I couldn't help but shout it out...

"That's what discussions are for," Akie said. "If you think about something that you can't figure out by yourself, you might get unexpected results if you use someone else's words as an opportunity to think about it."

"Pochi, since you have clearly expressed your objection, please explain your reasons in detail."

Faced with Akie's invitation, Goto Ichiri seemed a little hesitant.

"…Is it really okay?" she asked. "I am clearly against your initiative."

"Even if it's an opposing opinion, it can still be an important reference."

“…Since you said so, Akiie.”

Goto Ichiri paused before continuing.

"Actually, I... let alone writing them myself, even just hearing the lyrics of those songs praising youth, like 'sunshine', 'summer', 'friendship', 'dreams'... just hearing them makes me feel terrible. It's like I'm having an attack of some kind of disease."

As she spoke, she played with her fingers unconsciously.