How much can the world change in ten years? In 2012, Mayday used that year’s association with doomsday as the theme for a world tour that saw the group board an ark and harness their energetic alt-rock as a defence against the end of the world. A decade later, Taiwan’s biggest band revisited the songs from that tour for a series of spectacular concerts with a more upbeat outlook—and distilled it into a tenth-anniversary sequel to the associated live album. With a revamped set list, brand-new arrangements and thematic imagery updated for the 2020s, 五月天 fly to 2023 諾亞方舟十週年線上特別版 LIVE (Mayday Fly to 2023 LIVE) reimagines classic Mayday songs that blend nostalgia for youthful exuberance with the benefit of ten more years of performance experience. For the album, the band took full advantage of Spatial Audio technology to turn a cinematic arena rock show into an immersive adventure for headphone listening. In an interview with Apple Music, the band talk through the challenges involved in capturing the spirit of live performance and describe what’s changed since 2012—and what will always remain the same. Read on for more insights into Fly to 2023 LIVE. Why did you want to revisit the 2012 album and tour? “We see this as less a rerecording and more of a brand-new version. We’re extending the album theme—Noah’s Ark—to tailor it to 2023. The set list, arrangements and story from the 2012 concert have been entirely reimagined. It all began with an idea: ‘Let’s show everyone in the universe what Earth is like now.’ The aim is to imbue it with a new sense of timely relevance for 2023. Of course, this album is packed with meaning and memories for the five of us.” How did you reimagine the songs for this new version? “The melody and lyrics for each song are pretty much fixed. And while even the set list might be similar from show to show, we can always find new power from the passage of time and the concentrated atmosphere of a performance. We want all our fans to feel something new in our live sets. We’re always seeking new possibilities and potential in our existing songs so we can interact with our audience through music.” Talk us through replacing the apocalyptic feel of the 2012 shows with a more upbeat style featuring a spacefaring cat. “Whether it’s the end of the world or a better tomorrow, we’re always seeking to express our stubborn hopefulness. If we can enjoy the sweetness of life and look forward to the future, then we should also have the courage to embrace failure and frustration. We just want people to know that our music will always be with them. We’re in it together. Chai tow kway [the band’s cat who died in 2019] is a lasting presence for us. No matter how long it’s been, he’ll always be with us and in our hearts. We want our band to play that role for our fans.” What were the most unforgettable parts of the concerts? “Creating an online concert is like opening a big bag full of surprises. Our partners—B’in Live, B’in Music, Grass Jelly Studio and 8ID Studio—worked day and night to make it happen and to make impossible scenes, stages and stories a reality. It’s truly incredible. And thrilling, too—because how many times in your life will you get a chance to fly a helicopter, ride a cruise ship, drive a bus and operate an excavator, all in one go?” Tell us about your much-loved tradition of taking time at the end of concerts to “trash talk” and interact with fans. “Mayday never talks trash! We’re a hundred per cent sincere all the time! We hope our fans, like us, will stay forever 20 years old, living amid ‘the poetry of the day after’ [the band’s 2008 album 後 青春期的詩, literally ‘Post-Adolescent Poetry’].” How did you incorporate Spatial Audio technology into the live album? “We used a 12-track 7.1.4 setup as a base. Percussion and bass were channel-based beds. For the mids—guitar, piano, strings, winds—and the vocals, we positioned sounds using an object-based approach with more than 64 objects. On the height virtualiser, we split the output to create the sensation of warmth descending from above, strengthening the immersive effect of the overall sound. With Spatial Audio we weren’t limited to a 2D format’s front/back, left/right quadrants but could think about the best placement of sounds in 3D settings. “We created entirely new soundscapes with the space in mind—some songs are warm and bright, some feel grand and cinematic and some even lean toward solitary contemplation. Most important for us is that the audience is absorbed into the music itself. We highly recommend that you put on your headphones, crank up the volume and get ready for the first-row rock concert experience we’ve prepared for you!”