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  1. 25 points
    The Reverend

    UNDEUX: The Drama

    A Dramatic Retelling of the Time the Dude from Undeux Went Missing but then Ordered a Pizza With the Band's Line Account by The Reverend ACT ONE FADE IN: EXT. TOKYO ALLEYWAY, ENTRANCE TO IKEBUKURO BLACK HOLE -- EVENING CUT TO: INT. BACKSTAGE DRESSING ROOM The vanity shelves are filled with various makeup and hair products. Members from various indies VK bands are milling about; applying makeup, styling hair, strumming vacantly on guitars. As we pan to the rear corner the members of Undeux are half in costume chatting while getting dressed. (If writing is visible it is in Japanese. All speech is in English.) AL (GUITAR) Can you believe this asshole? He was supposed to be here like two hours ago? What if he doesn't show? Luchat turns away from the mirror while affixing feathers to his wig. LUCHAT (DRUMS) Can any of you guys sing? AL Riku couldn't sing! Anyone willing to get up there and just kinda shriek occasionally while pointing into the audience and making up some furi? Koji is sitting on the floor applying fake blood to his face. KOJI (BASS) No can do. You guys are already making me play bass; I've got enough to try and remember. AL Damnit. Kai walks through the door in full stage makeup buttoning his bloody white shirt. KAI (GUITAR) Hey has anyone heard from... AL No. KOJI No. LUCHAT Nope. KAI Damnit. AL Alright we can't not go on stage now... Al spots a couple of boxes (formerly containing hairspray bottles) near the corner of the room and raises his eyebrows furtively. AL (CONT'D) I've got an idea! CROSSFADE from Al cutting one of the boxes with a pair of scissors to the band performing on stage with a 3-foot tall cutout of a person taped to a mic stand instead of a vocalist. The cutout has been splattered with fake blood. FADE TO BLACK as the band performs. ACT TWO EXT. A NONDESCRIPT APARTMENT COMPLEX IN EDOGAWA. TWO DAYS LATER. -- NIGHT CUT TO: INT. A SMALL JAPANESE APARTMENT WITH LOTS OF BAND POSTERS ON THE WALL. SOME FLOWERS/CARTOON PLUSHES/PRODUCTS THAT INDICATE IT IS A WOMAN'S ROOM ARE VISIBLE. A 20-SOMETHING GIRL IS LOUNGING ON THE BED MESSING WITH HER CELL PHONE. RIKU is sitting Indian-style on the floor with a laptop on his lap. There is some hard (but not offensively brutal) rock playing on his laptop speakers. RIKU (VOCALS, UNDEUX) You hungry babe? GIRL on the bed does not look up or to check whether or not her response is heard. GIRL Hmm? RIKU Want to go out? GIRL Ehh. RIKU Well *I'm* hungry. Let's go grab some food. GIRL I don't get paid till Friday, I'm kinda broke. RIKU has stood up and is rifling through the small cupboard and refrigerator. RIKU Damn, me too. I'm sick of instant noodles though, I'm gonna order some pizza. Whatchu want on your half? GIRL Where you ordering from? RIKU That Italian place downstairs. You can just hit 'em up on Line to order. GIRL Corn and mayo! RIKU Gross, fine. RIKU grabs his laptop and starts typing. SFX: PAN OUT THROUGH WINDOW TO WIDE SHOT OF APARTMENT BUILDING WITH GATHERING THUNDERSTORM IN THE BACKGROUND. MUSIC: DRAMATIC ORCHESTRAL HITS. FADE TO BLACK: ACT THREE EXT. SAME EDOGAWA APARTMENT COMPLEX. TWO HOURS LATER. -- NIGHT INT. SAME APARTMENT. MOSTLY FINISHED PIZZA/BOX SIT ON THE TABLE. GIRL IS STILL MINDLESSLY PLAYING WITH PHONE BUT LAYING WITH HEAD ON FOOT OF BED. RIKU is finishing a slice of pizza as he sits down at his computer again, looking very satisfied. MUSIC: OMINOUS BUT FAINT RIKU is reading intently on computer when his face drops and grows pale. He instinctively covers his mouth with his hand while continuing to scroll. RIKU Oh fuck. GIRL Huh? RIKU Oh fuck oh fuck. GIRL looks up from phone at RIKU. She is still lying on the bed. GIRL What's up? RIKU stands and begins pacing on the small apartment floor. RIKU Oh man this is not good... I was logged into the band's account when I ordered that pizza! GIRL Didn't you quit that band? RIKU I did! But I guess I hadn't logged out and into my own Line on my laptop. Shit! I didn't show up to our last show those guys are gonna be so pissed at me! GIRL sits up. GIRL Why were they expecting you at their show? RIKU Well, I quit the band... but didn't really tell them it would be *immediately*. They've been texting me non-stop. GIRL Oh my god, you idiot. RIKU I was trying to let them down easy! GIRL Just pay them back. RIKU I'm not worried about the money! GIRL Is this really that big a deal? RIKU Oh my god yes, you don't fuck with Rame and get away with it. I need to call my lawyer. GIRL *Your* lawyer? Who do you think you are? You definitely don't have some lawyer on retainer. RIKU I... you know what I mean! Seriously, I could be in some shit. SFX: PAN OUT THROUGH WINDOW TO WIDE SHOT OF APARTMENT WHILE RIKU IS PACING AND DIALING A NUMBER ON HIS CELL PHONE. IT IS RAINING HARD AND A SINGLE CROW IS CAWING ON SOME POWER LINES BELOW THEIR APARTMENT WINDOW. FADE TO BLACK: ACT FOUR EXT. AN UNIDENTIFIED AVERAGE TOKYO STREET. MANY PEOPLE ARE GOING ABOUT THEIR BUSINESS IN STORES ON THE STREETS -- DAY INT. A LUXURIOUSLY APPOINTED OFFICE. THE FOUR NON-VOCALIST MEMBERS OF UNDEUX SIT ON ONE SIDE OF A LARGE WOODEN DESK. A LARGE BALD BODYGUARD-TYPE MAN STANDS NEAR THE DOOR WEARING A SUIT AND SUNGLASSES. THE BAND, IN CASUAL CLOTHES, ARE FACING THE BACK OF A STATELY LEATHER OFFICE CHAIR ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE DESK. The chair slowly spins around to reveal RAME of the record label GLKingdom and former bassist of VK band Vidoll. RAME is wearing a charcoal suit and a black tie. RAME Thank you for meeting me. Let's discuss how we can resolve this unfortunate... 'incident'. KAI Well... The members of Undeux look at each other nervously. AL Well, we want to keep going. We were hoping, you know, that maybe you knew a vocalist who would be interested... RAME laughs softly. AL (CONT'D) ...in joining the band. RAME Yes, yes. That can all be arranged. I was speaking more about what to do with Riku. LUCHAT Wha...? KOJI We still haven't heard from him. AL Well, other than the pizza thing. LUCHAT Yeah, what a dick. RAME pulls a white envelope from a drawer. RAME First, he quits the band and no-shows despite promising me he'd keep performing till the summer. RAME (CONT'D) Then, he hides and doesn't return any of my calls or texts. And finally... RAME opens the letter contained in the envelope. RAME (CONT'D) ...I get a letter from a lawyer claiming that the record deal you all signed was invalid and Riku not showing up was not a breach of contract at all. The members of Undeux are fidgeting in their seats but do not say anything. RAME (CONT'D) Our friend Riku needs a lesson in respect and honor. KOJI What do you...? RAME nods at the large man standing by the door. The bodyguard nods back and exits the room. RAME Let's not worry about Riku any longer. The members of Undeux look slightly afraid but don't move or speak. RAME (CONT'D) Now, about finding you guys a new vocalist... have you heard of the band QEDDESHET? FADE TO BLACK: ACT FIVE EXT. A GRIMEY TOKYO ALLEYWAY. IT IS RAINING LIGHTLY -- EVENING RIKU runs around a corner and places his hands on his knees to try to catch his breath. He is looking from side to side very nervously. RIKU starts walking quickly, while often looking over his shoulder, toward one end of the alley. As RIKU approaches a large man in a dark suit appears at the end of the alley that RIKU is headed toward. RIKU, panicked, turns and begins running in the opposite direction. RIKU is sprinting and splashing through puddles of the alley. As he nears the corner he appeared from originally another man in a suit emerges holding a black handgun. RIKU No! Please... The second suited man emotionlessly aims the gun at RIKU and pulls the trigger. The man wipes the gun with his pocket square and lays the gun down beside Riku's body. The suited men walk away quickly but confidently. OVERHEAD SHOT: Camera slowly pans upward as the blood from RIKU's gunshot mixes with the water his body is lying in. Camera pans upward until it is above the roofline and even the silhouette of RIKU's lifeless body has disappeared from view. CUT TO: INT. UNNAMED TOKYO LIVE HOUSE IN THE MIDDLE OF A PERFORMANCE. The band Undeux are walking out onstage to a pulsing techno track. A new, unidentified vocalist comes out last to lots of shouting from the crowd. The intro track ends and a drum fill signals the beginning of Undeux's first song. The new vocalist crouches over and unleashes an imperfect but earnest pig-squeal as the guitars kick in. The camera finds RAME at the rear of the club watching dispassionately. The large suited man from his office approaches and whispers something into his ear that is unheard over the band's performance. One corner of RAME's lips fold upward into a wry smile. FADE TO BLACK: TITLE CARD: fin.
  2. 24 points
    Greetings, fellow Monochromians! Yall doing, alright? I certainly hope so! As we close out the year 2019, some of the Official Reviewers and Staff members thought we'd take a look back at some remarkable (and one or two remarkably bad) J-rock albums that turned 10 this year! So whether you were around 10 years ago or not, let's discuss! What do you think of the entries on our list? What are your favorite J-rock albums that turned 10 this year? Did they age well for you? Let's talk about it! 9GOATS BLACK OUT Black rain The sophomore release that followed their iconic debut album Devils in Bedside, Black Rain gave the fans exactly what they were waiting for, more of that hypnotic, bluesy nagoya kei abyssal void to lose ourselves in. While the album never seems to get the fanfare of the releases before and after it, it stands on its own all these years later just fine. Ryo's guttural roars in "SALOME" still pierce the soul just as deeply, Hati's walking, rhythmic bass "in the rain" still stirs all of the vivid imagery it ever did, and Uta's echoing guitar strumming for "ROMEO" still haunts the dark corners of the mind. When you go back to revisit all the amazing albums of the last decade, don't you dare forget this one! - @doombox Devils in Bedside was shrouded in mystery. This melancholic band had literally no space in a scene that was filled with pop rock vibes and colourful looks. Nevertheless, 9GBO continued down their own path and released Black Rain. It’s a blessing that they never followed the trends surrounding the scene, or we might have never gotten one of the most dramatic creations in vk. The band is still a mystery at this point as no PV graced our eyes with this album, all we know now is that these guys are *not* a one hit wonder. I believe that because of the lack of visuals and their mature sound (way ahead of their time) 9GBO never reached the success they deserved. Listening to Black Rain is like opening a fantasy book and losing yourself in a beautiful rainy landscape. The topic of rain has been explored a million times in visual kei, but Black Rain captures the feelings and nuances of its title very effectively. ‘Romeo’ and ‘In the Rain’ are still some of my favourite tracks ever and I remember playing them over and over back in the day (I still do, but I try to limit myself). Whereas Devil in Bedside was drier and raw, Black Rain is simply dripping with emotion. It's escapism at its best. - @platy While most fans of 9GBO fell in love with their debut album Devils in Bedside, it was Black Rain that made me a fan, as this was also my first time listening to them. I was convinced 9GBO were going to be remembered for years to come as this album to me has depths of artistic expression not relative to other acts of this time; they reminded me so much of deadman, they were in a league of their own. It did indeed feel like each track told a story, some clinging on to life, with others full of warmth and energy. “In the Rain” would be my favorite song from them to this day, as the harmony of light and dark, simple chords and the complexity of how they’re interpreted, left a respectable mark on my listening experience of them so many years ago. - @YuyoDrift SUICIDE ALI 第4のwaltz Give SUICIDE ALI a plaque next to the likes of √eight and Werkmare and Deluhi in the Visual Kei Hall of 'We Captured Lightning in a Bottle Exactly Once and the Rest of Our Releases Really Kind of Suck'. Nothing should be taken away from 第4のwaltz because SUICIDE ALI weren't able to recreate its magic however. 第4のwaltz is all over the place in the best possible ways. Songs with goth midi-satyr-flute, acoustic guitar strumming, nu-metal tinged bass guitars and gang shouts behind rushed lead vocals shouldn't work at all but oh my God "笛吹童子" is one of my absolute favorite songs from 2009. 第4のwaltz would get my vote as the best album released by Starwave Records/ Darkest Labyrinth. Often when Kiwamu gets involved I find releases simultaneously over- and under-produced but the combination of studio effects and just letting a band be who they are collided in a magnificent way for this album. There isn't another album in all of Visual Kei that sounds exactly like 第4のwaltz. Let it stand as a monument to glory for both a band and record label that often disappointed otherwise. - @The Reverend D’espairsRay REDEEMER Ah, the posterchild for our website lol. For those of us around then, it was REDEEMER that divided the D'espa fanbase. If you were just getting into the scene during this time, you’d marvel at how great the album was in the wake of Visual Kei’s exposure internationally. It had pop, rock, and melodies that made it very easy to embrace by western newcomers who weren’t familiar with the history of D’espairsRay and the current trend in Visual Kei. For fans that were around since the band’s formation, however, this album felt like a far cry from their dark and gothic VK days. I never realized how creative the approach for this album was, as you don't see this level of dedication to the music, to which D'espairsRay were no strangers to. They were always known to place their music as that symbol of expressive emotions that suited their name and I felt that REDEEMER upheld their ideal while keeping the VK aesthetic close by. While I understand the album underwhelms to some, it still retains that creativity that none can deny was what really mattered during this age, and with Hizumi’s way of singing being otherworldly, their arrangements were an art form itself. “Heaven’s Color”, one of my favorite songs of the album and the last decade, has lyrics portrayed beautifully in Hizumi’s singing along with the instrumental chords that kindle an ethereal feel, eternally associating the colors of heaven to a song that continues to give me an ephemeral rush of emotions today. - @YuyoDrift 凛として時雨 just A moment Back in the day, long before TK ever whispered on any anime songs or produced for any Jpop artists, when people were still spelling their name "rin toshite shigure", ling tosite sigure were to J-indie fans what DIR EN GREY or the GazettE are to visual kei. The band's musical acumen and trend-setting innovation pretty much guaranteed that each new release would be a spectacle met with critical acclaim. Naturally, that was the case with just A moment too. ling had just struck a deal with Sony Music Japan, so this was their first major label album. There may have been concern that they'd be plagued with the dreaded major-label curse and fall off like their contemporaries 9mm Parabellum Bullet, but this album quickly put all those worries to rest. just A moment definitely reigned in ling's sound a bit and established more structure in their songwriting, but the quality of their music did not suffer at all. In fact, ling remained just as intense, emotional, and creative as ever. Plus, this was the first time that we got to hear ling's music with actual state-of-the-art production!...and DAT BASS!!! W000!!!! But I digress. Including this album was a no-brainer for me. It was bangin' then, and it's bangin' now. ling has always been in their own lane, and in my book, they wouldn't go on to release anything sub-par until after 2013. - @CAT5 -OZ- VERSUS VERSUS turns ten this year and it does not feel like the album is that old. It feels five to six years old, tops. I still spin this album regularly, more than I can say for subsequent -OZ- albums. This is the definition of an album aging well and a lot of credit must be given to how cohesive VERSUS sounds and how well it flows. It's an effortless listen that is also very rewarding, two compliments I rarely give out at the same time. -OZ- had one sound with a few minor variations, but that doesn't matter because this album hit on all of the things that made this band an unstoppable juggernaut of a metalcore ensemble. Album opener "LAST SHELL" is worth admission price alone, and album singles "FILMY", "VENOM", and "DETOX" are all fun bangers that work surprisingly well in the studio knowing they were composed for lives. This is the distillation of -OZ-'s essence into a bite sized package that's great for recommending when their complete collection album proves too daunting to tackle all at once. - @Zeus lynch. SHADOWS Before this album released, I had very little exposure to lynch. as I found that their growls/yells were a tad too off-putting and raw for my tastes and other bands in the Nagoya Kei scene caught my attention. Once I heard about SHADOWS and the shift in musical direction that included vocal tweaks, I gave it a listen. The distinct guitar chords that I remember liking had more lead roles this time, all while overhauling their method of growls/yells with a new form of aggression that could better suit the new atmosphere that was apparent as you listened. Truly, there were a lot of new ideas thrown into making the album a prolific release, one that even I could admire. SHADOWS, from what I hear, was one of those in-between albums for the band, and this could be true because musical concepts from this album are still existent with their current work. - @YuyoDrift Crossfaith The Artificial Theory For The Dramatic Beauty Arguably, TATFTDB is Crossfaith's most electrifying album. It got the attention of the global metalcore scene almost instantly. Even if the band has drifted away from their experimental roots, TATFTDB is one of those staples that refuses to be forgotten. Crossfaith blended electronic elements and hardcore in such a way that the former never lost its ability to slice through the utter brutality of the latter, effectively contrasting and spotlighting all of the band's strengths at the time. Times change but this album still kicks ass. - @doombox Psysalia psysalis psyche Matin Brun Back in the day, when actual J-indie communities still existed online, casual hate/distaste for VK was a common sight. Meanwhile, on VK boards, the fans were generally oblivious to the J-indie world and mostly just tended to their own interests. But every once and a while, you'd get a band like Psysalia psysalis psyche that existed on the fringes. A band that would simultaneously capture the interest of members from both communities. (ppl on last.fm were jokingly calling them "normal kei" back in the day lol) By 2009, two EPs and a single had placed PPP on the radar of a decent amount of J-rock fans. Up until this point, they'd released a few standout tracks like "SUBWAY KILLER" and "Butch & The Sundance Kid", but the rest of their output was just solid and nothing more. Basically, they were the kind of band that were cool enough to check out, but not one that you'd set your expectations too high for. So when they dropped Matin Brun, their debut full-length, I don't think anyone was ready! This album just completely eclipsed their previous output. It's like they entered into the Hyperbolic Time Chamber from DBZ because their sound matured by leaps and bounds in the one year since their previous EP. Their dark and edgy brand of alt.rock was still in tact, but it was far more refined here. In fact, everything was better - the songwriting, the musicianship, and even the production. Hell, they even threw in some shoegaze for good measure! Sadly, the band's flame flickered out just a few years later and they disbanded in 2012. Their 2nd and final album felt more like a rushed and shoddily put together parting gift in comparison. However, Matin Brun remains standing tall in its own splendor. It's a testament to a band that was, perhaps, not done exploring their potential. - @CAT5 Plastic Tree ドナドナ I remember clearly when Plastic Tree's Dona Dona album came out. It was right around Christmas and I must have listened to the album during my entire winter break. It holds many memories for me and the title track was one of the biggest standouts. Ryutarou sings as if he's about to break apart, which brings me almost to tears, but it's very beautiful at the same time with the sweet swaying guitars. From the album cover, one can sense that Dona Dona gives a darker mood, but not necessarily heavier. Although if you're looking for something a bit heavy, "sunset bloody sunset" and "Gagaji" does take the spot well. But overall, with the forlorn and bitter "Dona Dona", the remorseful lyrics of "1999", the tender and playful "Etcetera", and the cold and lonely "Sanatorium", the album conveys a dreary and soothing sadness. Dona Dona is also the first album to feature an instrumental track that shows more of their post-rock influences. And as a little plus, the album ends with the silly track "Yasashisa Kurabu", that easily brings a smile to anyone. - @plastic_rainbow vistlip PATRIOT Yes vistlip released a different, full album this same year, but in addition to thinking PATRIOT is simply a better distillation of what makes the band great I also have to give the nod to PPATRIOT's amazing cover art (especially compared to Theater's complete lack of cover art.) The members of vistlip said in an interview with JAME just before the release of PATRIOT that they don't have a band concept because, in part, "we might be trapped in it, so we do whatever we think is good... we are quite flexible." It's exactly this kind of attitude that makes PATRIOT a VK classic. There's a diversity in the eight songs of PATRIOT even though they all would fall under the wide umbrella of 'bright Visual Kei'. The vocalist Tomo takes some chances and screams a bit, but mostly understands what his range is and maxes what he *can* do (which is write some incredibly catchy refrains) rather than try to make his voice do things it wasn't designed to. The band isn't afraid of a crunchy riff but also want to write songs that are accessible and fun. PATRIOT deserves a spot in your collection a decade after its release because it's a crowd-pleaser that isn't pandering. Love fun Oshare Kei but want something a little less squeaky and cute? This mini-album fits the bill. You're into heavier music but want something you could play for your mom to introduce her to VK that isn't scary but also isn't milquetoast? vistlip have been doing that for more than a decade now. - @The Reverend exist†trace VANGUARD -of the muses- You guys remember the hype for this EP? For those that weren't around, exist†trace had already claimed a spot in the top-tier list of bands in such a short amount of time and their PV for “VANGUARD” was a real teaser, being praised all over the web while providing even more exposure for the band. It was fitting because exist†trace had filled in the gap of gothic and darker rock fans yearned for, as this sound was already being left behind by bands like D’espairsRay and even Girugamesh. The shift from screaming and growling from their previous work was a surprise because it was how they gained recognition by old fans and somehow, they managed to keep that intensity going with more involved instrumentation and Jyou’s vocals being the new driving force. I’m a sucker for melodies in sync with the drum’s pacing and they did not disappoint. My favorite tracks on repeat were “花の咲かない街” and of course “VANGUARD”, possibly being the first song that will ever come to mind when someone asks for a song by them, so I highly recommend you give this release a spin. - @YuyoDrift exist†trace Ambivalent Symphony Ambivalent Symphony was big step for exist†trace mixing their early raw sound with updated production elements to smooth out their rough edges and it makes for an excellent album. Certainly one of theirs I find myself returning to more than any of the others. From "RESONANCE" to "VANGUARD" you can see the band put every drop of their blood, sweat, and tears into making this album a top tier visual kei offering that would stand the test of time and get some much needed visibility for women in a music scene over-saturated with their male counterparts. - @doombox You thought they were done for this year with just one EP? Try a second one! exist†trace continued to blow the doors off the male-dominated scene by releasing Ambivalent Symphony only a few months later. Just as in the previous EP, Jyou decided to tone down the screams and growls, as I recall that at the time she was straining her throat at a very fast rate, but what we discovered was that she was an even more amazing singer once she focused her longer notes, bringing more life and contrast to their arrangements. I still herald Jyou as one of the best female singers of the vk scene and this album is a benchmark of what she contributed to the archives of old. Tracks I still play to this day are “Wrath” and “「終わりのない世界」”, and they are so synonymous to my memories of them. exist†trace may have also been the only band that still retained a gothic appearance in the visual kei scene, carrying over the heavy and dark basslines one last time in an era for them that would be short-lived, as the sound of exist†trace would soon change. - @YuyoDrift MASS OF THE FERMENTING DREGS ワールドイズユアーズ I'd argue that MASS OF THE FERMENTING DREGS are one of the most iconic indie bands to come out of Japan post 00's. Despite their original line-up consisting of all females, they somehow managed to avoid being typecast as just another "girl band", and I think that speaks volumes about their music. Frontwoman Natsuko Miyamoto (affectionately called 'Natsukon' by fans) has been a fierce & bold presence from the start. She's an absolute beast on the bass (known to always perform barefoot), and her signature croon is striking, yet pure. Of course, the other members are competent in their own right, but I think MassDre's appeal lies not in their technical ability, but in the raw sincerity and authenticity of their sound. WORLD IS YOURS perfectly exemplifies this and, in my opinion, is their best album to date! - @CAT5 Megaromania Prophetic Faction - the Universe - All of my favorite songs and recollections of Megaromania are from 2009’s Prophetic Faction - the Universe -. There is a lot of effort put into this album, from the tonal length and coordination of the guitar chords, to the timing of the riffs that enter and exit throughout the length of each song, and of course the intensity of the solos. Many fans from back then would say that they were one of the best bands to ever exist within the UNDERCODE label. Megaromania's musical arrangements were worthy of that Kote Kei distinction, as there was a youth and involvement from the band to create music full of harmony and expression that suited their visual aesthetic. That said, I’m definitely not going to forget to mention their amazing looks and outfits that you can still see in the PVs of “APOCOLYPSE” and “God of Megaromania-純血ノ刻印-“ as they are pretty iconic. - @YuyoDrift kamomekamome / DEEPSLAUTER / FUCK YOU HEROES 放送事故現場 split This split was bad-ass. The end. ahaha, in general, I think split releases are a cool idea, but it's often the case that one band out-shines the other(s) and the split just isn't enjoyable as a whole. Thankfully, that's not the case here. All three bands brought their a-game, although they all represent different shades of hardcore. kamomekamome offered two tracks that are more on the post-hardcore side of things, with killer riffs and frantic, spoken word-ish vocals. DEEPSLAUTER is pegged as "power-violence" with a much more chaotic and progressive sound, and FUCK YOU HEROES is more or less your traditional hardcore punk. Splits are an especially common thing in the punk world, but this one is essential for Japanese H/C fans! - @CAT5 the studs alansmithee Once more we had the pleasure of enjoying yet another masterpiece from Nagoya Kei’s veterans with alansmithee. I feel this album best represented Aie’s talents, as his composing style heard today was born in this album, and being able to collaborate with Daisuke must have been a big factor as well. Beautifully paced tempos and lively guitar chords, the themes throughout the album were throwbacks to their earlier careers, as well as their progress up to this point. Gosh, nothing sounded more amazing than hearing Daisuke's voice resonate through your ears during long notes. As memorable as Nagoya Kei alansmithee was, it was nothing but a bittersweet moment for fans of the studs, as we found out that this was their last album. Not even a week after the release, the studs announced an indefinite hiatus due to the future direction of the band and creative differences that led to the departure of 2 of their core members. Even more crushing was Daisuke, who I consider one of the greatest singers in VK history, passed away the following year, and with him any hope we had for a comeback. - @YuyoDrift FACT FACT If I had to pick an album for 2009 that I still cherish as much as I did when it was first released, it has to be this one. It single-handedly launched me to expand my musical horizons deeply into the Japanese punk and indie scene outside of what I was finding in the vk realm. FACT was THAT band that found the perfect mix of punk aggression with extremely catchy melodies that lived seamlessly in both the pop-punk and hardcore ends of the spectrum. Even though most of them still have strong projects going since they split, I'll always find their music together as FACT what sticks with me the most. If you have never listened to the original album version or remix of "A Fact of Life" you absolutely have to go do that right now! - @doombox 百蚊 花園 Hyacca was one of many bands that I came across in my J-indie exploration heydays via their 2006 album. It was good, but failed to leave a lasting impression. Fast-forward to 2009. I was reintroduced to them by Steven Tanaka (Founder of Next Music From Tokyo), who was raving about this album (which was new at the time), and long story short - Hyacca left a lasting impression this time! I think the band had finally found their sound on this album - noisey and spastic post-punk with angular riffs and warped distortion. If I remember correctly, I think Steve once described the guitar tone in one of their songs as 'sounding like broken glass'. This album is a blast from start to finish! Fans of melt-banana and limited express (has gone ) would love this! - @CAT5 DEATHGAZE THE CONTINUATION THE CONTINUATION did exactly what the title implied: carrying over what worked for their last album which were clean and strong growls, versatile yet heavy guitar play speed, and melodic choruses. Several of the songs are re-recorded tracks from their early-era material , this time with different guitar structures and Ai behind the mic. This album was the perfect little metal package for fans new and old. The popular consensus online at the time was that THE CONTINUATION was on par with lynch.’s album SHADOWS, that I’m sure gave birth to the running joke/confusion on which album was who’s, making each band one and the same. Take a listen and let the others and I know from 10 years ago if we’re just crazy haha. Personally, I think that between the two of them, DEATHGAZE took the crown for 2009. - @YuyoDrift アルカラ BOY NEXT DOOR Although Arukara has been around since 2004, this was the album that really put them on the map for most western J-rock fans. The PV for "夢見る少女でいたい。", featured below, made the rounds online and quickly garnered comparisons to 9mm Parabellum Bullet, who were on a sharp decline at the time. In fact, I'd say it was 9mm's downfall that really made way for bands like Arukara and cinema staff to step in and fill that void. BOY NEXT DOOR definitely showcased some of the indie-rock explosiveness that 9mm was known for, but it also proved that Arukara were very much their own band. Much like cinema staff's Mizuki Iida, vocalist Taisuke Inamura also has a strong singing voice which stands out in the J-indie world (where high-pitched and effeminate male voices are common and there really are no singing standards ). Taisuke's voice, the band's technical ability, memorable melodies, and compelling songwriting all make BOY NEXT DOOR a fantastic record. One of the best of 2009, with some of my all-time favorite Arukara songs! - @CAT5 ClearVeil RE:BORN ClearVeil’s RE:BORN is one of the many staples to this era of VK and even ten years later, still has many songs from this album in my music playlists. What made the band noticeable to many of us back then were the full-bodied basslines, clean and harmonized vocals, and if anything, the extra effort made to retain the visual sound from back then - I think was the most impressive to me. If I were to compare them, roughly, they were a combination of Rentrer En Soi, early-era D’espairsRay, and a dash of early-era Kagerou. Due to musical differences the band’s career was short lived, just shy of 3 years, but man did they tour a lot, so there’s plenty of video of them online. Since then, I believe that some of the members have moved on to more current projects like ORCALADE (they still around? Lol), so if you already listen to that band, check out where their sound came from with ClearVeil. - @YuyoDrift Far France AHYARANKE ^ This promo pic actually does a fantastic job of summing up Far France's sound: wild, crazy, and tons of fun! They're fuckin' bananas! In fact, vocalist/guitarist Shinya actually garnered quite the reputation in Tokyo's live scene for being both a raucous performer and audience member. But beyond the band's silly demeanor, these guys actually boasted some serious musical chops, as clearly illustrated here on AHYARANKE. The entire album is one non-stop ride of spastic, psychedelic outbursts and proggy twists & turns. Even the seemingly unassuming tracks end up in a sprawling jam-fest, yet the band balances their chaos with groove and accessibility. Unfortunately, the band went on what seems to have been an indefinite hiatus after this, but they left us with a record well-deserving of praise even a decade later. - @CAT5 VAMPS VAMPS It’s odd to look back on this timeline because HYDE was already an established solo artist, back with L’arc en ciel and their return to music, composer for a ton of popular songs, even doing some acting gigs, and so just when you realize that he’s at a very high point in his career, he goes and unveils his new musical project. VAMPS is seen as a duo project with Guitarist K.A.Z, who had worked with HYDE for years on his previous solo releases, and so the music itself was already recognizable, yet their self-titled album went even further to bring in fresh ideas that have aged very damn well for what they are. The album combines previous singles that hyped the release (my personal favorite is the song “Time Goes By” in the Love Addict single) giving the album more variety to what I already thought was an impressive collection. If you’re a fan of his previous solo releases like 666 or Faith, then VAMPS will remind you of those throwbacks and some new delights for keeps, so check it out. - @YuyoDrift Z 新今日 Z is....Z is something else. They formed from the remains of legendary hardcore punk band There Is A Light That Never Goes Out (whose members also formed bands like As Meias and Hununhum) I've seen them described as "Pharoah Sanders meets late-period Black Flag" and "post-avant-jazzcore" - WHATEVER THAT MEANS. They're definitely experimental, and they definitely have elements of jazz and hardcore. Their sound is also sinister and unsettling, often striving between free-form chaos and menacing grooves. I definitely wouldn't call this album accessible, but Z incorporates all of these different traits in the most sprawling and immersive, yet captivating fashion. Almost all of their tracks take time to really build up, but the payoff is always worth it and the journey is a fulfilling one, especially with frontman Jun Nemoto's frantically animated vocals in tow. A truly noteworthy effort from vets of the Japanese underground. - @CAT5 圭 silk tree. Anything related to the members of Baroque/Kannivalism, I was always excited about, so Kei's solo album silk tree. was one of the things I was looking forward to the most. Compared to Baroque and Kannivalism, Kei's solo work brought more of an ambient and electronic sound, which I was fairly new to and was not often the kind of music heard in VK, but I've grown to love the album with every visit. I even had a newfound love for the track "barred door." a few years ago, which for whatever reason didn't move me as strongly as it does now. There are many great tracks here, some featuring lovely strings and pianos, and some giving an energetic color. silk tree. is both whimsical and sorrowful, and is an album worth visiting over and over again. - @plastic_rainbow LIGHT BRINGER Tales of Almanac The origins of how I discovered FUKI were birthed right here with Tales of Almanac, coincidentally being their first full-length album. I came from a long history of listening to female JPop artists, so when I discovered that there was a metal band with a tiny and bright-colored woman as their vocalist who sung EXACTLY like acts such as Every Little Thing and Day After Tomorrow, I was hooked. Their PVs for “Upstream Children” and “Diamond” show a combination of hardcore guitar riffs and upbeat synths that provide the same satisfaction as deep growls and screams, something I didn’t think would sound great together but it did! FUKI’s highest voice tones were around this time, so if you’re a fan of hers, you need to see what she sounded like before to appreciate how dedicated she’s been to master her vocal range. LIGHT BRINGER’s existence might be before any other successful attempts to bring a lighter and cute tone with idols to metal like BABYMETAL and the whole wave of Kawaii-Metal throughout the next decade. - @YuyoDrift cinema staff Symmetoronica Technically speaking, cinema staff debuted in 2008 with their EP titled document, but personally, their follow-up Symmetoronica has always felt like their first real outing for me. Don't get me wrong, their debut was decent, but there wasn't much propelling them beyond your run-of-the-mill indie-rock band with pop leanings. And trust me, Japan is over-saturated with those types. However, this EP saw the band strengthen their song-writing with an emotional heft that had been missing previously. Although cinema staff has gone on to refine and even out-do what they've done here, this was an outstanding release in '09, and some of Mizuki's vocal lines are still memorable to this day. - @CAT5 Unlucky Morpheus Jealousy When you listen to Unlucky Morpheus now, you would never imagine that they would sound any different than they do, but they’ve come a long way during their indie/touhou days from 10 years ago. It was Jealousy that introduced me to them, with none other than the tiny woman that could belt like no other as their frontwoman, FUKI. This album contained songs that paid a sort of tribute to metal legends like X Japan (the album cover is a nod to them too) and Onmyouza. Similar to her other band LIGHT BRINGER, FUKI provides a lively and energetic contrast to the various forms of metal like Speed, Neoclassical, and Power. So, while I can spend hours telling you how much I like Unlucky Morpheus and how insanely remarkable FUKI is as a singer, I’d rather you give this album a listen. Funnily enough, if FUKI’s current vocals are more your cup-of-tea than the vocals in this specific release, Unlucky Morpheus actually rerecorded the entire album for 2018, so you can sample that one as an alternative. - @YuyoDrift Sadie MASTER OF ROMANCE 10 years is long enough to quit comparing Sadie to DEG, right? As difficult as it was for the album, MASTER OF ROMANCE eventually ended the nonstop comparisons to DEG’s music, as there really weren’t many to be made in the first place. It was easy to forget back then but DEG no longer sounded the same, leaving a void that Sadie had perfectly filled in its place. MASTER OF ROMANCE was something familiar yet so fresh, an easy-listening experience for those fans that couldn’t stomach current era DEG and instead could listen to “what could have been”. A great blend of hardcore riffs, bridges, and lively tempos, you couldn’t mistake Sadie for anyone else. Mao’s vocals were amazingly as versatile as Kyo’s, which I feel most comparisons were made from, yet more dynamics in his singing is what brought more originality to Sadie, as it gave more life than their monotonous counterpart in my opinion. - @YuyoDrift SCREW X-RAYS As an early fan of SCREW, it was nice to still see their early-era aesthetic was still around even during the turn of the decade as most bands had dropped them. SCREW still retained that hardcore rock and punk music style in X-RAYS, along with the melodies and solos that only upped their flair. Also retained was Byou’s vocal experimentation with growls and crooning and so their music direction by this time had become synonymous to the band’s image. If you were a fan of or listened to Sadie, 12012, or even The GazettE during their mid 00’ eras and never listened to SCREW, then you should definitely give them a listen. This release represents a throwback for me as I was madly into these guys 10 years ago, and was easily a top album for me in 2009 as SCREW’s early years are definitely when they were their most creative. - @YuyoDrift Hailing sometime from the awkward era where the instrumentals were good but vocalist Byou still couldn't sing, X-RAYS is one of the black sheep of visual kei albums for sure. I never thought that I'd catch myself recommending anything from this era ten years from now, but things change. Dodge anything that sounds like a bad attempt at metal - which includes songs like "DRASTIC SLAVER", "VII CARDINAL SINS", and "void box" - and you'll find a more than competent rock band yearning to be set free. Go back any further than this and I find the vocals unbearable. Go any further than this and I find the instrumentals dull. "FIREFLY" is my jam and "RUIN AND DREAD" is a surprise carrying a tone completely unfitting for the name, and "answer" has one hell of a kick ass riff that almost makes you forget people liked to clown on SCREW ten years ago. As with most of the things I review, this would have been better off as a mini-album. - @Zeus alice nine. VANDALIZE Ohhh man, I love this album. If any band was able to successfully make that musical transition without getting crap for it, it was alice nine. (This name sounds better than A9 honestly, and it was around this year that they changed to it from their previous name). I think the band members had a clear image of what they wanted to do musically, with high rankings on the music boards being proof of the good reception the band was getting from their musical change. VANDALIZE continued the bands’ success, as the album was very energetic and so musically rich that it could make you sing along even if you weren’t a fan. It seemed natural that you’d enjoy it. How they were doing it, I couldn’t tell you, but did it matter? It was the golden years for them and VANDALIZE was the most accurate representation of it. This album is easily one of my top 3 albums from alice nine. to date, and if you are new to them I’d check this release out because it’s a must-listen. - @YuyoDrift ViViD The ViViD Color ViViD was a band that perfectly bridged the colorful, lighter side of VK with enough edge to be palatable for me, especially back in 2009 when I was stepping farther away from the typical VK pop-friendly bands. But The ViViD color had the right energy and hype to stand out that year among a very strong era for VK. They were a new face that PS Company desperately needed to carry the torch from their previous generation settling from rookie to veteran status. The guitar riffs from Ryouga and Reno on this album are just as flashy as the fashion choices, Shin's voice is bright and clear (and I was already a big fan from his work with 秋葉原少年団☆電脳ロメオ), and the tag team rhythm section and dj of IV and Ko-Ki topped the whole album off to give a grounded but exciting backbone. - @doombox ハイスイノナサ 街について Every once and a while, the stars align and the Gods see fit to bless us with a band that simply seems too good to be true. Haisuinonasa falls into that category. I remember hearing a demo version of "happy end" (the song featured below), and thinking that these guys would be something special. A few months later, they debuted with this EP (through the formerly esteemed Zankyo Records), and my premonitions proved correct. You could say they played a form of dreamy, math-rock with female vocals, but that would be denigrating at best. I've even seen some describe them as "piano-driven breakbeat" with elements of post rock, prog, minimal, and electronica, but whatever you wanna call it, machi nitsuite offered an entirely new sound that is just as singular now as it was then. I can honestly say that this was a flawless debut. - @CAT5 toe For Long Tomorrow toe's first album from 2005 was (and still is) regarded as an instrumental/math-rock classic in Japan and all over the globe. So naturally, there was a ton of anticipation for their sophomore effort, For Long Tomorrow. I dare say, they exceeded expectations. This album is not only an evolution of toe's sound, but it's an evolution of math-rock in general. Unlike most bands of this genre, they're not content to just aimlessly noodle your face off with meandering riffs. Not at all. toe actually plays with intent, and their songwriting is full of character. Mino and Yamazaki aren't simply playing guitar - no, they're waltzing together on the fret board. Seamlessly. Gracefully. Kashikura isn't just an excellent drummer. nah, dude is narrating percussive epics in dis bih!!! 🤣 Basically, the band's chemistry is so stellar that anything they do is guaranteed to be high quality. And with their soundscape expanded to include keyboards, kalimbas, horns, and guest vocalists, this album truly put toe in a league of their own. They pretty much set the bar for math-rock. (btw, the song featured below has been my ringtone FOR YEARS!!! ) - @CAT5 miscorner/c+llooqtortion view for voices Don't even ask me how to pronounce their name! I can honestly say that this is one of the most unique records I've ever heard out of the vast world of J-indie. miscorner themselves were a pretty unique band, though. Essentially, they were two drummers playing to pre-recorded loops, and while their usual output was instrumental, they took a different approach on this EP by featuring a host of guest vocalists. To my knowledge, miscorner were a pretty obscure band, both in Japan and abroad. (I can actually count on one hand the amount of J-music fans I knew who actually knew this band as well.) Yet somehow, the vocalists featured on this EP are all J-indie O.G.'s like Takahisa Gomi from LOSTAGE, and Seiki from NAHT. Hell, they even managed to feature a J-pop vet like Misako Odani! Easily one of the best things about 2009, and one of J-indie's hidden gems. - @CAT5 12012 mar maroon By far my least favorite release by 12012, and quite possibly one of my least favorite albums ever, mar maroon did not improve with time. mar maroon marks the beginning of the end for many of 12012's earliest fans. It's one of the prime examples of heavy and hard rock bands going soft and losing sense of what defined their sound in the first place. There's very little appealing or even convincing musically, as if the band was almost forced into playing this kind of music. The direction they took afterwards isn't giving them any excuses either, pretty much emulating Dir en grey until their indefinite hiatus. The album folds quicker than a house of cards, revealing a surprising lack of inspiration and variety. It's almost impossible to get through in one sitting. In this case, even though the change in sound correlates with them going major, I do not think that it was the cause. Rather, I think the cause of them abandoning their roots is due to vocalist Wataru's scandal. It would not look good for 12012 to continue their old theme while still under the scrutiny of the public eye, and mar maroon even sounds like a musical apology that no one asked for. When considering 12012's entire discography, both before and after this album, this one easily comes in last place. "GOSSAMER" from their album SEVEN puts this entire album to shame. This can easily be skipped and forgotten. - @Zeus the GazettE DIM Where do I even begin? 2009’s the GazettE brought Visual Kei to hype levels that were so ludicrous, I remember music from this album spent YEARS circulating on music boards online. Who could blame them? The basslines bared so much weight and gloom, the melodies so melancholic and desolate, the lyrics were so wonderfully complex and dark, the entire atmosphere of DIM was so thick and compositionally sound that many who were around back then would agree that this was the album of our lives. *Breathes* The tracks could be cut & pasted into anyone’s mood and I feel that was due in part to the ideas and inspiration they took from other bands we adored throughout the past decade. “泣ヶ原 (Nakigahara)” for example was no more than a few simple chords and a Koto yet spoke volumes relating to current events, more so than one could put into words. The album’s last track “DIM SCENE” must be one of the heaviest message-driven compositions I have ever heard, flawlessly correlating the entire playthrough once more in the form of a message, maybe even an anthem, to other bands and fans of the VK scene alike. I can’t deny that the DIM era represented the GazettE at their prime, setting a bar so unattainable for the next decade that many would contest today has yet to be broken, even by them. I don’t think there’s a single VK fan alive today that has not listened to a song from this album. It doesn’t even feel like 10 years have gone by since its release, perhaps because I’ve grown far past a simple admiration and relive the nostalgia of “what was” every time I play DIM. - @YuyoDrift DIM is an album defined more by what it isn't than what it is. When examining the release of all the GazettE albums in chronological order, DIM rises head and shoulders above album neighbors Toxic and the eponymous Stacked Rubbish. It's almost impossible not to do this comparison. This is viewed by many as one of the GazettE's best albums, but time has not been kind to this album. With the initial wow factor out of the way, one can clearly see how the progressive leanings of Dir en grey's 2008 masterpiece Uroboros heavily influenced DIM. The album is very disjointed and features a lot of SE's to try and fix that - which it doesn't. When it's good, it's good. When it's not good, it's blase. Some tracks like "Shiroki Yuuutsu" and "IN THE MIDDLE OF CHAOS" are very forgettable experiences. One of the best songs "HEADACHE MAN" is a recycled B-side. "OGRE" is a bad Slipknot cover. "A MOTH UNDER THE SKIN" feels unfinished. Some pruning is required to bring the best out of this period, but it's there waiting to be found. This is an ambitious attempt by the band to outdo themselves and they really nailed this darkness concept the first time around. The lead singles are catchy without resorting to pop hooks and banal visual kei tropes. Good album, bit overrated, better than most of their full lengths, but I think that DOGMA and NINTH are better, more enriching overall experiences. - @Zeus Also known as “the first time I noticed the GazettE had a drummer”. DIM has arguably left the biggest mark on the band’s career, not only had Ruki improved as a vocalist, Kai also seemed to level up enough to finally bring life to their music. Before, sure, he kept the rhythm in check and played his role in the band, but from DIM onwards Kai’s own style started to shine. This album was the draft for what would later culminate in DOGMA, that is to say, Gazette’s style took a turn into darker corners with a heavy, tangible concept that was not only musical but visual. "13stairs[-]1" is a slow burner that I still find myself going back to and it pairs perfectly with "HEADACHE MAN" and "OGRE" — great songs to headbang to in a live setting. And yet, despite the heaviness of DIM, we were given one of the GazettE’s best ballads, “nakigahara”. It'd been several years since they had released a long, emotional trip like this (old fans will know) and they did not disappoint, despite its simplicity and instrumental minimalism, the heartache of "nakigahara" leaves you hanging to every note. Although DIM does feel like a slog to get through despite these great gems, its legacy is undeniable. - @platy Wait...DIM is on this list???? ahaha. I'm sure absolutely no one is surprised to see this album here. But there is good reason for it! Most people here know that I'm a casual VK fan, but a lover of J-rock and Japanese music in general. During my beginning phases of exploring J-rock, I dabbled in a bit of VK from like late 2004 - 2006, and then started getting into J-indie in 2007 and focusing my attention there. Basically, i'd heard and enjoyed NIL, but skipped STACKED RUBBISH. By the time 2009 rolled around, I was neck-deep in J-indie and only getting deeper, but DIM and all of the singles leading up to it were the only things that made me stop and pay attention to the VK world again. People can say what they want now, but almost everything about DIM was magical, during and prior to its release. The videos, the music, the general aesthetics...clearly, the GazettE had tapped into something special! Now in retrospect, DIM has definitely started to show some rust in areas. Certain tracks like "THE INVISIBLE WALL" and "A MOTH UNDER THE SKIN" just don't hit like they used to, and I think their whole 'dark/heavy' sound was later refined and employed waaaay better on DOGMA and NINTH. But with that said, I think all of the single/PV tracks are still particularly strong to this day. But I think what sets this album apart more than anything is the vision they had for it. It feels more like a complete experience than a cohesive collection of songs. DIM actually has character to it. - @CAT5 ......
  3. 24 points
    In that case visual kei might not be for you
  4. 24 points
    Zeus

    5 Things I Love About VK

    For better or for worse, visual kei is something that's had an impact on my life. I never thought groups of cross dressing Japanese men playing metal would be something that's stuck with me for so long, but throughout all the surprises, discoveries, disappointments, and developments I've stuck around in some capacity. I may not be as heavy into visual kei or Japanese music as I used to be, but there's a part of me that will always go back to the music I've enjoyed and another part of me that's always looking forward to new bands, activities, and trends. Here are five things I really enjoy about the scene which has kept me coming back again and again since 1999. So those are all the things I like about visual kei. I'm sure I missed some. What do you like about visual kei?
  5. 22 points
    The visual-kei scene is full of its own quirks and oddities that make it stand out from any other subculture in the music world; these hallmarks also appear to resonate at a national level, in spite of the culture stemming from several metropolitan hubs, each with their own small variants. One of these traits, for better or for worse, is how willing the scene is to reference itself. Since 2013, “willing” has become the incorrect word. “Obsessed,” “addicted,” “driven,” “obligated”; these words seem to fit the bill closer. References to older material is not uncommon in any medium of art, but visual-kei takes it four steps further to emulation. Today is the day we talk about homage-系 (Kei), kids. “Homage-kei” is a made up word. It isn’t a real category to anyone else other than people who use this board, to be honest, but it is an apt descriptor for this phenomenon. This is when a band reuses melodies, thematic, aesthetics, and even titles from an older, typically more successful, band or bands. However: their music also contains many original elements, which sets them apart from being a literal cover band. It also needs to be more than a single occurrence as well: Dir en grey “””borrowing””” the main riff of Luna Sea’s “G” is not enough, but borrowing the front-man of 黒夢 (Kuroyume)’s aesthetic for several music videos is. There are several bands that would fall under this umbrella from the late 2000’s. Two I want to touch on are Ru:Natic and the infamous Vajra. The first was one of the earliest examples I can think of that tried to revive the aggressive and bloody punk-meets-goth-meets-pop style popularized in the mid-90’s. They wore black clothes, had neon hair, and sang about being a crazy person invited to dinner parties that they had no business attending. While they weren’t the only group doing this (re: Sadie’s Mary and Sadie’sla), they were the first to start reusing melodies from older bands, namely La:Sadie’s, Madeth Gray’ll, and Aliene Ma’riage. There was even a hard-to-come-by single that was a reinterpretation of Baiser’s “undersea” and they had a demo tape that contained covers from some of the bands previously mentioned. They even lost a bunch of members, changed record labels, and released a lot of rare material: all cornerstones of “what an old school band does.” In my memory of the scene, this was the first time we got a real taste of bands reinventing the 90s sound that many people liked, but had fallen out of favor. Vajra was fun for the wrong reasons. Their costumes were kind of similar to UnsraW and thematically they were a bit too close to Dir en grey for the fan base at the time’s comfort. One of their singles was apparently a near 1:1 facsimile of another Dir en grey track and that caused a shitstorm on last.fm . For days people were arguing back and forth about whether it was a copy or not. Our own dear @Zeus requested someone overlay it with the original so we could see how similar it was. I personally did not have a horse in that race, but for hours or entertainment seeing the bickering between the hordes of people in outrage vs that one person who apparently went to their shows regularly and gave sympathetic updates about how this was affecting the band personally. Take his with a grain of salt, as it is only a Western interpretation of what happened and I cannot speak to how it was received by fans who could actually go see them in person. Regardless of where you stood in this fight, history’s take is that it did not end well for Vajra; they broke up shortly after only to be remembered as “that band that tried to be Diru.” Both examples were, in retrospect, unsuccessful. Ru:Natic, in their heyday, missed the boat on people eating up old-school revival acts by about 3 years, then only played again in one-off events. Vajra, on the other hand, failed for a couple of reasons. The first is that the fan base wasn’t ready for their style of tribute-meets-original-works. Secondly, there wasn’t enough time passed between what they performed and when their source material was released. Based on later act’s success, time helps prevent “a homage” from being seen as “a rip-off.” Earlier I had mentioned 2013 being the starting point for “homage-kei,” in a more official (but still unofficial) sense. That’s because グリヴァー (GRIEVA) happened and caused a shift in the scene. For those unfamiliar, Grieva’s whole schtick was that they dressed like a modern version of 1998 Dir en grey and made music that sounded like it could have came from from the same time frame. However, after people got a hold of their first album, it became alarming clear that it was one big tribute to “Gauze” (Dir en grey’s first album). A lot of songs “borrowed” the melodies of Gauze-era songs, their music videos were kind of like high school kids reenacting their idol’s work for a class project, and you were even able to draw parallels to the lyrical content. Grieva handled this clearly stating their theme is to bring back the feeling of the old days, and even fabricated a whole interview about how they went on a quest for band members that held the same ideals. Unlike Vajra, when people confronted them by saying “You’re just stealing,” them saying “Yeah, but that’s like the point???” it worked. Granted, there were plenty of people who weren’t buying this act and loathed the whole idea, but there was more than enough support for it to keep them at the forefront of the scene up until 2015. In fact, it worked so well that their label made it happen AGAIN, but this time with a band that pretended to be The GazettE and another that mixed all different concepts from the eroguro scene and western nü-metal together. This was the first time in visual-kei where blatantly copying on purpose wasn’t met with more backlash than praise. Several other acts spawned at the same time, due to a strong desire for “bands that sound like old school groups.” This was in part due to Cell, an offshoot of La’Mule that made somewhat similar music, Lin, a Kisaki band that came after he swore he was retired, and a general sense of boredom from the run-of-the-mill bands that dressed like host boys. Other groups that come to mind include Gauzes (a La’Mule homage-kei group), DEZERT (their first singles were nü-metal interpretations of groups like D’espairsRay and Nega), and AvelCain (who took more influence from groups like Lamiel than their fan base wanted to admit). Suddenly, it was cool to be like someone else. Eventually, the hype waned a bit. Grieva started writing their own music and then eventually split after being worked to death by their label. It was mostly the same case for AvelCain, Cell went on break because frontman Kon can’t keep focused on one thing, DEZERT found (and then killed) their own style, and most of the other old school sounding bands weren’t big enough to really make a lasting impact. This was the death of homage-kei. Or was it??? Interestingly enough, in recent years, this scene metamorphosed along with the scene at large. We started seeing groups now begin to “take influence from” more recent acts (which I guess are still old if you’re younger than 20??). We had メディーナ (Mediena), who took a lot from Phantasmagoria, ガンミ (Ganmi), which sounded like an early 2000s band without a real influence to pin point, and Mamireta, who tried to restart the subculture in high gear with their refreshing takes on 蜉蝣 (Kagerou)’s music. There are even big acts forming side projects that “sound like a 90’s band!!”, like Diaura(who are not guilt-free themselves, when it comes to Pierrot worship) and ぞんび (Zonbi). Even Gossip-ゴシップ- went from copying The GazettE to emulating their label owner’s old band (albeit at gunpoint (allegedly!)). It is worth noting that another significant change: aside from a few examples, the current trend has become "I want to sound like ___," rather than "guess which ___ songs I combined!!!" Arguably, the style should have started with this mentality, but controversy creates buzz. Unoriginality in the visual kei scene is nothing new. We even have an entire thread dedicated to specific instances where someone took a riff or theme and matches it to the exact source material it came from. But homage-kei really takes it to the next level. Bands want you to know who they’re sounding like. Could it be for nostalgia sales? Or because recreating a well liked motif makes it easier for someone to like a new creation (they’re already emotionally invested)? Or is it just a lazy cash grab, which requires 40% less effort to produce material? Maybe it is fulfilling a fantasy to reenact what you love about your idols? In spite of how much I adore everything mentioned throughout this article, I would be lying to you if I didn’t say that it is probably a mix of all four.
  6. 21 points
    platy

    DIMLIM

    People in the thread don't hate dimlim, we want them to succeed because they showed some of the strongest potential we'd seen around in a stale scene. People are salty because dimlim are shooting themselves in the foot and fucking up what could've been fantastic for fans, the band and vk.
  7. 21 points
    spockitty

    VK grandma represent \o/

    Welcome my dear children! How's vk doing these days? 😎 I see you can even listen to your weird japanese metal on Spotify, kids have it way too easy nowadays... BACK IN MY DAY I had to hunt single songs in 92kbps on dial-up Limewire and half the time ended up with "I did not have sexual relations with that woman.mp3". Funny story, that's how I got into vk! 13-year-old me was browsing the wide web, probably for some quality Britney Spears, and found a grainy Miyavi's Jibun Kakumei PV instead. With a 20MB download limit per day, I thought CLOSE ENOUGH and the rest is history. Now I'm back after over 10 years of impersonating a Serious Adult™ and I have Opinions™ to share. Some bands that I used to listen to (some of which are surprisingly still around!): Miyavi (duh), MUCC, Merry, girugamesh, 9GOATS BLACK OUT, Hora, Kaya, Schwarz Stein (can't believe they got back together, it's like I never left!) and the whole shebang, Aural Vampire, Kagrra,, Yoshiki's classical stuff~ And some bands that I've discovered in the past few weeks and absolutely love: Initial'L and consequently Lycaon, DIMLIM, Xaa-Xaa~ Also, I'm Anna 💩 P.S. I also listen to a lot of kpop, all kinds of electronic and celtic music; don't expect there to be much overlap but you never know! if your music taste is as all over the place as mine, hit me up, we can share obscure recommendations!
  8. 21 points
    Greetings, Monochromians! I hope everyone is doing well! After publishing our list for albums that turned 10 years old in 2017, we thought it would be fun to keep it going and do one for 2018 as well! I actually intended to publish this before 2018 came to a close, but it's all good! It's been a busy season for us all, and we ain't gonna let that stop our flow!!! So let's take a trip back to 2008 and see what J-rock was poppin' a decade ago!!! LET'S GET IT! 夢中夢 イリヤ -ilya- You're a few songs deep into -ilya- before you realize you're listening to something truly unique. 夢中夢 were nice enough to ease you into having your mind blown. At first the album sounds like it could be Mouse on the Keys with an operatic female vocalist. Full of catchy, lilting piano leads and swirling drums. Before too long, however, 夢中夢 are spicing things up with demonic snarls and sharp metal riffs. Now the fast, underproduced drums and organs are working with the dual vocalists and guitars to create an enchanting melange of viciousness and baroque post-jazz that's just downright hard to describe. Sure, unabashedly pretty, ethereal black metal is all the rage now; but 夢中夢 had a softer take that has yet to be replicated. It's the only album I own that I can imagine portions acting as the soundtrack to a knock-off Disneyland kiddie adventure ride, and other portions being played between sets at the Roadburn Festival. by @The Reverend DIR EN GREY UROBOROS 10 years and a month ago, DIR EN GREY released their seventh studio album UROBOROS amidst much fanfare. The album was instrumental in bringing JRock to its height of popularity in the west, during an the era that saw them tour extensively and receive airwaves in Europe and North America. Released off the back of their 2007 album Marrow of a Bone, UROBOROS delivered a theme that represented the cycle of birth and death, marking a shift from the old Dir en grey to the newly incarnated DIR EN GREY. With it, they carried their sound to new experimental heights, melding western metal with oriental influences resulting in classics like “Vinushka,” “Dozing Green,” “Inconvenient Ideal,” “我、闇とて…” to life; even inspiring former Deg roadie Wataru's band 12012 to pay homage in their very out-of-character 2012 self-titled album. by @helcchi 9GOATS BLACK OUT devils in bedside A singer everyone thought was long retired appears from the ether. He announces a new band, two new musicians, and new music, but no samples or even a frame of reference was provided to set expectations. All we get is a name and the imagery of a goat. This sounds like the opening to a really corny joke, but this is how 9GOATS BLACK OUT erupted onto the scene in 2008; with neither a bang nor a whimper but a six track mini that commanded everyone's attention. In a time where metalcore was the most common style of music played and costumes were vibrant and gaudy, 9GOATS BLACK OUT is responsible for injecting both post rock influences and a new sense of fashion into visual kei. In the process, they birthed a sub style unlike anything anyone had heard or seen before. devils in bedside is a timeless affair that sounds fresh even in 2018. In fact, this album was a little too good; no matter the quality of the music that came after, 9GOATS could never escape the shadow of devils in bedside. This is visual kei for people burned out on visual kei, and still functions well as a springboard into various different projects and labels in the scene. by @Zeus The scene back in 2008 was littered with shiny brand new things for us to look at. When a murky and dark 9GBO emerged, it sure did stand out. People seemed very excited to have "ryo" back. Who the hell that guy was - I had no idea and the pictures and promo released prior to the album revealed little of the member's faces, that is, there was no eye candy to keep young me interested. Regardless, something about the melancholy of 9GBO caught my attention. Even your more mediocre metal vk band would be donned in extravagant hair or clothes, because of this, 9GBO's simplicity was hard to digest, they offered little to look at but also their melodies were unlike anything we'd heard before. It took practice to appreciate devils in bedside. It wasn't long before I was deeply hooked, replaying raw over and over gain because I simply couldn't get enough of how it felt. Without a doubt, this album has shaped my music taste into what it is today. If I need to get away into a mysterious and sultry fantasy world, I always come back here. by @platy ONE OK ROCK 感情エフェクト It's rare my memory of listening to a band for the first time is remotely clear, especially 10 years later, which is a huge credit to ONE OK ROCK being as I have the memory of a goldfish. A friend played the music video "恋ノアイボウ心ノクピド(Koi no aibou kokoro no Cupid)" for me way back when and it was love at first listen. 感情エフェクト (Kanjou Effect) was a landmark album in a chain of releases that skyrocketed OOR to international popularity. Unfortunately, its legacy became slightly marred with the arrest of the band's lead guitarist, Alex, that caused much of the album's promotions to be halted and deleted from the internet, including the previously mentioned music video. Kanjou Effect still stands strong in OOR's discography, despite the bad press surrounding it. It has all the melodic staples of their later work, but the vigor of youth added a rawness to this album that they were never quite able to capture again. by @doombox school food punishment Riff-rain school food punishment made their official debut just a year prior to 2008 and they'd quickly established themselves as one of the most promising new indie bands around with the two EPs they released. So when "Riff-rain" came out, I thought it would be pretty good, but I did not expect it to be THIS DAMN GOOD! True to the EP's name, "Riff-rain" is like a non-stop downpour musical goodness, as the band is playing is tighter than they've ever played before, and there's a noticeable intensity and drive to their songwriting that was only hinted at in their previous EPs. The band had finally came into their own. Unfortunately, this was their final EP as an indie band before going major and embracing more of an overly poppy, anison sound. But for many fans, this is regarded as their best work - an EP that captures SFP in perhaps their most promising era. (this EP gets bonus points because if you put it on repeat, it plays in a perfect loop! ) by @CAT5 ギルガメッシュ MUSIC It blows my mind to reflect on how far girugamesh have come. MUSIC was a very polarizing release at launch because girugamesh courted a particular type of visual kei fan with their affinity for all black clothes and depressing metal core music. These same fans didn't appreciate girugamesh going full Linkin Park and electronic, which was the CliffNotes consensus at the time, but a lot of the apprehension was also rooted in a fear that they would leave their old looks and sound for brighter pastures. That fear was very real; had we known what the next album would be at the time, we would have prized MUSIC a little more. MUSIC is a transitional period in girugamesh's history because it fits snugly at the intersection of the dark and heavy tone of earlier releases and the fun and lightheartedness of later releases. This was an album they clearly designed to have fun playing live, and this is an album that I throw on whenever I need a burst of energy. I also believe this is one of the earliest - and probably most influential - albums that used a heavy dose of electronic elements, which would go on to influence not just this band, but also inspire countless other acts such as MUCC, D'espairsRay, REALies, and 2nd Dyz. by @Zeus My fondest memories from the last decade would not be complete without Girugamesh. Truly a definition of the times, it was their album Music that cemented recognition to a young fanboy like myself. Sure, some might say that music was a far-cry to the hardcore rock they were known for at the time, but I like to think that this small experimentation worked. Seamlessly mixing in beats and melodies into their already amazing rock style, as an alternative to having Satoshi keep wrecking his vocal chords, you could say Ryo was a genius and believe it lol. It’s an experiment gone right, and I can definitely tell you this was my most played album in 2008. by @YuyoDrift Versailles NOBLE The official full-length debut of the band of ultimate beauty took place in July, 2008, about one full year after they released their debut single, The Revenant Choir. This album marked something new in my own VK fandom as well as a very large amount of fans around the globe. These five individuals had presented themselves as pure art, something other than human. Most importantly, everything sounded new and fresh. An album like this had seemingly not been done, even by previous projects. The album proper was over an hour long and never lost momentum. The associated music video, "Aristocrat's Symphony", perfectly pictured what this project was going to be about. Now, 10 years later, it is still one of the defining albums of my youth. In hindsight of the overall project, however, they absolutely should have let Teru compose more! by @ShanethVarosa Plastic Tree ウツセミ When I think of Plastic Tree's album Utsusemi, I think of the mellow guitars, peaceful synths, and calm tambourines. Being released a year after their album ネガとポジ (Nega to Poji), Utsusemi gave a much softer sound in comparison with only a few upbeat songs like "テトリス" and "GEKKO OVERHEAD". But even those songs were still considered soft when comparing them to songs like "不純物" or "無人駅" from Nega to Poji. Utsusemi, in a sense, was less edgy and more poppy, which might have drawn away some fans, but to me listening to a Plastic Tree album was like reading a book with its own story. Utsusemi made me feel like I was floating in a clear body of water on a breezy summer day. I can say the same for the album art as well. Everything felt light and airy, and Ryutaro's soothing vocals kept my heartbeat to a calm. In fact, Ryutaro rarely strained or raised his voice during the entire album, which made it all the more calming to listen to. Despite saying that, there are several interludes of human background noises slipped in between tracks that break my small reverie and remind me of the real world I live in. Utsusemi may not hold up as well as other Plastic Tree albums, but it carries a consistent blissful and tender tone making it a unique album of its own. by @plastic_rainbow SuG n0iZ stAr SuG have a certain reputation in the scene, some say their music is bad. But regardless of how you feel about them, their first album is proof of how far they've come as musicians. It's a mixed bag with poor production and insufferable vocal work. But the worst sin of it all, are the visuals that came with n0iZ stAr. The pv for Vi-Vi-Vi is a fun yet ugly affair full of sparkly silver fabric, leopard prints and ruffles. Believe it or not, fangirls around the world were going crazy for Takeru's star spangled bald patch and insane murderer smile. The tracks vary from sugary happiness to some pretty heavy tunes considering SuG's repertoire at the time. Looking back, Chiyu's bass was the backbone to most of the album, which is probably why I still kind of enjoy it to this day. On one hand you have decent tracks like the lovely ballad "RomantiC" and the fast paced "ヤミツキディレイ" (disregard the use of autotune) and on the other hand you have "うえすとふぁいとすと~り~" and "pikaLIFE". The former should be used as a form of torture, the latter would have been better off if time had erased it from its bland, meaningless existence. Not much later in the same year, SuG released the mini Punkitsch which blew n0iZ stAr out of the water with it's clear direction and heavier and more polished sound, and once again, outstanding work from bassist Chiyu. n0iZ stAr laid out what fans should expect from SuG in the future, always wandering between light and darkness, treading the line between shitty pop and decent punk rock. (don't @ me, I still love them) by @platy ミドリ あらためまして、はじめまして、ミドリです。 midori were at the top of their game in 2008. They had just made their major debut with their shimizu EP towards the end of 2007, and were already amassing a cult following of international J-rock fans. This album was their first major full-length, and for the time being, it seemed like the band had successfully avoided the dreaded 'indie-to-major curse'. In fact, the transition was seamless. The band's cacophonous Jazz-Punk sound that had brought them this far merely flourished on this album. Hell, it's a wonder that a major label even signed off on an album like this with practically no commercial appeal. Sadly, this was midori's last great work before they released their DISMAL final album and disbanded in 2010. by @CAT5 exist†trace Recreation eve You may not know it, but exist†trace were among the top acts in 2008, becoming the most recognized all-female Visual Kei band of this era. Providing a satisfying sampling to the band’s usage of melodic death metal, the band’s first full album Recreation eve contained distorted guitar play and riffs that were very appealing during this time, with the girls aggressively providing the dark undertones necessary to promote their Visual Kei aesthetic, as well as shock factor. Lead Vocalist Jyou could growl and scream like you wouldn’t believe back then and it was tracks like “Water”, “Judea”, and "Venom" that showcased her versatility as well as the entire band's potential. It was with Recreation eve that the band gained wide stream recognition both in Japan and the West, leading to a European tour that same year. If you wanna feel this era of VK to its fullest then you'll give this album a listen. by @YuyoDrift exist†trace has had an amazing run for the last ten years, much better than anyone would have expected back in 2008. Women then and now are still uncommon in visual kei, and the acts that did exist were small and had infrequent releases, and maybe only one female member. There was a niche waiting to be explored here, and exist†trace graced the scene in 2003 with an unexpected heavy goth sound inspired heavily by D'espairsRay. The inspiration was so obvious, they had the nickname of "budget D'espa" among fans for a few years. Recreation eve is a collection album that captures exist†trace at the end of this five year period, shortly before they underwent the visual and sonic transformation that turned them into the band we know them as today. The name of the compilation even hints at it (although no one thought much of it then)! The production feels a bit thin compared to what we can expect from them now, but the song writing and some riffs still hit hard. exist†trace made the right call in switching up their sound when they did because I don't think they had enough ideas or flexing room to continue in their original sound, and reinventing themselves gave them the breathing room they needed to make music more quickly. I miss this version of them, but sometimes we have to let a good thing go. by @Zeus kacica MOSAIC By 2008, the Japanese post-rock scene was booming and there were plenty of bands to go around with new ones surfacing every day it seemed. kacica was one of the more interesting fringe acts to emerge from the scene...Like 101A and downy - they had a definite post-rock element to their music, but they weren't necessarily easy to classify as such. The band claimed influences from post-rock progenitors Sigur Rós and Mogwai, and while their impact is palpable, kacica has an extensive musical palette that draws from psychedelia, progressive rock, and the avant-garde as well. All of these different elements coalesce brilliantly on the band's sophomore album "MOSAIC" which is downright otherworldly! This album is such a strange and wonderfully immersive listen that it'll make you feel as if you're on a massive intergalactic tour visiting different planets and experiencing bizarre new worlds. I love it! Definitely one of the coolest albums released in 2008 and a personal all-time favorite for me! (also one of the few bands who sing entirely in "Engrish" that I actually don't mind ) by @CAT5 the studs and hate 2008 marked a great turnaround for the Nagoya Kei scene as Daisuke of Kagerou and Aie of deadman had recently formed the studs in an effort to bring the genre back to its roots, as well as continue the already existing Visual Kei influence internationally. Along with Yukino from GULLET and Hibiki from Blast, it was during this year that their first full album and hate was released. This album successfully represents what each of the very experienced members in the Nagoya Kei scene had to offer as Aie had carried over the raw alternative sound that existed in deadman, and Daisuke with his heartfelt and emotional vocals that were once heard in Kagerou. Even greater than this was the musical arrangement and rich execution of instruments from all the members that allowed naturally beautiful melodies to be the very definition of their musical genius. Even after 10 years, this album's release still holds its acclaim as a must-listen, and truly grasps how great being a VK fan back then was. by @YuyoDrift DELUHI Surveillance DELUHI had an incredibly explosive beginning to their activities in 2008, spearheaded by vigorous touring and practice and supported with the release of their first album Surveillance, which was a seminal moment for visual kei and was recorded in less than two months. Before Surveillance, power metal and visual kei didn't really mix. DELUHI - and guitarist Leda in particular - crafted the blueprint for what I'll affectionately dub "power metalcore dipped in the dressings of visual kei". Perhaps the greatest success of this album is neither how good it is, nor how an indie band's first release shamed other acts - indie and major - into serious action, but how effortlessly the band was able to market power metal to a crowd that these sounds never appealed to. Take one part power metal, add some distortion to the guitars and a few harsh vocals, staple a saccharine chorus on top, do that four or five times with minor variations, and you have a formula for success. It's borderline genius in retrospect. Leda is a renowned and prolific guitarist today in his own right, but ten years ago was best known as the ex-bassist of Galneryus with a penchant for writing sick riffs. This is the album that put Leda on the radar, broke him out of those definitions, and blazed the trail that later acts like GALEYD would follow. by @Zeus LM.C SUPER GLITTER LOUD BOX LM.C was easily accessible for those who were too afraid to go deep into the world of vk. Their music was harmless fun and super catchy, they used to wear a lot of stuff that people going through their emo/scene phase could relate to. Stripy half gloves, anyone? For those reasons, in '08 LM.C was nearing the peak of their popularity in the west. SGLB is the perfect album to go crazy to and when compared to more recent releases from the duo, it's bursting full of life. Headbangers like "METALLY" and "@FUNNY PHANTOM@" and classics like "OH MY JULIET". Come on, we all belted along to that song at least once. This is the LM.C formula at its best. by @platy THE BACK HORN パルス One of the prevailing criticisms that I've heard about THE BACK HORN over the past decade or so is that the band started off strong with their first few albums, but quickly lost their spark afterwards. It's true to an extent: they originally hit the scene with a raw, fresh rock sound, and they DID eventually mellow out into a kind of mainstream mediocrity - HOWEVER, the band got a much needed second wind on Pulse. As their 7th major album, it was clear at this point that the band's songwriting had been tempered to suit the industry, but somehow, they managed to resurrect the passion of their early days and perfectly assimilate it into the refined and polished sound that they'd developed since. Fans were definitely pleased with the band's revitalized energy and this album marked the start of a new leg of inspired music from THE BACK HORN. Unfortunately, that energy only lasted for a few years before the band fell back into a mediocre slump, but THE BACK HORN has still had an incredibly solid career for a band that just celebrated their 20th anniversary this year. Pulse is one of their best. by @CAT5 Sadie UNDEAD13+2 I have an intense sentimental connection to UNDEAD13+2, despite the fact that I'll only listen to select cuts from it whenever the urge grips me to give it a spin. UNDEAD13+2 is a relic of its time, an age in visual kei where being a good indies clone of Dir en grey was acceptable and even encouraged, and it's what everyone and their mother flocked to Sadie to hear. Believe it or not, there was a time when I considered Mao to have better gutturals than Kyo! Sadie knew their market well, and part of their rise into prominence is because they played off fan expectations to deliver something familiar but new every time, and UNDEAD13+2 hits that sweet spot. For all of the material that Sadie would release after this point - and that's eight to nine years of singles, minis, and albums - nothing defines Sadie for me as well as UNDEAD13+2. Unlike all of their other albums, UNDEAD13+2 represents an entire era of the band's activities distilled into its best parts, and feels more complete and realized than any other album of theirs bar Master of Romance. by @Zeus Sugar SWEETEST Visual Kei bands have always dabbled around with jazz influences, but more often than not the results were a mess. Sugar was one of the few exceptions to that rule, forming their entire sound around this dark jazzy rock sound and actually pulling it off. The result of this melding of genres felt natural as opposed to forced. Loki's deep and nasally vocal tone oozes "VK", but seemly with a greater grasp of the control needed in order to provide a dynamic delivery than a lot of his peers in the scene at the time. SWEETEST was the first and only full length album the band would ever release - the band did not survive long past this album's release (disbanding in 2009) - which is a damn shame as their sound still feels fresh and unique today. by @Ito lloy 遮断 Yoooooo, big shout out to ghostorgan from livejournal (you know this is from back in the day if i'm mentioning LJ ). I'm not sure if that user is still around, but I'm like 99.9% sure I have that person to thank for putting me on to this band! Either way, lloy were a peculiar bunch. We all know that Goth is a prevalent element in Visual Kei, but bands that identify solely as Goth or that play strictly Goth music seem to be a rare commodity in the modern J-rock world (whether vk or not). So lloy being a female-fronted J-goth act automatiically made them stand out. It also helped that their music was actually good, too haha. 遮断 was a great album full of bass-driven goth-rock tunes, often with a dark, jazzy flair to them. Songs like "消えたサブリナ" and "吸血鬼" even reminded me a bit of British rockers QueenAdreena. This seems to be the only release of theirs that's widely available, but it's well worth checking out. lloy has a timeless sound, and one that's unique within the world of J-rock. by @CAT5 DEATHGAZE AWAKE-evoke the urge- Marking a pivotal change in direction for the band in 2008, AWAKE -evoke the urge- was the first album where Ai, who had recently left his position as bassist, now stood as the vocalist and leader of band. What was amazing about this album was that Ai managed to retain the same deep vocal sound from before (trust me this was mind-blowing at the time lol) but in a cleaner, and much more defined manner. The heavy and fast execution that was iconic to DEATHGAZE was also retained, while introducing slower melodies and softer arrangements for the first time to their repertoire, adding more weight and melancholy to the band's usage of the term "heavy". AWAKE -evoke the urge- was a magnificent release that 10 years ago allowed DEATHGAZE to come back from the brink of what we all thought was going to be a disbandment, while being able to go toe to toe with their long time rival band lynch for the next few years that followed. by @YuyoDrift Lillies and Remains Moralist S.S. Ten years ago, despite Japanese indie becoming increasingly less accessible to overseas fans at the time (many major forums were dying off, streaming wasn't really a thing yet, and music wasn't as widely available to purchase) - I was in a rather fortunate and unique position to have access to new J-indie on a weekly basis. As a result, I spent A LOT of time listening to new and obscure J-rock bands that year - many of which were average, forgettable, and never saw the light of day (both in Japan and in the overseas fandom). So when Lillies and Remains appeared amidst the mire of humdrum bands I was coming across - they stood out like a sore thumb. Their debut EP Moralist S.S. sounded like nothing else in the Japanese Indie scene at the time, and the only comparable band (their friends PLASTICZOOMS) wouldn't debut until a year later. Here you had a new, young band playing raw, energetic, and technically sound 80's new-wave/post-punk that could easily pass for material from a "Western" band (especially if you weren't listening close enough to discern Kent's rampant 'Engrish' ). But not only that - the quality, maturity, and polish of their songwriting far exceeded what you might expect from a band that just debuted - and it certainly stood meters above the stuff I was constantly running into. Needless to say, this EP instantly turned heads and made fans, as it was a big hit with the J-rock heads on communities like J-salad and Tainted World (which later became our beloved Monochrome Heaven). Lillies and Remains came is strong and they've been a consistent force to reckon with ever since! by @CAT5 新興宗教楽団NoGoD 夢幻教 There was a time long ago when the band now known as simply NoGoD was a unicorn of a different shade. Unlike many visual kei bands that start activities first and band activities second, 新興宗教楽団NoGoD practiced in secret for half a year before officially beginning activities. With such a strong start, powerful aesthetics and sound, and controversial anti-religion band concept, 新興宗教楽団NoGoD went from relatively unknown to indie powerhouses in only three years. I find their period from 2006 to 2009 to be their most creative, with 夢幻教 (Mugenkyou) acting as a powerful anchor for this era. It debuted at #6 on the Oricon indies chart upon release, cementing NoGoD as a rising force among their contemporaries. With its powerful melodies, varied compositions, air of mysticism, and undeniable inspiration, this album holds up even today. 夢幻教 is my favorite NoGoD album and always has been. Examining the NoGoD of today with the band as it was then leaves me dispirited, because there's an undeniable element and aura to this album that has been missing from their music since they went major. None of their other albums grab me like this one does. by @Zeus シンディケイト (噂の)アウトサイダー As far as oshare kei goes, cindykate had a certain authenticity which was unique. Uwasa no Outsider starts with a chaotic bang in the form of "bubbly kakumei" and ends with the surprisingly endearing "[ALICE]". People's first reaction to this album would usually go something like "woah, they suck. But they're actually good". Yuui's almost tone deaf vocals are charming and essential to cindykate's signature playful style. In a scene full of strawberries, bunnies and fairylands the group avoided cliches and kitsche, overdone ideas, instead focusing on more urban concepts such as tokyo night life and pop culture, always with a tongue in cheek, somewhat more adult approach. This album showcases some of the viral positivity and humor which they were known for. It may leave you confused, but it won't leave you bored. To those who may not know, this is your chance to hear the president of GOEMON RECORDS in action. by @platy RENTRER EN SOI MEGIDDO Ten years ago, RENTRER EN SOI was the golden child of the visual kei scene that had everything going for them until their untimely disbandment. Their slow and unpromising start sporting an ethereal take on a 90's sound in the 00's gave way to a promising career in the indies circuit after a few years, but the band ended up pulling a Dir en grey and taking their music in a heavier direction after the release of Sphire-Croid. This was a rough transformation that birthed an abomination of a second album we shall not speak about, but things would stabilize in a more promising direction by their third album THE BOTTOM OF CHAOS. Then, internal struggles tore this band apart and they released MEGIDDO as a parting gift. I remember that at the time this mini was considered perfect and many proclaimed that RENTRER EN SOI is a band that people would discuss even in 2018. Unfortunately, that is not the case. Time has not been kind to this band. Satsuki managed to stain his solo career and the reputation of this band with his many embarrassing scandals, Mika and Takumi took forever to resurface in a notable band (sukekiyo), and the others dropped out of music altogether. No fan after 2010 really listens to this band - and if they do they sure as hell aren't listening to Sphire-Croid - and with time the cracks in MEGIDDO show themselves. It's a solid listen if you can forgive Satsuki's weak ass growls and skip tracks 3 and 4. It's a perfect representation of this band's identity struggles, because half of it sounds like their old period and half of it sounds like the metal core sound they could never convincingly pull off, and its apparent which half I prefer. Given time, I'm sure they could have worked all the flaws out, but we will never see that happen. by @Zeus LITE Phantasia Along with toe, LITE had already been recognized as one of Japan's premier instrumental bands with the release of their 2006 album filmlets. But it was with their 2nd album Phantasia that the band truly solidified them as standard bearers for the scene. Up until this time, they'd been playing very tight, intricate, and engaging math-rock that was well above par, but on this album, the band took a bold leap forward by amping up the intensity with distorted chugs, ferocious drumming, and commanding, yet groovy bass-lines - while still incorporating those smooth, post-rockish elements that were prevalent in their previous releases. This album is a BEAST and ten years later, it remains, perhaps, LITE's best outing - if not their most raw, and unrelenting. A highlight in both the year 2008 and in the history of instrumental J-rock as well! by @CAT5 vistlip Revolver It's been 10 years since vistlip formed as a band and although I haven't been keeping up with anything they've done since 2010 or so, their debut mini-album Revolver remains as one of my favorites. Back then when VK was still fresh and appealing to me, I was always on the lookout for new bands to try. Then I came across the PV for "EDY" and was instantly hooked. Looking back at it now, the PV looked pretty cheap with chains hanging everywhere in one small dark room. But hell, that was what made me love VK and I was so hooked that I practically made gifs of the whole video. (If you remember all those icon gifs from LJ that was me....). But enough of the PV. Revolver was a solid first release by the young vistlip and not a single track fell short. You've got the robust and aggressive track "EDY", the slower track about longing "BLACK-TAIL", the energetic and zealous track "the surface", the wintery ballad "Moon Light Snow Rabbits", and the band's sentimental theme song "July VIIIth" of which I prefer this version more than the rebirth version. Revolver gave me such a strong impression that no matter what other album I listen to by vistlip, I seem to want to go back to it instantly. by @plastic_rainbow ∀NTI FEMINISM 狂葬録 狂葬録 (Kyousouroku) is a badass album that took quite a few years for me to unpack. I didn't get it at first because I had no proper appreciation for punk, and I have this band to thank for really opening my eyes. ∀NTI FEMINISM is absolutely mental and one of the few bands deserving of the legendary moniker. There's only one official member, that being vocalist Kenzi of THE DEAD POP STARS, but since 1991 over 100 musicians have played as support members. That's a lot of punk, and that's exactly why 狂葬録 is such a dense experience. Sitting at 27 tracks with a run time of almost one hour, it has almost all of the cuts ∀NTI FEMINISM put out since 2001, featuring a few re-recordings, a few rare tracks, and two new tracks. Considering how ∀NTI FEMINISM do releases - which is infrequently at best, featuring anywhere between two and six tracks that were probably no longer than 140 seconds a piece - this is the closest to a proper album that we are ever going to get. This also marks a turning point in this band's trajectory, because after this release Kenzi would take this band into a heavier direction. After so many years, the best way for me to enjoy this album is to start just about anywhere and ride the punk wave to the end, because even ten years later this album still bangs hard. I still recommend this album to anyone looking for hardcore punk, an injection of musical adrenaline, or an idea of what the fringes of visual kei sound like. by @Zeus 嘘つきバービー 問題のセカンド Before 88Kasyo Junrei, there was Usotsuki Barbie....is what I want to say, but that wouldn't be technically correct. 88Kasyo were actually active in 2008, but their music didn't reach overseas ears until around 2010. So for us international J-rock fans, Usotsuki Barbie served as a bit of a spiritual precursor to them. They'd released 2 mini albums prior, but most of us got our first introduction to the band via their first full album Mondai no Second. These guys instantly won us over with their zany rock&roll fraught with weird, angular psychedelic riffs, spazztastic instrumentation, and quirky vocals. Their sound touted the perfect mix of crazy and catchy, but it was undoubtedly polarizing. To this day, Mondai no Second is an album you'll either love or hate. by @CAT5 Sel'm brilliant force Sel’m were well within their early indie years in 2008 with vocalist Tora still within their lineup of members. The band’s music style was well known to be more hardcore and aggressive during this time, and their first full album Brilliant Force allowed them to finally gain an identity within the Visual Kei scene. Due in part to the zest that existed during this time, the band could experiment with smoother and more melodic songwriting, while retaining that vigor and intensity that vocalist Tora had been known to convey when singing. As an early fan I think they were still in the zone when they released this album, and whether you know about their years together as a band that followed, Brilliant Force was well received by fans and helped change the musical direction for them. by @YuyoDrift MUCC 志恩 A common theme among a lot of visual kei bands that last long enough is that they have distinct eras that do not resemble each other in many ways, and that the first transition is usually a painful one. 志恩 (Shion) does not chronicle MUCC's redemption arc - that would be the previous album 極彩 (Gokusai) - but the pressures of what comes after. 志恩 sees MUCC experimenting with Indian and tribal themes, an uncommon but not unfamiliar trope at the time, and it resulted in some good tunes like "志恩" (Shion) and "梟の揺り篭" (Fukurou no Yurikago). This is also where I first heard of MUCC and worked my way backwards. I also happen to not find it very accessible, and it's not the best place to begin exploring MUCC, but it's not the worst either. It's tribal motif is betrayed by its inconsistent application and a few tracks could have been cut to slim the package. As later albums have eclipsed it and MUCC has moved their sound into a new dimension, 志恩 has become a touch point of its own in MUCC's discography: a familiar album that people speak fondly of, but don't speak of often. by @Zeus SPIRAL CHORD サ・ヨ・ナ・ラ・セ・カ・イ Consisting of Gendo Takebayashi from COWPERS on vocals/guitar, HERA from 200MPH on drums, and Kentaro Nakao from NUMBER GIRL on bass, SPIRAL CHORD were somewhat of a J-Indie supergroup. They only released 2 albums, playing a raucous hybrid of garage-rock, punk, and post-hardcore. SAYANARA SEKAI was the second of those two albums, and while the first was altogether rough and characterless - on here, the band seemed to be settling into their groove. Their songwriting had GREATLY improved, as they added more melody and soul - actually crafting songs that stuck with you. It's unfortunate that these guys did not go on to further hone their sound - as Gendo is now in a band called zArAme, and Nakao went on to form Crypt City - but they left behind a kick-ass memorial. Not to mention, the PV for "Disitance to Substance" is one of the most iconic J-rock PVs ever! Check it out below! by @CAT5 THE NOVEMBERS picnic With an impressive self-titled EP the year prior, it was no surprise that a band with a name like THE NOVEMBERS could follow up with an even more impressive album. Practically timeless, picnic held an atmosphere in every track that grew wider and deeper as you listened, almost as if you became a part of it. My opinion on the album has not changed from years ago, and if anything picnic has aged VERY well for what it was. by @YuyoDrift MIYAVI This Iz The Japanese Kabuki Rock Forever the black sheep of Miyavi's discography, This Iz The Japanese Kabuki Rock marks an interesting turning point in Miyavi's career. Based on his activities since this was both a very influential and personal point in his career. I sense faint hints of this style in his more recent works, and I remember reading a translator note about how disappointed he was in the sales of this album. He expected a much bigger, more positive response. Takamasa, if you are reading this, I want you to know that ten years ago I was an idiot and I wasn't riding the same wave you were. Nobody was. At that time, I wanted more of what he was doing between 2003 and 2005 without realizing that what he was making was infinitely more creative. International fans didn't know what the Neo Visualizm theme really was and probably still don't. A small but vocal minority was getting tired of the Kavki Boiz in general, and that sentiment buzzing around didn't help any. When I examine this album ten years later without any of that associated baggage, I hear some of the most creative music penned under the visual kei flag ever. Nothing like this came before it and nothing has come after. The album is deceptively deep and varied, effortlessly bouncing between rock, pop, electronic, hip hop, and visual kei. I find that now I like this more than some of his recent work because the creativity feels authentic and unrestrained. And, in an ultimately cruel bit of irony, I wouldn't mind if he returned to this style for a song or two. by @Zeus FOX LOCO PHANTOM CHAOTIC MONSTER I actually can't recall if I heard FOX LOCO PHANTOM's first album before or after CHAOTIC MONSTER (their second album). Whatever the case, I do know that I heard this one around the time it was released, and it left a distinct impression on me. Particularly because this band seemed to fit in a grey area within the J-rock fandom. They were like Psysalia psysalis psyche, and Lillies and Remains in that they seemed to appeal equally to both VK and J-indie fans alike (who at the time were diametrically opposed for the most part ). The vocalist even has a shaky, vibrato-ridden voice that somewhat reminds me of Gara from MERRY lol (tho his overall cadence is different). But besides their multi-fandom appeal, FOX LOCO PHANTOM just has this highly energetic and danceable rock style that's insanely infectious. CHAOTIC MONSTER does a fantastic job of encapsulating all of that youthful vigor, and it still rocks to this very day! by @CAT5 Viored (バイオレット) 最終音源集 Their names may have faded into dust with time, but I'm one of the few who still remember Viored was a thing in 2008. Definitely deserving of the underrated moniker, their strong guitar sound, melodies, and frequent release schedule put them on the radar for the two years that they were active. Unfortunately, they were checked by fate just as they began their ascent because the vocalist was convinced by his girlfriend to leave the band and run away. Releasing a compilation album and disbanding was all the remaining members of the band could do. 最終音源集 is still good in 2018, but their sparse discography meant some lesser tracks had to be included to fill up the disc, so some tracks are in a league of their own and others are merely serviceable. Viored is a solid band to sample if you are into visual kei anthropology, but looking back I'm not surprised that no one is talking about this band. by @Zeus 雅だよ雅 self-titled I was blessed to discover this duo about a year after 2008 via THE J-INDIE KING HIMSELF - Steven Tanaka (organizer of the NEXT MUSIC FROM TOKYO Tour). As someone who flew to Japan six to seven times a year simply to indulge in the scene, Steve was consistently discovering fresh and new acts that we international fans had no idea existed. I give him all credit for truly opening up and deepening my perspective of the J-indie scene. Masodayomasa were one of the many bands he put me on to, AND MAN!!!! Do NOT let their looks fool you! These two unassuming women were an absolute POWERHOUSE! Their self-titled album took me by complete surprise. It's literally just one girl on guitar and the other on drums with both sharing vocal duties, yet their sound is compelling and full. I mean, simply calling these two "girl rock" - wouldn't do them justice, as they play as loud and ferociously as the best of them. This album is a relatively short collection of noisy garage-rock, but their songwriting is varied and creative enough that they cover a enough ground to make it a truly satisfying experience. by @CAT5 8-eit Glamorous 8-eit is one of my favorite visual kei bands of all time, and I wish things turned out better for them. 8-eit was (and I guess still is) a jazz fusion visual kei band unlike any other, but a lengthy hiatus at the apex of their career killed any steam this band had. They exist but they don't have the presence they did before, and several members of the band have been replaced. The scene has also forgotten them, and their sound has also changed to a more guitar oriented one, so I'm not sure if 8-eit still consider themselves visual kei or not. 8-eit as it is today is not the same band as it was on GLAMOROUS, as the album captures an image of 8-eit recently after they acquired keyboardist Hiroshi Matsubara, who I will credit for adding much texture and melody to their jazz with his piano skills. Those piano melodies, along with the pumping bass, are the vital components that transport the listener into a smoky lounge in a different time. This album is often overlooked in favor of their second album swingy swindle, which I will admit is literal perfection, but GLAMOROUS is what jump started their band activities and is worth checking out too. by @Zeus LOTUS GUITAR second tide Oh man... here's one TRAGICALLY overlooked album by a TRAGICALLY overlooked duo! I'm not entirely sure why - but this one managed to slip through the cracks. LOTUS GUITAR consisted of solo artist Ash, and clammbon's drummer Daisuke Ito - but even being linked to such a prominent band, this release still managed to fly under many a radar. It's all good, though - despite the obscure nature of the release, this is an absolute gem! The scope of this record is actually pretty expansive - spanning a variety of sounds and genres from straightforward rock, indie, jazz, post-rock, folk, and even to psychedelia - but it's all done very organically. Nothing here seems forced and the diversity simply comes off as second nature to these guys. As a result, this album has a sort of humble grandeur to it. I also love that these guys did not restrain themselves or try to adhere to strict song structures because they spend plenty of time jamming the hell out on this album, and it's awesome! second tide is a fantastic collection of straightforward, non-gimmicky J-rock songs from two seasoned musicians playing straight from the heart! by @CAT5 UNLIMITS 夢幻シンドローム Back in 2008, UNLIMITS' female fronted vaguely skate punk influenced rock felt fresh to me. Coming back to Mugen Syndrome a decade later and the music feels a little more stale than I remembered. This album is a little rough around the edges, and while the mediocre production helps some with a punk image, it just ends up feeling a bit unpolished. That isn't to say that this album is bad but instead speaks more to how inflated my memory of this album is. While the energy of the vocals call feel a little dull at time, overall this album has a lot of energy and is packed with memorable tunes. Part of why this album stands out so much in my memory is that Mugen Sydrome marks the last full album before the band slowly devolved in to mediocrity as the band felt like they were aiming more of mass appeal. Compared to their later offerings, Mugen Syndrome is a clear highlight in my mind by @Ito me-al art Exist 2008 was around the time that I started exploring music outside of visual kei, and @CAT5 was responsible for introducing me to me-al art, a post-rock band with a powerful female vocalist and some banging melodies. I was immediately hooked and felt that this indie band had all the tools they need to become bigger, but I was disappointed to find out that they didn't have a huge following and didn't release music frequently. me-al art disbanded in 2016 after the release of their fourth album NEW WORLD, but that never got the claim or attention that Exist did. I don't even think I've listened to it in full yet. Many fans consider Exist to be the band's most solid effort and containing some of their most memorable songs, such as "term", "exist", and "target". This band actually contains a lot of the trappings of 2008, but in a good way, and Exist is a great way to experience new vestiges of the late-00's rock sound. by @Zeus machine BEAUTIFUL OUTSIDER Machine always felt like a band that never managed to get any attention. For a band consisting of visual kei legend Hakuei of Penicillin and Kiyoshi of hide with Spread Beaver, you would have thought that band would be on more people's radar. Yet even though BEAUTIFUL OUTSIDER was their fifth album, the band didn't receive a ton of attention. Their specific flavor of VK with its strong industrial and electronic elements with upbeat vibe created this interesting sci-fi feeling rock which was truly unique in the scene. That said, BEAUTIFUL OUTSIDER perhaps was where the band took the lightest approach to these elements, with the vocals feeling a little cleaner and less robotic and metallic than they had in previous releases, and the electronic elements pulled back a bit. That isn't to say that they were removed, as the album still has a distinct sci-fi sound. To this day the sound Machine put out was very much their own and I haven't really heard it replicated, at least not in the visual kei scene. While their music is hardly for everyone (hell, I think Hakuei's voice takes some time to get use to by itself), BEAUTIFUL OUTSIDERS is certainly worth going back to and listening...though personally I might pick a different Machine album to listen to first. by @Ito Demetori 闡提宗祀 ~ Offering to The Sukhavati For as much as we lament "the death of visual kei", it was the doujin scene that withered up and died. For those not in the know, doujin music is a moniker for any band (called circles, don't ask) who covers video game themes in their own style. The themes could be from any game, but the most popular one was Project Shrine Maiden, an isometric bullet hell shooter known for it's cute anime characters and devilishly hard game play. The doujin scene died off because of several reasons; the low cost to investment meant there was a lot of uninteresting music to wade through at each convention (and there are several a year), most circles focused only on Project Shrine Maiden and had no inspirations beyond that, some circles just disappeared, and many of the more successful circles left the scene to make original music and no new acts could fill the void. One of the only constants in the last ten years has been Demetori, who have never strayed from covering Project Shrine Maiden themes and constantly find a new way to iterate on the same themes by making these jingles into their own. 2008's 闡提宗祀 ~ offering to the sukhavati was the next step on their transformation from a classic rock band into an extreme metal band, and they have only grown more complex and ambitious with time. Demetori's melodic power metal sound is so defined and clean, it sounds good even today. Offering to the sukhavati does not sound ten years old, but yet it is. by @Zeus Praha Depart Check! Yet another band introduced to me via the great Steven Tanaka! Praha Depart, despite their unique sound and having toured both Europe and North America, is a band that has gone largely overlooked by the overseas J-rock fandom. Granted, their music isn't for everyone, and this EP makes that fact abundantly clear. On Check!, Praha Depart plays an intriguing style of avant-garde kraut-rock, which some have described as "gypsy-punk". Whatever you want to call it, they're definitely in a lane of their own. Their vocalist/bassist is absolutely schizophrenic, and equally prone to girly squeaks and squeals, weird mumbles and grumbles, manic screaming, and powerful wails. Something like a cross between Jun Togawa and Kyo from DIR EN GREY, ahaha (minus the pig squeals and gutturals) Musically, Praha's songs are fraught with intoxicating riffs and rhythmical drumming that subtly escalate into explosions of raw intensity, and it's just wonderful. Check! only consists of 5 songs, but it's worth every minute! by @CAT5 .... What did you think of our list? What are your favorite J-rock releases from 2008!?!? What was 2008 like for you musically? Comment and let's discuss!
  9. 21 points
    One of the small joys of being a VK fan is the unique phenomenon of enjoying a band while having absolutely no idea how to say their name. And I don’t mean because a band’s name is in Japanese, I’m talking those band names that are ostensibly written in English but because of weird characters or punctuation you just have no idea how to properly pronounce or verbalize their moniker correctly (although most of the time the pronunciation just completely ignores the extraneous symbols). Let’s try and trace the history of these unnecessary symbols and letters in VK bands’ names and highlight the influence (or lack thereof) of these punctuation provocateurs. D’erlanger The band: One of the proto-visual kei bands that began in the ‘80s and had an outsize influence on the first generation of post-X visual bands. The name: D’erlanger kinda makes sense as a French word, so they themselves are forgiven, but it is apparent a lot of teenagers in the 80s who would go on to become players in the golden age of visual kei saw that apostrophe and thought “oh cool!” for entirely unintended reasons. I said D’erlanger makes sense as a French word… but it’s not a very ‘band name’ kind of word. Can’t imagine throwing up the metal horns to a band called ‘from Erlangen’. See also: L’Arc~en~Ciel, La’Cryma Cristi, La’Mule L’Arc~en~Ciel The band: No introduction necessary really. Almost certainly on the Mount Rushmore of VK bands, whether or not you like what they’ve done since the start of the new millennium (and I don’t). Pretty and melodious songs with just enough edge to appeal to a wide swath of fans. Not to mention a sexy frontman. The name: Another word that makes sense if you’re French, but L’Arc~en~Ciel up the ante by adding some tildes for no reason other than young Tetsuya and Hyde probably thought they added an even more magical feeling to the word ‘rainbow’. L’Arc~en~Ciel’s (making their name possessive *does* add a certain balance to the word…) popularity in both VK circles and a mainstream audience meant that adding dumb punctuation in the middle of your name for no reason was now completely tolerated. Tetsuya has specifically denied he got the L’Arc~en~Ciel moniker from a cafe near where he worked as a teenager with the same name. It may have also been stolen from the D.H. Lawrence book ‘Rainbow’, but even that story is tainted because it includes the *movie* version. See also: a million song and album titles with tildes in them, E’m ~grief~ cali≠gari The band: Either groundbreaking, experimental rock that revolutionized and kick-started the ‘eroguro kei’ genre, or dissonant-sounding weirdos; depending on your tastes. The name: Obviously lifted from the groundbreaking German silent horror film “The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari”; an admittedly cool source of inspiration for an art-y VK band. The name even has a cool rhyme and visual symmetry when written/pronounced in Japanese (カリガリ). See also: a ton of also-ran bands that have stuck unnecessary equals signs in their names: Loz'a≠Veria, D≒sire, Kar+te=zyAnose, Eyes≒Mirrorge, PARANOID≠CIRCUS ZI:KILL The band: Early VK rockers that burned out too quickly to be mentioned among the all-timers. The name: Originally formed as G:KILL, which doesn’t shed any light onto the inspiration for the name, but is an interesting fact. G/Zi:Kill both *kinda* sound like Jekyll when katakan-ized, and Visual Kei has no lack of love for that story. You may be noticing a trend so far; early VK bands apparently hated having blank spaces in their names. See also: La:Sadie’s, ru:natic,【_Vani;lla】, ha;qch, DAS:VASSER, L'yse:nore Aliene Maφriage The band: One of the harbingers of VK starting to get really dark and almost certainly offending the middle-aged parents of the teenagers listening to it. Lots of leather and hair... and in Aliene’s case; some good songwriting to back it up. The name: In the book Freakonomics the authors cite a study that shows, all other things being equal, people are more likely to be asked to interview for jobs if the interviewer/hiring manager can pronounce their name. I have to believe this is why even Kyoka & Co. started writing their name simply Aliene Ma’riage eventually; they were probably tired of having to pitch things to record label execs who looked at their name and thought “pass” before they even heard the banshee wails. I couldn’t find anything about the origins of their name. It is a vast improvement over their original moniker Autism though. See also: √eight, ∋elf gravity∈, ZETSURIN⚡HAGUKI Kagrra, The band: The undisputed kings of beautiful neo-japonisme in VK. The name: Even Kagrra,, who peddled a very classic Japanese aesthetic, weren’t immune to an unnecessary flourish such as a comma at the end of their name which, when spoken, led to a kind of hesitant mumble as if you were supposed to continue a train of thought which was still at the station. I mean, revisit that previous sentence I wrote, should it really have been written “Even Kagrra,,”? Kagrra,’s name certainly gave the editing staff at Shoxx a headache. Kagrra,, originally called Crow, took their name from 神楽 (Kagura), a Shinto music and dance tradition. See also: Thankfully the comma didn’t catch on much. +DéspairsRay+ The band: One of the rare examples of a band who can pull off unabashed zetsubou unironically and follow it up with soaring choruses and catchy melodies without sounding disjointed. The name: Another band that dropped some of the more superfluous parts of their name as soon as they started to gain some popularity. If I had to guess, their name is probably one of the most mistagged in VK. I know for sure if I opened iTunes right now I’d have songs by +DéspairsRay+, DéspairsRay, D’espairs Ray, Despairs Ray and probably more in my artist lineup. The members of the band haven’t commented specifically on how they chose the name, with Zero even saying “It's nothing special.” I interpret this as ‘we know it’s dumb, don’t ask about it please’. See also: VAL+IX+LIA, MARRY+AN+BLOOD, Ti+Dee Nuvc:gu The band: Nobodies. The name: I honestly was pronouncing this “nuv-ka-goo” until I heard @Biopanda say “New vogue” in a Rarezhut stream and the lightbulb went off. I almost want to give them credit for using the *shape* of punctuation to emulate letters, but then I realize that’s incredibly stupid unless you’re working with some seriously custom fonts. See also: VΩID, k@mikaze, SHAD∞W, XOVER Exist†trace The band: Probably the most successful all-girl-kei band ever (which unfortunately isn’t saying much). Started out very gothy and have gradually transitioned to a more mainstream sound. They let the pretty one sing and it makes me sad because Jyou has come up with some flat out beautiful, haunting vocal melodies. The name: Miko said in an interview that, And let’s be honest, that explanation makes no sense. It sounds cool though, and really that’s what you need in a band name (and something unique that can be Googled). My biggest problem with their cross symbol is that it probably shows up as a question mark or some other placeholder punctuation 20% of the time because who the hell has the time to look up the unicode symbols? (although I’m sure people who write about Witch-house bands have the code for the cross symbol memorized.) See also: Serpentine†Ghost, Jail†Breaker, Vice†risk xTripx The band: A surprisingly endearing mix of oshare kei and numetal. The name: Weirdly, I always pronounce the first ‘x’ in xTripx’s name but not the last one (ecks-trip). I actually think more bands need to come to terms with the fact that eventually the world will run out of new band names and everyone will have to resort to having a moniker that looks like a circa-2002 emo fan’s AIM screenname. See also: xジハードx, 【TRiANGLE▼SONiX】, Noi’X 12012 The band: Undercode stalwarts that started out lo-fi and disjointed and nu-metal influenced but very charming, and graduated to poppier fare when they decided to take a stab at becoming famous. The name: ‘Ichi ni zero ichi ni’ if you’re Japanese, ‘twelve-o’-twelve’ if you’re me. Allegedly named after a section of the California penal code that deals with illegal weapons… and that actually kind of tracks. It’s an extremely boring section though (besides we know Wataru prefers hand-to-hand combat): Not a cool law for a band name. I think we’ve got a retconned term a la 420 and 311. See also: Plenty of other band names that need a pronunciation guide: 0801弐209XX6* (zero hachi), …。(silence), 6→7 (upper) *The guitarist of zero hachi should get an unnecessary punctuation in band names lifetime achievement award. He was in all these bands according to vkdb: †Zaide†, Diod'honneur, カレヰド, re:Make, 0801弐209XX6. Be sure to add your favorite band name with unnecessary punctuation!
  10. 20 points
    Well, it is what the title says. コロナウイルス is forcing people to stay home in Japan and the japs have a nice philosophy of spreading hope in times of despair, so they went there and performed anyway and are being nice and posting the gigs that got cancelled online for all to see, including us, poor gaijin. No live audience, no staff, etc. These are the ones I've seen so far: Let's make this collaborative so do share other links here if you know of any. I'll keep updating this list. Previously unreleased lives uploaded for viewing due to the Corona situation are also to be freely shared in this thread - MH Staff And bear in mind most of these gigs will be available for a limited time only, so hurry up and watch or download the ones you're interested in watching ASAP.
  11. 20 points
    secret_no_03

    MALICE MIZER

    A lot can be said, positive and negative about the legacy of MALICE MIZER, whether it's the abrupt departure of Tetsu after just one year, the GACKT years, the untimely death of Kami or the rise and fall in the Klaha years. There's no better way to understand how MALICE MIZER went from unknown to legends of Visual Kei than to start in the beginning. In the Beginning: The Era of Tetsu MALICE MIZER was formed in August of 1992 when former guitarist of Matenrou, Közi joined forces with the support bassist Mana and the two recruited the former Ner-vous vocalist Tetsu, former ZE:RO bassist Yu~ki and former DATURA (not to be confused with DatuRΛ) drummer Gaz to form MALICE MIZER (a postmanteau of Malice and Misery) with a concept based on the darker side of human nature. MALICE MIZER immediately began activities and released their first demo tape SANS LOGIQUE which had foregone vocals and released Speed of Desperate on the compilation album Brain Trash which featured acts such as ALUCARD, DIE=KÜSSE, THE PIASS and Gazelle. Shortly after Brain TRASH, Gaz departed and Kami joined; Kami being the only other drummer for the band until his untimely death. MALICE MIZER released a few more demos before releasing their debut album memoire on Mana's newly founded label Midi:Nette. Tetsu then left the band at the end of 1994 with a live performance titled Cher de memoire II on December 27th. Taking a Different Route: It's Gackt Time MALICE MIZER went into 1995 without a vocalist, but they didn't let it stop their surge as they performed without a vocalist for a sponsored event titled Dai Goya Higeki no Bansan Vol.5 (第五夜 悲劇の晩餐 Vol.5) before Gackt officially joined the band as the new vocalist with his first performance on October 10th Karei naru Fukkatsugeki. The music of MALICE MIZER took a drastic turn and was the catalyst for the rise of Gackt as a performer and set the stage for his continued success after leaving the band as the band went from a Gothic sound to a more upbeat sound; something that became a signature of Gackt's solo career. In 1996 MALICE MIZER released their second album Voyage sans retour and underwent a nationwide one-man tour culminating in a show titled Sans retour Voyage deux 1996. MALICE MIZER continued their stride in 1997 when they signed a contract with major label Nippon Columbia, a subsidiary of Columbia Music Company as well as undergoing a sold-out nationwide tour with STANDING TOUR '97 Pays de merveilles ~空白の瞬間の中で~ and a regularly broadcast radio show MALICE MIZER no Mayonaka no s'il vous plaît on CBC Radio. Merveilles, MALICE MIZER's third album and second featuring Gackt as vocalist is released in March of 1998, the band announced merveilles ~Shuuen to kisuu~ in which the tickets sold out in just two minutes as well as undergoing a new radio show MALICE MIZER no shisetsu hisho no chojutsu on Chiba's renowned bay-fm radio station. However, things would take a turn when in January Gackt decided to leave the band at the peak of their popularity to form own solo project that he continues to this day, simply called GACKT featuring a backing band appropriately titled GACKTJOB. As if losing their vocalist wasn't bad enough tragedy struck when in June beloved drummer Kami passed away suddenly from a subarachnoid hemorrhage, more commonly referred to as a brain hemorrhage. With the world crashing down around his shoulders, Mana underwent damage control and returned MALICE MIZER to his own label. Malice Mizer went on to release one song after Gackt left, a piano song called Saikai no Chi to Bara. Little did they know that their fortunes were about to change as their savior was right around the corner. From Rebirth to Climax: The Year of Klaha PRIDE OF MIND former vocalist Klaha joined MALICE MIZER on vocals on August 31st and would be the third and final vocalist for the group. MALICE MIZER proceeded to get back to making music right away with the release of their fourth and final album Bara no Seidou and Klaha had his first live performance one week later with Bara ni irodorareta akui to higeki no makuake - Dai icihiya saikai no bara. Sadly, nothing lasts forever and after several singles, a feature length, albeit silent film Bara no Konrei ~Mayonaka ni Kawashita Yakusoku~ and even a concert DVD in 2001, MALICE MIZER went on an indefinite hiatus at the end of the year. Each member releasing their own respective personal messages regarding the hiatus on the bands official website. Post Mortem: An Uncertain Future After MALICE MIZER went on an indefinite hiatus the respective members were quick to move on to other projects, except for Yu~ki who's only activity since the hiatus was contributing to a song on Közi's solo project. The aforementioned Közi went on to be in a managare of bands, first with HARUHIKO ASH in Eve of Destiny, then started a solo project as well as XA-VAT, ZIZ, VAMQUET and joined Ryo from 9Goats Black Out to form a nu-goth band called DĂLLE. Mana quickly formed his own solo project that is still running strong today called Moi dix Mois and launched his own fashion label Moi-même-Moitie as well as becoming a producer for the band Schwarz Stein and cellist Kanon Wakeshima. Tetsu formed several bands of varying styles of music after leaving MALICE MIZER with the most notable being ZIGZO and Nil. Gackt has been active as a solo artist since leaving MALICE MIZER and subsequently ventured into film and television while Klaha released a solo mini-album and full length album before disappearing from the scene in 2004, not to be heard from again. MALICE MIZER may be no more, but the pieces have come together several times since the hiatus, Közi joining Mana's Moi dix Mois in 2008 at Dis Inferno Vol.VI ~Last Year Party~ and again in 2009 for a two stop tour Deep Sanctuary; Deep Sanctuary becoming a staple event for Moi dix Mois from then on. Moi dix Mois and Közi went on another, longer tour in 2010, six shows aptly named Deep Sanctuary II which featured the return of Yu~ki on bass; the three reuniting on stage for the first time in nine years. The show featured MALICE MIZER classics such as Saikai no Chi to Bara and Beast of Blood as well as a cover of shock rocker Rob Zombie's What Lurks on Channel X. Moi dix Mois then held a tenth anniversary concert Le dixieme anniversaire Live 2011~2012 ~Tetsugaku no Hahen Dainana Shou Shinen naru Seiiki Deep Sanctuary III~ which saw Közi performing with his new band ZIZ with Yu~ki returning on bass. Sadly the original drummer Gaz passed away on December 22nd 2017, one year before the bands 25th anniversary and the subsequent reunion show last year Deep Sanctuary Ⅵ MALICE MIZER 25th Anniversary Special which featured the return of the trio as well as former roadies for the band performing their own renditions of classic songs, such as former LAREINE vocalist KAMIJO joining for his own take on the Gackt era songs APRES MIDI and Bel Air ~Kuuhaku no Shunkan no Naka De~, cali≠gari's Shuuji with a riff on the Tetsu era's Kioku to Sora and ILLUMINATI as well as Moran former vocalist Hitomi with Gackt's Madrigal and N.p.s.N.g.s. The show featured ZIZ and Moi dix Mois performing their own songs and MALICE MIZER covers with the show ended with a tribute to the departed Kami and all of the guest vocalists singing together for Ma chérie ~Itoshii Kimi E~. There have been teases for years and the band have come back in several shapes, but whether they will return with the likes of any of their three former vocalists is unlikely or at best up in the air with all of them seemingly content with their careers and lives and consider MALICE MIZER a part of their past. The future of MALICE MIZER is uncertain, but it's safe to say that the Visual Kei scene would be shaken to the core if the stars aligned and the malice and misery rose like a phoenix for a second time. Member History Current Lineup Mana - Guitar (ex-Matenrou, Moi dix Mois) Közi - Guitar (ex-GIRL, ex-Matenrou, ZIZ, XA-VAT, DĂLLE, Solo, VAMQUET) Yu~ki - Bass (ex-ZE:RO) Former Members Gaz - Drums (ex-DATURA, deceased 2017) Tetsu - Vocals (ex-Ner-vous, ZIGZO, Nil, THE JUNEJULYAUGUST) Kami - Drums (deceased 1999) Klaha - Vocals (ex-PRIDE OF MIND, Solo, retired) Gackt - Vocals (ex-Cains:Feel, Solo, YELLOW FRIED CHICKENz) Support Members Shue Sakai - Drums (ex-JACK BLUE, N.S.D.P., Everlasting-K) Kazune - Keyboard (Brain Hacker, Art Cube) Staff Members Hitomi - Roadie (ex-Moran, UMIYURI) MAYU - Roadie (ex-LAREINE, ex-NEW SODMY) MACHI - Roadie (ex-LAREINE, Chanton L'amour) Masanori Yabuki - Roadie (Datenshi Tokyo, Ant1nett) KAMIJO - Roadie (ex-LAREINE, ex-NEW SODMY, Versailles, Solo) Shuuji Ishii - Roadie (cali≠gari, goatbed, EX-ANS) Discography Albums (1994.07.24) memoire (1996.06.09)Voyage ~Sans Retour~ (1998.03.18) Merveilles (2000.08.23) Bara no Seidou (薔薇の聖堂) Mini-albums (2000.02.01) Shinwa (神話) Demos (1992.10.31) Sans Logique (1993.04.05) Sadness (1993.10.12) The 1th Anniversary (1996.00.00) Après Midi (1999.11.03) Saikai no Chi to Bara" (再会の血と薔薇) Singles (1995.12.10) Uruwashiki Kamen no Shoutaijou (1996.10.10) Ma Chérie ~Itoshii Kimi E~ (1997.08.06) Bel Air ~Kuuhaku no Shunkan no Naka De~ (1997.12.03) Au Revoir (1998.02.11) Gekka no Yasoukyoku (1998.05.20) Illuminati (1998.09.09) Le Ciel ~Kuuhaku no Kanata E~ (1999.11.03)Saikai no Chi to Bara (2000.05.31) Kyomu no Naka de no Yuugi (2000.07.26) Shiroi Hada ni Kuruu Ai to Kanashimi no Rondo (2001.05.30) Gardenia (2001.06.21) Beast of Blood (2001.10.30) Mayonaka ni Kawashita Yakusoku (2001.11.30) Garnet ~Kindan no Sono E~ OHP Moi dix Mois Közi Moi-même-Moitie -A huge thanks to @inartisticand the great team over at vk.gy for a wealth of information that without, this would not have been possible.
  12. 20 points
    Me and my homie Ai from gulu gulu
  13. 19 points
    monkeybanana4

    12012 restart activities

    12012 will restart activities. Further details on future activities will be announced later. 宮脇渉 (Wataru) https://twitter.com/wataru_12012 酒井洋明 (Hiroaki) https://twitter.com/hsakai12012 齋藤紳一郎 (Shinchirou) https://twitter.com/s_mokichi 塩谷朋之 (Tomoyuki) https://twitter.com/tEnya_solioquy 須賀勇介 (Yuusuke) https://twitter.com/yusuke_suga 川内亨 (Tooru) https://twitter.com/12012_toru
  14. 19 points
  15. 19 points
    Zeus

    5 Things I Hate About VK

    For as much as I love visual kei, there are plenty of practices I detest. I could go on forever. It wouldn't be fair to celebrate all of the good in the scene without admitting the bad as well. There are so many things that make me sad, make me irate, or make me want to rip my hair out that it was hard to settle on just five. Here's five commonplace practices in visual kei that's a total ball ache for any international fan invested into the scene. Like I said above, I have way more than five things that annoy me about the scene. Does anyone else want to fill in the gaps with practices that they hate that they've come to accept within the scene? Come share your frustrations and horror stories with me. We have plenty of tea and live-distributed crackers for you.
  16. 19 points
    Monochrome Heaven's 2019 Banner Contest Thanks for voting! 56 members casted a vote before the poll was closed. I'm happy to announce the winners: In first place with 29 votes was Develop One's Faculties, made by @plastic_rainbow! In second place with 24 votes was Kyo, made by @platy! In third place was DELUHI, made by @ゼロ(*´з`)! Look out for these banners in our rotation soon!
  17. 19 points
    cvltic

    DuelJewel to Resume Activities

    >be a bandman >play shitty american cons for years >no one cares about you in japan >finally start to come up, band does well >almost make it to your 20th anniversary >vocalist gets a bunch of absolutely heinous vocal conditions >forced to disband >over two years later, he's finally better and you can keep doing what you love >some guy on a forum calls you cringey for taking a cute photo with your bandmates
  18. 18 points
    Shaolan974

    Releases calendar

    Leaderboard Like I said in the suggestions thread : The official MH Visual Releases Calendar is ow opened ! I will do my best for daily updates and feel free to add the missing ones . 2018 JANUARY 2019 FEBRUARY 2019 MARCH 2019 APRIL 2019 MAY 2019 JUNE 2019 JULY 2019 AUGUST 2019 SEPTEMBER 2019 OCTOBER 2019 NOVEMBER 2019 DECEMBER 2019 JANUARY 2020 FEBRUARY 2020 MARCH 2020 APRIL 2020v MAY 2020 JUNE 2020 JULY 2020 AUGUST 2020 SEPTEMBER 2020 OCTOBER 2020 NOVEMBER 2020 DECEMBER 2020 JANUARY 2021 FEBRUARY 2021 MARCH 2021 APRIL 2021 MAY 2021 JUNE 2021
  19. 18 points
  20. 18 points
    Zeus

    Worst To First: Dir en grey

    Love them or hate them, almost everyone's got an opinion about Dir en grey. The scene stops to listen whenever Dir en grey announce a new single or album. As a long time fan of the band, I think it's the perfect time to express how I feel about all of their albums. My feelings will differ from album to album. Some albums have had the benefit of twenty years and others only a few months, so that's always going to be a factor in how I rank things. I will cover this from my least favorite album to my most favorite album, but by no means take this as a definitive list for Dir en grey. Everyone will have their own rankings and their own suggestions for where to start. I happen to think that this also a great order to introduce someone to this band. This is a perfect topic for those that don't listen to Dir en grey or don't know where to start, current fans looking for spicy opinions and a pot to stir, or even old fans looking for a reintroduction into their new era. Not only have I included a PV for each album as a sampler, but I also put together suggested playlists for each album. The playlists are the order that I would have arranged the band if I were them. The songs are the songs that I believe are the best from each period. Some will require more effort than others to construct. To make it simpler, I have included my favorite three tracks and one music video from each album. I will not consider the mini albums MISSA and six Ugly in this analysis, but some of those tracks will appear in the playlists I create. DUM SPIRO SPERO Album No: 8 Released: August 2, 2011 Length: 67:31 鬼葬 (kisou) Album No: 3 Released: January 30, 2002 Length: 69:57 THE MARROW OF A BONE Album No: 6 Released: February 7, 2007 Length: 50:05 ARCHE Album No: 9 Released: December 10, 2014 Length: 68:01 🎖️The Insulated World🎖️ Album No: 10 Released: September 26, 2018 Length: 50:27 🏅Withering to death.🏅 Album No: 5 Released: March 9, 2005 Length: 51:14 🥉MACABRE🥉 Album No: 2 Released: September 20, 2000 Length: 72:57 🥈GAUZE🥈 Album No: 1 Released: July 28, 1999 Length: 64:47 🥇UROBOROS🥇 Album No: 7 Released: November 11, 2008 Length: 58:54 👑VULGAR👑 Album No: 4 Released: September 10, 2003 Length: 57:02 That's everything folks! Thanks for reading all the way to the end! Did you like it? Did you agree? Do you have your own rankings? Leave them below! I'm interested to know what everyone's opinions are, especially since Dir en grey is one of my favorite bands ever. So many people are passionate about this band like no other. If enough people liked this, I may follow up soon with one for the GazettE. Until next time
  21. 18 points
    CAT5

    Show Yourself (again)

    shalom, shalom
  22. 18 points
    helcchi

    New band gulu gulu has formed

    烏名 鳴と不愉快な仲間達 (Karasuna Mei to Fuyukai na Nakamatachi) has now become a formal band called gulu gulu Vo. 哀/I [Ai] (ex.Kuroyuri to Kage f.k.a 烏名 鳴 Karasuna Mei) Gt. 凛人/Rito (ex.MIZTAVLA 光 Kou) Gt. Kazari (ex.llll-Ligro-) Ba. 藍珠/Lanju (ex.Grieva 緋雨 Hisame) Dr. 螢ちゃん/Hotaru chan (ex. Balalaika f.k.a カタセ ケイ Katase Kei) They will make their first appearance at cure festival on 4.28 and hold their first oneman on 8.12 at ikebukuro EDGE Their first Single「変なメリーゴーランド」 will be released in 2 types on 5.28 -不味い盤- 1. 変なメリーゴーランド 2. 嗅覚障害 3. 不味い麻酔 -美味い盤- 1. 変なメリーゴーランド 2. 嗅覚障害 3. Rubra
  23. 18 points
    My body is ready.
  24. 18 points
    RESULTS! Thanks to everyone who participated this year! Judging from many of your recommendations, there definitely still exists some talent in the scene! Without further delay, here are the RESULTS! By recent request, I have added the runner-ups for each category! __________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Best Overall Artist/Band Best Album Best Single/Maxi-Single/EP Best Cover Art Best Look Best Newcomer Best Veteran Best PV Saddest Disbandment Most Overhyped Band Most Overhyped Release Most Underhyped Band Most Anticipated Release Band that Changed their Sound for the Best Band that Changed their Sound for the Worse Band that you spent most of your money on in 2018 What the hell were they thinking!? Award Best Revival/Returns An amazing display of results if I may say 😎. Definitely some close calls there, I'll tell ya. Thanks again to the participants of the MH JRock Awards 2018 for your contributions. The staff and I here at MH hope to see you and more future voters here again at the end of the year! Until then, enjoy 2019 😁!
  25. 18 points
    In light of this potentially tragic news, vk.gy will introduce a new feature, wherein you can call your favorite artists fat and ugly. #staystrong
  26. 18 points
  27. 17 points
    Here's a summary of the post: Kana was diagnosed with adjustment disorder in January 2018 and he told the president of B'Forest Inc., but the president didn't understand and told him he was sick and fired him. In March he got an attorney and in June he filed a lawsuit against the president for power harassment and for money he was owed. In the first trial it was confirmed that B'Forest Inc. owed Kana 3.2 million yen and that the president did indeed partake in power harassment. The court ordered B'Forest Inc. to pay Kana 3.7 million yen. However the president made an appeal, and at the appeal hearing in August 2020 they reached a settlement in Kana's favor of 3.3 million yen and an apology for the president's lack of consideration towards Kana's disorder. Kana received the settlement in September. He couldn't write about it before because it was part of the trial, but he had been suffering from power harassment for years and eventually developed adjustment disorder because of it. Apparently the president never admitted to power harassment. Kana does not forgive the harassment and was initially adamant about the court's decision because he didn't want it to keep happening to his former label mates, but after the president appealed he just decided to accept the settlement. He wants his former label mates to be paid properly or to stop working for the label. He also made it a point to say that the president did apologize so no one should slander him or harass him because of this. In regards to how he's doing he says he is physically and mentally healthy. The trial took a long time and he had to get treatment for his disorder but he's glad he worked so hard and was rewarded by the trial. He didn't want to leave all the people that were concerned about him without answers, and he wanted to talk about his feelings over the last two and a half years, so this is why he made the post now. He would like to return to the stage again some day and hopes everyone is doing well during these times.
  28. 17 points
    For the next 2 weeks I will enjoy my very first Japan-trip. As I will visit 4 concerts in this period I thought you may be interested in a report of the shows. February 15, 2020 - Buglug, Arlequin, Kizu (Man only) - Meguro Rokumeikan So this will be it: My first concert on Japanese ground! I was beyond excited. The concert was scheduled for 5:30. We went there early to avoid any troubles. In front of the venue a nice guy from Israel spotted us and gave us some useful tips for attending a concert in Japan (the entrance system, behaving etc.) Thanks for that man! He also told us that this venue is legendary one. Especially known for X Japan shows in their indies. We entered the venue after climbing some stairs down. It was much smaller then I expected. I would say it has a capacity of 150~200. There were no boundaries in front of the stage so the atmosphere is really intimate. Arlequin (アルルカン) started the evening. Of course I am familiar with the name of the band but never dared to listen to them. But wow - they were great! They really really had fun with the man only gig. Aki pumped us with shouting Otoko!! several times. He even grabbed his guts lol. He did some stage diving between one song. I really liked his stage performance and the rest of the band was great too! I will definitely get into their discography. They played around 45 minutes. I can‘t report a setlist, sorry. Second band was (finally) Kizu (キズ). They were the main reason for choosing this concert as I really ship them! So this report will be very long. 😁 As not being the headliner you could see that most of the fans came for Kizu. So as their intro started the venue was pumped! Lime‘s outfit was a mix between a vampire and the Joker. He had a long black cape, joker makeup (the Heath Ledger one) and hair extension. Reiki looked as usual with his short trousers. But his hair is grown much longer. Yue had a very dandy look with his hair combed back. He wore a black suit which was open so you could see his upper body. Kyonosuke had an interesting look with combed back hair too and a black ruffled indefinable top. They started with Heisei which is so much better live! Lime played a second guitar. Next song was Buta also a very nice live experience. Then Jugo - and omg what a madness. So much headbanging and Furi. Same with the following Elise. I‘m not a big fan auf Kuro ame but I have to admit the song is beautiful live. Lime sang the first verse without microphone and that gave me shivers. You could also see that the song is very emotional for the whole band. The silence after Kuro ame was short as they played Oshimai - fuck yes! It was wild. Reiki did his guitar flip and the crowd was insane. Last song was Kizuato - forget what I was saying about Oshimai... this song was insane! That breakdown in the end. 😱 I hoped that they play it and I was so happy. And this was it. A 45 minute concert which felt like 10 minutes... If you have any chance to watch them, do it! Setlist キズ: 平成 豚 十五 ELISE 黒い雨 おしまい 傷痕 And last but not least BugLug entered the stage. They were the headliner for the show. I‘ve never heard one song of them so I was excited to see what they may deliver. Light went out and a SE started to play as someone tiped my shoulder. It was the lead singer lol. They surprised us and came from the entrance straight through the audience to the stage. They shouted something with a megaphone. That was really cool. Next surprise: Before they started to iniateted a wall of death. Neat! They did a really good and entertaining show with stage diving, moshing, fan service etc. While the last song the singer came right into the audience and sang the whole song there and even started to mosh. Great band but their music is not my cup of tea. (Please don‘t kill me dear BugLug fans!) They also played 45 minutes. I don‘t know their songs but I took a picture of their setlist if someone is interested. So this was it! A great concert with left us all with smiling faces. next one is the Meme Oneman on February 18. I hope you liked this review and didn‘t fall asleep while reading. I will soon write again after the next concert.
  29. 17 points
    Wow - it's been a long time since this happened, but I remembered mentioning I'd write up a report and life has finally slowed down enough for me to try and do just that! This was a show I felt really lucky to be able to attend while I was there - it was the night before I was scheduled to leave Tokyo and had multiple acts I had hoped to see while I was in Japan. I'll get right to it (though this might be a bit "stream of consciousness" so bear with my antics and anecdotes) On this afternoon my wife and I were wandering Ikebukuro before we were going to go to 高田馬場AREA for this live. She doesn't have much interest in VK and we were nearing the end of our trip, so she planned on watching a band or two and heading back to our accommodations in Shinjuku. When we arrived, she saw the line (on an incline going down a hill) and basically said "yeah, no" so I took her back to the train station (where there was a ginormous R指定 banner hanging over the staircase) while we had time to spare. Funnily enough, I went to the restroom before returning to the venue and in that time she realized she left our wifi box in my bag, so she walked back to the venue to track me down. Somehow everyone was already inside and she assumed I had gone in, too -- but I also had her ticket (I wasn't thinking much this day...) She then attempted to track down "blonde gaijin" in broken Japanese with the gentleman running the door who reluctantly (yet surprisingly???) let her run into the live hall and find me. At this point I am walking back to the venue and see her on the sidewalk. I am very confused so she explains the whole silly scenario and basically says "fuck it, I'm here, buy me a drink and I'll hang out for a little." As we enter and declare our "favorites" to the doorman (DIMLIM and gulu gulu) we enter and hear music playing while we buy beers. I see video on the screen but I am a newbie and thought it was a recording. Turns out the opening band (billed as Aster) was actually finishing their set already. (the listed showtime hadn't even hit yet - I thought we were early, but oh well!) We wandered into the live hall to see them play about half a song before stepping off stage. There were still quite a few people watching them, though, especially for an early opener I had never heard of (and can't find any info on???) I discussed this with someone before going to the live and speculated this might actually be the band GLEN, who was set to release a maxi-single called "Aster" later that month and after hearing GLEN/seeing their visuals, I am now convinced this was in fact the case. They sounded very similar from what I experienced and the visuals strike me as the same or similar to the look in their video. Anyway... After curtains closed and reopened, we were greeted by some fairly heavy visuals -- a vocalist wearing a cloak covered in creepy white masks and a guitarist with the classic medical eye-patch. From what I knew, this appeared to be MonstlloW; I had watched a few of their videos to prepare myself as I wasn't too familiar. I was immediately taken by how...cool they looked. Very heavy visuals, just really professional from visuals to sound. Their instrumentals were extremely tight and the audience was really engaged, headbanging and dancing and shimmying from one side of the room to the other (probably my favorite thing to experience at a VK live in terms of audience interaction as I had never seen anything like it before.) I'll admit that I didn't find the videos I had watched to be too memorable so I wasn't sure what to expect, but they definitely won me over by the end. Definitely the kind of band that is worth seeing live to really appreciate. (My wife was quite taken with them, commenting on how strong the singer's vocals were and how impressed she was by their overall performance. She has some familiarity with VK from DIR EN GREY and my general interest, but she seemed much more drawn in than I anticipated.) They played a total of 5 songs and handed out setlist cards from their merch table after they finished. Monstllow setlist 1. 嘘泣キ少女 2. KERBEROS 3. ビッグマウス・マーチ 4. WE ARE LIAR 5. 劇薬U.S.O After this we grabbed a few more drinks and took a seat while we waited for the next act. We were very close to the back, right in front of MonstlloW and DIMLIM's merch tables. I was surprised to see that MonslloW's guitarist and bassist had actually come out and were hanging out behind their merch table. They appeared...very tall? Probably a combination of costume, hair, and the fact that they were on a platform above us, but it felt a bit imposing! (Haha.) After their merch sales concluded for the moment, I took a second to inventory enough of my Japanese language knowledge to basically say "I really like your band" and they seemed amused and appreciative. They handed us the setlist cards and actually hung around back there for the majority of the night. (I don't know why this shook me so much, I guess VK has been at such a distance my entire life that I never really expected them to be so casually...there??) The curtains opened again revealed the next band -- another four person act, guitarist in a white dress (iirc) and bassist with a long, spotted fur coat. It was their vocalist that clued me into who they were, though -- very slim, shirtless under an open jacket, strutting directly to the center of the stage. This was definitely Hueye. (Upon seeing them, my wife immediately exclaimed "oh, they're girls!!" I had to apologetically advise otherwise...) At this point, I had no real familiarity with their songs other than "優しく殺して," as I really hadn't listened to anything else at that point (and I don't think they had much else to listen to?) Nonetheless, I was very impressed once again. The first thing I noticed was their vocalist's harsh vocals compared to what I had heard on recordings -- they seemed much, much stronger live. Like, noticeably so, even to someone who had only heard one song. As their set continued on, I noticed exactly how proficient their guitarist was, too. I mean really, he can shred. My wife was laughing at the fact that my jaw kept dropping just watching his fingers, but she agreed with me either way. Again, I only really realized "優しく殺して," and I believe they closed with that track, but after going back and listening to more of their releases I'm pretty confident they played the other tracks from that single alongside a few others. Not sure what their other songs were, but I think they also played five like MonstlloW. (My wife commented she didn't like them as much as MonstlloW, but partially because she "had to keep looking at that man's body the whole time." 🤣) At this point, we once again grabbed some more beers and she asked me about the other bands that were playing (since she told the doorman she supported a particular one and realized she had no clue who they were). I explained that DIMLIM was my favorite, gulu gulu was a new band with familiar members. I wasn't sure the order of the performances at this time, but I was cut off at that point as the curtains opened again. As the electronics of "GROTESQUE" began twinkling, I stood to immediate attention and noticed the crowd filing in very quickly. I excitedly stated that this was DIMLIM and as the band appeared, I took note of their visuals compared to their most recent photos at the time. Sho was not in his "clown" look from "離人" and instead was wearing something much more similar to the suited look from their more current appearance, glasses on his face in a look that reminded me very much of DIR EN GREY's Kyo circa "ain't afraid to die." Retsu wore face makeup similar to that of the photos, but rather than the pleather bodysuit he was wearing a very long trenchcoat. Taishi and Hiroshi appeared to match their photoshoot looks, while Ryuya wore the same outfit but with his hair tied up in a messy bun. Halfway through the first song, my wife turns to me and just says "ok, yeah, these guys are fucking good." One of the most immediate things I noticed about DIMLIM in this setting compared to the other bands that had played, is that their performance felt quite a bit...rawer than what we had seen so far. From someone who grew up going to punk/metal shows in the states in a scene that heavily frowned upon any type of backing tracks or sounds outside of "just the instruments in front of you," one of the things I found immediately standout was how many bands used obvious backtracks to fill in their sound at this live. It doesn't bother me, I can see the purpose and the value in it as it does add a certain "fullness" to these bands' sounds, but it definitely stood out. This is not to say that DIMLIM did not also use these things, as their sound does incorporate a number of electronics and multiple tracks, but I will say that it felt much less prevalent during their set. They continued straight out of "GROTESQUE" into "Malformation," which is probably my favorite song on CHEDOARA, so I was very happy. Every member seemed confident and "dialed in," but it was very difficult to divert my attention from Sho. (My wife made a comment about Sho, stating "I believe this blonde boy was on the train with us???" - I didn't notice, but I suppose it's possible? Haha.) His vocals were rougher than they sound on recording, but not in a way that felt bad or like he was incapable, just much more emotive. He stood on a riser for the majority of the set and really gave it his all from beginning to end. I know many have stated that he inhales his screams, which is troubling from a health perspective, but I really feel like he was exhaling a lot of them during their set as some stood out as very loud and impassioned. If I had one criticism, it would be that Ryuya's guitar felt too quiet for most of their set (something I had also noticed in live videos?) and I think they would have sounded even better if he was a bit louder, but they still played a very strong set. I did notice that the room was quite full for them in comparison to the previous bands, with a noteworthy number of males in the audience specifically for them and girls literally throwing themselves over the barriers while headbanging. (Another thing that I had never seen before -- they were straight up pulling all the way back and like...launching their bodies. That's dedication and western audiences could learn a thing or two!!) Their set was intense and entrancing and everything I could have wanted -- I feel really lucky to have seen them with their full lineup, though I wish their set was longer! It felt shorter than MonstlloW and Hueye, though maybe because there was no MC, just song after song with no interruption. DIMLIM setlist (to the best of my memory) 1. GROTESQUE 2. Malformation 3. ...物狂ひ...なりて 4. vanitas 5. 「人」と「形」 (it was this or D.Hymnus, but I believe it was this if I recall correctly) At this point, we're technically four bands in (and coincidentally four drinks in, so we continued that trend -- the drinks were really light!!) I kind of tried to explain who the remaining bands were, but GRIMOIRE started shortly after DIMLIM was done so I stood back up to watch them. I like GRIMOIRE a fair bit and have listened to most of their releases. I think their heavy songs are really well composed with cool guitar work and I was excited to see them for this reason. Oddly enough, they emerged with a very toned down visual look -- essentially a suit look for most of the members. RyNK wasn't even wearing his signature blindfold which I was kind of shocked by. The audience seemed to have quite a few very dedicated fans at the front, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't a bit worn out at this point after DIMLIM's set, which was a very different atmosphere. GRIMOIRE played a fun set that had a few of their "heavy bangers" with mostly lighter songs. That was a bit disappointing to me, but I still found them enjoyable overall, just a bit low energy compared to the other acts that evening. Unfortunately I don't remember their setlist! Things are starting to get blurry to me at this point, but I'm pretty sure MAMIRETA played next. I had told my wife that they were a pretty wild band and that she might like them (though in truth, I was kinda surprised she stuck around this long! She seemed to be pretty into every band that played save for GRIMOIRE who she didn't really watch.) I planned to buy some DIMLIM merch, but then realized I was almost out of cash after drinks so...I just bought more drinks instead. I will cut straight to the point before getting into detail, but MAMIRETA is hands down one of the best live bands I have ever seen. They tripled the energy of the previous acts (somehow) and played one of the most fun sets I've ever seen. I've argued this point a few times, but I really don't think MAMIRETA would be out of place in a western hardcore festival (except for the whole makeup thing, lol) Their music reminds me a lot of some of the nu-metal tinged western hardcore that has been a thing these past few years (Vein, Knocked Loose, etc.) Their look was pretty "low-visual" or "boy mode" as my wife started calling it through the evening. Just hoodies, jeans, and big hair. (basically the same as they wore in their "もしもし" PV) I have heard some less than savory things about Batsu, their vocalist, but all of that aside I'd be glad to call him one of the best frontmen I've seen perform. An absolutely unstoppable force of pure energy from the first notes played -- he stole the show and just went absolutely hog-wild the entire time. By the end he was breakdancing, jumping out into the crowd and running around, then he borrowed someone's purse and hairbow and pranced across the stage before their set ended. (Which looking back may have been part of the reason people have issue with him -- the audience member seemed fine with it, but I could see that going less than okay in other scenarios...) I've listened to a fair bit of their music, but don't really know their song titles other than "お邪魔します." This song was a ton of fun live, the entire crowd chanting the "お邪魔します" line on command. I started raising my beer for this point in the song and Batsu immediately singled my out and pointed, yelling "hey!!" I'd be lying if it didn't make me feel a bit special...(but I am a fairly tall blonde dude, so I maybe stood out a bit...) My wife and I were both very taken with their performance and if we were to go back to Japan I'm confident we'd go out of our way to catch them again. I really can't speak highly enough of their live show!! Before the next band we tried to scope out the merch booths a bit in between bathroom breaks (and more drinks...?) I noticed that DIMLIM's merch attendant was already packing up their goods while all of the other bands were out with their items at this point. (Guitarist and bassist of MonstlloW were still behind their booth, pretty much all of Hueye were behind their booth or watching the other bands near the back exit, and MAMIRETA's guitarist was back there now, too.) As the curtains opened, the audience was greeted by a giant "ぐるぐる" banner and the members of gulu gulu entered the stage to great fanfare from a packed crowd (maybe the biggest crowd of the night?) Their opening SE came to a close as Ai entered the stage and they blasted into "変なメリーゴーランド," which I immediately recognized from the PV teaser they had launched a few days prior. They wore their exact outfits that had been used to promote the single up to this point and this was one of their first shows as gulu gulu (they were actually billed as 烏名 鳴と不愉快な仲間達 only to be updated a few weeks prior coinciding with their announcement to begin activities as gulu gulu). They were also extremely high energy, with Ai slinging around a megaphone and shoving the entire microphone in his mouth. Lanju swayed his hair back and forth and drew a lot of my attention as my most immediate favorite from their lineup. ("This bassist fuckin' slaps," according to my wife and I absolutely agree.) Their set felt very much like a "headlining" set in every sense of the word -- whether that was intentional or not (and I don't really think it was). They felt very professional, but still fun and goofy. The audience for them was probably the most intense of the evening -- they all seemed really devoted and it was clear they had been waiting for them most of the night. They followed Ai's commands religiously. Musically I was glad to hear just how heavy they were, as this was the first time I had heard anything other than the sample of "変なメリーゴーランド." Their overall guitar/bass tone was really thick and despite the "fun" nature of their set, they still had a dark atmosphere that made them really stand out. They played "嗅覚障害" fourth for maybe...twice as long as the actual song? They held out a number of the sections, particularly the "la la la la la" parts what felt like an extra long time, Ai prancing back and forth on the stage as the band played the bouncy riff on repeat. Overall, their set cemented them as "the band to watch" and it's clear that they've maintained that reputation for very good reason. Of all the bands I saw this night (and in VK right now as a whole) they are probably the band I'm most interested in watching grow. After their set they were giving out "red paper" (which I believe later turned out to be a link to their first PV) to those who followed them on Twitter, but my wifi box was dead and I didn't even realize what was happening until it was too late. They posted the setlist that evening and now I recognize all of the songs except for the second, which I believe is still unreleased? gulu gulu setlist 1. 変なメリーゴーランド 2. 汚れた豚 3. 左手はスナッフフィルム 4. 嗅覚障害 5. 不味い麻酔 The last band on for the evening was The Guzmania. I'll admit that I was pretty exhausted at this point and had pretty much no vested interest in them (plus my dead wifi box was beginning to make me a bit nervous so I started to shuffle around the venue to see if I couldn't find an outlet to charge it for a few minutes...). My wife was pretty insistent on staying, to my surprise, and said she'd feel bad leaving these "nice boys who were trying hard" to play to such a small crowd. I agreed and we watched the rest of their set from the side of the hall. They had very few fans in the audience so it did make me feel a bit bad, but they are a very new band (I believe had just played their first live a few weeks prior). Their sound wasn't terribly memorable in my opinion, kind of jumped back and forth from pop-rock tunes to a few slightly heavier numbers. Their bassist did almost all of the MC and the rest of the band felt a bit shy. They took a bit of a long MC pause after two or three songs and almost made it seem like they were done for the night before they played three or four more, which surprised me as it made their set pretty long in comparison to some of the other bands. (Or maybe it just felt that way because it was the end of a long live?) After this we hit the road, hailed a cab back to Shinjuku to save some energy, ate some late night KFC, and passed out for the evening. Sorry for the super long post!! Like I said, it was kind of stream of consciousness and probably included a bunch of unnecessary details, but it was fun to "relive" the event in my head. I'm hoping I can swing more than two lives next time I make my way to Japan! Thanks for reading!
  30. 17 points
    Not sure if anyone has told y'all this today, but I love ya'll. You're all uniquely individual, and you all have something special to offer the world - if you so choose to do so!
  31. 17 points
    CAT5

    Show Yourself (again)

    Lion tribe
  32. 17 points
    Tenten is going to announce his new band My CHEMICAL HEAT IsLAND RE:PICTURES KuRt はなむけ my way.co.isthebomb.com
  33. 17 points
    Me fighting off the haters on my way to buy my 18th copy of Gensoukyoku
  34. 16 points
    Rize

    Returned from the dust (O.O ! )

    Hey everyone! It's been a while! (Probably 5 years since I stepped down as moderator here, damn!) I'm kinda back into VK/J-Rock and stuff, so I'm probably trying to start hanging out here more like the old days. I hope everyone is still doing fine and well! I wonder who are still active here from the time I was active on this forum. Anyways, like old days, hope to get a chance to talk through the chat! Also, I'm open to any band recommendations, hit me up with links as spotify and such. Maybe my lastfm will help with some recommendations ^^ I'm currently still into MEJIBRAY and I also like bands such as ACME, HAKLO, Versailles, Diaura, Nocturnal Bloodlust, Royz. Hope to see my old friends again as meeting new friends! Yoroshikuuuu~~
  35. 16 points
    Jigsaw9

    New band inThe has disbanded

    "Hi, we're inThe." "In the what?" "Just inThe." "Just in the WHAT???" Thank you, I'll be here all weekend.
  36. 16 points
    They will also release their 2nd full album in December. No details yet though.
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