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There's a certain sense of irony in that NB went vk to get paid and they didn't get paid...

http://www.nocturnalbloodlust.com/news/0/43463/ Cazqui and Daichi will leave Nocturnal Bloodlust as of their 12/16 performance at Shibuya STREAM HALL. The reason behind their departure is due to financial issues between Cazqui & Daichi and two employees of their label, as described here. "Two individuals involved in the financial management of Nocturnal Bloodlust's label (henceforth A & B), were previously negligent in the disclosure of income & expenditure pertaining to Cazqui & Daichi. With a growing sense of distrust, both parties requested disclosure of income & expenditure from A & B through a lawyer, where personal usage of money and large amounts of unaccounted-for expenditures by A came to light. In addition to the unacceptable behavior within the label mentioned above, Cazqui and Daichi have not yet been paid song production fees and merch design fees, and on the basis that they feel that can no longer continue NOCTURNAL BLOODLUST's activities in such an environment, nor provide high-quality music or performances to fans, they will be leaving the band as of the end of their scheduled activities within the year."

| Dir en grey's tenth album is something special indeed. Few artists can bring the scene together and elicit responses from everyone the way that Dir en grey can. They can make you pause your habitual listening routines to check out their newest single or album, even if you don't like them. This is because Dir en grey is one of the few bands where we can sense the progression and self-improvement from release to release. I don't think that Dir en grey aspires to impress anyone but themselves from three years ago, and now more than ever I see and feel a band that has graduated from copying trends to setting them. As a concept, and after listening to the album several times, I believe The Insulated World refers directly to them, their view on the world, and the inspiration for where the music they wish to create comes from. The Insulated World feels like a journey into oneself, and the album feels separated into two parts. The first half of the album feels like a turbulent descent into madness, while the second half feels like the madness has yielded to tranquility as the listener floats towards personal understanding. I prefer the second half to the first half. This is a far cry from literally every other album of theirs, where tracks were arranged haphazardly and the experience suffers for it. I can hear various influences from each of their previous eras and albums - some more than others - but one of the most redeeming points about The Insulated World is that it doesn't sound like anything in particular. In the past, I've felt that Dir en grey bit off more than they could chew, and failed to deliver on their own expectations. I felt this most when listening to DUM SPIRO SPERO, where the band used progressive elements for the sake of being progressive. The Insulated World has the progressive elements applied more sensibly, similar to ARCHE. Songs morph and change direction on a whim, but there are hooks and motifs that the band returns to that gives each song coherency. Vocalist Kyo reminds us once again that he's the king of vocal manipulation - just in case you had doubts - but he's embraced his mid range more. Focusing on the extremes of his vocal techniques leaves an immediate and lasting impression at the expense of it sounding very binary. I prefer the vocal extremes for specific emotional climaxes and using other vocal techniques for specific feelings at the appropriate times. "Values of Madness" is the best example of what I am describing, where we get screeching, rapping, singing, and more in a compact four minutes. The re-recording of "The Deeper Vileness" is another great example, and also highlights how well some of the ideas they explored in The Marrow of a Bone translate into their new style ten years later. Complaints about the terrible production job for the singles "Utafumi" and "Ningen wo kaburu" were founded and make more sense in hindsight, with the new versions sounding less congested. Die and Kaoru no longer compete with Toshiya for total control of the low end frequency, Shinya's drum kit sounds less robotic, Kyo doesn't feel tacked on top of the mix, and there's plenty of room left for the guitar distortion techniques and electronic samples to breathe. For the most part, I like the tone chosen for the guitar and the way everything comes together in each song, and I would rank this among both their best and least obnoxiously mixed albums to date. I wish they could get their singles to this quality. The Insulated World is not a perfect release. "Devote My Life" is not listenable due to the piercing, unrelenting tone of the guitar. Sticking it in the second slot does a lot to turn away people who only have once chance to give Dir en grey. They should have gone with a guitar tone closer to "Downfall". "Ranunculus", while a great song and a good note to end the album on, has an atmosphere which doesn't fit with the album. I get the impression this track was conceived either very early or very late in the production cycle, because it stands well on its own. I also am unable to find the hook in the album opus, "絶縁体" (Zetsusentai), which I find difficult to wrap my head around. They've done this style of track more effectively with "Vinushka" and even "Diabolos", and it doesn't hold a candle to the pure atmosphere of "MACABRE". Speaking of Macabre, I also find the new version of "理由" (Riyuu) slightly inferior to the original version. The cover of the song does justice to the original by not straying too much from the melody, but they reined in the emotion of the song and the guitar solo with only a cleaner sound to compensate, and the original version of the song sold itself on its emotion. They didn't ruin it, but they didn't improve it much. The new version of "鬼眼" (Kigan) falls into the same camp, but the much better production values edges it out ahead in the end. For the record, I much rather these safe reinterpretations than ones that butcher the song beyond recognition. These interpretations are subject to change as I spend more time with The Insulated World, and perhaps catch them live one day to experience these songs in person. Even a month later, I still think I wrote this review prematurely, as there are songs still growing on me and others that I am unsure if I like or not. I am pleased overall with how this album turned out, and I can see myself listening to this album in a few years without the songs wearing thin. Dir en grey did well, and this is an album I can recommend to both long time fans and the curious, but if ARCHE did nothing for you then this won't either. Support the artist! iTunes | CDJapan

masa might be president but it kind of makes no sense to go out of your way to found a label and then have yourself and hiro in charge of finances?? masa is certainly to blame for letting it go so far as to require legal intervention tho

Tracklist: ＜DISC 1＞ 01.千年DIVE!!!!! 02.We Can Do It！ 03.世界にたった一つの温もり 04.スマイル一番イイ♀～2015ver,〜 05.恋するサンタクロース 06.JIBUN 07.キミにエール 08.青春TRAIN 09.BondS～絆～2016ver. 10.熱くなれ 11.生きるための3秒ルール 12.逃避回路 ～2016ver.～ ＜DISC 2＞ 1.Spring Snow 2.JUMBO 3.涙より重いWAR 4.似た者同士 5.ラフ・ソング 6.スマイル一番イイ♀～2015ver.～-English ver.- 7.熱くなれ-English ver.- 8.イケない妄想×アブない珍獣 9.天手古舞 10.バルーンガール 11.願い事は1つさ 12.ねぇ 13.キミはいつか鍵になる～truth or lie～ If you order the limited edition from Musing before November 11th, you'll receive a cheki of the member of your choice, with your name written by him on it. I'm so mad rn. They basically took their latest releases in chronogical order. They have been playing new versions of AROMA and Maple Gunman for a while now, if not includes unreleased songs (and they have been recording some…), at the very least include these. Christ they're really going to disband the worst way possible.

MUNIMUNI will release their new mini album "月光男の日記 / A Diary of Mr.Moonlight" on 2018/10/31 (2,600円). It will include 6 tracks and a whopping 32-page booklet with photos, lyrics, band member interviews and liner notes. Tracklist: 01. THE MOONLIGHT SONG 02. NEW ORDER LOVE SONG 03. TIME IS FATE 04. VELVET魅惑TONIGHT (Album version) 05. B-BOY 06. THE SHADOW 2 Thought this would be a full-length finally, but oh well, at least they're keeping their schedule this time. Can't wait!

SIRENE (solo project of Martha, ex-Missa and current support member / composer of Vampire Rose) announced on Twitter that they will be releasing their second album in 2019. The album will be named *JUDGEMENT〜WHEEL of FORTUNE〜*, a name that is themed around Tarot cards, and will contain 10 tracks. The album will cost 3,000 yen, but further details have not yet been announced.

アンティック-珈琲店- (An Cafe) will release their best album「BEST 2015〜2018」on 2018/12/05. (2 types) Musing edition: 2CD+2DVD＋グッズ (merch) DVD: 2018.4.28 live at日比谷野外大音楽堂 MUSIC CLIP 2015~2018 ¥15,000 Regular edition: 2CD+ライナーノーツ (liner notes?) ¥2,800

悠希 (Yuuki) (人格ラヂオ(Jinkaku Radio)) 2 new maxi-singles "大村線に眠る" (Oumurasen ni Nemuru) and "残念ながら生きている" (Zannennagara Ikite Iru) release will be released at 2018/12/19 (1620yen each) ["大村線に眠る" (Oumurasen ni Nemuru) tracklist] 01. 大村線に眠る (Oumurasen ni Nemuru) 02. 三面鏡 (Sanmen Kagami) ["残念ながら生きている" (Zannennagara Ikite Iru) tracklist] 01. 残念ながら生きている (Zannennagara Ikite Iru) 02. 台無し (Dainashi)

Ah! I swore it was there when I lasted watched it ;w; It was a funny video program of them being on NicoNico, but yes! They are such a quiet, funny band! I love watching them interact and play silly jokes on each other, haha. Their concert lives are also a lot of fun to watch

The first video is deleted, but the second video is funny 😁.

Fucking blew my mind. Always cries about DEG fans being bullies, then literally comes out of nowhere to insult someone for not singing praises to Ninth. But when they were like “I know who you are, but you don’t know me” then started listing specific things I’ve said and that I use “female” as my gender. That threw me off until I checked my MH profile and realized my gender is set as female for some reason. I was going to fix it, but eh. Lol.

I'm here again and super excited about this release! I was expecting a full length too. They've got enough songs for another album or two already. And despite cheaper recording methods (home studios, DAWs, etc) most bands can have at their disposal, they really want to give this release their proper due with the art and that probably affected the amount of tracks they could record. If you reduced that 32 page booklet down to a 1 page double side fold-out could've gotten us maybe a song or two more on that album. That said, I'm really going to have to buy my copy from Disk Union for the extra!

New bassist Motsu has joined the band as of October 16, and their next live will be on November 23.

Great review, Zeus! I agree with most of your points. I certainly think that The Insulated World is DIR EN GREY's most mature and consistent album to date. It feels like they played to their strengths more than ever and cut the experimentation to an extent that actually benefits the record instead of bloating it. There’s hardly any filler tracks on here. The only criticism I have in this department is that Zetsuentai feels unnecessarily long plus I’m not a huge fan of Utafumi. Both those points don’t change the fact, however, that this is the first DEG album in a long time that I can sit through without feeling exhausted, uncomfortable or wanting to skip tracks. In general, the whole thing feels very raw, stripped, immediate and concise which are properties a lot of their past albums lack. And even though the experience is so condensed and straight-forward, I wouldn’t call it “dumbed down” at all. On the contrary, everyone seems to execute their part with a heightened sense for technical finesse. There’s still a good degree of playfulness and experimentation, most notably in Kyo’s multifaceted vocal delivery and some of Shinya’s brilliant drum fills. But that’s not even the best part. The riffs on this thing are jaw-dropping at times. Thanks to mostly great songwriting (which gets a little repetitive during the second half) and this nasty, thick and gritty guitar tone, they punch you in the chest so hard you’ll find yourself gasping for air. Strong riffs and catchy hooks dominate of The Insulated World, but occasional sparkly clean passages and some great guitar solos break up the density and bring in some of that In Flames / Dark Tranquility Swedish melo-death flavor. While I really would have wished for the bass to stand out more (as in Keigaku no Yoku), I still think that it is mixed quite well. It does take the back seat in some songs, but really adds to the aggression and overall atmosphere in others (as in Devote My Life). As for the production, I don’t think it’s awful. The thing is, if you listen to it on crappy hardware, it sounds crappy. I tried it with some cheap Urbanears Plattan and it was a mess. But hardware like this is not designed to deliver a pure, detailed and balanced representation of the music you’re listening to. The main problem is that The Insulated World is very heavy on the lower mids and low frequencies and with bass boosted headphones or speakers (which is more or less standard for almost everything in the budget range) you get a completely distorted “image” of what this album actually sounds like. PS: I don’t agree that Devote My Life is “unlistenable”. Sure, the guitars sound punishing and harsh but I see it as a fit representation of the lyrical content. Plus after all this build-up of excruciating tension during the verses, the chorus/breakdown with its wide bed of bass and gutturals opens the whole thing up and creates a very satisfying dynamic imo.

Sad but not unexpected. She's still so young (they all are really considering how long they've been in the industry... well, that's the idol business I guess). I wish her all the best for the future. I'm excited for the next phase of BABYMETAL though. The two recent singles and new song 'Tattoo' which they've been playing live sound great; I think they'll announce a new album at the end of this tour. From the live footage I've seen recently the remaining girls have really matured as the BABYMETAL mythos is beginning to develop into something quite unique.

Suzuka Nakamoto (Su-metal) is the main vocalist. Yui was the chorus of the group, currently only Moa is found as a choir.

CielGrave were great live!

残念ながら生きている is a big mood

These guys don’t know how to make a setlist flow do they? Rinkaku between Keibetsu to Hajimari and Beelzebub?

Same here ^^ Liked the original one more. Haha, a friend of mine, one time asked me, if I was ever going to listen to anything else XD It makes sense - perhaps he was trying to make a statement to people that he wasn't simply a 'happy' oshare singer. I've just been re-listening to their music, and there's nothing wrong with it. It's solid. But it does feel a bit lackluster - like there's something missing despite it being "darker" than An Cafe. I can't put my finger on what it is, though. Wow! That's cool! How were they live? I'm super curious ^^ Omg, that's sooo awesome that you were able to catch it! Those are so hard to catch

1. I think that the song's title refers to the Third Reich, but there's no official confirmation, as far as I'm aware. 2. The two demo songs come from disc 2 of DUM SPIRO SPERO, only included with the LP box version. 3. I think kyotaku would be the best to ask, on tumblr. 4. I have no idea, he never got back to me either, so I guess he's over the whole DEG stuff.

Yeah, only the Japanese Limited Editions of both had the extra discs. The 'deluxe' version of DSS released overseas was a bit sparse in comparison. The official site has all the info: DUM SPIRO SPERO DUM SPIRO SPERO AT NIPPON BUDOKAN

Demos are from the second disc in the edition that came with DSS on vinyl. There’s an entirely different Decayed Crow remix by Kyo on that one. The 9 minute droning static version by Narasaki is on the third disc of the DSS at Budokan DVD. I believe Euro and NA releases of DSS had Rasetsukoku and symphonic Amon as bonus tracks.

Soon~ yes I'm gonna keep this one-person hype train rolling. ;(((

I like the original more, but they remake was cool as well! And yes to having aurora on repeat 😂 I did, yes. Their sound was definitely darker, and I think it was Miku’s way to move away from ancafe’s image to pursue something completely different. I liked their music, but for me, there was no spark there. What do you think? Yes, I saw them live twice! Once in 2009, and the last time in 2014. In 2012 I decided against going to their concert because I would have had to skip at least one day at uni. A friend of mine, who lives in Berlin, went to the show, and said it was amazing. In hindsight, I think I should’ve taken the chance. I once even accidentally caught takuya’s guitar plectrum! I just saw something flying my way and caught it out of instinct. I never got to see a lot of Japanese bands live, but I’m glad I had the chance to see ancafe.

the fuck did they do to Kohta's face?

Oh, nice! Smile Ichiban Ii Onna and Escapism were the other songs I discovered on YT. Aurora is another personal favorite of mine~ I had that song play on repeat in my younger years, lol. Did you like the original Smile Ii Ichiban Onna or the remake they released in 2015? Haha, that's a pretty apt description of their music after Bou left 😂 I always described their works as becoming "lighter", but I think glittery sounds better XD Did you ever get a chance to listen to Miku's other band, Lc5? I felt the look of that band was far from the happier/lighter sounds of AnCafe. You were able to go to the tour they had in Europe? That's so cool! I've never had the chance to see them live. It must have been amazing! I feel the same way. They were one of my first visual kei bands, so I will definitely miss the band!

(This was upped a week ago, missed it in my sub feed)

The other two songs were smile ichinan II onna and escapism another mixtape followed soon, introducing me to all of these amazing b-sides (ese uranai, super rabbit, Aurora, hisokyo, ame no hankagai, etc). I think that most of the songs that had not been released on one of their studio albums were among their best. Their music definitely changed, but I had the feeling it had more to do with them trying to appease a wider audience? I think that their songs were less heavy (which is probably why they hired a keyboard player in the first place.) I’mnot saying that their old songs were less sparkly, but their third album (and first without Bou) felt more...glittery? 😂 Me too...but I don’t have the money nor the time to travel to Japan atm. I’v been waiting for another Europe tour since 2014, and I still have got to come to terms with the fact that this is seriously it, and they will not continue to bring this joy into my life. This may sound dramatic, but their music was always with me in my teenage and young adult years, and they will be missed!

Yes, it was my first ancafe song, too! Got a mixtape from a friend of mine, and three an cafe songs were on there. I instantly Fell in love with Snow scene. As far as I know, You wrote the song, yes. And I feel you. My teenage self was so sad because he used to be my favourite. I had just discovered them a year before that, and suddenly he left. It's not like I'm that interested in his private life, but sometimes I wonder what he's up to or if he's alright. I wonder if he maybe got an education after leaving the VK scene? Anyways, I Wish him all the best.

I was browsing through YT and I found these old funny videos of them. I couldn't stop staring at Mirai's hair in the Nico video, lol.

In a way Kisaki is the ultimate bandman constantly hustling abuses both women and children betraying bandmates evading taxes breaks the law been around for way too long and there's no signs of him stopping

mamaw bringing much needed nails for kanon wakeshima's career coffing, sleigh!! only wish tha video was shot with something better than an iphone 5s tbh 🧙🏻‍♀️

BABYMETAL officially announced that Yuimetal would not be joining the band for the next phase of their tour and would no longer be a member of the group due to poor health condition. A new digital single "Starlight" is already on sale from today.

I ended up getting into it with a weird Gazette fan in the comments section of a really small YouTube channel. They basically went off on some dude that called Ninth generic (“shut the fuck up”, “keep the Gazette out of your mouth”) then played victim because “DEG fans won’t leave Gazette fans alone”. It got really surreal when they knew exactly who I was because they visited here briefly a few months back, even though I use my real name on YouTube. They’ve since moved on to a place where no one speaks ill of Gazette.

rather greasy of the label to link an offsite document with a proper explanation at the end of a statement that completely neglects to mention their responsibility in this 👀