Jump to content
Monochrome Heaven is closed. We have moved to JROCK ONE.

Laurence02

Hot People
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Content Count

    211

  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    1

Posts posted by Laurence02

  3. Posted

    Honestly? Properly digitising stuff, especially VHSes, due to their volatile nature (calling NTSC "never the same colour" is so, so true), is a huge pain without the proper stuff. Send it off to someone who has the equipment. I happen to know that Panda has proper equipment.

    And if you choose to go somewhere local, choose your establishment wisely - anyone can use a VHS/DVD burner, but not everyone has a TBC, a proper high-quality capture card, a Windows XP PC to use it on, the expertise to not fook up the deinterlacing, etc.

    ghostpepper reacted to this

  6. Posted

    8 hours ago, NICKT said:

    When it comes to trying to discuss these things about Japanese music is that majority of the online western communities that will engage the discussion are into alternative genres and will be incredibly biased. That's how you often get lists of "best voices in Japan" that'll top out with the Gazette or Dir en grey if not completely filled with just VK bands.

    Even just going through this topic, I mostly skimmed it and saw two posts that discussed artists I wouldn't put into alternative genres and even then, Daoko is kind of her own thing.

    That is actually very true. I suppose it's the side effect of asking this question in a visual kei forum. As for Japanese vocalists in general, I find that they in general are just as technical as their Western counterparts. (Most) "objectively" good singers train, no matter where they are from. 

  9. Posted · Edited by Laurence02

    I'm not a huge fan of the aesthetic either way because of the implications (no matter how much Mein Kampf writes songs about driving fast and no matter how much Rommel writes songs about zombies), but I find Rommel to be the best band from a musical point of view because they had Shu who is an amazing technical guitarist. 

     

    (Although I hope that it doesn't need to be said, I would like to say that I'm not a Nazi, nor do I sympathise with the Nazi cause. As far as I know, these bands used the Nazi image for edgy shock value, not because they supported a genocide.)

    dovesi reacted to this

  10. Posted

    9 hours ago, Kirito said:

    Both are important.. unfortunately singers learn less and less how to properly sing, they relate on technology ( melodyne , auto-tune.. ) to fix their performance.

    My hypothesis is that there are more old vocalists who couldn't sing than now... they just haven't survived. Just as the mediocre singers of today will be forgotten. In fact, I think there are more and more singers learning how to sing "properly" due to the internet.

  13. Posted

    12 hours ago, YuyoDrift said:

    We know now that VK is harder to produce now, but I'm not as in-the-know to tell you why other than resources drying up (era that died out in the late 90's) and scandals giving the scene a bad image even today. I'm just saying that the 90's marketing boom for all forms of media bled together when it came to how to promote it and what was promoted.

    That's an interesting point. I've seen the fact promoted that VK especially is slowly dying from natural extinction because the shock value that it once had is becoming "normal" and hence not very interesting anymore.

    YuyoDrift and AnchuAnchor reacted to this

  16. Posted

    3 hours ago, nekkichi said:

    because this generally never happens, with the most consistently successful more or less recent example being, probably, girugamesh. VK builds clout like no other indie scene does.

     

    there's probably a small chance that some members ghosted and reappeared under their real names that the gya were never aware of, but other than that, I can't name anyone making it really big after departing VK.

    miyavi is a d-list actreuse with an illusion of a domestic career, and Gackt is not releasing shit (and still probably living off MM/visual era career savings/investments/acting cheques.)

     

    non-vk, however closely associated (through their prev. bands that also spawned that awful hollowgram chanteuse.)

     

     

    they're now all retired with exception for nigu too.

    Do you count T.M.Revolution as successful? He sung in Luis-Mary (which I would like to argue was pretty popular - it went major!), but his solo career was quite very successful for a while - anime openings, concerts, Budokan, the whole shebang.

  22. Posted · Edited by Laurence02

    8 minutes ago, 吸血鬼 ~Kyūketsuki~ said:

    So, I'm doing a count of all the original X Japan songs that have not been put on an original record yet (compilations aren't proper records if you ask me). Please tell me if there are any I missed; I was just skimming Wikipedia and Metal Archives, and I'd like to be thorough with this to prove my point/keep it intact.

    You forgot all the early indies-era songs!

    Quote

    No Connexion: Played all the way from their 1987.04.10 gig at Kagurazaka Explosion to their Rose & Blood tour at Osaka Kosei Nenkin Kaikan, 1989.10.10. 

     

    Break The Darkness: Played all the way from their "I'll Kill You" vinyl single, from June 1985 until their gig at Club Citta, Kawasaki (Blue Blood Tour) at 1989.04.22. It was released on the "Heavy Metal Force III" compilation in 1989. 

     

    Feel Me Tonight: Played all the way from some time late 1985 (November?) until their Burn Out Tour, 1988.10.30 gig at Club Citta Kawasaki. The first confirmed date after the release on the fabled "Feel Me Tonight" tape is the 1985.11.20 Yoshiki birthday gig at Meguro Rokumeikan. 

     

    Endless Dream: This song also is probably composed by Yoshiki. It began to be played at the same gig as the previous song and released on the "X Live" tape as well, but it was played until their 1988.10.26, Burn Out Tour gig at Sapporo Messe Hall. Probably a Yoshiki-composed song. 

     

    Install (name?): Played at four (as far as I know) gigs during 1987 - the first appearance being the 1987.05.18 gig at Osaka Ranta Rokumeikan and the last one being at the Wink Tour, Meguro Rokumeikan gig at 1987.11.23. Also known as "Feels Damage", or "Terras Damme".

     

    Only Way: This track was performed during 1986 (from the Yokohama 7th Avenue gig at 1986.04.10, to the "Jun and Hikaru Last Live" gig at Meguro Rokumeikan 1986.10.25) only, when Jun was the guitarist of X. Jun was the composer of this track.

     

    Right Now: This track was also performed during the months of July, August, September, and October of 1986 only (starting with the Kagurazaka Explosion First One-Man gig at 1986.07.25, and ending with the same Jun and Hikaru Last Live gig). This can be explained by Jun leaving the band. He was also the composer of this song. 

     

    Time Trip Loving: This song is composed by Yoshiki, first released on the "Orgasm" EP (which was released at 1986.04.10), and played up until the before-mentioned "Jun and Hikaru Last Live" gig at Meguro Rokumeikan 1986.10.25.

     

    Stop Bloody Rain: This track was released on their 1984 "I'll Kill You" demo tape, but was played until their 1986.08.02 "Osaka First One-Man Live" gig at Higashi Osaka Census Hall. This song was probably composed by Yoshiki. 

     

    Tuneup Baby (name?): This song is also (probably) a Jun composition, played at three gigs only (as far as I know), from the 1986.06.19 Meguro Rokumeikan gig to the 1986.07.25 Kagurazaka Explosion "First One-Man" gig - which makes it one of their least-played songs. The title is also disputed.

     

    Lady in Tears: A ballad, possibly composed by by Yoshiki. It was played during four gigs in 1985, and was released on the "X Live" tape (which probably is official). It was first released on the tape (and played from the 1985.06.26 Kagurazaka Explosion gig, where the audio of the tape was taken from), until the 1985.12.03 gig at Meguro Rokumeikan. This song's intro was shortened on the "Endless Dream" cassette.

     

    Steal Your Heart: This song was apparently played at one gig only that I know of - the 1985.10.04 "Atsushi, Terry, and Eddie Last Live" gig at Kagurazaka Explosion. There isn't much to say about this song either, except that pretty much everything is unknown about it as well.

     

    We Are X: An early precursor to the "X" track on the "Orgasm" EP and "Blue Blood" album. It only appeared on the 1984/1985, "I'll Kill You" demo tape, but they played this song at the EastWest '82 Yamaha Junior Band Contest in 1982. This song is also probably a Yoshiki-composed song.

     

    Kill Violence (name?): A song played only during a Jimoto Chiba local live in 1983. There isn't much to say about this song, except that pretty much everything is unknown about it. The lyrics as well. 

     

  25. Posted

    On 12/10/2018 at 1:30 PM, Bear said:

    Many of the earlier visual kei thrash metal bands like Rosenfeld uses harsh(er) vocals already in the mid to late 80s.

    Yeah, I agree. However, it maybe would be a good idea to distinguish the more "classic" metal vocals with the newer, "visual-style" stuff?

     

    I am inclined to presume that Rosenfeld, Harkenkreuz, Rommel, and so on used harsh vocals inspired by other pioneer metal bands (honorable mention to Cannibal Corpse's vocals) as they probably considered themselves metal bands first and foremost, with a visual style.

     

    On the other hand, the newer bands may have assumed harsher vocals as a part of a more defined, "visual" style, instead of, being metal or rock bands with a visual touch. 

     

    Is the question perhaps when the bands which considered themselves more visual-style than metal began to use harsher vocals?

×
×
  • Create New...