SwampMan

ヒトリエ (Hitorie) frontman wowaka has passed away April 5th due to sudden heart failure. He was 31. A funeral has already been performed, but only for relatives and friends. Their tour has been cancelled and future band activities are undecided.

https://www.sonymusic.co.jp/artist/hitorie/info/505751

Listened to this song once, and didn't feel the need to listen to it again. Predictable, bland and formulaic. The message it tries to convey is meaningful, more so for a certain part of their fan base but in my opinion this song doesn't have anything else going on worth mentioning other than that. I'm not implying they should strive for a more "rock" sound but for better music (it could be with more electro elements or whatever they want). Unfortunately this is in no way better than what they made in the past. I'm not hearing this "maturity" many are pointing out, at least not compostion/songwriting-wise and it certainly doesn't bode well for the upcoming album, happy to be proven wrong though.

Crystal Lake new album "HELIX" will be released at 2018/11/28
 

 

Tracklist:
1. Massive Passive
2. 色彩 (Album Ver.)
3. ハレルヤ
4. End of Refrain
5. Loop
6.たりない
7. さよならワルツ
8. Q and A (Album Ver.)
9. 失う
10. Ego-izm
11. Reset
12. Self
 
| Ambivalence in its purest form
 
siraph may have the soul, but la la larks has the voice, and as long as Yumi Uchimura can sing I feel obligated to sample whatever project she is in. Culture Vulture is the debut album half a decade in the making - la la larks emerged from the ashes of school food punishment in 2012 - and this is both a blessing and a curse. On one hand, I've matured enough to appreciate la la larks for what it is instead of what it is not. On the other hand, if an album takes five years to make, I expect a damn good album. la la larks isn't the only band on the block anymore, and competition breeds incentive, so the only expectation I had was that they would give it their all.
 
Listening to Culture Vulture is ambivalence in its purest form. I want to rip la la larks for releasing such little music for the last five years, but I also want to dig into them for having released half of Culture Vulture already. It's two shakes away from falling into the Chinese Democracy category, lacking the feeling of having been toyed with for too long, but already I feel like I've heard this years ago. It is a great album, engineered to perfection, and the experience only intensifies with great audio equipment, but the recipe may as well be printed on the back. I raved about "ego-izm" when it was released as a single, but every other track in that vein feels like an alternate, less effective take. Things get good when la la larks unshackle themselves from their oppressive, self-imposed pop constraints for the tracks such as "loop" or the jazzy ballad "たりない", which have grown to be two of my favorites. It's the biggest indication that there's more to this band than pop songs that would double as juicy anime cash-ins, but they hardly ever show it.
 
Perhaps I haven't changed after all and just want Yumi to throw me a bone. Her voice over dissonant noise and reverb is addictive, and we get close with the deceptive opening of the last track "Self", but close is not enough. Culture Vulture could have taken more risks and been more unpredictable. I'm looking for a figurative wink and nod towards the darker, more contemplative moments similar to sfp's "loop, share", "deviswitch", or even la la larks' "earworm"! It would have done wonders to invigorate my interest.
 
I like it, but I wonder how much of that was engineered and how much of it is my honest opinion. In chasing the goal of creating their perfect pop album, la la larks gives us no indication of how close they are to the apex of their sound. I can clearly hear the talent in every member, but no one does anything that wows me musically. The album never reaches critical mass or picks up a pace faster than a jog, and that turns the tail end of this journey into a slog. When their direct competition made it a point to make a statement with their first release, I'm left disappointed that it took so long to create an album that left such an underwhelming impact.

But what did you really expect when you crystallize school food punishment's two eras into two bands and pit them against each other?
 
 
Support the band!
CDJapan | iTunes

Greetings, MH! Another month, another batch of recommended tracks from the amazing ORZ team! 
Check them out and let us know what you think!
 
(We apologize if some videos aren't available due to region restrictions!)

@doombox's Pick
"Black owl" by Leetspeak monsters

I'm a bit regretful I didn't hear about this band until they stepped up their monster-inspired theatrics and landed on the visual kei circuit this year. Especially as "Black Owl" isn't exactly a new song. It's been around for a few years now, but thankfully Leetspeak used it as the promotional track for their new mini album set to be released through GLK Music. And with how catchy the track is, it totally deserves a second spin for a new audience. Monster costumes and rap rock aren't the most original concept at this point, but it's been a while since a darkly-themed band came in not abiding by the hackneyed VK song structure. It was also a nice surprise to see an uncredited guest feature from Xavie (vocalist of revenge my LOST) even with his leftover fabric scrap cape (gold star for effort, I guess). If you're down for a bit of early Halloween fun, you should give this song a shot. 


@CAT5's Pick "ANGELNOIR" by 青葉市子
"ANGELNOIR" by Aoba Ichiko

I might just be a hopeless Ichiko Aoba fanboy (and I am :P), but I don't think it would be farfetched to call her one of the most outstanding Japanese musicians active today. Wielding virtuosic, classical guitar skills and an angelic croon that could melt even the toughest of hearts, she's paved her very own lane in the industry with a folk sound that could only be described as otherworldly. Even when she ventures outside of her usual, acoustic dwellings, she still invokes that same magical quality - whether she's working with quirky, electro-guru Cornelius or Jazzy hip-hop instrumentalists Ovall. Such is also the case on her latest collaboration "ANGELNOIR", produced by little-known indie-pop outfit detune. for the supernatural anime 18if. Ichiko's warm, yet enchanting vocals lead us through a mysterious mirage of intricately layered electronics and orchestral flourishes, underpinned by a calculated rhythm section. The song culminates beautifully in the chorus, with the backing guitars employing an airy, shoegazy effect for good measure. It's yet another testament to not only Ichiko's choice of quality collaborators, but her ability to create viable music regardless of context.

 
@qotka's Pick
"わたしみ" by 大森靖子
"Watashimi" by Oomori Seiko

Oomori is a tough one. She's been referred to as everything on the scale from 'nice/terrible meme' to 'the next Shiina Ringo' (still searching for clarifications on this last one). "わたしみ" was not what I was going to write about this month, but the magnitude of its punch when I first listened to it forced me to. This gust of raw energy is the coupling track for singer-songwriter's Seiko-chan's latest single, "draw (A) drow",  a song composed by TK of Ling Tosite Sigure, and it's as astonishing as you'd expect a power combo of this caliber to be. But if you want to hear what Oomori Seiko really is all about, I'll recommend starting from the b-side "わたしみ", because while it's not readily digestible, it lets a certain raw, soul-baring essence, something that usually dies once a song is recorded, shine through. This simple and mellow acoustic pop ballad starts with Seiko sounding really tired, and just as it builds up to a point of crushing breakdown, she literally breaks down into a shrieking a capella mess that to some may sound painful but also full of emotion. This is perhaps one of the best translations of how her songs sound live into a studio recording. If you like your singers-songwriters messy and over the top, you've found the one.


@Seimeisen's Picks
"盲目であるが故の疎外感"  by MUCC
"Moumoku de aru ga Yue no Sogaikan" by MUCC
The absolute banger of 新痛絶 (Shin-tsuuzetsu)! On the original 痛絶 (Tsuuzetsu), "盲目であるが故の疎外感" was the penultimate track; on the second pressing, entitled 痛絶〜印象違〜 (Tsuuzetsu - Inshouchigai), it was the post-intro opener and really didn't feel like an opener at all. On 新痛絶, MUCC managed to take a 'near the end of the album' type of song and make it an exciting opener bursting through the doors to the "New Absolute Pain" that's ahead. All it took was a different key, a new 40 second intro, and an incredible new atmosphere. You don't even need that static intro track on 新痛絶, not with this gem.


"僕が本当の僕に耐えきれず造った本当の僕"  by MUCC
"Boku ga Hontou no Boku ni Taekirezu Tsukutta Hontou no Boku" by MUCC
The greatest difference 新葬ラ謳 (Shin-homura Uta) has to offer. They really took this song and breathed life into it. I never really paid attention to the original on 葬ラ謳 (Homura Uta), it just never interested me, but this new one is absolutely outstanding! Another example of how playing a song in a different key can make quite a difference. Frankly, I never paid much attention to 葬ラ謳 in general, but the release of 新葬ラ謳, especially this new version of "僕が本当の僕に耐えきれず造った本当の僕 (Boku ga Hontou no Boku ni Taekirezu Tsukutta Hontou no Boku)," sparked a great interest in the album, both the original and the new, leading me to 'get to know' and grow to appreciate it. Some re-recordings may not live up to the originals, some might be just on par, but just a few, especially this track, blow the original out of the water.



 @tetsu_sama69's Pick "紅い意図" by CLØWD
"Akai Ito" by CLØWD

I'm writing judgement tickets for anyone who's been passing up the chance to listen to anything CLØWD has put out. At the start you think with the slow opener this is just going to be another boring visual ballad, but that peaceful set-up is thrown out the window once the guitars kick in. CLØWD definitely shows off their veteran badges with "Akai Ito" by composing a song overflowing with powerful emotions. You can feel the tension of a struggling relationship within the flow of fervent instrumentals and passionate vocals. I've been hooked on CLØWD since they first popped up on the scene in 2015, and since then they've grown exponentially with every release. If "Akai Ito" is anything to go by then there's little stopping CLØWD's momentum with future releases.
   
@plastic_rainbow's Picks
"夕轟" by マルコ
"Yuu Todoroki" by Marco

With two of the members leaving in September, Marco is living on the edge as they continue their way up. Thankfully, the remaining members have already stated that they will not disband just yet. If you are new to these guys, Marco are often compared with early Merry, mostly due to the strong similarities between the vocals, but I think listeners who enjoy VK from the 2000s, especially the mid-2000s, will enjoy Marco just as much. In fact, all of the members were previously in bands that were fairly well-known around the time, such as CindyKate, Order Made, JIVE, and SectMa. Marco sounds nothing like the aforementioned bands however, but the mid-2000s vibe is there. Before their lead guitarist and drummer officially leave the band, Marco drops in a phenomenal track one last time as a 5-piece band. "Yuu Todoroki" is less energetic than their previous works and instead brings out a soft retro rock sound. The impressive guitar work has always been a strong point of the band, and here they emit a luscious blues tone. Top it with Rei's alluring and rough vocals and you've got a feast for your ears. But let's not ignore all the splendid work done on the jazzy bass lines and guitar chords along with the soft drumming as well. It may be hard to imagine how Marco will manage from now on with their drummer and lead guitarist leaving, and a very talented guitarist at that, but I look forward to hearing more stuff from them again.
   "ワールドエンドサイレン" by lical
"World End Siren" by lical

If you haven't been checking up too closely on the Japanese indie scene like me you might have missed these guys. "World End Siren" comes from lical's new album titled Koto no Hanataba, Suisou to Kaisei that released not too long ago in June. It immediately opens with some mellow guitar chords and a distant train alarm, building a rush of energy. The jumping bass lines and light female vocals sound quite pleasing to the ears, but the blaring eccentric guitar riffs are the ones that take the cake. A few mathy influences can be heard as well and the distant train alarm from the beginning comes back again like a gentle warning. "World End Siren" for the most part may sound like a typical indie rock song, but the bouncy and hopeful depiction of a path full of risks makes it worth a listen and  a fun track to jam out with.


@fitear1590's Picks
"螢の瞳" by アンフィル
"hotaru no hitomi" by anfiel

I'll try not to bore you with the nitty-gritty of my love-hate relationship with anfiel (please don't report me to hiroki). Essentially, they're a band I've always wanted to like, but after their first two singles, something just hasn't been clicking. Well, their latest single "hotaru no hitomi" might just break the spell. Stripping back the band's sound does wonders, especially because one of my biggest gripes with their past work has been the production of their electronic arrangements. With the setup in this track, the melancholy guitar riffs and robust basslines get to shine. The best compliment I can give this track is that it reminds me of UNiTE.'s similarly 'au naturel'  single "ハートレス クラシックメモリー (Heartless Classic Memory)."If you're fed up with the hyper-screechy synth'd up VK of today, anfiel's newest single provides a breath of fresh air.
"夏の客船" by ウワノソラ
"natsu no kyakusen" by Uwanosora

Uwanosora have been putting out music in various interconnected projects for a couple years now. My personal favorite is the side-project Uwanosora'67, which, if the number cued you, puts out tunes with a classic 60s girl-group flair. Now back in their original form, regular Uwanosora is gearing up for an album release later this year. To generate buzz for that, their first single from the album "natsu no kyakusen" is a beautiful, laid-back ballad and the PV's blue skies and ocean match the heartfelt soundscape perfectly. The entire experience is as calming as sitting on the coast and taking in the gentle breeze. I'm hoping the whole album will be on par with this!

@emmny's Pick "愛という、変態" by gibkiy gibkiy gibkiy
"Ai toiu, hentai" by gibkiy gibkiy gibkiy

Love, a pervert. Another year, another mind-blowing release from experimental rock provocateurs gibkiy gibkiy gibkiy. "Ai to iu, hentai" is their first MV and a macabre look down into the rabbit hole (literally). Slick, sexual and more than a bit perverted, the song lives up to its namesake. The repetitive, skittery instrumentation reminiscent of merry go round spars with Sakura's challenging, rolling drum line while Kazuma's maddened crooning envelops the air. The song moves with a flow not unlike intercourse, coming to crashing climaxes and sudden halts before starting again and coming to another roaring blitz of noise. The first half of the song is foreplay, and the second half is whatever else you want it to be--an onslaught of sound and sensation.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
 
Thanks for checking out our recommendations this month! If you have any thoughts on the list, or if you have any recommendations of your own, we look forward to seeing your comments below!

Due to my hiatus this list was horribly delayed and I'd like to apologize for that, but I still feel like a lot of us are not over the hard hitting band break ups in 2016 so the wonderful users of MH as well as the awesome ORz members got together to write up some memorials for them. So without any further delays, here are some words for the great bands that called it quits.
 

10. 凛-THE END OF CORRUPTION WORLD- (2010-2016)
 

9. Sel'm (2004-2016)
 

8. FoLLoW (2013-2016)
 
 

7. SCREW (2006-2016)
 

6. DuelJewel (1997-2016)
 

5. BORN (2007-2016)
 

4. AvelCain (2012-2016)
 

3. DIV (2012-2016)
 

2. 少年記 (Shounenki) (2011-2016)
 

1. ギルガメッシュ (Girugamesh) (2004-2016)
 
Please share with us what bands you're missing this year and let us know what you think about this list!
 
 

Ten years ago today, Spike760 and myself decided that we wanted to start a Japanese Rock forum. After a while of debating, we eventually settled on Tainted World (after the D’espairsRay song of the same name). Frankly, neither one of expected it to last all that long; this would hardly be the first forum that we had run together that didn’t go anywhere. But what started as a fun little project somehow blossomed into an amazing community. The fact that this site still exists after all this time has little to say about Spike and my’s original plan and everything to say about the members here. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for helping build this site into what it is today.
 
While I was one of the key founders of this site, Monochrome Heaven is so much bigger than just me. That became clear to me when we went under the transition from Tainted World to our current name back in 2011. While to really understand why this is so important requires more context, I don’t want to go into a full on history lesson. But since that point, so many members have stepped up and dedicated themselves to this site, putting in the time and effort (and money) into making Monochrome Heaven as great as it possibly can be.
 
To every member that has joined and felt like they were apart of a community over this silly niche interest we all have, I raise a glass to you. You all are what have made this place special. And to every staff member, current and past, no words can express my thanks to you - you are people that I have come to admire and consider good friends.
 
But this post isn’t about me, but about the Monochrome Heaven! I want to hear from all of you as to why this community is special, why you’ve becoming coming back for 10 months or 10 years. Or tell us one of your favorite moments from your time coming, whether that was a release you were looking for forever or a stupid meme that took over the forum.

Here’s some from other users to get things started!:
 
 
 
@-jibakurei-
 
@SEKHMET
 
@Ada Suilen
 
@Flame-X
 
@Seiji
 
@Platy
 
@efuru
 
@saishuu
 
@Furik
 

I don't have a cd/flac rip to compare it against so the slight edge the hi-res has is the usual difference between an mp3/flac. Talking about hi-res music in general I do admit I can hardly ever hear any notable, if at all, differences between a normal flac and a 24bit one, 9 out 10 times it sounds the same to my ears. With some recordings I've listened to I had the feeling I could hear something more than the usual, could've been just a placebo effect though. The better audio quality is there but our physical limitations don't exactly allow us to perceive said quality, maybe some can more than others but I'm not one those with super hearing. I have a decent entry-level stereo system (2 monitor audio bronze 6 speakers+marantz 6005) but I can almost never tell the difference and I don't care. As you said if you can get 24/96 why not? xD

The answer is a little complicated.
 
Does this Hi-Res copy sound better than say, a 320kbps copy? Yes, by a mile.
Does it sound better than a FLAC copy? That's to be debated.
 
People would be correct to conclude that the human ear is not capable of distinguishing anything higher than 20KHz, and so it would be a waste.
What they don't know is that that is 1/2 the truth.
 
In reality, we actually can hear the difference.
The only problem is, the volume would have to be turned up so high, that it would cause hearing impairment at those frequencies. So not the most pleasant listening experience.
Plus, most listeners aren't even aware as to what to look for in differences between the two.
Finally, you'd have to be in a dead silent room (the average environment is about 30db of noise) in order to even get the chance to do any of this.
 
Another issue is that NO DAC/Amp, or device on the market in 2017 is even remotely capable of, or ever will, be able to reproduce anything higher than 20Bits.
Trust me, I've looked (and even done a research paper on this lol). Modern Tech is just not at that point yet to reproduce frequencies that high.
What this means is that no HD/Hi-Res copy will be capable of being 24bit due to tech being shit still. So we are stuck with 20bit max.
 
Why is it called 24bit then? Well techies will tell you that we count bits by 8.
So:
 
8bit (Think Video Game Music), 16bit (FLAC Quality), and 24bit (HD, Hi-Res, SACD)
 
24bit Hi-Res is not intended to be used by the average consumer, but it is made available to us because well, why not?
It is intended for Audio Engineers, who use low-pass filtering for master recording and/or editing (kinda like a graphic designer/photo editor using RAW formatted images).
So this quality of music is really only able to be used in software, otherwise the raw frequencies of sound can kill your audio devices.
Plus, the recording companies are greedy SOBs that would never share master records with the average consumer. Those golden days are over.
Our entertainment systems have been made possible  to listen to at least 60db of sound affordably (on purpose, some might say), because any more would require more power (current) and amplification, to the point that we'd all be broke as shit if we wanted to hear this to it's real sound.
 
This can go way deeper in explanation, but I will stop here.
 
TL;DR
 
Take advantage of @Aeolus' kind gesture, and add this copy to your Music Collection.
You'll NEVER be able to play this in 24bit, because not even master recording equipment can. So don't BS anyone about your 5K sound equipment lol.
Record companies have purposely made audio sound like shit nowadays for their own profit.
Unless you listen to this in a sound booth at ear exploding volumes, then it'll probably sound the same as FLAC.
 
So enjoy this Hi-Res album, using a simple DAC/Amp and a really nice set of Noise-Cancelling Headphones for now.
Your crappy HP laptop headphone port isn't gonna cut it folks.
 
 

New Album 『人間開花』(Ningen Kaika)
 

■初回限定盤（CD＋DVD）
UPCH-29241／￥4,500（税別）
 

■通常盤（CD）
UPCH-20436／￥3,000（税別）
 
1. Lights go out
2. 光
3. AADAAKOODAA
4. トアルハルノヒ
5. 前前前世 (original ver.)
6. 'I' Novel
7. アメノヒニキク
8. 週刊少年ジャンプ
9. 棒人間
10. 記号として
11. ヒトボシ
12. スパークル (original ver.)
13. Bring me the morning
14. O&O
15. 告白
　
[初回盤DVD]
"10th ANNIVERSARY LIVE TOUR FINAL RADWIMPSのはじまりはじまり"のまとめ
at 幕張メッセ国際展示場4～6ホール (2015.12.23)
1. トレモロ
2. ます。
3. 透明人間18号
4. 億万笑者
5. π
6. 有心論
7. ピクニック
8. 25ｺ目の染色体
9. DADA
10. いいんですか?
11. 君と羊と青
12. 会心の一撃
13. ふたりごと

The album will be released on 2016.11.30. 
 
Tracklist :
01.迦陵頻伽(karyo binga)
02.鸞(ran)
03.熾天の隻翼(shiten no sekiyoku)
04.刃(yaiba)
05.廿弐匹目は毒蝮(nijunihikime wa dokuhami)
06.御前の瞳に羞いの砂(omae no hitomi ni hajirai no suna)
07.飛頭蛮(rokurokubi)
08.氷牙忍法帖(hyoga ninpocho)
09.人魚の檻(ningyo no ori)
10.素戔嗚(susanoo)
11.絡新婦(jorogumo)
12.愛する者よ、死に候え(aisuru mono yo, shini sorae)
13.風人を憐れむ歌(fujin wo awaremu uta)

sounds good enough to me!!

Edit: Message Deleted

Boobs are awesome. Will buy the album just to display the cover in my collection.

NSFW!
Those covers yo! XD
 
 

CD Tracklist:
１．告白
２．接吻とフレンド
３．音楽家になりたくて
４．グッバイ・マイマリー
５．戦争を知らない大人たち
６．恋人ができたんだ
７．mendo_931
８．ワーカーインザダークネス
９．革命はいつも
10. 沈黙と陳列 幼少は永遠へ
11. 真赤
12. 卒業
13. また来年になっても
 
 
DVD Tracklist:
１．真赤
２．18歳よ
３．新曲
４．白熱灯、焼ける朝
５．月に群雲
６．クリサンセマム
７．ディアウェンディ
８．フロムナウオン
９．最近のこと
１０．悪い癖
１１．ドラマみたいだ
１２．優しさの行方
１３．アフターアワー
 
Covers
Regular edition:

 
Limited edition:

I agree with you on oddloop. Maybe it's a re-recording/remix? Like the song came out a few years ago and it makes no sense to have it on the new album unless it's a new version, same thing for バジルの宴.

Another awesome song.

covers and tracklist : D
 

 

 

 
please let oddloop die
 
Edit:
WAITWAITWAIT THEY ARE FINALLY RE-RELEASING バジルの宴?!? i thought that song would never see the light other than being in their indie release 
#GodIsReal