seratonin

On 3/22/2017 at 9:00 AM, filth_y said:

Listening to reila, one of my favorite if not the favorite song of them, i was honestly dissapointed about the pure lack of emotion, even when it was to be expected. Especially from the vocals. For me this CD underlines what an empty shell they've become over the years on their CDs (never seen them live, so can't judge that part of the band).

I actually disagree, listening to some parts of the chorus gave me goosebumps. Reila was always an 'okay' song for me, but this re-recording really shocked me, and now I actually like the song haha.

Singing:

-Ruki has better control of the higher notes in this recording (I sing myself)

-He changed his singing tone since when reila was initially recorded. His tone now is less nasally and more 'open'

-Extra verse at the end of the song, which I heard is sung at lives

-There's also more variation in notes for the singing, the singing in this VERSION KILLS THE OLD

Instruments:

-The guitar accompaniment/ambience affect is clearer, sounds beautiful

-new recording has obvious "Strings"/orchestra

-that improvisation-sounding jam with acoustic at the of the first chorus *was screaming internally*

Where is this Hi-res version people are talking about?
by  "Hi-Res", do people mean this?

This is bought from itunes and is full of crackles and bzzhhh bzhhh bshhh noise. Another upload has it even worse haha.

Yes, there is a difference between a CD rip and iTunes purchase (but in my experience, not always). Sometimes the difference

is obvious like now, sometimes it's not

There was a FLAC request that was FULFILLED:

But I cannot see that a FLAC version was uploaded. Where is this FLAC version?

However, you may seem to notice, the main qualm people have with the album isn't that of lacking catchiness, but that of monotony.

To elaborate on that, here my very in-depth, very scientific analysis, track by track: 

 THANK YOU, this monotomy is due to the adoption and influence of more western/generic metalcore!

Western metalcore (generally speaking) has this unilateral, static sound, which isn't bad. But

considering how Gazette was before, it would make a unique sounding band turn more generic

I've listened to SO MUCH metalcore, and I don't listen absent-mindedly, I listen with intent, and here is what I noticed:

Western metalcore influence in the Gazette creates the following I have noticed in the DOGMA album :

-New album is more uniform in sound throughout the songs, which is why the new Gazette album tends to sound like one long song. Repetitive western metalcore style is just HARD HEADBANGING FOR 50 MINUTES ALL THE TIME. There has to be finesse and build up to hard metal music; need contrast. Gazette had this element in previous albums

-Gazette's new album is less melodic (compared to previous Gazette works). Less melody, more plug and chugging heavy guitars, drop tuning, followed closely by...

 

-DOGMA has seldom any passionate solo's! I couldn't remember ONE SOLO listening to the whole album (OMINOUS came closest), no more shredding, complicated and catchy riffs gone! (off the top of my head if you need an example, look at the metal but more intricate guitarwork in LEECH).

Gazette were probably thinking: "Hey why don't we remove all the diverse guitar tones and acoustic guitar work we did in the previous albums!"

-DOGMA has repetitive breakdowns. Spamming power chords, like from 0:04 seconds starting in DAWN. Maybe catchy +1, but unique and diverse sound -1.

-DOGMA has both guitars played in unison, so that there's no clear LEAD guitar and rhythmic playing, no double rhythmic playing. Guitar has completely lost its ambience. Take a look at the diverse guitar work shown in 泣ヶ原

Songs like GRUDGE, and OMINOUS are the only songs I could remember that sounded different.

Everything else sounded like RAH RAH RAH LET'S GO HARD AND HAVE LOTS OF APATHETIC  AND MEANINGLESS HEADBANGING FOR AN HOUR TO FILL OUT THE REST OF THE ALBUM

 

 

This part, I don't really understand it. Because, if we compare to their disco (just, leave out the "simplicity" of riffs, linearity or the 2 mid-tempo songs from the album etc etc), DOGMA is a brutal release (aye it's not black metal but you know what I mean xD coming from them it's raw). And for you, it's mainstream and for expanding their audience???

I don't know, it's something I would have said for SHIVER, PLEDGE and all their past songs/ballads in this vein. But from DOGMA??

you're associating how brutal music is to how popular it will be, which is not logical. Meaning if a band is less brutal, they just go mainstream? More brutal, less mainstream?

New Gazette album drifts to mainstream (metalcore) sound

Simply put, Gazette just changed their style. They adopted a more western metal approach.

Western metalcore influence in the Gazette creates the following I have noticed in the DOGMA album :

-New album is more uniform in sound throughout the songs, which is why the new Gazette album tends to sound like one long song. Repetitive western metalcore style is just HARD HEADBANGING FOR 50 MINUTES ALL THE TIME. There has to be finesse and build up to hard metal music; need contrast. Gazette had this element in previous albums

-Gazette's new album is less melodic (compared to previous Gazette works). Less melody, more plug and chugging heavy guitars, drop tuning, followed closely by...
 

-DOGMA has seldom any passionate solo's! I couldn't remember ONE SOLO listening to the whole album (OMINOUS came closest), no more shredding, complicated and catchy riffs gone! (off the top of my head if you need an example, look at the metal but more intricate guitarwork in LEECH).
Gazette were probably thinking: "Hey why don't we remove all the diverse guitar tones and acoustic guitar work we did in the previous albums!"

-DOGMA has repetitive breakdowns. Spamming power chords, like from 0:04 seconds starting in DAWN. Maybe catchy +1, but unique and diverse sound -1.

-DOGMA has both guitars played in unison, so that there's no clear LEAD guitar and rhythmic playing, no double rhythmic playing. Guitar has completely lost its ambience. Take a look at the diverse guitar work shown in 泣ヶ原

In conclusion, Gazette changed their style to fit the taste of someone who enjoys more simple (metal) music.
 more simple = more catchy = broader audience. This was probably one of their goals, to expand their audience.
For the most part, Gazette has really lost their unique, melodic, diverse style from before, to adopt a more mainstream metal sound.

*It also clearly sounds like Gazette spent 1/4 of the time and effort to write this album, and the audio mixing and production team spent 3x more effort than previous other albums *

Is the Gazette growing old, tired, and running out of ideas? Or they writing more simple music on purpose?

Finally:
RATING: 2/5       

Songs like GRUDGE, and OMINOUS are the only songs I could remember that sounded different.
Everything else sounded like RAH RAH RAH LET'S GO HARD AND HAVE LOTS OF APATHETIC  AND MEANINGLESS HEADBANGING FOR AN HOUR TO FILL OUT THE REST OF THE ALBUM
 

If she enjoys spending time with you and did not act uncomfortable by your "date" type of actions/touching,

 

That said, if you are trying to get a clue by touching her and she is very comfortable with it, I think that should be a sign.

Wow so much feedback about the touchy stuff lol. Lemme give more description, the touching wasn't THAT obvious like as if we were bf/gf lol (i think),

it was more like

telling her something funny and patting her on the back a bit while laughing

or when like a car was driving too close, so i put my arm around her shoulder to move her out of the way, etc...!

This is very modest touching right?!

And the next time I'll see her is in a couple of months, there won't be any update for a while

I unexpectedly had so much fun at the time at the "under-cover" date I was so sad when it was getting too late and the night was coming to an end

I'm a male who is very sensitive to people's emotions (double edged sword), especially people I know,
but this doesn't necessarily mean I can draw the right conclusions -cries-

At first I did not like this girl at all!! She came off as a know-it-all or just plain arrogant when I first met her, and it also appeared that she wasn't that bright, and that's a huge turn off for me!

For about half a year we just talked lightly when we saw each other, like acquaintances.
Say hi, smile, chat for a minute, then part. Neither of us had an interest in the other.
But then I found out she and I shared a hobby that we both REALLY enjoyed doing, and that's how I started
to spend more time with her and got to know her better.

As I start to get to know more about her I am becoming more and more
attracted, NOOOOO!  It turns out her attitude I felt at the beginning
was more of her being naive, rather than arrogance, how strange? I actually
find some degree of having a naive quality in a girl very cute and attractive too.
The girl clearly enjoys spending time around me, and I really have fun with her as well, the bond
feels amazing.
By coincidence I was able to spend more and more private time and it made my feelings grow like crazzyyy,

we laugh at the same things, share a lot more in common than i initially thought.

But I'm somewhat certain she still thinks of me the same way as how
the relationship was before. It feels like my feelings for her have increased by tenfold...while hers have stayed
the same.

If a girl doesn't like you, or doesn't show any apparent interest, is it even a good idea for me to tell her how I feel?
Or do I not say anything, and express through action?

The last time we hung out I tried to express my attraction by touching her; her back, her arms, shoulders even O_O
It honestly felt like a date; I was holding doors and my car door and always spoke up for her if she needed something lol.
She CLEARLY isn't getting it! she's so naive...! It's super cute but she doesn't understand the
attraction I'm trying to express

WTF do I do?????
Opinions from both genders please!!!


 

Quality Time 8

Physical Touch 7

Acts of Service 6

Receiving Gifts 6

Words of Affirmation 3

I filled this out for a bf/gf relationship. I looooooove touching and spending time together, but too much of it at once loses the amazing feeling

of comfort. Actions also mean the world to me. I'm surprised "words" aren't 0, I don't need words at all, just as long as the person isn't telling me to each shit,

I'm fine lol

I've never heard of pentagon, but according to the videos, they didn't sounds at all like Chanty xD

So, I can't vote.

yeah...you might be right actually, the bands might be too different in sound to compare

WHERE IS THE PENTAGON ALBUM PEOPLE ARE TALKING ABOUT

edit:nvm...it was CALL ME ( i thoguht that was a mini album)

i vote pentagon....they are playing with DIFFERENT STYLES in songs, and even on 少年ワルツ and it sounds good an almost all of it!
Trying alternative, metalcore-ish, ballad, pop-ish, even ballad sounds good on all. Well rounded band, very talented imo.
The pentagon video you posted is not representative of pentagon's total sound, because the man eating teddy bear song would be only showing pentagon's harder side

Chanty isn't bad at all, but sound like indie, i don't like indie that much, but it's good if ur looking for indie sound

I can see why people think this single was horrible and sounds boring.
But I have  a really different opinion:

盈虧:I actually read some of these reviews before listening to the song, and I was pretty surprised. This is the first "soft" song by mejibray I've liked instantly. This song was amazing to me and so catchy, I LOVE the gross, grim feeling these kinds of songs give me, like the feeling of some kind of insanity, similar to 嫉妬　and 剥落, but expressed in a softer style. Like a grim ballad. One of my favorite songs by Meji probably.

I loved the song so much, so I was excited to watch the PV, but the PV was horrible. I felt like it had way too much effort into sex appeal, rather than convey emotion from the song. Really anticlimactic.

I actually hate merjibray's attempt at lighter sounding ballad's like Avalon and Emily, and one more on 420 theatrical roses album.

人間 is an okay track, again there are some good parts of the song but it's kinda ruined by trying too hard on the sex appeal.
I felt like 蜈蚣 had potential to be a great intense track...but I don't feel any intensity coming from it, I guess I don't feel anything when I listen to the song.


I felt like the old mejibray had enough sex appeal, as in a good amount. I hope they don't go into a lycaon era where the music just deteriorates and the sex appeal skyrockets.

In summary, 盈虧 was most similar to the style of the old mejibray sound, but expressed with a slightly different style (slower tempo and not as crazy).
Overall the single had a push into trying to sound sexy and have sex appeal, as indicated by the PV.

 

probably one of their best releases in my opinion. 3 songs 5/5 for me,
except I never took interest in WONDER f∞l PEOPLE.

All three songs, especially 汚染 are VERY creative!
It mixes heavy music inside and it's amazing, I was SO IMPRESSED

Holy hell, I want your hair colour.

 

Anyway, figured I might as well post a pic of me. This is one of the few selfies I'm semi-comfortable with.

really like the hair

lol all those bad things to say but still give 9.5/10?!?!?!

I'm sorry I didn't mean to come off like that! I should just stop talking

but...

let me offer something constructive i guess. here's what I would have done (since i also have hard time reading kanji)、I would have went to google.co.jp,

then typed in the katakana only, something like チーキィ ヴィジュアル　or チーキィ　V系 (and I just did it)
and what came up as first link was
http://www.vkdb.jp/%A5%C1%A1%BC%A5%AD%A5%A3.html

and if that did not work I would try my best to figure out kanji by inputting chinese characters (because I know chinese better) or handwrite input kanji and search like that

oh I only said that because original poster said

 

info on flyer doesn't help.

But all the info you need is on the flyer! lol

the band's name is on the top right corner of the picture

Lol why so hung up on the fact that she's Chinese? That just shows you obviously are not Chinese, and may have some kind of prejudice or preconception towards Chinese.
 

wow this band brought a different side to what kiryu couldn't, they might have similar theme, but sound so different

Do an ABX test between AAC and 320 or any lossless format. The results for many tests like this typically results in failure to recognize a difference. The engineers knows this and all they had to do was compress audio files enough such that it wasn't a burden for memory space on portable players, which I believe was Apple's target audience with the iPod products. The AAC codec is supposed to be one of the more elegant and transparent sounding codecs around, down to 128 even. I don't buy iTunes audio files myself but quality is not the reason for not considering them for purchase.

In personal experience, I can't tell difference between a real 320 and lossless, but I can most of the time differentiate between 320 and AAC, and AAC and lossless.

from personal experience, about 20% of itunes purchase just sound like a 64kbps recording, and the other 20% sounds like a 320. The rest 60%, the usual AAC,

sounds slightly worse than a good 320, but imo this difference is not negligible, I'd rather get a good 320. Mind you there are plenty of 320's out there that sound like 64kbps, but for this sake of conversation, i'm only talking about legit 320's

I just wonder sometimes how can the japanese market(not only the music one) be so outdated. Every band out there in the west does album streams, or at least lets you listen to 2 or 3 tracks before the release. With japanese bands you may end up getting only 1:30 minutes of a PV and you will only be able to a full track if you buy it or illegally download it. In some bands it's even worse... Dir en grey only lets you listen to the chorus of the single. And there's also the bands that block their youtube content to countries that aren't japan.

 

The japanese seem to try really hard to make no one listen to their music. I know it's the country where they still use Fax, but pls japan 2014 already

idk if you've been to japan, but if you didn't, this may be why you may not understand.

Japanese are INSANELY and very sensitive to anything copyright related, and I don't know why. Anything from recording people to

taking pictures at a store (from personal experience) is forbidden, and with music, it's even much more of a copyright issue,

like Japan using youtube and restricting countries from viewing certain videos. It's not "backwards" or "outdated"...it's the

Japanese culture, something that has to be accepted when listening to music from Japan. I mean I do download so much japanese music,

but I also buy music from japan (as CD's ONLY - never low bitrates or itunes) and it makes me BROKE lol

my god that's crazy...schizophrenia....wtf? maybe it's what fuels his insane vocals..

I love how this thread has outlived this album's fleeting relevance, lol.

guess the album was made to be reviewed, rather than to be listened

Throwing my initial skepticism aside, I decided to give YOHIO's album a spin. Much to my surprise, what I found was something beyond my wildest dreams.

 

The record begins with a tasteful intro track that immediately sets the epic and grandiose mood of the album. As soon as the dubstep break kicks in, we can feel his undying urge to "break the border" which can be attributed as the overarching concept of the whole release. Next, we are treated to a couple of powerful and immensely catchy visual rock tracks. The overall spirit of innovation is present throughout, as the artist breaks those borders that limit genre classifications, melding his art into something transcendental - it's a musical "REVOLUTION" (to quote the title of one of the more outstanding and totally not tired songs of the record).

 

YOHIO shows us his versatility even more in the next segment (this album can easily be divided into separate thematic parts that make up a whole concept, but more about that later) that contains a more poppy type of music. Be it the infectuous power-pop of Heartbreak Hotel or the simply matchless never-before-heard intense beauty of Sakura, falling (penned together with Gackt, another maestro whose innovative song structures amaze us year after year now) YOHIO decides to conquer our hearts, taking no prisoners. Little do we expect the shocking continuation...

 

The album takes a sudden darker turn with the arrival of the next track. INNOCENCE is like the unrelentingly aggressive yet captivating masterpiece MEJIBRAY or the DIR EN GREY guys have tried and tried but failed to conceive over the past years. When YOHIO screams, he screams for all of us, and we immediately make that connection subconsciously - a transcendental and almost religious experience/bond between artist and listener. This feeling is then heightened and pushed to the extreme on the next set of more emotional songs, of which the highlight is TIMESCAPE, a totally necessary and interesting piano instrumental.

 

YOHIO continues with another instrumental number, this time showcasing his impeccable guitar skills. Seriously, for a moment I thought I was listening to Steve Vai but then I realized - YOHIO is the Steve Vai (Su...Suteibu Waii?) the Japanese market never had. Thus, in this sense BREAK the BORDER becomes much more than a mere album (however fascinating it might be): it is a cultural mission statement, a proclamation of creativity and the generous offer to hand down that exceptional creative streak to the thousands... no, millions who will surely be listening! Finally, the album closes with the ever-strong title track, concluding this fantastic musical journey.

 

In conclusion, we can say that YOHIO's debut album is not only a flawless set of songs but a concept album chronicling the inner drive and torments of the artistic mind. The first segment (tracks 1-3) does what, indeed, is in the title of the album: it breaks down the borders with its unusually innovative approach. The second part (4-9) symbolizes the conflictual emotions and desires he carries, a genius bogged down by the mere earthly elements of this world, the artistic spirit forever tied to ever-fallible physicality that entraps it. After we have broken all borders what remains? This fascinatingly diverse musical "anarchy" is calmed and concluded by the ending segment (10-12) that delivers the message of purity and staying true to oneself. The artist is reborn like a phoenix from the ashes, and can begin his musical adventures anew, sometime, somewhere...

 

A truly beautiful album if I ever heard one. This will no doubt be mentioned among the classics, when we take a look back a few decades later.

 

Fooled ya? ;D Happy April 1st!

I THOUGHT THIS REVIEW WAS COMPLETELY SERIOUS LOL

was going "what...? what?? how....?" the whole time reading it

that is, until I read the last line; props for making a clever post

no one made a better april fool's joke, so this thread deserves its own yohio at least.

 

@Velovelo

 

you're the first person who assumes it's his dad, forcing him into a drag crapcore career.

which basically could rechristen him as a visual kei courtney stodden of sorts, except it doesn't look like anyone really forced this thing.

it's the same terrible brasilian-kei, except yahoi has more pocket money, and his career jump-started at universal, bc dad.

 

also,

 

 

@ sebbivism: WHERE IS YOUR REVIEW. [2]

omg brasilian kei lol, i think i've never seen something so hilarious and strange as brasilian kei that i previewed before, but it was funny in a disgusting way, like watching a naked old lady run down the street.

I think you hit the nail on the head there in describing this album...couldn't have said it better