emmny

IMAGINE KOICHI HAVING TO GET THAT FUCKING TATTOO LASERED OFF NOW LMAO

I think a lot of that feeling of people coming and going stems from the western boom years and like other people said, from the fact that it has somehow been hogtied into the same brain rot caravan with Kpop and therefore people tend to become aware of both simultaneously, allowing for lateral movement between the two. Then there's that other breed of us getting into our 30's finally coming to grips with mortality and that this is a very fruitless endeavor, so now there's also these existential crisis' going on with the older guard. This basically goes a long way to explain why everyone in this scene is so fucking stupid, you were either into a dumb fad when you got in or you were dumb enough to stay for too long. 
 
But like, about the psychology of people who come and go, being gya one day and rastafari the next — I never got that. I have, my entire life more or less, liked the same things and I never really dropped out of anything. There's some faux pas you'll find from the times when I was like exploring stuff like western metal when I was 16, but everyone goes through that one way or another when you build your frame of reference and refine your taste and ideas of what music should be about. The people who change every word in their bio on an yearly basis with only the words "I stan" remaining in place can't be counted on for anything. How do they even finish meals is beyond me let alone stick with something when everything they do is so dependent on if the weather is fair. They're the same people who'll abandon their folks into a home, but take a taxi from another city once the inheritance is on offer; just picking the carcass of cultural capital that other people worked for, that other people laboured to put out there. I'm in this shit for the long haul and this relationship will end only when one of us dies, either me or the scene. No matter how reprehensible I think the scene operates or what I think of the fucking people in it, it's still important to me. 

This has already been kinda touched upon earlier ITT, but one thing I've noticed within the VK fandom more than within basically ANY of the other music spheres I've dipped my toes into is that a ton of people who get into VK seem to act as if the only bands that exist are the ones that are currently active, and any group that's disbanded/on hiatus/whatever just vanishes into oblivion as soon as the new looks and singles stop popping up. There's this tendency for people to basically treat the scene the same way tons of anime fans treat anime - "if it's not part of the current season then i pretend not to see it". Considering the ridiculous turnover rate that most VK bands themselves tend to have, this can easily lead to situations where people suddenly find themselves left without their faves even within the span of just months. 

I'll suggest one of the many contributing factors for a high turnover rate is because VK is quite a 'gimmick' genre/subculture and generally gimmicks will only keep people entertained for so long, genre's like the new phase of emo music with groups like MCR and glam/hair metal had their time in the sun and spawned huge subcultures but died out as people grew up and got tired of it and I'd consider both of those as gimmick genre's where if you stripped back the clothing and tone of the groups, it wouldn't have had as much excitement around it. I think as people grow older things like the clothing and look of a band don't matter as much but they were certainly one of the elements that drew me in when I was younger and probably what draws in people nowadays.
 
As well as people tiring of the gimmick of VK, I imagine people move over to K-pop because it's easier to find communities and like-minded people both online and in reality, I live in a very small city and work in a slightly larger town, I've maybe met three people that liked Dir En Grey but I've meant countless people that like BTS, Shinee, NCT etc.

Depends on why you were drawn to certain bands in the first place. I was into indie rock, alt rock, and death/black metal before I was a vk fan, so that coloured my taste in bands (nagoya kei + DEG), once [most] of those bands became inactive, I went back to the indie and alt rock I liked before. I'm sure if someone got into the scene with DIV or some cute oshare shit, that Kpop wouldn't be too far off from that sound. Kinda depends on ideology too--if you're an oshare fan BUT you're a weeb--you'll stay into that; whereas if you were into vk for the cute boys, kpop is the next logical step lol.

Depends on why you were drawn to certain bands in the first place. I was into indie rock, alt rock, and death/black metal before I was a vk fan, so that coloured my taste in bands (nagoya kei + DEG), once [most] of those bands became inactive, I went back to the indie and alt rock I liked before. I'm sure if someone got into the scene with DIV or some cute oshare shit, that Kpop wouldn't be too far off from that sound. Kinda depends on ideology too--if you're an oshare fan BUT you're a weeb--you'll stay into that; whereas if you were into vk for the cute boys, kpop is the next logical step lol.

Depends on why you were drawn to certain bands in the first place. I was into indie rock, alt rock, and death/black metal before I was a vk fan, so that coloured my taste in bands (nagoya kei + DEG), once [most] of those bands became inactive, I went back to the indie and alt rock I liked before. I'm sure if someone got into the scene with DIV or some cute oshare shit, that Kpop wouldn't be too far off from that sound. Kinda depends on ideology too--if you're an oshare fan BUT you're a weeb--you'll stay into that; whereas if you were into vk for the cute boys, kpop is the next logical step lol.

Depends on why you were drawn to certain bands in the first place. I was into indie rock, alt rock, and death/black metal before I was a vk fan, so that coloured my taste in bands (nagoya kei + DEG), once [most] of those bands became inactive, I went back to the indie and alt rock I liked before. I'm sure if someone got into the scene with DIV or some cute oshare shit, that Kpop wouldn't be too far off from that sound. Kinda depends on ideology too--if you're an oshare fan BUT you're a weeb--you'll stay into that; whereas if you were into vk for the cute boys, kpop is the next logical step lol.

Depends on why you were drawn to certain bands in the first place. I was into indie rock, alt rock, and death/black metal before I was a vk fan, so that coloured my taste in bands (nagoya kei + DEG), once [most] of those bands became inactive, I went back to the indie and alt rock I liked before. I'm sure if someone got into the scene with DIV or some cute oshare shit, that Kpop wouldn't be too far off from that sound. Kinda depends on ideology too--if you're an oshare fan BUT you're a weeb--you'll stay into that; whereas if you were into vk for the cute boys, kpop is the next logical step lol.

Depends on why you were drawn to certain bands in the first place. I was into indie rock, alt rock, and death/black metal before I was a vk fan, so that coloured my taste in bands (nagoya kei + DEG), once [most] of those bands became inactive, I went back to the indie and alt rock I liked before. I'm sure if someone got into the scene with DIV or some cute oshare shit, that Kpop wouldn't be too far off from that sound. Kinda depends on ideology too--if you're an oshare fan BUT you're a weeb--you'll stay into that; whereas if you were into vk for the cute boys, kpop is the next logical step lol.

Depends on why you were drawn to certain bands in the first place. I was into indie rock, alt rock, and death/black metal before I was a vk fan, so that coloured my taste in bands (nagoya kei + DEG), once [most] of those bands became inactive, I went back to the indie and alt rock I liked before. I'm sure if someone got into the scene with DIV or some cute oshare shit, that Kpop wouldn't be too far off from that sound. Kinda depends on ideology too--if you're an oshare fan BUT you're a weeb--you'll stay into that; whereas if you were into vk for the cute boys, kpop is the next logical step lol.

Depends on why you were drawn to certain bands in the first place. I was into indie rock, alt rock, and death/black metal before I was a vk fan, so that coloured my taste in bands (nagoya kei + DEG), once [most] of those bands became inactive, I went back to the indie and alt rock I liked before. I'm sure if someone got into the scene with DIV or some cute oshare shit, that Kpop wouldn't be too far off from that sound. Kinda depends on ideology too--if you're an oshare fan BUT you're a weeb--you'll stay into that; whereas if you were into vk for the cute boys, kpop is the next logical step lol.

Depends on why you were drawn to certain bands in the first place. I was into indie rock, alt rock, and death/black metal before I was a vk fan, so that coloured my taste in bands (nagoya kei + DEG), once [most] of those bands became inactive, I went back to the indie and alt rock I liked before. I'm sure if someone got into the scene with DIV or some cute oshare shit, that Kpop wouldn't be too far off from that sound. Kinda depends on ideology too--if you're an oshare fan BUT you're a weeb--you'll stay into that; whereas if you were into vk for the cute boys, kpop is the next logical step lol.

This question has been bouncing around in my head lately. As a small and very dedicated fanbase in an inherently alternative counter-culture, it’s natural that people aren’t particularly drawn into VK as much as say Kpop or Alternative [Western] Rock. That being said, I’m curious about one thing that all fandoms experience: turnover rates. A while back, I stumbled on a Last.fm profile that said we were super compatible, but all their top artists in the last year were Kpop and [Western] Metal so I was really confused. That is until I went to all-time and noticed that our charts and top artists were so identical we might’ve been the same person. So then I wondered; when will that happen? That is, my turnover. When will I stop loving VK and go for the next best thing (whatever that may be to me)? 
 
So that leads me to wonder what you guys think the fan turnover rate is. If you want my two cents, it seems pretty high to me judging by the amount of Last.fm profiles that’ve moved on from VK to Goth, Metal, or Kpop. Something like 60%-70%. The time span, to me, is trickier to tell. I guess it depends on the person, though. I’ve seen some people (mostly on Instagram) go from being VK fans to Kpop Stans in real time, the process took about 6 months-ish? I’ve also seen some people who leave after 5-7 full years of dedication to different western alt genres.
 
Also, do you think there are any warning signs that your taste is changing/ways of knowing that you’re just not as interested into it as much as you used to be? They might be individual to each person, though. One of my biggest signs is when I don’t want to watch live performances or interviews anymore. I used to into funk/disco/hip-hop before VK and right before I fell out I stopped watching lives of my favourite groups because I had no interest in seeing something I’ve heard before but irl. Then I stumbled upon VK and the rest is history. I get the feeling like this is my endgame but I can’t say for certain that I’ll ride or die for life in regards to being a VK fan. I do know for certain that I’m good for now [next year or so]… One last question for those reading, if they wanna answer it: how about you, though?

The people who were calling that the next fad to replace the Metalcore trend in VK would be KPOP and soundcloud music were right. Guess that makes 8P-SB true pioneers, lol.
 
I know I am ranting and whining a lot about it that it's insufferable, but still… I am very bothered by the direction VK has taken in the last ten years. I know rock music has lost it's mainstream  popularity and kids these days aren't rebelling by listening to edgy guitar based music, but by jamming to Billie Eilish and Lil Peep and whoever they are. But I feel VK's identitiy is so strongly tied to rock, even the stuff that was quite electronic (like Schwarz Stein) reflected it through its songwriting and -structure. That kinda changed with the advent of first western Metalcore copycats (which imo deprived VK of its unique blend of sound of post-punk and Heavy Metal) and then the introduction of annoying dance and electronic beats and shitty "synths".
 
Now we reached the point where stuff like is so far removed from what VK was.  Can't say if it's good or bad, it's evolving after all and that can't be stopped… but I am worried that VK, which is already meaningless and super niche in japan, will just completely dissolve and assimilate into this big pot of "hip" pop and  microgenre stuff. Not sure if I make sense, it's a bit tricky to express what irks me.

アルルカン (Arlequin) new album "The laughing man" will be released at 2020/08
 
"ビロード"  has been released digitally today (2020/05/16)
 
 

Hi! I'm leaving the forum as well.
 
Thought about leaving quietly -- and I did --, but the message @Peace Heavy mk II posted made me think otherwise. Sure there's quite a few people here that will celebrate not having to deal with me anymore and that's fine! But I'd rather focus on the fact that I've been here for 13 years and that leaving a goodbye note feels appropriate.
 
I joined the forums when I was 16, only knowing much about VK, and I leave at 29, not knowing much about the current state of VK but knowing just enough about life and my personal boundaries to make me comfortable enough to realize I don't feel at home here anymore. And I used to feel like that for years and it sucks that this feeling has gone, but I suppose that was bound to change eventually -- and that's cool! Things change and end all the time.
 
Anyway, I'm grateful for the few friends I made here throughout the years (y'all know who you are!) and for the countless downloads I leeched along the way. It was a good and entertaining ride for the most part. If any of you would like to stay in touch, I'm over at Twitter at @reomulus. See ya.

Peace heavy mk II has disbanded at 2020/05/29 due to losing confidence to M-H after being prohibited to log-on in M-H for 6 days by n' mod since the same date, and his alter-ego band "le_newtype" has been eliminated by that mod at the same date

can't wait to hear same stale BOPS ever again! I hope they're all Donetsk live recordings!
 

He's gonna start selling blank cd-rs so people can burn their Rentrer en Soi downloads onto them?

me in quarantine

My secret hope is that because of the whole virus situation and all the live postponements it's caused, they'll forget that this is a time-limited revival and will just continue band activities into next year and beyond... ;<

YAASSSS

I never knew I needed this in my life, but here we are.