platy

Based on my own recent experience, after two weeks the withdrawal symptoms should ease. Heck, I'm even able to listen to top-40 spotify stuff for an hour without cringing.
At the end of those 2 weeks when I put on whatever vk band was suggested on my youtube as I was about to draw my last breath, it was like receiving a shot of adrenaline straight into the veins. It was worth it.

Setlist at 2017/01/08 at Daikanyama UNIT
 
『ナスカ』
『哲学』
『xi-sai-』
『picasso』
『Life』
『森林に生息する』
『◯◯と僕』
『ハロウ』
『Unbalance』
『limiter』
『Scissors』
『cheese』
『birthday』
『doc』
『einstein』
『151A』
『music』
『Tomorrow land』
『door door』
EN
『if』
『high light』
『green』
『tear drop』
『loop』

coincidence??? think not...plagarism is a CRIME.

I bet the vocalist is inspired by DADAROMA's vocalist's strand of hair
 
(I'm sorry, I can't recall all those bandomen names)

Xaa-Xaa will release an albm called 「不幸な迷路」(fukô na meiro) on 2017.03.15.
 
TYPE A : 3500 yens + taxes
CD :
1.入口(iriguchi)
2.不幸の始まり(fukô no hajimari)
3.ぐちゃぐちゃ(guchagucha)
4.排水口(hasui guchi)
5.気付いて(kizui te)
6.人殺し(hitogoroshi)
7.ラストダンス(last dance)
8.落とし穴(Otoshiana )
9.交尾をしてよ(kôbi o shite yo )
10.ユメオチ(yumeochi) ? 
11.最後の歌(saigo no uta)
12.出口(deguchi)
DVD :
1.ぐちゃぐちゃ( MUSIC VIDEO ) (guchagucha)
2.オフショット集 (off-shot collection)
 
TYPE B : 3100 yens + taxes
CD :
1.入口(iriguchi)
2.不幸の始まり(fukô no hajimari)
3.ぐちゃぐちゃ(guchagucha)
4.排水口(hasui guchi)
5.気付いてk(kizui te)
6.人殺し(hitogoroshi)
7.ラストダンス(last dance)
8.恋人ごっこ(koibito gokko)
9.寄り道(yorimichi)
10.落とし穴(otochiana)
11.交尾をしてよ(kôbi o shite yo)
12.ユメオチ(yumeochi) 
13.最後の歌(saigo no uta)
14.出口(deguchi)
 
 
 

 
 
To promote the release of the album, an one man tour called 「ソォルドアウト2」 will begin on 2017.04.07 at 名古屋ハートランド  and will finish on 2017.04.30 at 大阪MUSE
 
 

So it's end of the year best-of list time, and I wanted to get involved... but I realized with more and more streaming of music rather than mp3s, and more and more me being lazy and not really listening to as much new stuff as I should: my best of 2016 list would be incomplete and hard to make because what I've been listening to isn't as easily organized by year in Spotify.
 
But I'm a narcissist who still wanted to get in on the fun and write *something* so I decided to highlight some of my favorite, or at least notable for one reason or another, looks from the VK world in 2016. Visual is in the name after all! I know hipsters, such as myself, say that the looks don't matter and it's all about the music, man... but I'll freely admit even though I'm not looking at a picture of the band for 98% of my listening to them, the aesthetics matter and part of the reason I like VK is that I enjoy looking at pretty boys in elaborate costumes rather than bearded dudes in black tshirts.
 
With that in mind here is my partially tongue-in-cheek but also I seriously thought about it 10 Notable VK Looks of 2016:
 
 

Garak’s Vocalist ジュリ

I call this the James Dean x Jesus.
 

Insanity Injection Vocalist Kyouka

Because of that YouTubers react video, this look may be the VK shot heard ‘round the world. “Looks like Kerrigan” is pretty accurate shorthand for Kyouka’s possessed crab/snake cannibal spirit costume that is almost elaborate enough to explain what the hell he’s been doing for the last ten years.
 

ペンタゴン Bassist Minpha

The kawaii-ness is undisputed around these parts… I’m embracing dark Minpha and his crown of demonic scallop shells.
 

乙女国家 Band

I know it’s a VK trope, but I seriously like it when band members all pick a different color and just commit. I’m never going to learn their names, so it helps to just be able to reference “the yellow one who borrowed some gloves from Ensoku’s This is a Pen PV”. Also for anyone else who’s been there: was this photo taken at the ramen ‘museum’ (read: food court) in Yokohama?? It kinda reminds me of that spot.
 

Doak Band

As a rapidly balding dude, I appreciate when even fake-baldness gets some shine in VK. Shout-out to the dude from Codoma A!
 

Avelcain Vocalist Karma

I bow at the altar of Avelcain… and I’m on the record as loving black-suit-wearing VK looks. Add some fucking palpable *zetsubou* and a sword for no real reason!?? I’m sold.
 

Elysion Band

They get my vote for best golden age Matina cosplay of the year. I saw them in June and there was just tons of vinyl and straps and lace and bare thigh and a frilly white dress and… there’s no joke here they just had an awesome/classic look. I don’t even remember what they sounded like, but I remember thinking their outfits and makeup had to take hours to get right before the show.
 

Lack-co. Vocalist Tenten

What you thought I wasn’t going to include this transcendent “it’s coming in nice” puberty mustache dyed red?? You don’t know me very well. He’s got some sort of black sequin freckles happening too for some Annie vibes.
 

Nihilizm Band

Just a look that I think really kills. Those red lace blindfolds are just cool IDK. The member with the bob is a cutie.
 
ギャロ Vocalist Jojo

I always love Jojo’s extremely sparkly lipstick…. And in this video (and others this year) he wins the award for most dangerously low-rise pants in VK. Got them side abs! I also don’t really understand his fork hat, but fuck it if you can’t get weird in VK where can you?
 
Close but no cigar: Hollowgram's grown up/understated black looks, vocalist from More's curls and one satyr horn, Plastic Tree vocalist pushing the bounds of how cool he can make cutting his own hair look
Purposefully Omitted: The Black Swan blackface, any boring not-quite Kamijo look
 
Let me know why I'm wrong and what should have been on this list!
 

that's your childhood trauma showing up beholders share tbh.
the entire madara era music, looks and videos are iconiq and are still ripped off by lesser coming up bands, remaining superior 10+ years after.

Earlyer Vk was this new, fresh thing that no one knew or had done before... as the years go by people get used to these kind of things...
 
Guys with make up are becomning a common thing so the Shock factor that guys with makeup used to bring is kind of dissapearing
 
The flashy clothes still grab attention but with so much stuff online its just one of those things people find out about once and then disregard it and move on.
 
We get so much crap thrown at our face via phones, social media, ads, tv etc. its harder to focus on one thing and easyer to just shift your attention 
 
Here a quick lesson for you all:
 
"Attention Economy" is an pproach to information management. It states that people's "attention" is like currency, theres only so much of it to go around once we use it all up we can't give two fucks about anything else.
 
In simpler terms our attention will always be shifting especially to people that dont know about vk. Once they find out what it is if it doesnt grab their attention as much they will just move on.
 
I feel like this could explain why vk is declining in japan and around the world. Maybe its not the only reason but i feel its part of it, atleast thats how i see it 

This is my view from the decade of being involved in the J-rock /vk scene.
 
I think the current slowdown of VK over the last few years has a number of factors behind it.
    
The first is the over saturation of bands in the scene. Not only did there seem to be more bands than ever in the VK scene but they more or less all sounded the same. It kinda makes sense that following the rise in the number of VK bands, there would be a huge number of disbandment's with the competition being so stiff, and very few bands actually innovating or at the very least making decent music. A vast increase of bands with the same cookie cutter sound and low quality output is a brickwall for any genre. This also has the effect of making labels and even fans, tired of VK bands, thus further ensuring a downward trend. 
 
Another reason is that VK is usually horribly promoted either by the labels or the bands themselves. They make such dumb decisions that end up costing them a ton of money, either by squandering it on ventures with very little to no returns, or over looking untapped but very potentially rich opportunities. This has always been a problem with the scene, but it becomes magnified on an even greater scale when you have a whole bunch of vk bands rise up and almost simultaneously implode back to back, month after month, year after year.
 
A big part of what I believe plays a major role for those outside of Japan is the accessibility to VK, and music in general. To an extent this has always been a problem with VK, but with a ton of file sharing sites, music blogs, and forums getting axed in the last couple of years, it is harder to find access to VK or Japanese music in general. There used to be a time where you could literally google some obscure Japanese band and get your hands on their releases without much effort. Today that’s rarely the case. Not only is the quantity of releases down, but it’s a lot harder to actually access them.  And while there has been good strides for Japanese music to be obtained legally for foreigners, it still leaves a lot to be desired.
 
As others have pointed out, the erosion of the VK community is another contributing factor for the decline of VK. I’m specifically talking about the online community outside of japan. I believe the online VK community is what kept the scene invigorated with interest and a steady supply of new bands. As to why the community has been drastically reduced I’ll point to the first reason I made and the one written above. This along with the fact that many listeners probably either outgrew the scene, and those that remained retreated to refugees like MH. So you’ve gone from a widespread but scattered ardent community, to a centralized but much smaller passionate community.  
 
VK was always a niche market, and I don’t think that will change anytime soon. I do think it has reached it’s critical mass and what we’re seeing now is the implosion of the scene. It’s not it’s death, but a remission after being over saturated, and with no new bands pushing forward, it’s established bands retiring and it’s community mostly gone and unable to keep it relevant and interesting as it once was. I don’t believe  EDM, or K-pop or whatever killed VK, or even affected it. I believe this was the inevitable direction VK was always heading in, and those genres just happened to coincide with it’s downfall. 
 
I do think there are less people getting into rock and metal but that has to do with an age difference. I believe the majority of us here grew up and were exposed to some sort of rock, metal or genre that used actual instruments. While most of the newer generation today is primarily exposed to electronica or mainstream pop and thus they end up heading down that route and have less of a chance of discovering rock, or something like VK. This wouldn’t be so bad if the electronica or pop they listened to weren’t soulless vapid unoriginal turds. It’s not impossible, but a lot harder for younger generations to get exposed to rock music in general.
 
I don’t think VK is dead or that it ever will be. Yes genres and styles fade into obscurity, some much more than others, but I think VK will definitely always stick around. Part of the reason is because bands like Luna Sea , and X  Japan, among a few others,  have made enough of a significant impact on the Japanese music scene to remain relevant and inspire younger generations, either directly, or indirectly.  The other part is that VK is super diverse in terms of  aesthetic appearance and in terms of genres, so it allows a ton of creative freedom, and makes it more likely and appealing for musicians to take part in it.
 
Another benefit from that genre diversity is that it keeps the door open for VK to enter different realms. While a strictly metal band would only have certain paths or opportunities in which to grow, just like pop would only have certain paths, VK has the advantage of covering a wide base of opportunities. Of course you still need a band that can actually makes good music and can play.  
 
On a side note I do think EDM and electronica get’s a bad rep. Like everything else there’s a lot of good and bad  in every genre and electronica is no exception. There’ s a ton of mainstream crap, but a lot of amazing stuff that has come in recent years too. And although it may be a different skillset , it still takes lots of skill and talent. You’ve got to synthesize lead synths, and sound design elements,  select or create your drum tones, know about music theory since everything is still based on chords, notes, and rhythms, be good with programming and on top of that do your own mixing and mastering. Kinda dislike this idea that electronica is just pushing one button, or that it requires no music theory or talent at all.   
 
Then again there's always those exceptions.
 
 

The info is on their website here: http://xaa-xaa.com/news/?id=534
the info you posted is for B type, A type will have 2 less songs but a DVD 
 
DVD contents:
1.ぐちゃぐちゃ( MUSIC VIDEO )
2.オフショット集
 
someone posted about this in the news section too
 
 
Thoughts on the new look? lol:

Holy shit I want to rip off my ears

I hardly know you. It's been a few days. But every time my phone lights up... I hope it's you. 

I already have added 140 new releases for 2017
https://vkeishuuryu.wordpress.com/
So how the fack can visual kei be death? if it was death there would be never 140 releases at January 8th already. and we just freaking did start this year....
And I 'still NEED to add lot's of NEW releases of 2017.
 
of course there are bands in japan who only got a handful fans. But there are still many who have enough fans. Also some bands still give oneman gigs. even if only 200people come, whatever, it's not death its not ever.
 
I really don't get why people keep up saying, it's death it's death...
Well nobody cares about some artiest anymore like KAMIJO, those who cared about the guy are grown up's now. And younger people why the fuck should you as 18 years old girl support a guy over 40?... 
 
Ya know, old bands should just disband and make space for the new bands with the young guys. You cannot be a visual kei artist forever. once it's over.

And  this year... new cool bands have or will form:
https://vkeikonkon.wordpress.com/category/新しい/
kinda 26 bands already (if I count 2 who formed at the last day of 2016)  and also at the end of 2016 some great new bands have formed.

And that's only the beginning of 2017
 
 
And because of this stupid stupid saying of visual kei is death I actually created those 2 websites.  Let's see if we really can say at the end of 2017 that VKEI is DEATH.
I don't think so.
 
As already said for  myself,  I don't really check up vkei anymore. I follow a few bands, but they aren't really visual kei, well a few. but a bunch are just more dark and alternative.
 
 
So yeah, let's talk again at the end of 2017
 
VKEI won't be death and never will be death!

I definitely agree. It was just a thought that somehow it would generate interest.  vk's roots could even be traced back to kabuki performance (read that somewhere). 
At the end of the day it isn't a matter of looks or merch, the genre just needs a musical and creative revival if we have any chance of bringing new people to the darker side. Although I don't think it's a necessarily a bad thing if it stays small, some genres are just meant to stay that way.

my dear, I'm not referring to actual trans/agender people, the more or less socially integrated type;
I specifically outline the obnoxious vocal tumblr stereotype that had a brief moment of raise to the internet fame, which is still not really over.
 
thank you for your input tho!

Fine, I'll bite. Trans people are people, and as such, they have varied opinions on every subject.  I have two friends who have like... totally opposite opinion on the subject. And oh neither uses "zir" or "it" pronoun, just "he" .
 
One is indifferent to the music, but loves the clothing and variety it gives. He's a fashion maniac hah, and an ancient goth so guys in make-up and corsets isn't anything new to him... The visual kei amps up the production quality a lot. The other hates visual kei with passion, along with Japanese games and pop-culture in general, that is full of androgynous men. It makes him uncomfortable.
 

This incident was just absolutely revolting.  I've been seeing/hearing the whole "black ppl can't be racist" rhetoric around for years now (both on and offline) and as much as I understand and empathize with the pain and strife of living as a black person, I think this is an INCREDIBLY heinous notion that would be better off eradicated from the collective conscious. It's an idea that's yet to do any good for black people, or society as a whole - just like our vehement grip on "the N word" - where we've employed equally ridiculous double standards (but I guess that's another can of worms). I think this event serves as very unfortunate evidence that blacks can, indeed, be racist and hateful. 
 
I have no idea where this country is headed, but I can only hope that people wake up, start thinking for themselves, and stop subscribing to all of these extraordinarily divisive ideologies. I understand perfectly well how easy it is to get sucked up into the emotional aspects of everything, but I think it's important that we all try to remain grounded and suitably objective in these cases. I think we also have to stop allowing the media to rouse us into these states of utter chaos and letting them control the narrative - especially when the common good and the well-being of the people are not on their agenda. Seriously, I mean...the amount of hate that erupted when Trump won the presidency was staggering. Most of my friends on the left became as hateful and intolerant as the same people on the right that they were opposed to.  But I digress.
 
When it comes to race relations, we REALLY need to have some open and honest talks about it as a collective - free from political correctness, and free from everyone jumping at "racist" shadows. I do think there are racial differences, but it's become racist in and of itself to even mention or acknowledge these differences. It reminds me of when I posted a profile pic with my afro out on FB - a white woman commented saying that she'd like to touch my hair, and a black woman quickly chimed in with, "that's racist".  See...this type of shit can't happen. I'm a black male - my hair is super thick, and extremely curly - it's a completely different grade and texture than that of your average white woman's hair. How could I fault her for being curious about how it feels? That doesn't make her racist at all. Hell,  even if we were in person and she touched my hair without permission, that wouldn't be racist either - it would just be incredibly rude lol.
 
We can't keep shutting down the conversation before there's even any dialogue. And this doesn't just go for black people, or white people, or leftists,  or conservatives - this goes for everyone. There has to be some REAL effort in this country made for people to open up and truly try to understand each other, but as of now, I know a push like this will neither come from the government nor the media - there are too many people profiting off of the chaos, and too many people have careers depending on these divisive narratives.
 

I definitely agree. It was just a thought that somehow it would generate interest.  vk's roots could even be traced back to kabuki performance (read that somewhere). 
At the end of the day it isn't a matter of looks or merch, the genre just needs a musical and creative revival if we have any chance of bringing new people to the darker side. Although I don't think it's a necessarily a bad thing if it stays small, some genres are just meant to stay that way.

Halloween goth lolita costume - check
 
cheap cosplay store ebay wig - check
 
outfit made from the fabric scraps - check
 
I like chickens so I'll stick around for the cool band name.
 
they dont sound bad actually. The look is cool.

this is the funniest thing I've heard in a while. Points to this band for bringing the funny side back to VK
 
 
i can't stop listening / giggling.  If I were them I'd be packing my stuff to move across the world out of  embarrassment.

Ok, I was going to listen to this because I thought all of you were being assholes, but not even 3 seconds in and I just had to just stop it.
I know the sound of nope pretty well by now.
 
Let's make sure we kill this with the most effective fire before we hear it somewhere else.
(insert an effective jab at mejibray here)

God, I love him even more for wearing that to a premiere in LA.