Komorebi

Fuckers couldn't do it a week later now, could they?

I actually like it. Sorry XD

So soon? Not like their releases were good...

Welcome!! And congratulations on following your identity to completion. For many of us VK has become an important part of it/has helped shape it and it's great you finally decided to join the community I hope you have fun around here. There's lots of artists threads and recommendation threads you can check out there's stuff for every taste.

So, Ninth is out and what I've mostly read online is that it is not at the same level as Dogma, it's generic, it's been heard before, bla bla bla... so I tried it out asap and wrote an overall review, (don't expect a song-by-song musical analysis). I have to agree on one thing with the negative critics: Dogma was the shit on a technical level, but the more I play it the more it feels like a single long song. I distinctly remember playing it for the first time and asking myself "when is this song ending, sounds like a freakin' Versailles song", only to check the iPod and realize it was already on track three. Sure, Ninth sounds like "shit we've heard before", but the album on it's own is more diverse, soundwise, and has ups and downs. I rated songs while I went through it with 4 stars and others with 2, 3's and a 5 along the way. Dogma was a flat three. All the way. For Dogma, none of the tracks sucked but none was outstanding for me either. Which is not a good thing because I honestly never even remember what the album sounds like (the album and the singles related to the concept). And every time I play it to see if I magically start liking it I get bored and switch to something else halfway. Ninth, however, felt more... Complete? Catchy? Memorable? Your pick. It was definitely something else. I can distinctly remember which tracks stood out for me and which ones I disliked. Whereas for Dogma I cannot even tell them apart. Sure, it's generic GazettE, it's stuff we all know, it's familiar. But more importantly: it works. Structures work together to make songs memorable, in good or bad ways. And, tbh, I feel if any other band would have released this it would have been probably praised. But since it's Ruki's distinct voice attached to those riffs people get a "déjà vu(heard)" feel. And, being the popular band it is, the bar is always high when it comes to them. While Dogma was a good dive into darker, heavier waters, I always felt their execution of it was not as proficient or distinctive as it could have been. While, for me, Ninth nailed it. You can always try new things, and I'm all for bands attempting new styles, but sometimes it can be better to go back to a safer zone and kill it than keep attempting at something new and do it halfway. And Ninth is good proof of it. I get the more versatile feel I got from albums like Nil and Stacked Rubbish, in a more mature, polished and 2018-ish way. The tracks that stood out for me were Falling, Utsusemi, Sono Koe wa Moroku and Unfinished (a banger, way to finish an album). I did not pay attention to the first version of Falling and I will certainly not do it now, but this version gave me a better impression (it could be the transcode-decent bitrate difference rather than the mixing itself). It's catchy and modern enough for a PV and the composition has Ruki all over it. I'm a sucker for good rock ballads and Sono Koe wa Moroku was melodic enough without going on a chopped-onion level of cornyness. Utsusemi and Unfinished were just straight up my alley; strong yet not overly harsh on the voice. Ninth Odd Smell and Gush sadly blend together a bit too much for my taste yet both are solid tracks that will most likely grow on me and Babylon's Taboo was barely... bearable. The SE track was terrible, but their SE's rarely are my taste at all. The Mortal has a mystic feel to it and to me it carries on the atmosphere from the previous releases, with a pleasant twist. Abhor God is powerful and thankfully short, otherwise I'd feel it drags on more than necessary. I feel it will be a great song live. Two of a Kind felt like a "fresh old Gazette" and Uragiru Bero fitted the album nicely to, but didn't catch my attention that much, felt like a filler track. The album showed both a heavier side yet was kept melodic and reminded me a lot of Division, one of their best releases imho. Like it, it was packed with both harsh and softer aspects and shows maturity and improvement. Overall I give it a 4/5, and I will most likely buy it in Japan in a few months. Otherwise I'll get the iTunes version. It's a great release and if you felt lately that GazettE was getting stale you should definitely try this album. It is unmistakably The GazettE, yet fresh and modern.

Yes!! Good news for me

I'm kinda waiting for something to go horribly wrong...

Interesting...

Nooo I follow Visual vice too :S I always translate those release calendars and share them on Fukkatsu :c

I am so getting that limited edition.

I doubt they'll all come back together. Most likely Kuloe will vanish for a while after the disbandment.

That cover his hideous.

Oww they were good 😕

Damn, that limited edition is expensive 😧

The deal is Ruki was all "let's management bother this dude and keep them off my back while I write".

Missing that one Malisend release, that one first Jiluka single, that one rare VRZEL distributed CD... it's killing me, man, killing me slowly and painfully. I never replied to Zeus because I was busy/being lazy, but Hiroki explained more or less what I meant to say. I do not blame overseas fans for poor VK sales, I mean that for the average VK band there's probably no more than like 8 overseas fans interested in actually purchasing a CD they distribute live, so for the band it's probably not worth the trouble of releasing a live CD through a regular shop, with all the added expenses that would entail, just so like 3 dudes in Europe and one in the States can get a copy. Basically what Hiroki explained. It sucks ass for us but I really see why bands would go that route. And most don't even care about that extra 3 bucks they'll get from us if we get the CD on any store, it's not relevant, when they can push a live limited release that will draw fans from Japan who will not only spend 1000 yen on the CD, but, while they're at it, they'll spend 2000-5000 extra yen on cheki and merch, AND the ticket. As Zeus mentioned, it's probably a few hoarders at the top of the food chain who are keeping VK from taking the smart route when it comes to music distribution, and for bands it's not an easy thing to just ditch the labels, since, as I understand, livehouses have deals with music labels and if you want to actually perform you gotta sell your soul to the devil somehow. It really sucks, but for us to get VK music on bandcamp and such it would require much, MUCH more than just an artist saying "K, so I have a bunch of chicks tweeting me in English, gotta sell for them as well" 😕

I'm sad, really sad, about this, even though I expected it. I'll go see them one last time at least.

Actually, he's the least popular member in Japan it seems. But he was probably the main composer.

It was announced at today's live that Morrigan will hold one last oneman tour throughout August and early September before disbanding on September 29th, at EDGE. Dates of the tour are to be announced. It seems loosing Pitty did take a toll on the band.

Ohh... I see now why they're re-releasing their first mini.

I have a couple of their DVDs and haven't even watched them

That's really cool, and it's nice they saw you actually buy their release Buying music in Japan gets addictive. I got another bunch of Jiluka merch and, as usual, can't post photos here. But I share on IG.