Pretsy

August seemed to be the month of letdowns to me but anyways, my favs out of this list:
 

Just tactics to strip you from your L'Argent~et~Matériel.

L'ardiacArrest

I am gonna steal 's format and have my own "adequate" say on where is Gazette now AFAIAC in terms of post-DIM ventures:
 
TOXIC
 
DIVISION
 
BEAUTIFUL DEFORMITY
 
DOGMA
 
To sum up, Gazeboys have totes great plans that cross between music and business departments - but don't sport enough capacity or potential to nail their rich ideas right every time. 
 
PS. gomennasai for typos, today's not really great FYI.

Ever had this moment when you spun certain non-vk record (while chilling around without our lovely j-music...we tend to have these phases too hey)...you were reminded of your old Japanese favorites? I am pretty sure most of you did have that kind of moment at least once!
 
So the idea behind this thread is simple:
 
You post specific non-Japanese releases (compilations, albums...) which might occasionally bug you with reminiscence/elements akin to your Japanese favorites. It doesn't have to be legit influence, so feel free to open up with your discoveries! No one's gonna judge here anyway, right?
 
Example:
 

Those looking for something quirky, yet very nostalgic and fittingly "cheesy" better check one of the bands I discovered through irl means (fellows/acquaintances...):
 

 
Horrorbilly/Horror surf/Surf punk act from Russia had their latest album out and it's hella nice BGM for your most thrilling midnight rides (in case you have to/managed to cross some grim, oddest corners of your hoods)
 
Frontman's earlier project on the other hand is basically a Sovietophile response to the whole Shibuya kei/sampling twee pop craze:
 

Artist: toe Album: HEAR YOU 1. Premonition (Beginning Of A Desert Of Human) 2. A Desert Of Human 3. Commit Ballad feat. CHARA 4. . The World According To 5. My Little Wish 6. Song Silly feat. Olivia Burrell 7. Boyo 8. Time Goes feat. 5lack 9. オトトタイミングキミト (oto to timing kimi to) feat. Kimura Kaela 10. G.O.O.D.L.U.C.K feat. U-zhaan / Kumi Maya Ayaya 11. Because I Hear You
Rating: | a fractured toe that can still stand somewhat firm
 
If you've ever ventured into the realm of Japanese instrumental rock, then you've undoubtedly heard of toe, as they're perhaps the most prominent name to emerge out of Japan's sprawling sea of post/math-rock bands. The band has been around since 2000, and they've literally had ten 'toe's deep in the music industry since then - working with tons of musicians from all sides of the business.

In fact, it's almost become a trend in their releases to feature renown and respected J-pop figures like Asako Toki (cymbals), ACO, Ikuko Harada (clammbon) and so on. Though despite the band's clout and reputation (and the fact that they've been around for 15 years now), HEAR YOU is only toe's third album. Arriving a whopping six years after their previous LP, this album attempts to sate the apetites of long-time toe fans as well as push the band in new directions.

One look at the tracklist and, assuming you're familiar with the featured musicians, you'd think the band has already accomplished those two feats. There's the obligatory J-pop vocal features - "Commit Ballad" with the iconic CHARA, and "オトトタイミングキミト (oto to timing kimi to)" with the popular Kaela Kimura. Both tracks are nods to toe's past, as CHARA gives a fully fleshed vocal performance like ACO in 2012's "月、欠け (tsuki kake)", and Kaela's voice is used more like a hip hop sample, the same as Ikuko Harada in 2009's "After Image".

There's also " Time Goes" featuring the underground rapper 5lack, "Song Silly" with backup vocalist Olivia Burrel, and " G.O.O.D.L.U.C.K " with the prolific percussionist U-zhaan, who's worked with almost everyone from Miyavi to Yoko Kanno. These three tracks are probably the most blatant attempts of toe experimenting with their sound. Although even with these features, the outcomes are less appealing than they seem on paper.

"song silly" features a rather dull electronic drum beat with some appropriately? goofy sounding Engrish vocals from guitarist Mino. You don't even hear Olivia Burrell until the end of the song, and even then, it's just a few minor "doo doo's", that don't add much to the song. A kind gesture naming her as a feature, but it hardly justifies itself in the song. "time goes" is equally awkward for toe. It's not a full song, but more like an interlude that leads into the next track. Still, 5lack's short verse on it is sloppy and upholds the Japanese rap standard of failing to stay on beat. "オトトタイミングキミト ト (oto to timing kimi to)" is basically the continuation of "time goes" and has a fittingly hip-hoppish bop to it. It's a pleasant track , but to quote a pal - 'It just sounds like Nujabes'. Thankfully there's no rapping in it, though. On the other features, U-zhaan performs just about as good as can be expected and CHARA's singing is surprisingly smooth, compared to her usually shrill offerings. But even these feature tracks are plagued by a larger problem that envelopes the entire album.

Takashi Kashikura's dynamic drumming is mostly M.I.A. throughout HEAR YOU, as his performance is noticeably restrained to clear-cut, minimal beats. The only song where his skills really shine and hearken back vintage toe is "My Little Wish". For long-time toe fans, you can't help but feel the dearth of energy Kashikura's subdued drumming leaves. Guitarists Mino and Yamazaki still have impeccable interplay, but their songwriting is missing that factor that made past toe songs so riveting. Tracks like "A Desert Human" and the previously mentioned "commit ballad" are enjoyable enough to bob your head along to, but the songs offer you much incentive to want to revisit. Even the album closer "Because I Hear You" is severely anticlimactic and just kind of plods along without any real purpose. "The World According To" and "Boyo" are probably the only tracks that come close to anything emotionally gripping.

HEAR YOU is still a good effort despite the album's shortcomings. The flow of the album in almost seamless and almost plays like one big narrative, with each track progressing the story. Even tracks like 'Song Silly', which individually doesn't even sound like a traditional toe song, manages to fit into the context of the album. But more importantly than cohesiveness, toe proves that they are incapable of writing poor music. As lackluster as this album is, it's still "good" on many accounts, because what toe does naturally, other bands can only hope to replicate. HEAR YOU will certainly not eclipse toe's previous work, and it likely won't please long time fans either, but it at least makes for some really great background music.


Support the band! "HEAR YOU" on bandcamp
"HEAR YOU" on iTunes US
"HEAR YOU" on CDjapan

Ever had this moment when you spun certain non-vk record (while chilling around without our lovely j-music...we tend to have these phases too hey)...you were reminded of your old Japanese favorites? I am pretty sure most of you did have that kind of moment at least once!
 
So the idea behind this thread is simple:
 
You post specific non-Japanese releases (compilations, albums...) which might occasionally bug you with reminiscence/elements akin to your Japanese favorites. It doesn't have to be legit influence, so feel free to open up with your discoveries! No one's gonna judge here anyway, right?
 
Example:
 

Hiatus Kaiyote finally released a music video for "Breathing Underwater"! Absolutely ACE track and one it's one of the best I've heard all year. The Stevie influence is palpable!
 

jpop turning into Walgreens by putting out Halloween stuff super early

I still don't understand the DEUX love.

^^
 

 
(sorry I had to)

well, the claim is more, that there aren't that many catchy choruses, and the ones that are there aren't any good, but that's of course subjective. 
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:
 
1: NIHIL                           80bpm, B-flat minor, intro, electronic
2: Headache Man var. 1   100bpm, B-flat minor, Heavy GurrGurr song
3. Headache Man var. 2   120bpm, B-minor, Heavy GurrGurr song
4. Headache Man var. 3   150bpm, B-flat minor, Heavy GurrGurr song
5. DERACINE                      75bpm, B-minor, Power Ballad or sth
6. Headache Man var. 4   110bpm, A-minor, Heavy GurrGurr song
7. Ruthless Deed v2.0        90bpm, A-minor, Heavy GurrGurr song
8. Headache Man var. 5   105bpm, B-minor, Heavy GurrGurr song
9. Hyena v2.0                   100bpm, C#-minor, Heavy GurrGurr song
10. Headache Man var.6  120bpm, A-minor, Heavy GurrGurr song (with little ballady bits)
11. Headache Man var.7  120bpm, B-minor, Heavy GurrGurr song
12. Headache Man var.8  120bpm, D#-minor, Heavy GurrGurr song (with little ballady bits)
13. Headache Man var.9  145bpm, B-minor, Heavy GurrGurr song
14. OMINOUS                    90bpm, D#-minor, Song
 
now, if i wasn't such an asshat i might give them, that Hyena 2.0 (i think it's real title is lucy?) is more of a punkrock track than gurrgurr, that maybe the gurrgurr/balladybit songs have a more suitable example than headacheman, but you get the picture. the overall impression of the album is, that more than 2/3 of the songs are more or less slight variations of sth like headache man, somewhere between 100 and 120bpm, probably in B or B-flat minor. On DIM you had one headacheman (maybe adding moth, leech and ogre to the same realm, but that's about it), which is why people loved it so much. Here you have a full album consisting of one single track, that in the end just feels like an hourlong forgettable slob of generic riffwankery.
(which isn't helped much by the fact, that they once again fail to chime in on the possibilities of having two guitars. I mean, double-tracking is cool and all, but when the rhythm and the lead guitars are just carbon copies of each other for 90% of the time you really are doing sth wrong, or are being very lazy)
 
Edit: Also, having listened to the album a few times more now, i change my rating from 6-7/10 to more of a 5.5/10 due to severe boredom

GLAY's "Love Is Beautiful" album is the first one coming to mind. It's not my absolute favourite, but I think it's a very solid one for around 15 years into their career. The collaborations with Kyosuke Himuro and EXILE are both really refreshing.
 

27 years into her career in 2005 Kate Bush released Aerial, a double album clocking in at 80 minutes, a very good and for much of its duration cinematic experience. And 6 years later she also released 50 Words for Snow which isn't *that* good but still a fine effort. Aerial is where it's at though.
 

well, personally I don't really care much for guren myself and find it just one of the more forgettable gazette ballads, but specifically and out of nowhere calling out a track (that doesn't really differ much from anything else gazette has done) that is immensly popular, from the album which is pretty universally (on this forum) considered to be gazettes best so far and calling it one of the worst songs written by mankind leads me to two possible scenarios.
 
1. The poster desperately needs to make known, that his tastes differ from the peasant mainstream, which i would consider to be somewhat "hipster"
2. The poster wanted to piss off as many people as possible, which is what i would consider the "troll". If that was the intention and seeing that I reacted to it, well done i guess?
 
I mean of course it's totally fine not to like guren, but without any connection specifically slamming this track from that album makes it kinda hard not to come to these conclusions.

well, and that ^^  
sooo, to not be totally off-topic and trying to somewhat getting onto DOGMA, I probably aswell consider it a better effort than anything that came after DIM, but that doesn't mean much. In general it is very same-y over the whole length.
most of the tracks seem just like minor variations of the same base formula. On top of it it doesn't really vary much in energy, even the tempos are pretty similar throughout all the titles. As a result there aren't really any standout tracks per se for me, which is not good.
there are just little stand-out moments here and there, where i might think, nice riff / cool little vocal motif / interesting sound / nice groove etc. but that's about it.
 
Nonetheless i don't dislike the standard-gazerock fare that much and as mentioned it has its fun moments, so i would probably consider it somewhat of a 6-7/10. might do a full review if i happen to listen to it more often (i doubt it though)

I suppose it's your use of hyperboles without further details that make you seem like someone fans shouldn't take seriously (not that I'd imply you being the one tho, lol).
 
Rather impressed that only a handful of MH folks, incl. me, realized that DOGMA had so little to no variation as an entirety (DIM kinda threw you here and there but at least the album had various elements to keep your attention). Others who shared their own points of criticism were spot-on - just where was this "tremendous" improvement?
 
Ps. Ruki still needs a coach, ASAP.

On first listen it seems like a decent album, but I think that's mostly because of the fact that this heavier, more aggressive style hides their weaknesses a lot better than the stuff they were doing from Toxic-Beautiful Deformity. For the most part the guitar-work is still extremely dry, Ruki's vocals are still very limited, etc. Basically, it's still very much a post-DIM GazettE album, for better and for worse.

I was tempted to post in the DOGMA review topic but it would've been a one-word review merely stating 'DOGSHIT'
 
I don't think they would appreciate that

It's been a while Erin, hi!
Speaking of "nu disco"/something along the lines of artists/genres you pointed out, did you mean something in the vein of this? (open the spoiler)

Most music enthusiasts and even casual listeners are more likely to pinpoint their favorite albums from artists' "first steps" - like you'd normally seeing someone e.g. placing Despa's debut on a pedestal and getting zealous over it and etc.
 
But are there any best bits that came out from artists after many years - or even decades of experience? 
 
List a few - or many (if you want) fav albums of your fav artists when their experience spanned for a long time.
 
Example:
 
 
Feel free to mention your fav late-career albums!

Most music enthusiasts and even casual listeners are more likely to pinpoint their favorite albums from artists' "first steps" - like you'd normally seeing someone e.g. placing Despa's debut on a pedestal and getting zealous over it and etc.
 
But are there any best bits that came out from artists after many years - or even decades of experience? 
 
List a few - or many (if you want) fav albums of your fav artists when their experience spanned for a long time.
 
Example:
 
 
Feel free to mention your fav late-career albums!

Most music enthusiasts and even casual listeners are more likely to pinpoint their favorite albums from artists' "first steps" - like you'd normally seeing someone e.g. placing Despa's debut on a pedestal and getting zealous over it and etc.
 
But are there any best bits that came out from artists after many years - or even decades of experience? 
 
List a few - or many (if you want) fav albums of your fav artists when their experience spanned for a long time.
 
Example:
 
 
Feel free to mention your fav late-career albums!

There's still Katatonia albums to pass the time!