Pretsy

Okay, I'm going to be that lame guy who does track by track reviews because why the hell not hehehehehe
 
elisabeth addict - I still sort of think the track name is dumb, but the actual song itself.. Man, it's been a long time since an album opener blew me away like this. Though for the most part this is a rather calm song, there's never really any point where it strays into boring territory. The reason for this is just the absolute atmospheric quality. Really, this song sets the tone for the rest of the album. The world of IMMORTALIS is eerie, at times desolate and chaotic, but there's a certain harmony underneath all the layers of darkness. elisabeth addict embodies all these different facets. Kyo is in prime form here, alternating between regular singing, screeching and his infamous kyopera skills as the song comes to an end. The instruments complement nicely and the acoustic guitar and the drums create the feeling of wandering alone through a sandstorm. 
 
destrudo - The second track is an SE, I guess? It's an instrumental track, at least. The piano melodies are quite beautiful and melancholic. Even though it's an instrumental track it doesn't fall into the traditional SE pitfall of becoming monotonous. Still, I feel the song DOES overstay its welcome a bit even though it's just over two minutes. Probably one of my least favorite tracks on the album, but then again it's not really much of a song to begin with. I'll probably be skipping this one in the future. At least it fits within the overall atmosphere of the album, I guess.
 
latour - I'd like to imagine this is what a track off Uroboros would sound like if Dir en grey had decided to ditch the metal elements and instead embraced more of a nagoya kei sound. There's a decidedly 9goats-esque quality to the instrumental portion of this one. Latour still has the eerie atmosphere established by the opening track. However, this song alsoo introduces some very oriental-sounding grooves to the mixture and it fits quite well. The song evolves very organically, starting with an elaborate instrumental opening which takes up about the first third of the song. Once again, Kyo's vocals are very on point here and he contributes a lot to the increasingly maniacal fury the song builds towards.
 
nine melted fiction - Again a song with a title that made me go 'the fuck?' What ALSO made me go 'the fuck?' was that weird wolf howl-type thing Kyo pulls early on in the song. Seriously, what's up with that? It sort of took me out of the atmosphere of the album because it sounded so goofy, so it's a bit unfortunate. This song grooves along in a manner reminiscent of Dir's Toguro, until the part from the album preview finally appears and kicks the tempo up a bit. Kyo pulls some more weird vocal tricks throughout the song, but outside of that wolf sound I felt most of them added to the song's atmosphere instead of taking away from it.
 
zephyr - Well, the radio rip of this song was one of the reasons why I became so incredibly hyped for this album in the first place. Even with the low quality of the radio rip I already fell in love with this one, especially the vocal melody in the chorus. As other people already pointed out before, it's definitely one of the strongest vocal performances we've seen from Kyo in years. Although this song sort of breaks up the eerie, brooding mood of the album the previous tracks had established, it's far from out of place. I feel like this is nothing Dir en grey could ever have done, and yet it is so reminiscent of Dir en grey at their best. This is the first time outside of destrudo that I've managed to detect electronic effects in the music, but it doesn't overtake the rest of the instruments so it doesn't disturb. Still one of my favorite tracks on the album so far, although I already feel like it might eventually lose that position. 
 
hidden one - I don't know if it's because of the kyopera in this particular song or 'cuz of something else, but this song just doesn't really connect with me for some reason. The instrumentals are top notch once again, don't get me wrong. I guess it's something about the vocals that ticks me off. Who knows, maybe ii'll grow on me at some point.
 
aftermath - Another slow-burning song driven more by atmosphere than anything else. This was one of the first songs they released, but I only really listened to it once or twice before to be honest. Although there's quite a fair share of kyopera in this one as well (especially in the chorus) this song somehow doesn't rub me the wrong way. Quite a good ballad, although I can understand how it could be boring for some people. This is, once again, a very nagoya kei-ish song I think. 
 
烏有の空 - 2spooky4me. I guess I'd label this an SE as well. Very brooding and menacing, this one is. Out of the two SE-like tracks on the album, this has to be my favorite just because it's so menacing. The track brings to mind those Forbidden Siren survival horror games. I feel like the song is sort of misplaced within the context of the whole album though, as the way it transitions into the next song feels kind of awkward in my opinion. 
 
the daemon's cutlery - This is another song I don't care very much for. I THINK this was the very first thing sukekiyo ever released, but I already felt sort of indifferent to it back then. It's another song that feels like a less metal version of Uroboros. This is probably one of the most straightforwardly rocking tracks on the album, but it's still pretty weird. The song sort of managed to grasp my interest in its second half, when the chant-ish sounds and everything kick in, but the beginning as of yet does nothing for me. Maybe I'll come to appreciate the whole package eventually, who knows. 
 
scars like velvet - Now THAT's more like it! Straight from the start this track managed to capture my attention. Here the album returns to the sort of mid-tempo atmospheric nagoya-esque sound. This track has a very oriental sound again, which pleases me. I wish Dir en grey would explore that side of themselves further as well, it offers interesting possibilities. I can sort of imagine this song is perhaps a bit too heavy on the kyopera for some to handle, but I think it fits this particular type of song. Didn't disturb me, at least. I LOVE the way this song progresses and there's a neat little instrumental section near the end of the song as well.
 
mama - So APPARENTLY this is an old song of Kyo's that came with one of his poem books? I guess I'm a shit-tier fan, because I never heard the original. Still though, I have to say this song is absolutely gorgeous. It brings to mind Dir en grey's greatest ballads. Probably the most 'hopeful' out of all the songs on the album, at least in terms of sound. I don't know shit about the lyrics after all. Based on the preview I wasn't very intrigued by this song, but the full version actually pleasantly surprised me.
 
vandal - When I first heard the preview, I was instantly reminded of 9Goats' Headache and 690min. I guess that's okay, as I enjoy both of those songs. At several points in the song Kyo's vocals become almost reminiscent of his Kisou/Vulgar-era harsh vocals. Never expected to see THOSE featuring prominently in a song again. Despite the initial similarities to the aforementioned songs, this track is far from a simple ripoff. At some point the song changes gears COMPLETELY and segues into a creepy slower part before picking up the rocking pace again. Though the change is sort of abrupt, I felt like it didn't hurt the song. The weird chanting at the end was also quite charming.
 
hemimetabolism - I DID NOT EXPECT THIS ONE TO SOUND LIKE THIS AT ALL. Especially the first half. The song starts off with some mellow, melancholic instrumental action before shifting gears and unraveling into more spooky insanity at around the 2 minute mark. The vocals don't kick in until the last minute of the song. Very interesting composition, definitely one of the most surprising tracks on the album. 
 
鵠 - Another ballad-type song. Hella kyopera once again, so be warned. I found this song to be very calming, very spiritual. I've never really listened to them very much at all, but this is what I imagine Rentrer En Soi might've vaguely sounded like in my head. It's a good song, but because it's a rather straightforward song stuck between two rather unique ones I feel like this song might end up becoming 'forgotten', the type of song where you go "Ah, right. This still exists." when listening to the full album.
 
 斑人間 - Yeah, so I didn't expect this track to sound ANYTHING like this based on the preview. Again. Pleasantly surprised, although I feel like this track could've been a Dum Spiro Spero / The Unraveling b-side or something. Very dynamic, very diverse. I was most curious to hear the full version of this one based on the previews but I never imagined it to be like this. Still, the part from the preview is absolutely beautiful although I question how well it actually fits in the whole picture.
 
in all weathers - I was already all 'Ayyyyy' after hearing the radio rip. Full version is still amazing. Beautiful melodies, harmonies, everything. Also liked the callback to elisabeth addict at the end, really helps bring the album full circle. 
 
So yeah, this is my AOTY so far. I don't know how good or bad this review was, I usually don't write reviews. But.. yeah. These were my thoughts after listening to the album twice. 
 
4.5 / 5 
 
 
 

A bizarre yet refreshing mix of a progressive rock sound with the sound nagoya bands developed years ago - this album's sound just sounds like it came out of nowhere, just like the band itself. No one was expecting Kyo to ever come up with something like this - after all, everyone thought he was the antisocial member of Dir en grey who had no friends and didn't smile on camera. Here he grabs long time DEG collaborator Takumi, Mika(also from Rentrer en Soi), and members from kannivalism and 9gbo and manages to make a sound that comprises everything these bands make yet having its own identity.
 
From the first track, it's like Sukekiyo is inviting you for a journey in their world. Every track is almost like that - an adventure by itself, with some moments making you go and wonder if you're still listening to the same song. Like whatever the fuck went on with Kyo's vocals on the second part of "the daemon's cutlery" where he does some of the coolest screams I've heard from him, the fast metallic end to "latour", and the ambient-like style of the first half of "hemimetabolism". On this album it seems they get everything Dir en grey seems to try right - and it sounds really natural, unlike moments in Dir en grey's last album, Dum Spiro Spero, where it sounds like they were putting complex stuff just for the sake of it.
 
Besides the obvious nagoya sound and the overall "prog" aspect of the album, you can also spot some different influences, like the jazz in "mama"(the piano in the re-recorded mama eerily recalls some tracks from Daisuke's last album), the flamenco-like guitar in "斑人間" and perhaps some oriental influence, akin to Dir en grey's, on tracks like "elisabeth addict". Kyo also brings his vocals on a really wide range, using the screams, growls and screechs we already now and his infamous "kyopera" falsetto.
 
I had moderate expectaitons about this - the previews didn't really make me confident - but hell, this is GOOD. That good. Dir en grey's november album will have to really be a lot better than those singles to manage to grab my attention now. Time will tell, but I believe I'll probably give this more spins than any Dir en grey album. Kyo could even make this his main band now. Here Kyo finally manages to portray his "pretentious" style of making music and art on a way that isn't really pretentious, it's actually pompous, big, grandiose, and immersing. Nice way to start, and I hope they don't become a one-off project, and show us even more of this sound in the future.
  9/10

Some neat artistic comparisons concerning the album's cover art and band style:
 
http://blog-tick.blogspot.com/2014/04/arui-wa-anarchy-tracklist.html

= dubstep number (87% probability)
 
W.H.Y.

T.A.C.K.Y.

Trying to look like this awesome psychopath guy~ (From the K-drama Gap Dong)

 
I look like a creepo XDD. These are my true colours... *cough cough*
I think the right-below is the best one

pretsy serving polished post-punk sunglasses at night realness

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KZK 2 plssss

today a song In All Weathers premiered on FM802. here's a recording.
 

I've always wondered that why most *edgy* vk bands (especially old school bands) are fascinated with "Abortion" as a theme (for eg. Kuroyume's "Chuuzetsu", Dir's "Mazohyst of Decadence"...and basically most of Madeth Gray'll's songs)
 
also, BDSM theme cannot be unseen in vk tbqh (you can imagine already some examples - like say, Malice Mizer's ILLUMINATI?)
 
Also, I suggest that we should compile speech samples used by Vk acts, considering that there are tons of them (not only Nazi-like ones lol) like for eg. Dir en grey sampling  Charles Augustus Lindbergh in MASK intro, Girugamesh sampling Lenin's ""Comrades, soldiers of Red army,- English, American and French capitalists are fighting Russia" -speech in Mouja no Koushin AND Baiser's yet questionable samples in "Mechanixx"

What happened to the moon and why is everyone crying for it

eins zwei drei vier

Mana finally getting some well-deserved goth cred for playing next to DA BLACK SEA. \m/(◣_◢)\m/

Is this their answer to THE UNRAVELING?

Legs, Boobs, or Ass?

Kyouki looks like a crossover of Kool-Aid Ryoga and under-world '09 tour Gara...o_o

Starting to miss his "Japanese Kool-Aid Man" outfit :/

HOLLOWGRAM was pretty nice.

I'm a lazy listener recent stuff-wise but hey:
 
non-Japanese:
Crosses - Crosses
St. Vincent - St. Vincent
Kylie Minogue - Kiss Me Once
 
Japanese:
Yasuha Kominami - Do Do Airaku
Shiina Ringo - Toutaikai Heisei Nijuu Go Nen Kamiyama Chou Taikai (it's a live dvd but those arrangements asaidhaidh) Vampillia - The Divine Move   Waiting for Ringo's self-cover album and Sukekiyo's IMMORTALIS ...