Miku70

Just found Aya (ex-Kaidan Light)'s new channel! She has only one song cover up, but I'm so happy she's back!
 
 
It's apparently a cover of an old song she did back in 2008 which is still available on digital platforms amongst other songs she did post-Kaidan Light but it's only available in Japan.

So... industry gone idol doing idol industry shit? Damn shook 
 
Sarcasm aside, really wonder how commonplace that kinda stuff is. It's all obviously very common among fabricated pop idols and all who are basically dolls to their companies, but I didn't know/would probably not take very seriously if some stranger told me this was going on in underground japanese rock 🤔 ... So wondering for how long 

This isn't a thing only related to psychopathology. The problem isn't about having depression or suicidal thoughts, but keeping alive a culture of abuse within the industry, pontentially fueled by the whole sacrificial Japanese working culture, with its devotional hierarchy aspects and so on... So mental health issues should be a normal response of anybody previously involved into that sadism of an enviroment.
 
 
Said.

Truly unbelievable. Makes you wonder about the things we don't know that are going on daily.

It seems he didn't just try to jump from the balcony, but also walked onto the highway to end his life during tour. This is rough stuff. Japan has got to start accepting that depression is a serious illness and not something that one can just "get over."

Time to serve some boiling hot tea today, folks...
 
Seven years after leaving AvelCain, Kasumi has written a sort of exposé of his time in the band, notably the moment when he wanted to leave the band due to his illness, but was ultimately turned away by management. 
 
Quick summary as I cannot provide a full accurate translation:
Kasumi valued his time in AvelCain, but due to suffering from facial paralysis and alopecia areata (bald spots) at the time, he was unable to continue and he requested that he leave the band. The president of Shimizuya Records turned him away, allegedly stating that they "didn't care for his story". Kasumi considered suicide as an only way out of the band, and he even tried jumping off of a 4 story condo (as he lived in a rural area) but fortunately came out unscathed. He has since recovered from his conditions (although he still suffers from paralysis when he gets tired) but he still suffers from depression as a result from his experience from being in the band, which included being naked in front of female staff, being beaten in front of his members, and even licking the nipples of a senior bandman. Despite all that, he still respects the band members, the label, and the bangya who have supported them. 
 
Full blog entry below:
 
https://ameblo.jp/avelcain/entry-12615608636.html
 
He has also posted additional tweets on his Twitter account about not being paid for songs he composed, band merch, or several fees he's paid out of pocket (transportation, costumes, recording, shooting) even after he had left the band. Overall, he states that this is a warning to young bandmen and hopes that this behavior still isn't going on today.
 

The lyrics for their new song. The "kowareta joukei..." part is also sung in the beginning.
 
Original:
 
Romaji:
 
Credits: the band, for making the text available on the music video, and me, for transcribing it.

I have no idea if the age of Karin (ex-NoGod, Roman Kyuko) was known. 
You will not find the year on his twitter, he screenshoted the photo downstars
 
and you can find the tweet here 
https://twitter.com/karin_bassist/status/1233796351411933184/photo/1
 

 

The new look:
 

 
Shou:

 
Hiroto:

 
Tora:

 
Saga:

 
Nao:

Regular edition (3000yen) will include CD (7 songs)
Deluxe Fanclub-limited edition (12000yen) will include 2 CD (album and live album), Blu-ray, 32-page booklet and special package
 
[Blu-ray tracklist]
SE. 革命開花-epilogue-
01. 革命開花-Revolutionary Blooming-
02. 闇ニ散ル桜
03. RAINBOW
04. ASYLUM
05. CYAN
06. MEMENTO
07. 九龍-NINE HEADS RODEO SHOW-
08. TESTAMENT
09. Waterfall
10. Everlasting
from 2020.07.05 LINE CUBE SHIBUYA (渋谷公会堂)
 
ONEMAN TOUR 2020「不夜城逃避行」～TOUR FINAL & 将生誕祭～
・「MANDALA」Music Video
・「MANDALA」Music Video (Show Feature Movie)
・「MANDALA」Music Video (Hiroto Feature Movie)
・「MANDALA」Music Video (Tora Feature Movie)
・「MANDALA」Music Video (Saga Feature Movie)
・「MANDALA」Music Video (Nao Feature Movie)
・「TESTAMENT」Music Video (from 9th Album”不夜城エデン”)
・「CYAN」Music Video (from 9th Album”不夜城エデン”)
 
 

The new music video is out
 
 

I do check out previous bands, current ones etc. 
Usually i do it more for the band members i took a liking too. 
Should i give an example, like most who wrote here did?
 
For example i follow up Ryo (joppin:cal, m:a.ture) i ended up listening to sound of  drug/ esolla because of him (there is not a lot of stuff from them eitherway), i listened to the stuff from serial number that got puplished during the time he was a member of them and i ended up listening to some of the stuff he played support-bass for. Thankfully i liked most of the stuff he participated. 
Of course there are other Bandmembers i ended up following too.
Also i don't always end up liking the new stuff they do. (Those two from Despa that ended up in The micro whatever for example.)
 
A stupid question, but does it sometimes make you feel like, following up an old friend? because thats what i noticed how it sometimes feels for me, of course i don't know them personally, but checking on them, seeing they are doing fine, even if i might not follow his current project,  makes me often happy. 
I know it sounds stupid, but there are bandmember i somehow followed up since 12/13 years or some where i lost track of them (because of my cursed break from vk) and suddenly i remember them and check over social media what they are doing. 
sorry, its a bit off topic
 

Yeah, the more I think about it, trying to complicate it, I realize that it's as simple as that. It's like you've made a friend, one that may not know you exist (thanks to the internet, I can at least say that a few know of this Saikou^^) but provides you with the joy of someone who you feel understands you or thinks the way you do. They've always got something interesting to say and I'm fond of what makes them unique: just like how I feel about my friends! 

"晴天に吠える。" has been released at 2020/09/16
 
 

phone or desktop + sitting .. with beer sometimes

I usually use my desktop as I find it easier to look at the forum. I tend to also look at the browser version of a website if I can. I find it difficult to browse on my phone with how small and compressed things can look on there.

phone and desktop
 
 

narrowing it down to vk, just picking my recent favs :
 
F@NNY
Mercuro
コドモドラゴン
蜉蝣
SISTER'S NO FUTURE SUPER DELUXE
 
xoxo
 
 

1. Kra
2. 彩冷える (Ayabie)
3. 華族 (Kazoku)
4. ナイトメア (Nightmare)
5. アンティック-珈琲店- (AN CAFE)

In my case, it’s actually a huge excitement factor. Some faces in the VK scene are so prolific with their involvement that they basically become a seal of quality when their name is attached to a project (like say, Sharaku Kobayashi, Kozi, Shuuji Ishii, etc). When I see that a bandoman who has continuously delivered is going to be part of a new band/side-project, I just know that I’m gonna love it. There's also the "brand new dream team" factor of new bands with old names. I remember when Roman Kyuko formed and I as a fan of both Siblebashir and Sex-Android, was wondering what power-house vocalist Izumi and obscure-style-lover Toru would sound like together (they sound amazing, Toru's love of Rockabilly 'n punk + Izumi voice = perfection).
 
Of course, I get attached to some band members and follow every single one of their side projects/new bands and even their off-stage activities. Some of these guys make the kind of art I want to see in the world and I wanna do everything I can to support that (and them). Plus most of these guys are just interesting people who passionately share their love for art and their personal artistic processes, so it's fun to get to know the people behind the instrument and root for their success because you like them as a person in addition to their musical outputs!
 
It can also be inversely, where I go backwards and check out some old and/or obscure band one of my favs was in it. From humble high school garage bands to subterranean hidden gems to one-time team-ups, going down the band name rabbit hole is something that I think is, as it is, special to the VK scene.

I love diving deep into past members band's of the bands I really admire. Previous band's are usually super indie and sound like hot garbage, but if I'm lucky enough to find any releases I do enjoy the thrill of the hunt : >

I'll make an effort to check out every new band I see here, even if few manage to hold my interest. That being said, I guess I have higher expectations for bands with members from bands I love. Usually when I've found out a musician I like has joined a new band/used to be in a different band and checked them out, I haven't been disappointed at all, although there have been exceptions. Like I said, new bands will always get a chance from me so even if there are members from bands I don't like so much, I give them the benefit of the doubt because the way I see it, they might be in a new band because they wanted to try something new so I don't think I can ever truly know what to expect.

Hmm I think it does, for example I've been following:
Chisa (Vo. NEXX > DIV > アクメ).
from アクメ I noticed they have HAL (Drums) in their lineup and I know him from ARTEMA and just the type of music are sooo different but to make something new out of it is for me always mindblowing!
 
I'm just always curious about their previous work if I don't know them well. But same as their new works to see if they have changed their style in music, come up with new things and so on. I think it really does make a lot of difference.
 
I probably get more or faster interested into a band if I know any of the members in some band that I already been listening to.

I like to check out members' history out of curiosity if I like the band. I found about a lot of bands I got to love this way. It's true that now past bands lists aren't as long, but it was never something I used to judge whenever a musician was good or bad. Just a fun thing to know two or more familiar faces were in one band at some point. xD
 

Do visual kei bands interest you more if the members have been in previous bands that you recognize? I ask because visual kei especially has (or at least traditionally, perhaps less so much these days)  has had an endemic emphasis on extensive band histories, something you rarely see in most scenes. To me it's reminiscent of a family tree, and this 'rarez' would give the avid VK fan many more gems to discover and collect.
 
I don't see this so much anymore, as it would appear fewer and fewer pertinent VK bands consist of members who have played in dozens of bands before.  So while there once was a time it wasn't uncommon to see dudes sporting 15 preliminary bands behind their new popular one, it seems to be a relic of the past at this point.  But on the contrary, this doesn't seem to hurt anything. These fresh new kids are performing at a very high level.
 
But as I was saying, does this stuff even mean anything to you? Often? Or in rare cases if it's someone you REALLY like? I always thought extensive band histories were interesting and fascinating for many reasons. For instance, if I see a bunch of guys from different bands I'm familiar with playing together, it makes me think. Woah, what an eclectic mix of styles I'm familiar with. I wonder what they'll sound like together?