platanity

its been like only a week or so ? that this album has been released. 
but i already feel like it has been in the shelf like a year ago. 
as soon as i got to listen the new lynch single, 凛として時雨's new album,
even an indie from australia released their new album - i immediately switched my music.
 
i know the competitors are very talented (lynch & 凛として時雨),
but this is how much the album had a very small sense of existence to me.
 
i wont lie, 'deux' still sounds a very good and catchy song to me,
i still listened for a few times right before i got to download 凛として時雨's new album,
 
but truly, they need to get some rest, go for a soul searching,
maybe a short hiatus to have some time to explore, experiment ,
even go for project bands like other dudes are doing.
 
this mindset, a formulaic mannerism has got to pause for a while .
 
the album's well structured, but this has had already happened before .

Artist: the GazettE Album: DOGMA 1. NIHIL 8. INCUBUS 2. DOGMA 9. LUCY 3. RAGE 10. GRUDGE 4. DAWN 11. PARALYSIS 5. DERACINE 12. DEUX 6. BIZARRE 13. BLEMISH 7. WASTELAND 14. OMINOUS
Rating: | After 13 years, "Gazerock" is officially whatever the band wants it to be.
 
If you're ever having a bad day, remember that time we waited five months for the most underwhelming album of the year.

Let's ignore for a second that DOGMA is ARCHE, Iowa-era Slipknot, and a quarter of DIM shoved in a blender and served cold with a side of drop A chugging. The marketing campaign behind this was stellar, and for five months it was the lack of details surrounding this album that sparked my curiosity the most. Just a few weeks before release, the band revealed "OMINOUS" as a teaser. For a brief second, a flash of light shone through the heavens as the hype seemed justified and the band was poised to deliver something interesting.
"NIHIL" even began the experience as I had anticipated, only for dubstep to emerge halfway through to set all my hopes and dreams on fire. I was in so much disbelief, I curled into the fetal position and muttered "What the fuck is this?" to no one in particular. That one minute encapsulates my journey with this band for the last five years, and when the crushing main riff of "DOGMA" kicked in I felt like I was left holding the bag after a bait and switch operation. This isn't what I signed up for. This isn't what this was billed as. But I'm not one to judge a book by its cover - or in this case an album by its case - and I proceeded to give the rest of the album a listen. If it had matched even a quarter of my expectations and contained a song similar to "DIM SCENE", "千鶴" (Chizuru), "体温" (Taion), or "泣ヶ原" (Nakigahara), we would be having a very different conversation right now. If it was at the very least a darker, more moody companion to 2013's BEAUTIFUL DEFORMITY, I would have waved the intro off. It was neither.

What followed was a most unremarkable collection of metalcore. Despite the fact that everything between tracks three and thirteen blend into one another, all is not lost. I found the vocals at their most inspired and energetic in years. On songs like "DERACINE", Ruki's vocal melodies are the most memorable thing of all. I haven't been able to say that in years! The GazettE have also remembered that they have two guitarists, and have returned to utilizing both of them to great effect. There's also an obvious attempt at focusing on one thing and doing it well - except in this case it's perhaps too focused. The lack of a ballad or even a mid-tempo rock number to change the pace exposes the one-dimensional nature of the album and makes it feel longer than it already is. They even titled the songs in all caps with edgy one word phrases like "PARALYSIS" or "BIZARRE". No other track prioritizes atmosphere and melody over pure aggression like "OMINOUS", which as far as I'm concerned is the only track you need.

I could dig deep if I wanted and point out minor flaws in specific tracks, but that would require another listen or two and the replay value for DOGMA is low. All of those criticisms have been lost to the haze that was this album. I have some fun during a listening session, but it quickly fades from memory as soon as it's done. Fun does not equate to a good album. The simple facts are that there's nothing new or distinctly "the GazettE" to see here. I'm half convinced this facade was forced by the band because it's been a while and the old has become new once again. Given some time, I believe DOGMA will wear thin much faster than other albums in their discography.

Diving head first into metal has yielded mixed results. DOGMA is an album purely for the biggest of GazettE lovers and metal fans. If this particular brand of Visual Kei metalcore appeals to you, this is your album. As for me, it's another uninspired, soon to be forgotten entry in the GazettE's bloated discography.


Support the band! Purchase DOGMA from CD JAPAN

[CD track list]
01.Life Is Beautiful
02.P.I.L
03.アンスキニー・バップ
04.かぞえ詩
05.Rainy
06.一撃
 
[limited edition DVD track list]
「ROTTENGRAFFTY presents ポルノ超特急2014」LIVE DIGEST
・世界の終わり
・零戦SOUNDSYSTEM
・銀色スターリー
・響く都
・I & I
・D.A.N.C.E.
・THIS WORLD
・悪巧み～Merry Christmas Mr.Lawrence
・STAY REAL
・金色グラフティー
「Life Is Beautiful」production official interview

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

holy sht. this is going to be nice !

holy sht. this is going to be nice !

i liked the album very much! im not sure how many times ive thought and said,
but this album is as much as what i could expect from the band -- regardless to what this means if it's good or not.
 
but again, i cannot shake the impression that some of this album's tracks resembles way too much with 
tracks that are nothing to do with their original creations. i wont make an example of the subtle relations 
but some tracks are way too similar that i cannot ignore, such as :
 
rage = slipknot "people=shit" opening
incubus = sim "killing me" opening
 
if the arguments are that it is inevitable that some song structure or chord formulas can overlap, 
then i have no other words to say.
 
one personal wish to this band is that i really hope they lessen their make ups and hairdos, 
outfits are way too visual rock-ish, while they are trying to be something more than that. 
it's my personal taste, and although it is 200% ridiculous to even compare gazette to dir en grey (actually not even comparable),
but the reason i pick dir en grey, EVERY TIME, is because of the "rawness" of the sound and image,
even they put on their make ups time to time.
compared to them, gazette seems too 'artificial' to a sense that they are trying 'too hard'.
i cant even comment on their sonic direction cause...i guess it's too much of a personal taste.
 
but all in all, good solid album, 
although nothing close to like "dim", 
but a strong structured with catchy melodies, like "toxic", which i loved! (opposed to majorities' votes)
almost feels like matured and darkened "toxic".
 
3/5, top track "duex" (this song's golden!)

the songs are good, just as something i could've imagined from gazette .
i could be listening to this for at least few weeks.
 
 
but honestly ,
this sounds like a bad cover of dir en grey 'arche'. 
the flow and nuance is pretty much 'arche'.
those movies make me think more of dir en grey's stage background films.
 
but i admit, it's a solid album, nothing too good, but nothing too bad - just safe .
i know it's preview, but from my experience, the full materials dont sway far away from previews

I understand that they want to say thanks and show appreciation for everyone but jeez do we need an over dramatic story line for everyone? Why not just do what Liphlich does and just put credits and the end of a music video, I hope The Gazette realize that they are a band and can't expect people to stay excited without MUSIC!! Great it's "the dark age" but instead of an over dramatic British guy talking about the costume designs "battle armor" how about we get some song previews or maybe even the craziest of all an actual music video!

This is what I've been waiting for since DIM. Still not getting my hopes up as this band has a way of destroying them but for now I can place expectations for DOGMA above "absolute pile of shit". Which is always a great thing.
Also, is it just me or does the pretentious art-school motif of OMINOUS PV remind anyone of another ballad like promotional PV?


But hey if they took inspiration from ARCHE this album's already shaping up to be something promising.

I like it
 
I wish I liked it more, but I like it

tbh I never liked byou's voice, he just sounds like he's whispering, and not singing out loud. And we all know how he sounds live.
The guitarplay isn't bad at all.

the song's good, but id love to see the rest of pv ! i always love documentaries 

im not sure how to process this , 
and dont even know when and
how did tney manage to get yusuke .
and i dont even know how this is going to look like .
 
although...
 
LINK

im not sure how to process this , 
and dont even know when and
how did tney manage to get yusuke .
and i dont even know how this is going to look like .
 
although...
 
LINK

Japanese Jesus. He's come back to save you and your heathen ears!

im not sure how to process this , 
and dont even know when and
how did tney manage to get yusuke .
and i dont even know how this is going to look like .
 
although...
 
LINK

this sounds intriguing, although, it wont be as impacting as sukekiyo - as for me .
kaoru's been always my favorite along side with kyo .
but intriguing . wondering if this is going to be something like inoran or like a band like vamps .

im not sure how to process this , 
and dont even know when and
how did tney manage to get yusuke .
and i dont even know how this is going to look like .
 
although...
 
LINK

im not sure how to process this , 
and dont even know when and
how did tney manage to get yusuke .
and i dont even know how this is going to look like .
 
although...
 
LINK

Artist: cali≠gari Album: 12 01. わるいやつら (Warui yatsura) 02. 脳核テロル (Noukaku Terror) 03. 颯爽たる未来圏 (Sassou taru mirai-ken) 04. セックスと嘘 (Sex to uso) 05. トゥナイトゥナイ ヤヤヤ (Tonight Toniyayaya) 06. ギムレットには早すぎる (Gimlet ni wa hayasugiru) 07. とある仮想と (Toaru kasou to) 08. 紅麗死異愛羅武勇 (Crazy I Love You) 09. バンバンバン (Ban Ban Ban) 10. フィラメント (Filament) 11. あの人はもう来ない (Ano hito wa mou konai) 12. さよならだけが人生さ (Sayonara dake ga jinsei sa)
Rating: | A fine achievement from the masters of weird.
 
When I heard the sad news that long-time drummer Makoto was out of cali≠gari, the future did not seem very bright for the band. At least, that's what I thought. cali≠gari have been kind of slacking off in terms of releases these past few years anyway – sporadic activity, lots of live-only and fanclub-only cash grabs, you name it. I, however, cannot hate them no matter what they do, as long as they deliver quality tunes I can get into. This album continues to prove that statement right, while at the same time asserting that they remain a force to be reckoned with, even as a three-piece.

12 is another typical cali≠gari full-length (as much as you can call such a quirky band 'typical'), packed with catchy melodies and occasional crazy outbursts. The band manages to find a decent balance between those two extremes. Gone are the days of totally mental freak-outs, like "Hakkyou Channel" for example, but they can still pack a punch when needed. Case in point, take the frantic trance-like pummeling punk of an opener "Warui yatsura", or the follow-up track "Noukaku Terror." These filthy little beasts contrast well with the album's brighter and airier compositions such as the gorgeous revamped version of "Tonight Toniyayaya" (proving that the creative juices are still flowing) or the sweet closing track "Sayonara dake ga jinsei sa", reminiscent of another old tune of farewell, "Good Bye."

The best bits of 12, however, are the instances where the band isn't afraid to openly show their love for '80s new wave and pop nostalgia. Songs like "Sex to uso", "Gimlet ni wa hayasugiru" and the like are characterized by big fat slappin' bass goodness, twinkly synths, sharp cleaned-up guitar tones and… is that saxophone I'm hearing?? Clearly, they spared no creative expense when arranging these fine pieces of 'updated throwback' music. There’s even a nod towards a sort of proto-VK atmosphere (very much like what they did around 1998-1999) in tracks like the swift "Sassou taru mirai-ken," the post-punk tinged sax-o-rama of "Crazy I Love You", and the aforementioned "Sayonara…". Altogether, these colorful elements make this full-length both enjoyable for hardened, long-time cali≠gari fanatics and those new to the band's curious antics.

Overall, 12 paints a picture of a band of 'professional eccentrics' who still know how to rock out as well as craft some interesting songs. The days of youth are gone, of course, so one mustn't expect an onslaught of all-out craziness. They more than make up for that with a big bunch of catchy moments that blends their past styles and influences into a powerful mixture that sounds anything but dated. In short, this is probably the best cali≠gari has done since their comeback. I cannot wait to see & hear what the future holds!


Support the band! 12 @ iTunes (Jp)
12 @ CDJapan
12 @ Yesasia

Yeahhhhh.... whatever you say, bruh.

Byo still sounds boring AND bored.

actually it's not the cover.
 
it's suppose to be new profile shots for the this album season.
 
http://www.55-69.com/discography/album/11620
 
http://www.55-69.com/discography/album/11627
 
these are the new album covers