Biopanda

childhood is idealizing brutal music.... adulthood is realizing that we are all slowly wasting away second by second, destined to die, and the universe will not shed a tear.... i mean ART KEI IS LIFE

They are literally the best I don't even care I'll stan them forever

Goddam I wish the bullet lasted. I still have both of those singles and every once in a while they get shuffled into my iPod and I remember their potential. Suit-kei's finest.

Harambkei

Waiting excitedly for it to be nowhere near me!

RAREZHUT last stream order arrived.
Always thanks to Waru for forwarding it~
 
Also the cat tape is amazing~
 
@Biopanda@Valicious@Waru Chibi
 

 

Get out of our girl's club :<

Just finished putting together a bunch of copies of RarezHut's first RH-exclusive distro CD~ Y'all can get a copy for free here if you like and find out more about the promotion.
 
I'm super excited about this because it's the first visual kei band that we've had the opportunity to work with and hopefully we'll be able to do more things like this in the future~

Just finished putting together a bunch of copies of RarezHut's first RH-exclusive distro CD~ Y'all can get a copy for free here if you like and find out more about the promotion.
 
I'm super excited about this because it's the first visual kei band that we've had the opportunity to work with and hopefully we'll be able to do more things like this in the future~

They probably read this, laughed amongst themselves while high-fiving, and said "We did it, guys!"

@Ito will probably have some good suggestions for you since he's been doing the MH panel over at Anime Central for like 30 years now or something.

@Ito will probably have some good suggestions for you since he's been doing the MH panel over at Anime Central for like 30 years now or something.

They're pretty much the ghostly reincarnation of a short-lived 90s indie band.

They're pretty much the ghostly reincarnation of a short-lived 90s indie band.

Wow... when they said "International Version", I guess they really meant it. Apparently if you live in Japan then Closet-Child won't even let you buy them.

[descends into the rarez inferno and unleashes a horde of pinokiwo live dists upon the innocent townsfolk]

excuse me, but
 

 

My good Sir, don't even entertain buying into that "looks don't matter" nonsense. The placement of every hair follicle is both an artistic as well as a political statement. Approach to taste should always be entirely holistic, and I refuse to believe there has ever been an auteur who has dressed bad. It is merely the mediocrity propaganda of idiots who think that when a visual element is so closely associated with rock music-the dressing up in cargo shorts and a backwards cap somehow transcendents these barriers to make the music "legitimate". With rock every promo picture, and even omitting to have them is a conscious decision in response to the tradition; even the most banal t shirt and shorts outfit is falsely considered a culturally neutral stance when in fact the opposite is true! Everything one does with ones appearance is a statement of values. The peacock who decides to not to ruffle its feathers will die childless! Colourful hair and leather pants are our strenght and virtue.
 
 

So it's end of the year best-of list time, and I wanted to get involved... but I realized with more and more streaming of music rather than mp3s, and more and more me being lazy and not really listening to as much new stuff as I should: my best of 2016 list would be incomplete and hard to make because what I've been listening to isn't as easily organized by year in Spotify.
 
But I'm a narcissist who still wanted to get in on the fun and write *something* so I decided to highlight some of my favorite, or at least notable for one reason or another, looks from the VK world in 2016. Visual is in the name after all! I know hipsters, such as myself, say that the looks don't matter and it's all about the music, man... but I'll freely admit even though I'm not looking at a picture of the band for 98% of my listening to them, the aesthetics matter and part of the reason I like VK is that I enjoy looking at pretty boys in elaborate costumes rather than bearded dudes in black tshirts.
 
With that in mind here is my partially tongue-in-cheek but also I seriously thought about it 10 Notable VK Looks of 2016:
 
 

Garak’s Vocalist ジュリ

I call this the James Dean x Jesus.
 

Insanity Injection Vocalist Kyouka

Because of that YouTubers react video, this look may be the VK shot heard ‘round the world. “Looks like Kerrigan” is pretty accurate shorthand for Kyouka’s possessed crab/snake cannibal spirit costume that is almost elaborate enough to explain what the hell he’s been doing for the last ten years.
 

ペンタゴン Bassist Minpha

The kawaii-ness is undisputed around these parts… I’m embracing dark Minpha and his crown of demonic scallop shells.
 

乙女国家 Band

I know it’s a VK trope, but I seriously like it when band members all pick a different color and just commit. I’m never going to learn their names, so it helps to just be able to reference “the yellow one who borrowed some gloves from Ensoku’s This is a Pen PV”. Also for anyone else who’s been there: was this photo taken at the ramen ‘museum’ (read: food court) in Yokohama?? It kinda reminds me of that spot.
 

Doak Band

As a rapidly balding dude, I appreciate when even fake-baldness gets some shine in VK. Shout-out to the dude from Codoma A!
 

Avelcain Vocalist Karma

I bow at the altar of Avelcain… and I’m on the record as loving black-suit-wearing VK looks. Add some fucking palpable *zetsubou* and a sword for no real reason!?? I’m sold.
 

Elysion Band

They get my vote for best golden age Matina cosplay of the year. I saw them in June and there was just tons of vinyl and straps and lace and bare thigh and a frilly white dress and… there’s no joke here they just had an awesome/classic look. I don’t even remember what they sounded like, but I remember thinking their outfits and makeup had to take hours to get right before the show.
 

Lack-co. Vocalist Tenten

What you thought I wasn’t going to include this transcendent “it’s coming in nice” puberty mustache dyed red?? You don’t know me very well. He’s got some sort of black sequin freckles happening too for some Annie vibes.
 

Nihilizm Band

Just a look that I think really kills. Those red lace blindfolds are just cool IDK. The member with the bob is a cutie.
 
ギャロ Vocalist Jojo

I always love Jojo’s extremely sparkly lipstick…. And in this video (and others this year) he wins the award for most dangerously low-rise pants in VK. Got them side abs! I also don’t really understand his fork hat, but fuck it if you can’t get weird in VK where can you?
 
Close but no cigar: Hollowgram's grown up/understated black looks, vocalist from More's curls and one satyr horn, Plastic Tree vocalist pushing the bounds of how cool he can make cutting his own hair look
Purposefully Omitted: The Black Swan blackface, any boring not-quite Kamijo look
 
Let me know why I'm wrong and what should have been on this list!
 

Okay y'all, why are you guys tro
 
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Harambkei

I somehow didn't see Hikarito's YT channel until just now and... fucking wow am I blown away. He is so insanely talented and it's just bumped up my hype for this album to 11.

Aww yeee gimme that saccharine märchen-kei.
 
Also diggin this cus baboo is my nickname for my dog :'v

Check this shit... like literally everything
https://www.youtube.com/user/hikaritoofficial/videos

lo-fi electronic kei that sounds like a usagi-chang reject and is thematically based in Inspiring pinterest posts... it's catnip to me, obviously