Zeus

This should not surprise anyone. At all. I'm amazed it took them this long to do it.

Score: | I like my coffee with two cubes of sugar and a lot less polish.
 
I almost gave up on this album on the disappointing introductory twangs four seconds in, but I told Augie that I owed him at least a half-decent review so I stuck it out. Much to the chagrin of my sassy side, this album improved quickly enough that I could finish it and give a fair, unbiased review. Or as close to a fair, unbiased review as I get.
 
Eyes Blood Red is one of the only things that reminds me that this band is Japanese. A large majority of the time, this sounds like radio friendly rock with just enough aggression to make a soccer mom snub her nose and change the station back to Radio Disney. This is mostly the fault of the vocalist, who sounds generic in the sense that I feel like I've heard him as the frontman for many other nameless bands many a shopping mall has forcibly impressed into my ear canals over the years. There is no unique qualities in either his clean vocals or harsh vocals that separates him from anyone else so while I can't say that he's terrible I can say that he isn't memorable.
 
I dropped the mall bit on purpose, because if you prodded me into describing what I just heard I would describe it as "mallcore". The derogatory term would aptly describe many facets of this band's sound but there's just enough different in each song that I would drop the source off at the doorstep of the raunchiest Hot Topic, except not really because the music that plays in Hot Topic is almost universally awful. So I wouldn't really be able to find something like this anywhere other than MTV with a focus on commercial, easy going rock with a penchant for pulling the rug out from underneath you, but at least it's not associated with red and black studded jeans that make me feel oh so misunderstood because I'm fifteen and my hormones are raging.
 
Because that's truly what this album is to me - misunderstood. I don't make it a habit to listen to music styled like this because it doesn't do much for me. I can't drill down and get out of it what Augie does. I do note the very present guitars and drumwork. The guitars are so present that sometimes the bass can disappear. I also don't like the tone of the bass pedal. Other than that, the album just shines, even if it's a little too "loud". 2Side1BRAIN sounds like they're right in front of me when the album is playing and this is a quality I do not get out of too many albums, especially ones that aren't even in lossless. With some more dynamic range, this album would be ear candy for my setup.
 
What drags the entire album down and beats it with a dull brick until it gasps for mercy are the predictable transitions. Every single transition in this album is either the sound of the void creeping in before the band puts on their angry faces and jumps into a breakdown or an explosion back into the chorus where the vocalist digs down deep and sings with respectable English. The breakdowns can definitely go and be replaced with something more interesting because they all sound the same. They also don't fit with the overall vibe the band is working with. If there weren't the guitar tricks and the sonic quality of the tracks themselves to content me, I would have turned this off by track three. The monotony can become overbearing and the album ends just when you begin to notice. One or two tracks more and the score would have really suffered for it.
 
Oh, but how do I feel about the album? It's 'aight, I guess.

Have you received 5 albums already? I only count 4 in this thread, so I'm posting my recommendation anyway. U BETTER LISTEN TO IT CUZ I DIDNT UPLOAD THIS 4 NOTHIN
 

 
I'm sending you j-rock-jazz-pop gods Tokyo Jihen's sophomore album Adult. I love the way this band tackles rock and pop tunes with a fresh sounding jazzier edge. Their first album and the albums after Adult all play with a certain smoky lounge atmosphere, but it's this album that truly embraces it. It's the perfect place to start if you haven't listened to them yet; there is a lot to love here.

Score: | *sigh*
 
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome the most obnoxious visual kei release this year.
 
What makes Madrigal de Maria obnoxious?
Unforgivably cheap imitations of Kyo (Dir en grey) wails, shrieks, screams, coos, and gutturals for no other reason than to have wails, shrieks, screams, coos, and gutturals.
  Inconsistency of instrument quality. Compare the piano from Demons Cradle to the piano in 斑-まだら- and to the piano in 優シク殺シテ. Toy piano much?
  Very tacky use of synthesizer in some places.
  Sections of songs are ripped straight out of other Dir en grey songs. 嘘にまみれた真実の底 emulates 艶かしき安息、躊躇いに微笑み near the end. Demons Cradle's intro is reminiscent of THE BLOSSOMING BEELZEBUB until all that MIDI garbage kicks in. 斑-まだら-'s is Vinushka x Different Sense from the backing growls during the first half of the chorus to the guitar solo right after the chorus to the gutturals lifting heavily from the Opethian passages of Vinushka. There are others scattered through the album too. I'm not one to rag on Sadie for their influences but it's so prevalent and badly incorporated that it universally detracts from my enjoyment of the album. If I really want to listen to Dir en grey, I'm just going to listen to Dir en grey, not Sadie's poor interpretation of it.
  Decadence. That song alone is bad enough to knock a star off the total score.
  A complete lack of conceptual execution. The overly Photoshopped, Cunning Killer 12012-esque album art could easily deceive a listener into expecting a brooding, darker, more mature album from Sadie. Right?

NO.

Sure, the first three tracks sound like they at least made an attempt to be DUM SPIRO SPERO Diru on a budget, but then after Decadence they decided to throw all that out the window and progress with business as usual until the end. The sad thing is, I don't think that it was a bad decision at the end of the album. Those first three tracks should have been dropped.
  No sense of flow from song to song. I've got standard Dir en grey worship, electro rock, acoustic ballads, pop-rock and bluesy leads in the first eight tracks. I like experimentation but even within experimentation I expect consistency.
  A bottom-heavy tracklist forces you to get to track seven before you actually -meet- new Sadie. Anything remotely worth listening to comes after Viper. I actually wanted to like this album too, believe it or not, but this is almost everything I hate about Sadie encapsulated in one album. I despise how much I can separate actual Sadie from their influences because when they want to be original, they can devise some great songs. They just choose not to.
 
I won't front completely because I do like a select few tracks from this album, which is the only reason why this album gets that second star.  Those tracks would be 斑-まだら-, Viper, 優シク殺シテ (somewhat), Face to Face, and 雪月花 (note how all of those tracks are at the end of the album). There's nothing as face-obliteratingly bad as BLACK STARS or GREEDY EMOTION, but everything else is not worth your time.
 
Sadie, you were not ready to release this. Try releasing an album full of music independent of Dir en grey for once. Or for once just admit that you can't do metalcore and stick to lighter, frillier music because you really do do it so much better.

Anyone who would steal band equipment is an asshole.

Anyone who would steal band equipment is an asshole.

Soooo since I can't write a good review based off of two songs, I'll skip Velovelo's request for now until I get a recommended album. Onto 大橋トリオ (ohashi trio) "White"!

Score: | I like my coffee with two cubes of sugar and a lot less polish.
 
I almost gave up on this album on the disappointing introductory twangs four seconds in, but I told Augie that I owed him at least a half-decent review so I stuck it out. Much to the chagrin of my sassy side, this album improved quickly enough that I could finish it and give a fair, unbiased review. Or as close to a fair, unbiased review as I get.
 
Eyes Blood Red is one of the only things that reminds me that this band is Japanese. A large majority of the time, this sounds like radio friendly rock with just enough aggression to make a soccer mom snub her nose and change the station back to Radio Disney. This is mostly the fault of the vocalist, who sounds generic in the sense that I feel like I've heard him as the frontman for many other nameless bands many a shopping mall has forcibly impressed into my ear canals over the years. There is no unique qualities in either his clean vocals or harsh vocals that separates him from anyone else so while I can't say that he's terrible I can say that he isn't memorable.
 
I dropped the mall bit on purpose, because if you prodded me into describing what I just heard I would describe it as "mallcore". The derogatory term would aptly describe many facets of this band's sound but there's just enough different in each song that I would drop the source off at the doorstep of the raunchiest Hot Topic, except not really because the music that plays in Hot Topic is almost universally awful. So I wouldn't really be able to find something like this anywhere other than MTV with a focus on commercial, easy going rock with a penchant for pulling the rug out from underneath you, but at least it's not associated with red and black studded jeans that make me feel oh so misunderstood because I'm fifteen and my hormones are raging.
 
Because that's truly what this album is to me - misunderstood. I don't make it a habit to listen to music styled like this because it doesn't do much for me. I can't drill down and get out of it what Augie does. I do note the very present guitars and drumwork. The guitars are so present that sometimes the bass can disappear. I also don't like the tone of the bass pedal. Other than that, the album just shines, even if it's a little too "loud". 2Side1BRAIN sounds like they're right in front of me when the album is playing and this is a quality I do not get out of too many albums, especially ones that aren't even in lossless. With some more dynamic range, this album would be ear candy for my setup.
 
What drags the entire album down and beats it with a dull brick until it gasps for mercy are the predictable transitions. Every single transition in this album is either the sound of the void creeping in before the band puts on their angry faces and jumps into a breakdown or an explosion back into the chorus where the vocalist digs down deep and sings with respectable English. The breakdowns can definitely go and be replaced with something more interesting because they all sound the same. They also don't fit with the overall vibe the band is working with. If there weren't the guitar tricks and the sonic quality of the tracks themselves to content me, I would have turned this off by track three. The monotony can become overbearing and the album ends just when you begin to notice. One or two tracks more and the score would have really suffered for it.
 
Oh, but how do I feel about the album? It's 'aight, I guess.

Score | If an album ever left me sitting on the fence deciding if I enjoyed it as much as I thought I did, this would be it.
 
六合 (Rikugo) is a very difficult band to describe. They classify themselves as "influenced by rock, metal, gothic abroad" but I disagree somewhat with the second term and completely with the third. They're definitely a rock band, heavy and melodious, but with a nice handful of other instruments and influences strewn about that they like to downplay. 宵闇の残光 is a surprise for the uninitiated listener and by not focusing on any particular influence, 六合 crafts a sound all their own. Each track is distinct and the tone is always set by the omnipresent but never overbearing synthesizer work; moving guitar lines, present bass and the occasional piano twinkle pull out some occasionally proggy material that goes down great when I'm in the mood for it. There is no point at which I felt a song was too long or filler, which is a compliment I rarely give out.
 
This album would have gone over so much better for me if it weren't for the vocalist.
 
He barely does each song justice. He is consistently out of tune and threatens to go off the rails at any moment. This is the one and only flaw to the band and the album, but it's enough to knock off quite a few from the overall score. At times I wish someone - anyone else - would come in and save the day. It doesn't happen. If you can look past the off-key vocals, you're going to find a solid album. I can see why this is one of greeeeen's favorites.
 
I see that they have a new album out, with a focus on a more futuristic sound three years in the making. If the vocalist has improved between then and now, we may have an album of the year on our hands. But as it is, 六合 hasn't fully converted me into a fan. Yet.

How cute, fotzkopp. Your very first post is such a great impression. /s
 
Allow me to pass on a bit of knowledge to you: if you want to stick around this forum much longer you'll apologize and cut the shit out. Monochrome Heaven does not tolerate unprovoked attacks on other members. This is your one and only warning.

madygrain, don't even bother responding to him.

Score: | *sigh*
 
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome the most obnoxious visual kei release this year.
 
What makes Madrigal de Maria obnoxious?
Unforgivably cheap imitations of Kyo (Dir en grey) wails, shrieks, screams, coos, and gutturals for no other reason than to have wails, shrieks, screams, coos, and gutturals.
  Inconsistency of instrument quality. Compare the piano from Demons Cradle to the piano in 斑-まだら- and to the piano in 優シク殺シテ. Toy piano much?
  Very tacky use of synthesizer in some places.
  Sections of songs are ripped straight out of other Dir en grey songs. 嘘にまみれた真実の底 emulates 艶かしき安息、躊躇いに微笑み near the end. Demons Cradle's intro is reminiscent of THE BLOSSOMING BEELZEBUB until all that MIDI garbage kicks in. 斑-まだら-'s is Vinushka x Different Sense from the backing growls during the first half of the chorus to the guitar solo right after the chorus to the gutturals lifting heavily from the Opethian passages of Vinushka. There are others scattered through the album too. I'm not one to rag on Sadie for their influences but it's so prevalent and badly incorporated that it universally detracts from my enjoyment of the album. If I really want to listen to Dir en grey, I'm just going to listen to Dir en grey, not Sadie's poor interpretation of it.
  Decadence. That song alone is bad enough to knock a star off the total score.
  A complete lack of conceptual execution. The overly Photoshopped, Cunning Killer 12012-esque album art could easily deceive a listener into expecting a brooding, darker, more mature album from Sadie. Right?

NO.

Sure, the first three tracks sound like they at least made an attempt to be DUM SPIRO SPERO Diru on a budget, but then after Decadence they decided to throw all that out the window and progress with business as usual until the end. The sad thing is, I don't think that it was a bad decision at the end of the album. Those first three tracks should have been dropped.
  No sense of flow from song to song. I've got standard Dir en grey worship, electro rock, acoustic ballads, pop-rock and bluesy leads in the first eight tracks. I like experimentation but even within experimentation I expect consistency.
  A bottom-heavy tracklist forces you to get to track seven before you actually -meet- new Sadie. Anything remotely worth listening to comes after Viper. I actually wanted to like this album too, believe it or not, but this is almost everything I hate about Sadie encapsulated in one album. I despise how much I can separate actual Sadie from their influences because when they want to be original, they can devise some great songs. They just choose not to.
 
I won't front completely because I do like a select few tracks from this album, which is the only reason why this album gets that second star.  Those tracks would be 斑-まだら-, Viper, 優シク殺シテ (somewhat), Face to Face, and 雪月花 (note how all of those tracks are at the end of the album). There's nothing as face-obliteratingly bad as BLACK STARS or GREEDY EMOTION, but everything else is not worth your time.
 
Sadie, you were not ready to release this. Try releasing an album full of music independent of Dir en grey for once. Or for once just admit that you can't do metalcore and stick to lighter, frillier music because you really do do it so much better.

The premise of this topic is easy. The first five people to post in this topic with an artist and a release (and provide/PM me a link) will get my thoughts on them. Why would anyone care about what I think?
I think I'm the most hilarious person ever and this is mostly to amuse myself. I will put efforts into all the reviews like I normally do. If you ever wanted me to listen to something or to know what I think about it, now is your chance! The rules are simple:
First five people to post in this topic are the ones whose releases I will listen to. Duplicate releases will get ignored. I'll write all five reviews in the review forum whenever I digest each release properly. Said suggestion should be sent to me in at least decent quality (192 kbps). One release per person per topic. I will be doing more of these if it gets popular. The release must be Japanese. I don't care about genres. Here's my last.fm if you think it will help.
 
GO!

Yes to all three of those points Peace.
I am not sure how effective detailing each of the mod members contributions are in the long run. There is a definite lack of "front end" work being done on our part. This we have acknowledged and are aiming to fix immediately as to give ourselves more of a presence on the forum. This we can promise you.
However, let's keep this topic more in line with constructive criticism and less with a vague witch hunt for inactive moderators. We can make changes if we get suggestions. Simply demanding someone be fired does nothing for anyone.

The premise of this topic is easy. The first five people to post in this topic with an artist and a release (and provide/PM me a link) will get my thoughts on them. Why would anyone care about what I think?
I think I'm the most hilarious person ever and this is mostly to amuse myself. I will put efforts into all the reviews like I normally do. If you ever wanted me to listen to something or to know what I think about it, now is your chance! The rules are simple:
First five people to post in this topic are the ones whose releases I will listen to. Duplicate releases will get ignored. I'll write all five reviews in the review forum whenever I digest each release properly. Said suggestion should be sent to me in at least decent quality (192 kbps). One release per person per topic. I will be doing more of these if it gets popular. The release must be Japanese. I don't care about genres. Here's my last.fm if you think it will help.
 
GO!

Score: | *sigh*
 
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome the most obnoxious visual kei release this year.
 
What makes Madrigal de Maria obnoxious?
Unforgivably cheap imitations of Kyo (Dir en grey) wails, shrieks, screams, coos, and gutturals for no other reason than to have wails, shrieks, screams, coos, and gutturals.
  Inconsistency of instrument quality. Compare the piano from Demons Cradle to the piano in 斑-まだら- and to the piano in 優シク殺シテ. Toy piano much?
  Very tacky use of synthesizer in some places.
  Sections of songs are ripped straight out of other Dir en grey songs. 嘘にまみれた真実の底 emulates 艶かしき安息、躊躇いに微笑み near the end. Demons Cradle's intro is reminiscent of THE BLOSSOMING BEELZEBUB until all that MIDI garbage kicks in. 斑-まだら-'s is Vinushka x Different Sense from the backing growls during the first half of the chorus to the guitar solo right after the chorus to the gutturals lifting heavily from the Opethian passages of Vinushka. There are others scattered through the album too. I'm not one to rag on Sadie for their influences but it's so prevalent and badly incorporated that it universally detracts from my enjoyment of the album. If I really want to listen to Dir en grey, I'm just going to listen to Dir en grey, not Sadie's poor interpretation of it.
  Decadence. That song alone is bad enough to knock a star off the total score.
  A complete lack of conceptual execution. The overly Photoshopped, Cunning Killer 12012-esque album art could easily deceive a listener into expecting a brooding, darker, more mature album from Sadie. Right?

NO.

Sure, the first three tracks sound like they at least made an attempt to be DUM SPIRO SPERO Diru on a budget, but then after Decadence they decided to throw all that out the window and progress with business as usual until the end. The sad thing is, I don't think that it was a bad decision at the end of the album. Those first three tracks should have been dropped.
  No sense of flow from song to song. I've got standard Dir en grey worship, electro rock, acoustic ballads, pop-rock and bluesy leads in the first eight tracks. I like experimentation but even within experimentation I expect consistency.
  A bottom-heavy tracklist forces you to get to track seven before you actually -meet- new Sadie. Anything remotely worth listening to comes after Viper. I actually wanted to like this album too, believe it or not, but this is almost everything I hate about Sadie encapsulated in one album. I despise how much I can separate actual Sadie from their influences because when they want to be original, they can devise some great songs. They just choose not to.
 
I won't front completely because I do like a select few tracks from this album, which is the only reason why this album gets that second star.  Those tracks would be 斑-まだら-, Viper, 優シク殺シテ (somewhat), Face to Face, and 雪月花 (note how all of those tracks are at the end of the album). There's nothing as face-obliteratingly bad as BLACK STARS or GREEDY EMOTION, but everything else is not worth your time.
 
Sadie, you were not ready to release this. Try releasing an album full of music independent of Dir en grey for once. Or for once just admit that you can't do metalcore and stick to lighter, frillier music because you really do do it so much better.

Score: | *sigh*
 
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome the most obnoxious visual kei release this year.
 
What makes Madrigal de Maria obnoxious?
Unforgivably cheap imitations of Kyo (Dir en grey) wails, shrieks, screams, coos, and gutturals for no other reason than to have wails, shrieks, screams, coos, and gutturals.
  Inconsistency of instrument quality. Compare the piano from Demons Cradle to the piano in 斑-まだら- and to the piano in 優シク殺シテ. Toy piano much?
  Very tacky use of synthesizer in some places.
  Sections of songs are ripped straight out of other Dir en grey songs. 嘘にまみれた真実の底 emulates 艶かしき安息、躊躇いに微笑み near the end. Demons Cradle's intro is reminiscent of THE BLOSSOMING BEELZEBUB until all that MIDI garbage kicks in. 斑-まだら-'s is Vinushka x Different Sense from the backing growls during the first half of the chorus to the guitar solo right after the chorus to the gutturals lifting heavily from the Opethian passages of Vinushka. There are others scattered through the album too. I'm not one to rag on Sadie for their influences but it's so prevalent and badly incorporated that it universally detracts from my enjoyment of the album. If I really want to listen to Dir en grey, I'm just going to listen to Dir en grey, not Sadie's poor interpretation of it.
  Decadence. That song alone is bad enough to knock a star off the total score.
  A complete lack of conceptual execution. The overly Photoshopped, Cunning Killer 12012-esque album art could easily deceive a listener into expecting a brooding, darker, more mature album from Sadie. Right?

NO.

Sure, the first three tracks sound like they at least made an attempt to be DUM SPIRO SPERO Diru on a budget, but then after Decadence they decided to throw all that out the window and progress with business as usual until the end. The sad thing is, I don't think that it was a bad decision at the end of the album. Those first three tracks should have been dropped.
  No sense of flow from song to song. I've got standard Dir en grey worship, electro rock, acoustic ballads, pop-rock and bluesy leads in the first eight tracks. I like experimentation but even within experimentation I expect consistency.
  A bottom-heavy tracklist forces you to get to track seven before you actually -meet- new Sadie. Anything remotely worth listening to comes after Viper. I actually wanted to like this album too, believe it or not, but this is almost everything I hate about Sadie encapsulated in one album. I despise how much I can separate actual Sadie from their influences because when they want to be original, they can devise some great songs. They just choose not to.
 
I won't front completely because I do like a select few tracks from this album, which is the only reason why this album gets that second star.  Those tracks would be 斑-まだら-, Viper, 優シク殺シテ (somewhat), Face to Face, and 雪月花 (note how all of those tracks are at the end of the album). There's nothing as face-obliteratingly bad as BLACK STARS or GREEDY EMOTION, but everything else is not worth your time.
 
Sadie, you were not ready to release this. Try releasing an album full of music independent of Dir en grey for once. Or for once just admit that you can't do metalcore and stick to lighter, frillier music because you really do do it so much better.

Score: | *sigh*
 
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome the most obnoxious visual kei release this year.
 
What makes Madrigal de Maria obnoxious?
Unforgivably cheap imitations of Kyo (Dir en grey) wails, shrieks, screams, coos, and gutturals for no other reason than to have wails, shrieks, screams, coos, and gutturals.
  Inconsistency of instrument quality. Compare the piano from Demons Cradle to the piano in 斑-まだら- and to the piano in 優シク殺シテ. Toy piano much?
  Very tacky use of synthesizer in some places.
  Sections of songs are ripped straight out of other Dir en grey songs. 嘘にまみれた真実の底 emulates 艶かしき安息、躊躇いに微笑み near the end. Demons Cradle's intro is reminiscent of THE BLOSSOMING BEELZEBUB until all that MIDI garbage kicks in. 斑-まだら-'s is Vinushka x Different Sense from the backing growls during the first half of the chorus to the guitar solo right after the chorus to the gutturals lifting heavily from the Opethian passages of Vinushka. There are others scattered through the album too. I'm not one to rag on Sadie for their influences but it's so prevalent and badly incorporated that it universally detracts from my enjoyment of the album. If I really want to listen to Dir en grey, I'm just going to listen to Dir en grey, not Sadie's poor interpretation of it.
  Decadence. That song alone is bad enough to knock a star off the total score.
  A complete lack of conceptual execution. The overly Photoshopped, Cunning Killer 12012-esque album art could easily deceive a listener into expecting a brooding, darker, more mature album from Sadie. Right?

NO.

Sure, the first three tracks sound like they at least made an attempt to be DUM SPIRO SPERO Diru on a budget, but then after Decadence they decided to throw all that out the window and progress with business as usual until the end. The sad thing is, I don't think that it was a bad decision at the end of the album. Those first three tracks should have been dropped.
  No sense of flow from song to song. I've got standard Dir en grey worship, electro rock, acoustic ballads, pop-rock and bluesy leads in the first eight tracks. I like experimentation but even within experimentation I expect consistency.
  A bottom-heavy tracklist forces you to get to track seven before you actually -meet- new Sadie. Anything remotely worth listening to comes after Viper. I actually wanted to like this album too, believe it or not, but this is almost everything I hate about Sadie encapsulated in one album. I despise how much I can separate actual Sadie from their influences because when they want to be original, they can devise some great songs. They just choose not to.
 
I won't front completely because I do like a select few tracks from this album, which is the only reason why this album gets that second star.  Those tracks would be 斑-まだら-, Viper, 優シク殺シテ (somewhat), Face to Face, and 雪月花 (note how all of those tracks are at the end of the album). There's nothing as face-obliteratingly bad as BLACK STARS or GREEDY EMOTION, but everything else is not worth your time.
 
Sadie, you were not ready to release this. Try releasing an album full of music independent of Dir en grey for once. Or for once just admit that you can't do metalcore and stick to lighter, frillier music because you really do do it so much better.

Try Thiefing them from wild Clefairy if you're really desperate. They're a 5% chance but it really shouldn't take that long since if they don't have it you can just run.

Score: | *sigh*
 
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome the most obnoxious visual kei release this year.
 
What makes Madrigal de Maria obnoxious?
Unforgivably cheap imitations of Kyo (Dir en grey) wails, shrieks, screams, coos, and gutturals for no other reason than to have wails, shrieks, screams, coos, and gutturals.
  Inconsistency of instrument quality. Compare the piano from Demons Cradle to the piano in 斑-まだら- and to the piano in 優シク殺シテ. Toy piano much?
  Very tacky use of synthesizer in some places.
  Sections of songs are ripped straight out of other Dir en grey songs. 嘘にまみれた真実の底 emulates 艶かしき安息、躊躇いに微笑み near the end. Demons Cradle's intro is reminiscent of THE BLOSSOMING BEELZEBUB until all that MIDI garbage kicks in. 斑-まだら-'s is Vinushka x Different Sense from the backing growls during the first half of the chorus to the guitar solo right after the chorus to the gutturals lifting heavily from the Opethian passages of Vinushka. There are others scattered through the album too. I'm not one to rag on Sadie for their influences but it's so prevalent and badly incorporated that it universally detracts from my enjoyment of the album. If I really want to listen to Dir en grey, I'm just going to listen to Dir en grey, not Sadie's poor interpretation of it.
  Decadence. That song alone is bad enough to knock a star off the total score.
  A complete lack of conceptual execution. The overly Photoshopped, Cunning Killer 12012-esque album art could easily deceive a listener into expecting a brooding, darker, more mature album from Sadie. Right?

NO.

Sure, the first three tracks sound like they at least made an attempt to be DUM SPIRO SPERO Diru on a budget, but then after Decadence they decided to throw all that out the window and progress with business as usual until the end. The sad thing is, I don't think that it was a bad decision at the end of the album. Those first three tracks should have been dropped.
  No sense of flow from song to song. I've got standard Dir en grey worship, electro rock, acoustic ballads, pop-rock and bluesy leads in the first eight tracks. I like experimentation but even within experimentation I expect consistency.
  A bottom-heavy tracklist forces you to get to track seven before you actually -meet- new Sadie. Anything remotely worth listening to comes after Viper. I actually wanted to like this album too, believe it or not, but this is almost everything I hate about Sadie encapsulated in one album. I despise how much I can separate actual Sadie from their influences because when they want to be original, they can devise some great songs. They just choose not to.
 
I won't front completely because I do like a select few tracks from this album, which is the only reason why this album gets that second star.  Those tracks would be 斑-まだら-, Viper, 優シク殺シテ (somewhat), Face to Face, and 雪月花 (note how all of those tracks are at the end of the album). There's nothing as face-obliteratingly bad as BLACK STARS or GREEDY EMOTION, but everything else is not worth your time.
 
Sadie, you were not ready to release this. Try releasing an album full of music independent of Dir en grey for once. Or for once just admit that you can't do metalcore and stick to lighter, frillier music because you really do do it so much better.

fuck you like 10 times

This game is so wavy. It really feels like you're playing Pokemon for the first time again because you have no idea what's going on. Also, it makes 3 hours pass by like nothing.

ur going down brown suga

So there you have it: if you want a dedicated subforum for a topic, you have to show there is significant demand for it. We only want to create a subforum if we know it will be used. So go out there, start some topics and see if you can get enough momentum going. We'll revisit this topic in a few months when we have more information.

If anything deserves to get their own subforum, then I think it would indeed be "non-vk" Jrock. This has been discussed among staff several times before, specifically for the DL section. We hoped a tagging system would help out, but obviously while people tag uploads as "visual kei", nobody would really tag their files with "non-vk", so there isn't really a good way to sort the forum for jrock outside of vk.
 
I think a decent amount of activity has to come first, then the subforums. So my advice to anyone who wants a special subforum for their specific niche: talk about it! There are places to discuss allmost anything in here. But the person who started this thread and is so passionate about K-Pop that they want a seperate discussion forum for it hasn't posted ONCE in the Global Music Forum in any of the existing K-Pop threads. Why should we think they are more active in a subforum?
 
Show us that you care! Post about your favourite topics! If you know there are other people around with the same interestes, encourage them to join the discussion! If there really is a lot of activity for any certain niche, may it be Kpop, or Anime, or raw trve chinese underground black metal, then creating a seperate forum for it is a much more viable option.

Score: | The Japanese noise rock titans are back!!


...although it's debatable if they ever went anywhere to begin with.

Fetch is a righteous kick in the ass. It has everything I've come to love about Melt-Banana - the chirpy vocals with unintelligible lyrics, the smorgasboard of guitar sounds that even Sigh would be jealous of, spastic drums, meaty bass, and songs that race by at a mile a minute. All has been quiet on the melty banana front for a while, and the three-piece is now a two-piece, but the band proves they still have what it takes to be considered noise rock titans.

Fetch isn't about the music; it's about the experience (much like how you probably don't want to be strapped to the top of a speeding car but the adrenaline rush is undeniable). It's pure energy pressed to disc and the production is acceptably lo-fi, which adds to the overall craziness Melt-Banana embodies. There is a definite improvement over Cell-Scape and Bambi's Dilemma here in that the songs fit together very well. Short songs and long songs work well together and the pace doesn't stop right up until the end, where it slows down just enough to speed right back up and end the album with a bang. Or bang#53, since there are about 52 other sound effects that did the same thing in all the previous tracks. On multiple listens, once you peel back the layers, you'll come to have an appreciation for how well the noise is integrated into the music. It's simple but complex at the same time.

Fetch isn't an easy album to listen to. It disregards a lot of what people have come to expect from their musical experience. It blends noise and music in a way that makes you either like it or hate it. There is no middle ground. If you don't mind high-pitched female vocals, evolving song structures and a lot of experimentation, Fetch may find a place in your heart. Stick with the title track Candy Gun, which serves as a composite for the entire album. If you like it, you'll like Fetch. If you don't, you won't.

Or if you've ever wondered what Pikachu sounds like fronting a metal band, that's cool too.