Original Saku

Since it's finally the new year, and the holidays are over, I'm looking to grow the server. We already have a little group of active people in the chat and that's great that people have taken a liken to the service but I think it could stand to be a little more lively at times. To do this we need to find new ways to encourage members to give it a try, and also to give them reasons to stick around.
 
So basically we need to get the word out in the community. We have a banner and this thread, but these things can be easily missed. So let you're friends know about the discord server and encourage them to stop by for a friendly chat when they're bored.
 
On the other ticket, we need to make the server more inviting and piratical. At this moment in time there are only two channels within the server #General and #Random. these were just placeholder channels that I made when I originally created the server. If anyone has ideas for more specific channels let me know and I can add more to the server, both text and voice channels.
 
Which brings me to another matter of contention, is anybody interested in voice chat? I know that some people can be a little shy, so no pressure on them to use voice. but I also know that there are others who are not so timid. I personally would love to talk to some of you fine people over mic. Let me know.
 
And now the final piece of business. Mods. if you're interested in being a mod on the server let me know. Of course you will have to prove yourself by being active in the chat and having a good track record here on the forum, but I have no problem relinquishing some of that power to you lesser chatters
 
 

In all honesty I haven't used the voice chat much, so I can't really comment on that, but the text chat is excellent and leagues beyond what we've been using here on the forums.
 

^omfg i randomly saw a gameplay of gal gun on youtube once and it looks weird and ecchi af lol.
 
i started The Last Guardian yesterday and it looks amazing as expected!! so happy to be able to finally play it. i can't even begin to explain how amazing it is because it's really all about the experience. if you've played ICO and Shadow of the Colossus before though you can expect something similar. it's so hard to put the game down once i start.

Glad to have joined this thread even in this month!
I see that the love for Decays is not only mine, and that's awesome, hoping to listen to more of them in the new year.
@Original SakuI have had chills when I listened to that song by Onmyo-za, the harmony between the singers is exceptional, for not talking about the rest!
Nice to see even Razor, R-Shitei (which are surprising me more!) and Ai!

Dat 88kasyo's track was dope af.
Also liked Kaneko Ayano

I saw and finished Drifters and I thought it was above average at best. I liked it was gory fun at times but in other eps it was boring AF with too much dialogue. I had a hard time keeping myself awake in the final episode.
 
Honestly, the one show that took me by surprise was Girlish Number. Just by the looks, it was way outta my radar but after giving it a chance, I was hooked. It reminded me of Shirobako, except it was focused on voice actors. It may look like a moe show but man it's subtlety depressing with hints of hope.

i've been planing to watch Drifters since i first heard about anime adaptation. read manga 5 years ago, after having that shitty void because of watching Hellsing OVAs lol. there were only twenty-something chapters at that time and the gap between each new chapter was around 3 months iirc. for my own sake i decided to drop manga and wait for the time when it'll hit complete status. i heard there's also going to be second season of Drifters, so i'm not in a hurry to watch the first for now. I CAN MANAGE TO WAIT A COUPLE MORE MONTHS AFTER ALL THESE YEARS ANYWAY. and well, i've just started rewatching Gintama... that'll keep me busy for quite a while ;w;

Just a few pics here. I'll update this post sometime later.
 

 

well when I get off of work tomorrow  I'll check to see if a session is going on, if not then I'll just start one

So... anybody down for new years eve plug session tomorrow night?
 
I get off of work at 5PM CST so I'm pretty much down to chill and spin tunes all tomorrow night till 2017

You need to do a Zaku some time, man
Great collection!

45-50 min has always been a sweet spot for me

Here's a sneak peak at my current project
 

HGBF 1/144 Wing Gundam Fenice straight build WIP
 
Just a snap build with a little light sanding on the nub marks. Next I have to panel line it and then topcoat.
 
More pics soon.

So I recently took the plunge into the world of gunpla...  which was something I've been wanting to do for years, and now that I have the income to support the hobby I'm finally getting into building.
 
I figured I'll make a gunpla thread and see who else has taken to the hobby and maybe drum up some interest among people who may not know about gunpla.
 
I just finished my first build myself and I'm really pleased with it.  I chose a HG Shining Gundam 1/144 model as my first kit, one of my favorite gundam frames.
 

 
here's some finished pictures that i snapped with my phone
 
I'm extremely happy with how it turned out, there for a while I didn't know if it was gonna pan out. I probably put around 25 hours into the kit. Approximately 7-9 hours putting it together which includes sanding and other prep. I panel lined as much as I could which is what took the longest at around 12 hours trying to get it just right. And then 3-4 hours prepping the model and spraying for a matte top coat finish. Next time I can see it not taking nearly as long since I'm now more used to these techniques.
 
anyone else on the forum build gunpla or has an interest in gunpla in general? Let me/us know. I plan on looking into how to build a lightbox for pictures soon, I will of course need a better camera than my phone first though xD
 
I already have my next kit planned out... It will be HG 1/144 Gundam Wing Fenice from GBF, I plan on getting started on it sometime next month after a I take a break for a few weeks.
 
 

So... anybody down for new years eve plug session tomorrow night?
 
I get off of work at 5PM CST so I'm pretty much down to chill and spin tunes all tomorrow night till 2017

So... anybody down for new years eve plug session tomorrow night?
 
I get off of work at 5PM CST so I'm pretty much down to chill and spin tunes all tomorrow night till 2017

Ever since I played Vanquish for PS3 years ago, I had hoped they would return to this style of action for quite some time. Been a fan of Platinum since that game.
I was very impressed at the similarity to detail and action during gameplay for NieR: Automata, and hopefully the character design does not get altered.

Time moves on and irrelevant art forms and their instruments get thrown into the very crowded dustbin of history. If you have any doubt about this, I'd like to ask you to name the top 10 premier bebop musicians today, or how about something that sounds like it was from the paradise garage? how about poodle rock? is anyone playing like Weber lately while painting like Monet and catching the salon by storm? They're all gone from the popular consciousness and live as mere perverse retro curiosities ( new post-punk and goth rock fucking eww ) for a handful of people. Scenes, genres and movements always come, go and never come back in the same form. If you ask an enthusiast he'll no doubt tell you about all the killer up and comers, but that's all bunk and they know it too. Nobody's touching Billie Holliday, there's not going to be a new Beatles, nobody's turning back the clock and doing nu-Bach in a manner that won't be scoffed upon by anyone who's serious and in the know. Visual kei in that regard is, to be quite honest, finished. I'd say its creative, artistic peak ended right when the turn of the millenia labels dissolved, and the European boom was caused both by the hot air from that period and the aptness of visual kei musicians to appropriate the emo/scene stylings as mentioned before (see the mallgoth act D'espairsray and nu metal Girugamesh for proof of this ). Visual kei's adaptability has given it such a lifeline for sure. There's not a whole lot of genres that can keep moving the needle and making money both domestically and internationally the way that it has. We've literally outlived and survived the deaths of hair metal, goth and mallcore. Probably only the general metal subculture can boast such a staying power, and they too have been struggling to stay on the surface since all that Anthrax skate metal and the alt-rock Metallica boom faded away. Now even big names can't sell out in fucking _Finland_ and underground classics struggle to pull. In my pessimistic thinking we are at the tail end of this rock guitar saga, and it's due to the gradual withering away of rock music's cultural and demographic base. 
 
I have my own fantasies about the evolution of visual kei as an active counterculture as opposed to a dull consumer culture. Agendered danger lurking in the metro stations near you; they'll know us by the trail of blood and the smell of hairspray. It's all complete fantasy however that I entertain with like three people max. In reality I know we're over and done with as a seismic cultural force. This however doesn't mean that everything is lost. While I don't think MH contributed to the fad beginning or ending, I certainly think MH has contributed massively to the staying power of visual kei on the internet in an age where everything else is disappearing. That Japanese indie analogy is an apt to make, because there's no reason why we shouldn't be in that same position had there not been these stalwarts of vk culture like MH have withstood the storms of the passing time. This was achieved by the unending dedication and efforts of the core-group that keep coming here year after year after year. If there were double the people with as much heart, perseverance and ability, who knows where we would be. Could the boom period had been extended by the valiant and most importantly of all, smart and applicable endeavors of a few dozen dedicated enthusiasts? I don't know. Bless this website either way and all you people who keep coming and contributing.
 
I won't dare to wager ( but i'll haughtily speculate ) why the laptop took over rock 'n roll, but stuff like the global demographic shifts were just too much for it overcome. The popular sphere has drastically diversified both nationally and racially. The stuffy dadrock crowd is losing their death grip on the entertainment zeigeist and big festival lineups are a testament to this. The rock bands pulling the big crowds are really fucking old, and the audience is only a notch younger. Sure the vk bands can draw a garage-full of people and enjoy the company of a few snappy young women — that's it though, no one else cares. The faucet has dwindled down to a point where it is increasingly harder for bands to sustain themselves. It just happens to be a form of music that doesn't speak to the majority of people anymore, not to the young person in school or the higher cultural crowd either for that matter. Electronic music is thriving both commercially and artistically, even hip hop is still doing a fabulous job of innovating itself; all the while one of our biggest newcomers ripped off a decade old deathcore album just last year. Even selling CD's in this day and age is dated, and labels are dying to adjust before the inevitable fall. The electronic underground, even hip hop has managed to adjust and evolve to a degree in the way music is released and spread ( a lot of the big names aren't even releasing full LP's anymore. Just songs, for free on youtube and whatever ). 
 
I'd honestly like to know what kind of social factors contributed to the rise of scene culture. Remember those bands like BrokeNCYDE, BOTDF and etc.? Where were we at the time, as a culture, that stuff like that was tapping into our consciousness. Nothing happens in a vacuum and people don't just decide what to think, feel or do out of the blue. There are reasons for everything in the social and economic fabric of societies and It's an interesting question fo' sure.
 
 I know my way enough that if I want to make an impression, I wouldn't go telling a cool stranger by four euro latte's that my taste in music is essentially the Japanese Poison and Coal Chamber. I'd embarrass myself either way if I left it at that or started nervously flinging my hands and explaining how deep down this culture is really gr8 and transgressive art. My heart stays true to bijuaru kei either way. I'm going down with the ship and I'll keep on making-a-fool of myself on a daily basis. So that's why this is my favorite thread, because I have a hard time of letting go of the glory days of my youth and its music, endlessly try to rationalise it by intellectual gymnastics. While my death slowly approaches and even the last patches of grey hair are falling out, in my mind I'm still young and full of cum, ready for adventure. 

Yo so how about them demos? NieR Automata and Gravity Rush 2 demos in the same day! Talk about hype!
 
long story short both demos are just simply amazing, especially the NieR demo. I already knew GR2 was gonna be a great game, no doubt in my mind. NieR on the other hand I had my doubts, but platinum games has totally dispelled all of that with this demo.

So since I already released the MH Discord server into the wild last night in this thread on a whim, I figured I might as well make an official thread for the thing.
 

 
What is Discord?
 
So basically it's a skype/teamspeak alternative, it includes both text and voice chat. Don't let the gaming eccentric vibe throw you off, since the tool has been proven to be great for communities like ours as well. You can join our server and create a discord account by clicking the banner above, from there you have several options on  how to access the room. You can use discord straight form your browser, download the desktop app (recommended), or you can download the official app on android and IOS.
 
If anyone has any questions or suggestions, please use this thread to discuss. I'm currently the owner of the server and am running it atm so any help is greatly appreciated.
 
 

It was a nice balanced list (^_^)

Lord @Ito has asked for feedback, and thus it shall be given.
 
I think I've mentioned in the past that I'm not too fond of making best-of lists where there's an arbitrary number of entries (top 10, top 25, etc) because it creates situations where you can find yourself adding releases that probably aren't great per se, but are simply needed to make up the numbers. In that sense some of the recommendations I'll make here for releases that weren't featured in this list aren't necessarily ones that I consider to be amazing by any means, but I'd at least say they're as deserving of a mention as a Versailles best-of album of all things. I'll also just take a moment to mention that even though the format isn't something I'm personally a fan of, I appreciate the effort the staff put into the whole thing each year, and I accept that the 25 releases thing is just a play on the whole 25 days of Christmas thing anyway so it's not a big deal by any means. 
 
Anyway, both cloud nine(9) and LITE probably could have had mentions for their respective full-lengths this year. Neither are Earth-shattering by any means, but they're both fairly decent math albums. I'll also give a shout out to Hiromi Uehara's SPARK; it is more of the same from her but when you're as proficient as Hiromi's trio that's honestly all it needs to be to be one of the strongest releases in any given year. I suppose it came out too late for the staff to have added it to the list (a downside of rushing lists out too early, I suppose), but JYOCHO's debut mini really should get a mention too, it's essentially 宇宙コンビニ but even better. On the electronic/IDM side, M-KODA put out a really nice album earlier this year, as did newcomer (or at least I think he's new, lol) 網守将平 earlier this month. If we're including singles then I quite liked Lycoriscoris' release also. 
 
To be honest though, for me personally 2016 was mostly a year where non-Japanese bands tended to stand out to me more than Japanese ones; though there were a few really noticeable Japanese highlights such as downy and siraph's output - both of which ranked pretty highly here so I'm certainly not complaining

| A wonderful resurgence for a band I didn't care for at all.
 
The halfway point of this decade marks a resurgence in Japanese music as a whole. I would have never thought guitarist Die of DIR EN GREY and Kobayashi of THE NOVEMBERS would team together and cross the traditionally solid divide between visual kei and indie rock. However, things that seemed a match in heaven at first were not. It became clear after the first few releases that the band couldn't find their sound. Kobayashi departing soon after was the best move for the band because Die found not one, but two new members to fill out the roster in vocalist Ataru Nakamura and violinist Ayasa. These additions imbued DECAYS with the charisma they previously lacked without changing their core sound.
 
Die's contributions to DIR EN GREY have always been eclectic and he's responsible for penning classics such as "Audrey" and "304号室、白死の桜" (304 goushitsu, hakushi no sakura). Those musical tendencies are everywhere in Baby who wanders. The whole album falls into the shoegaze realm with some punky influences. The crisp production really pushes the wall of sound shoegaze is known for and Die and Nakamura's vocals blend incredibly well. Ayasa's violin opens everything up musically, breathing life into their previously stagnant, almost mechanical sound. This is best shown when contrasting the album version of "愛と哀を遺さず…" with its single version. Supplemented with a healthy dose of electronics and a mesmerizing rhythm section, each song pulsates with a radiant atmosphere.
 
For a band I thought was a flop, DECAYS has done a lot to improve my opinion of them. Baby who wanders remains interesting right up to closer "綺麗な指" and gives off an intoxicating warmth that invites you back again and again. It gets better with every listen too; multiple listens brought me around on some tracks that didn't win me over the first time. Recommended heartily for any fans of pop, rock, or shoegaze looking for something new and captivating. This is so good it makes you forget it's a side project.
 
 
Support the band!
CDJapan | iTunes (Japan)

So I recently took the plunge into the world of gunpla...  which was something I've been wanting to do for years, and now that I have the income to support the hobby I'm finally getting into building.
 
I figured I'll make a gunpla thread and see who else has taken to the hobby and maybe drum up some interest among people who may not know about gunpla.
 
I just finished my first build myself and I'm really pleased with it.  I chose a HG Shining Gundam 1/144 model as my first kit, one of my favorite gundam frames.
 

 
here's some finished pictures that i snapped with my phone
 
I'm extremely happy with how it turned out, there for a while I didn't know if it was gonna pan out. I probably put around 25 hours into the kit. Approximately 7-9 hours putting it together which includes sanding and other prep. I panel lined as much as I could which is what took the longest at around 12 hours trying to get it just right. And then 3-4 hours prepping the model and spraying for a matte top coat finish. Next time I can see it not taking nearly as long since I'm now more used to these techniques.
 
anyone else on the forum build gunpla or has an interest in gunpla in general? Let me/us know. I plan on looking into how to build a lightbox for pictures soon, I will of course need a better camera than my phone first though xD
 
I already have my next kit planned out... It will be HG 1/144 Gundam Wing Fenice from GBF, I plan on getting started on it sometime next month after a I take a break for a few weeks.
 
 

I used to be really into Gunpla, but I've never painted any myself or really cared much about making sure edges were perfect. I used to have a roommate who'd customize them too.
 
I think the biggest one I had was this dude:
 

 
Oooorrrrr this one: