chemicalpictures

This. That shit is WEIRD AF. To be honest I find any kind of extreme fandom weird and kinda childish. Not that it's an exclusivity of fans of japanese stuff, but they sure get top scores at it. It can't be that healthy to dedicate so much money, energy and time to a hobby like that...
 
But yeah, the gya culture is indeed what sustains the VK environment. But that's just because VK does not have a clearly defined purpose nowadays. The movement was created with an idea that made sense at the time, to create a space for expression, to counter the mainstream culture of the time, and it was necessary. It happened all over the world, there was Punk, Glam, Tropicalia, each with its differences, but it was there. You can bet X, Luna Sea, Kuroyume are bands with 50/50 fans. Today, there's no need for that. What does VK bring to the table? What's the message in 2017? There's none, it's a scene that exists sorely to fuel these girls/fans idealizations and desires, in exchange of their money. So those foundations are so set in stone, I don't really see it changing at all.

nearly everything i've seen & read about gya culture here and elsewhere feels utterly horrible and cultish to me so i dont rly blame dudes for not wanting to get dragged into that hell pit t b f

I can do without the rest of the mini-album, but イノセンス  stays on repeat.
 
Really hoping for a full album release from these guys so we can hear a full, fleshed out sound.

One of the things I really enjoy about RAZOR is their ability to combine hard-hitting djent-inspired riffs with catchy melodies and electronic elements. Despite the occasional chaotic composition on RAZOR's work the members' individual talent and catchy vocals gets their songs stuck in my head. In contrast to @BrenGun's comment, I would say that Ryoga actually has a pretty recognizable voice in the VK scene - especially when it comes to his range of growls and shouts that find themselves halfway between clean vocals and full-on screaming.
 
As for this mini, I wasn't as taken with ROAD as others seem to be, and the ballad was too long to earn many listens from me, but I really enjoyed all of the other tracks. 消えない痛み is a solid RAZOR track, and I can see why it earned a PV - despite sticking fairly closely to standard territory a la DNA or LIQUID VAIN, the chorus is memorable and gets stuck in your head, and it's a decent showcase for the sound RAZOR are becoming known for. イノセンス is definitely a standout with that oppressive atmosphere in the chorus, and quite experimental for what the band has put out so far. Labyrinth also has that catchy chorus that immediately hooked me (perhaps because it reminds me of one of the songs Ryoga performed with the all-star PSC session band WK on their live-dist release). Finally, I think その後の世界 would be great live and could fit in well at either the beginning or the end of the set.
 
All in all, I think the CORE is a really solid release and showcases more diversity than their first mini, which served instead to define their sound. It'll be difficult to top RED INVISIBLE for the sheer surprise factor and consistency (it blew my expectations for this lineup out of the water) but it's great to see RAZOR expanding their sound and retaining the quality in both composition and production that they led with from the start.

RAZOR | the CORE
 

 
 
Tracklist:
 
1. the CORE
2. ROAD
3. 消えない痛み
4. イノセンス                                 
5. Labyrinth
6. 君は今も鮮やかに
7. 『その後の世界』
 
A release that it's okay on its own, but with glimpses of brilliance, if they manage to identify them.
 
To properly explain the sentence above, We'll need to dwelve into their past releases for a bit. It's safe to say that RED INVISIBLE was the most well received release so far. It introduced and showcased all their range in a single release, with a bit of everything and by all accounts, a successful effort, even with its flaws. The following singles had their strenghts here and there, but faced a more lukewarm reception, most citing the lack of direction, uninspired b-sides and an over-reliance on born-like choruses/structures that may not fit with the overall range of the band. That brings us to the CORE. To get it out of the way, it is pretty obviously composed of tracks they do not believe have the power to be singles, and that's a (somewhat) fair assessment. The fact that it didn't have a PV (EDIT: Actually they did, but the fact that they choose the most bland track on the release works on favor of the idea here), and they chose to give 君は今も鮮やかに a lyric video further proves my point, it's playing safe 101. So, if you are not confident on the power of the material you have, the decision of making the CORE a compilation of trials, errors and experiments is a wise one. It lets you check the waters, understand the reception an maybe score one hit or two.
 
ROAD and その後の世界 are tracks that dig deep into the members origins. You can hear Sadie, born and MBHI influences all over those pieces. Both are a solid tracks, but not mindblowing, by any means. There's nothing wrong in playing safe and delivering something satisfying everytime, but we expect RAZOR to be a monster on its own, not a 2.0 version of those mentioned above. And I believe they've found their way with イノセンス, the best of the album. This track perfects a formula that enables it to be powerful without resorting to MBHI djent-y riffs, to have a very consistent vocal work without using born leftover choruses. Top it off with a mix of electronic effects and dnb drums that keeps the momentum going and never feels overdone and you have a winner on your hands. This is RAZOR transforming their influences into something fresh, perfecting their unique formula, and of course, their identity as a band. 君は今も鮮やかに is a mediocre ballad that does not bring anything new to their catalogue (worse than the 6/10 MISSING PIECE let's be honest) and 消えない痛み is such a forgettable one that if it wasn't labeled as RAZOR I'd have trouble identifying who it was from. (I'll ignore Labyrinth, the overused vk tropes are too strong on this one).
 
Overall, it's a release that provides more filler tracks to a band that may have the most high-ceiling potential of the 2016 newcomers, but have yet to find their stride. However, イノセンス makes me feel pretty confident that RAZOR can be fresh without throwing away all the experience and influences of past works, maybe reshaping them into something truly unique.
 
 
 
 

RAZOR | the CORE
 

 
 
Tracklist:
 
1. the CORE
2. ROAD
3. 消えない痛み
4. イノセンス                                 
5. Labyrinth
6. 君は今も鮮やかに
7. 『その後の世界』
 
A release that it's okay on its own, but with glimpses of brilliance, if they manage to identify them.
 
To properly explain the sentence above, We'll need to dwelve into their past releases for a bit. It's safe to say that RED INVISIBLE was the most well received release so far. It introduced and showcased all their range in a single release, with a bit of everything and by all accounts, a successful effort, even with its flaws. The following singles had their strenghts here and there, but faced a more lukewarm reception, most citing the lack of direction, uninspired b-sides and an over-reliance on born-like choruses/structures that may not fit with the overall range of the band. That brings us to the CORE. To get it out of the way, it is pretty obviously composed of tracks they do not believe have the power to be singles, and that's a (somewhat) fair assessment. The fact that it didn't have a PV (EDIT: Actually they did, but the fact that they choose the most bland track on the release works on favor of the idea here), and they chose to give 君は今も鮮やかに a lyric video further proves my point, it's playing safe 101. So, if you are not confident on the power of the material you have, the decision of making the CORE a compilation of trials, errors and experiments is a wise one. It lets you check the waters, understand the reception an maybe score one hit or two.
 
ROAD and その後の世界 are tracks that dig deep into the members origins. You can hear Sadie, born and MBHI influences all over those pieces. Both are a solid tracks, but not mindblowing, by any means. There's nothing wrong in playing safe and delivering something satisfying everytime, but we expect RAZOR to be a monster on its own, not a 2.0 version of those mentioned above. And I believe they've found their way with イノセンス, the best of the album. This track perfects a formula that enables it to be powerful without resorting to MBHI djent-y riffs, to have a very consistent vocal work without using born leftover choruses. Top it off with a mix of electronic effects and dnb drums that keeps the momentum going and never feels overdone and you have a winner on your hands. This is RAZOR transforming their influences into something fresh, perfecting their unique formula, and of course, their identity as a band. 君は今も鮮やかに is a mediocre ballad that does not bring anything new to their catalogue (worse than the 6/10 MISSING PIECE let's be honest) and 消えない痛み is such a forgettable one that if it wasn't labeled as RAZOR I'd have trouble identifying who it was from. (I'll ignore Labyrinth, the overused vk tropes are too strong on this one).
 
Overall, it's a release that provides more filler tracks to a band that may have the most high-ceiling potential of the 2016 newcomers, but have yet to find their stride. However, イノセンス makes me feel pretty confident that RAZOR can be fresh without throwing away all the experience and influences of past works, maybe reshaping them into something truly unique.
 
 
 
 

I literally always date Pisces men so if you want to ruin each others' lives... 

they've just posted some old live footage:
 
 
 
 

@itsukoiiHell yeah! Schmelz Cure are such a guilty pleasure of mine and they have a few rippin' tracks.
@helcchi+1 for Horizon having an incredible riff.
@r...That Phobia song is one of the first riffs I thought of for this thread, excellent choices.
 
Here's one of my fave riffs by a nobody VK band:
 
 

Hey fellas, what's that riff that is an absolute FAVORITE of yours, but you usually don't see on other people's top 10?
 
I'm not talking about Luna Sea, Dir En Grey or X levels, I'm talking waaay indier than this, like:
 
 
Listen to this. Listen to this mother fucking guitar sucker punching your ears. FUCK this is good.
 
 
WAILING GUITARS FTW
 
 
 
GROOVY
 
 
 
Share are some of your favorites!

i miss these kinds of threads where we just spam share videos. anyway, cool stuff! i've heard of a few of these~ AND YAAASSS TO ZODIA!
 
i like most of ClearVeil's riffage
 
JUST LISTEN TO AICLE.
 
more
 

Hey fellas, what's that riff that is an absolute FAVORITE of yours, but you usually don't see on other people's top 10?
 
I'm not talking about Luna Sea, Dir En Grey or X levels, I'm talking waaay indier than this, like:
 
 
Listen to this. Listen to this mother fucking guitar sucker punching your ears. FUCK this is good.
 
 
WAILING GUITARS FTW
 
 
 
GROOVY
 
 
 
Share are some of your favorites!

Hey fellas, what's that riff that is an absolute FAVORITE of yours, but you usually don't see on other people's top 10?
 
I'm not talking about Luna Sea, Dir En Grey or X levels, I'm talking waaay indier than this, like:
 
 
Listen to this. Listen to this mother fucking guitar sucker punching your ears. FUCK this is good.
 
 
WAILING GUITARS FTW
 
 
 
GROOVY
 
 
 
Share are some of your favorites!

no one outside of 5 foreign fans care about this meme debacle it had literally nothing to do with anything
ps his english is clearly not good i dont think he was trying to say anything about ryuya

We came to a time where a collab between miyavi and Hyde is just some random half-assed electronic shit instead of something like a dream team making music. Talk about crushed expectations

The song sounds good overall, I REALLY like that breakdown at the end! But really, what is the deal with the quality of that drum pattern? check 0:32 to 0:38. Is it a recording issue? Equalizing/Mastering? both? Funny thing is that Dead Sea has a pretty okay quality recording, above the clouds ain't that bad aswell, but several of those youtube released songs sound like some shitty drum machine, and it's the same here.
 
 

Personally I'm way more fond of that LCR dude style if we are talking about a solo vocalist, I think it fits much better. But yeah, their duo on Solace is AMAZING. Someone that can balance that is ideal, I agree. Syu (ex. Heartless, boogieman) would be a good fit, love that dude

this is bad chorus 101, is this the same band that dropped 螺子時計リビドゥー, 天球シンフォニア, Supernova?

It's easy to make fun (which was my first thought, I'll admit), instead it would be nice if we could all make some constructive criticisms to help the gals, since they'll probably check the thread...
 
- I don't care about visuals, but people in general do, and you are all looking nice. Hair, clothing, makeup... maybe work on your poses, and improve the photoshop (the group photo is much worse than the individual ones, probably too much light on your faces)
 
- The main point: the recording of your song is PRETTY bad. I know youtube usually drags it down and you probably don't have that much of a budget, but you can DEFINITELY record a song or two in a proper studio with a couple hundred bucks. Yes it's an investment, but it makes the world of a difference. That chorus could be catchy if properly recorded and equalized, the drum lines specially. It's such a niche market that usually don't care about western bands, so you really have to go the distance to win this crowd.
 
- It's a matter of personal preference, but I find your logo way too confusing, really hard to identify the band's name. Branding is important, I would try to express that differently.
 
wish you girls luck!

It's easy to make fun (which was my first thought, I'll admit), instead it would be nice if we could all make some constructive criticisms to help the gals, since they'll probably check the thread...
 
- I don't care about visuals, but people in general do, and you are all looking nice. Hair, clothing, makeup... maybe work on your poses, and improve the photoshop (the group photo is much worse than the individual ones, probably too much light on your faces)
 
- The main point: the recording of your song is PRETTY bad. I know youtube usually drags it down and you probably don't have that much of a budget, but you can DEFINITELY record a song or two in a proper studio with a couple hundred bucks. Yes it's an investment, but it makes the world of a difference. That chorus could be catchy if properly recorded and equalized, the drum lines specially. It's such a niche market that usually don't care about western bands, so you really have to go the distance to win this crowd.
 
- It's a matter of personal preference, but I find your logo way too confusing, really hard to identify the band's name. Branding is important, I would try to express that differently.
 
wish you girls luck!

It's easy to make fun (which was my first thought, I'll admit), instead it would be nice if we could all make some constructive criticisms to help the gals, since they'll probably check the thread...
 
- I don't care about visuals, but people in general do, and you are all looking nice. Hair, clothing, makeup... maybe work on your poses, and improve the photoshop (the group photo is much worse than the individual ones, probably too much light on your faces)
 
- The main point: the recording of your song is PRETTY bad. I know youtube usually drags it down and you probably don't have that much of a budget, but you can DEFINITELY record a song or two in a proper studio with a couple hundred bucks. Yes it's an investment, but it makes the world of a difference. That chorus could be catchy if properly recorded and equalized, the drum lines specially. It's such a niche market that usually don't care about western bands, so you really have to go the distance to win this crowd.
 
- It's a matter of personal preference, but I find your logo way too confusing, really hard to identify the band's name. Branding is important, I would try to express that differently.
 
wish you girls luck!

It's easy to make fun (which was my first thought, I'll admit), instead it would be nice if we could all make some constructive criticisms to help the gals, since they'll probably check the thread...
 
- I don't care about visuals, but people in general do, and you are all looking nice. Hair, clothing, makeup... maybe work on your poses, and improve the photoshop (the group photo is much worse than the individual ones, probably too much light on your faces)
 
- The main point: the recording of your song is PRETTY bad. I know youtube usually drags it down and you probably don't have that much of a budget, but you can DEFINITELY record a song or two in a proper studio with a couple hundred bucks. Yes it's an investment, but it makes the world of a difference. That chorus could be catchy if properly recorded and equalized, the drum lines specially. It's such a niche market that usually don't care about western bands, so you really have to go the distance to win this crowd.
 
- It's a matter of personal preference, but I find your logo way too confusing, really hard to identify the band's name. Branding is important, I would try to express that differently.
 
wish you girls luck!

It's easy to make fun (which was my first thought, I'll admit), instead it would be nice if we could all make some constructive criticisms to help the gals, since they'll probably check the thread...
 
- I don't care about visuals, but people in general do, and you are all looking nice. Hair, clothing, makeup... maybe work on your poses, and improve the photoshop (the group photo is much worse than the individual ones, probably too much light on your faces)
 
- The main point: the recording of your song is PRETTY bad. I know youtube usually drags it down and you probably don't have that much of a budget, but you can DEFINITELY record a song or two in a proper studio with a couple hundred bucks. Yes it's an investment, but it makes the world of a difference. That chorus could be catchy if properly recorded and equalized, the drum lines specially. It's such a niche market that usually don't care about western bands, so you really have to go the distance to win this crowd.
 
- It's a matter of personal preference, but I find your logo way too confusing, really hard to identify the band's name. Branding is important, I would try to express that differently.
 
wish you girls luck!

It's easy to make fun (which was my first thought, I'll admit), instead it would be nice if we could all make some constructive criticisms to help the gals, since they'll probably check the thread...
 
- I don't care about visuals, but people in general do, and you are all looking nice. Hair, clothing, makeup... maybe work on your poses, and improve the photoshop (the group photo is much worse than the individual ones, probably too much light on your faces)
 
- The main point: the recording of your song is PRETTY bad. I know youtube usually drags it down and you probably don't have that much of a budget, but you can DEFINITELY record a song or two in a proper studio with a couple hundred bucks. Yes it's an investment, but it makes the world of a difference. That chorus could be catchy if properly recorded and equalized, the drum lines specially. It's such a niche market that usually don't care about western bands, so you really have to go the distance to win this crowd.
 
- It's a matter of personal preference, but I find your logo way too confusing, really hard to identify the band's name. Branding is important, I would try to express that differently.
 
wish you girls luck!