CAT5

jap

the god and death stars - dawn of the god
凛として時雨 - i'mperfect
DIR EN GREY - THE UNRAVELING
小南泰葉 - キメラ




non-jap

Beastmilk - Climax
A$AP Rocky - LONG.LIVE.A$AP
Kvelertak - Meir
letlive. - The Blackest Beautiful
The Dillinger Escape Plan - One Of Us Is The Killer

one and only


everyone else sucked, kuroyume album got postponed & zoro never released a flawless autotunefest lp that I was smw expecting throughout the year

Short list is short:
 
Japanese:
Capsule - CAPS LOCK
DIR EN GREY - THE UNRAVELING
Kyary Pamyu Pamyu - Nanda Collection
SOIL&"PIMP"SESSIONS - CIRCLES
Towa Tei - Lucky
Perfume - Level3
 
Non-Japanese:
Sleigh Bells - Bitter Rivals
A$AP ROCKY - LONG.LIVE.A$AP
Daft Punk - Random Access Memories
Run the Jewels - Run the Jewels
 
There are too many runner-ups/"close but not cigar" releases tbqh.

For now, I'll just make a list. Later, I'll edit with cover art and short review for the top ones I really liked the most, and take out the ones that were just good:
 
Japanese: 
DIV- Zero One
Girugamesh- MONSTER
Coldrain- The Revelation
Jupiter- CLASSICAL ELEMENT
NOCTURNAL BLOODLUST- GRIMOIRE
ONE OK ROCK- Jinsei Boku
Rin Toshite Shigure- I'mperfect
SiM- PANDORA
MIYAVI- MIYAVI
9GOATS BLACK OUT- ARCHIVES
 
Non-Japanese:
TesseracT- Altered State
Scale the Summit- Migration
Sapphires- Carriers
Protest The Hero- Volition
Polyphia- Inspire
Parkway Drive- Atlas
Letlive.- THe Blackest Beautiful
Leprous- Coal
Humanity's Last Breath- Self-titled
Heaven SHall Burn- Veto
Hands Like Houses- Unimagine
Erra- Augment
David Maxim Micic- Bilo 3.0
Breakdown of Sanity- Perception
Akeldama- Everything Beautiful

I'll write reviews to my list later (when I'm not burried in schoolwork), but here's an initial list of full albums that I enjoyed:
 
Japanese
AI - MORIAGARO (pretty standard pop-album, but AI's voice makes it just a little different. VOICE is what pop music should be)
Boris - Präparat (Boris going back to good old droning after a couple of experimental albums. The result is great, with Bataille de Sucre being the gem on this album)
cinema staff - 望郷 (not their best stuff imo, but still very enjoyable. I just love cinema staff's vocals, they're great)
downy - 第五作品集『無題』(I only recently discovered them through CAT5 so all I can say that this album is great?)
LAGITAGIDA - TUTELA!! (instrumental album from the new band of school food punishment's ex-keyboard. This wasn't what I expected when this band started out, but I'm all glad that they chose to do what they are doing now. This album is structured, yet all over the place and it just WORKS)
LEO今井 - Made from Nothing (only got into this guy about a month ago, but this is probably my favourite album of the year. The first two tracks are a bit delusive of how the actual album works, but all in all it's such a great album that I can forgive that part)
M-Koda - Generating Arrow Diagram (ambient electronics that really aren't for everyone, and also not for any time. You need to be in the mood for this kind of stuff. If you're into it, this is simply a magnificent album. Abyss is probably the best song off the record and is haunting yet relaxing. This guy gets better with every album)
NICO Touches the Walls - Shout to the Walls! (I already reviewed this one in the staff list, so you can go read my review there)
ONE OK ROCK - 人生x僕= (not OOR's best album, but enjoyable enough to make the list. Plenty of catchy tracks, a couple of nice ballads, not too complicated. It's nothing groundbreaking, yet it's OOR's most mature album yet)
Vegpher - PLUS (also electronics, though a lot less ambient that M-Koda. It took me a while to get into it, and towards the end it has the tendency to get a bit boring (due too the track lengths in the middle, most tracks are over 5 minutes long), but overall it's still a very sollid record)
アルカラ - むにむにの樹 (basically this also made my list of favourite releases, yet I don't think this is Arukara's best release. It's a bit weak compared to Drama and BOY NEXT DOOR, but it has a couple of nice tracks that I can't just disregard)
凛として時雨 - i'mperfect (really? It's Rin Toshite Shigure, end of review)
 
Non-Japanese
Brian Tyler - Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag OST (I'm a sucker for folk elements and good game OSTs. Brian Tyler combines both in his OST for the new Assassin's Creed game. Even though the game hasn't been my favourite of the series so far, the OST is probably the best OST AC had so far, on the same level on Lorne Balfe's work for AC3)
EXO - XOXO/Growl (debut album by Korean boy band EXO. Great amount of catchy tracks and fun songs, just give it a spin)
f(x) - Pink Tape (SM Entertainment nailed stuff so hard this year jfc f(x)' album was as flawless as EXO's album. Probably the best f(x) release so far)
G-Dragon - Coup D'Etat (preferred it over Heartbreaker. Not my favourite K-pop album of the year, but good enough to be included on the list. GD knows how to write non-catchy pop songs and still make them work).
Girls' Generation - Love & Peace (my flawless queens are back in Japan, which means it's time to kick ass and bitchslap everyone off the charts with another amazing Japanese album. And they did. Idk what's going on here but can GG just stay in Japan and release everything there because it's just so much better than their Korean stuff)
Rhian Sheehan - Stories from Elsewhere (one of the few non-Korean albums on this list, lol. Completely instrumental album, basically a giant OST, but one for the world. Rhian Sheehan writes his compositions on places he's been to, which makes this an incredible experience)
SHINee - BOYS MEET U (SHINee released 3 albums and a mini-album this year, what have you been doing. Their Japanese album BOYS MEET U is a lot better than their previous Japanese album and is filled with catchy tracks, original content, and all ballads are actually really interesting for once)
SHINee - Dream Girl - the misconceptions of you - (not as good as BOYS MEET U imo but Spoiler is such a great song that I couldn't leave this album out. Dream Girl is typical SHINee, better than Why So Serious imo)

Lamp is releasing their 7th album "ゆめ" (yume) on February 5th 2014.  This marks their first release since the 2011 album "東京ユウトピア通信" (tokyo utopia tsushin).  The album will retail for ¥3,000.
Tracklist:
1.シンフォニー
2.A都市の秋
3.ため息の行方
4.6号室
5.空はグレー
6.渚アラモード
7.残像のスケッチ
8.二人のいた風景
9.静かに朝は
10.さち子
____________________________
 
HOLY FUCK, I'M EXCITED!  I've been waiting for them to release something!  If this album is consistent as their other fantastic albums, then I'm sure this will be a good 2014 AOTY contender.  My ears are ready to be soothed!

There has been an incomprehensible amount of music released this year both in Japan and abroad. Here is your opportunity to share which albums you've enjoyed most! Let everyone know! Not only am I interested, but I'm sure the rest of MH is as well! Japanese and/or Non-Japanese - it doesn't matter. Let us know which albums you vibed with the most this year. : )
 

LILLIES AND REMAINS new mini album "LOST" will be released at 2014/02/12 (1,890yen)
 
[track list]
01.This City
02.You Stand Alone
03.Composition IV
04.Slowdown
05.Don't Go
06.Peak Experience-extended ver.-

One of the things I like most of visual-kei is the lack of professional quality of anything for many many bands--artwork, costume design, marketing, and recording quality. I love trying out bands' super early work that only came in tape form; some of my favorite works have never been re-recorded and shall forever live on in a muddled, hissing, tape.
 
So, what are your favorites? I'll try to post videos, but a lot of them I'm going to have to upload myself eventually since Youtube doesn't have everything. Oh, and feel free to not be restricted to just Japanese music.
 
+Crack Brain- 砂時計: love the melody of this one, and the poor quality adds an extra layer of creepy to it that I really enjoy. Unfortunately, this was never rerecorded (as far as I know).
 
+Luna Sea- Shade: I liked the demo version of this song more than the 1991 rerecording. Haven't heard the 2011 version yet, but I don't think it'll really do the same for me.
 
+Werkmare - Psychopass: Messy metal demo-tapes are fun. This one also has some Bach thrown in as well, which is always an added bonus. I'm actually reallly disappointed that this one wasn't rerecorded for real.
 
+Malice Mizer- Sans Logique: This tape is great. I really love their 2nd attempt at 'Speed of Desperate' and '終幕への扉' is pretty magical. Had this not be lo-fi, I probably would not have liked it as much.
 

 
+Madeth Gray'll- 狂死楽園: Ooky-spooky demos at their best. The recent version uploaded here also has some warping in the tape that make it sound so so much better, like an old horror movie. They also had like 100000 other demo tapes of similar quality that were all eventually re-recorded (multiple times, actually). This video isn't as warped as I had mentioned, but you'll get the point.
 

The new ending theme for the 2nd GHOST IN THE SHELL ARISE movie "border:2　Ghost Whispers" has been released and can be previewed here:
 
(click the song "SOTO HA SENJOU DAYO")
 
http://cornelius-kokakua-sound.com/#gitsa
 
The song is a collaboration between cornelius and ichiko aoba (青葉市子)
 
 
 
My thoughts:
 
Just when I thought I couldn't like Ichiko Aoba anymore than I already do, she goes and does a theme for GITS!!! 2013 has been an AMAZING year for her - such a talent!

Not that many people will care, but the guitarist of the rather obscure Celestia le ciel was a girl. The twist was that she claimed to be a guy. A cross-dressing guy. So basically, she was a girl pretending to be a guy pretending to be a girl. She only whispered during interviews and let the vocalist "translate", so she wouldn't give away her gender by her voice.
 
I know that because I translated for the band at their Germany concert several years ago. It obviously was supposed to be a secret (and quite succesfully so - there was a homosexual guy at the concert that was badly stanning for "him" - which is pretty hilarious, if you think about it XD). But since the band is long disbanded and the members retired from music, there isn't really much harm in revealing it now. Plus, I think they even had less fans in Japan than in Europe. XD
Nice people though.
 
 
That does make we wonder though if there are more women in vk that hide their gender for one reason or another.

Turntable.fm will shut down next month after nearly two years of operation. Turntable says that the decision to shut down its social music service was a tough one, but that it wants to begin focusing all of its efforts on Turntable Live, a new site that invites artists to stream live concerts to fans. Though Turntable.fm seemed to have some cult following, it appears music licensing costs finally became too much to handle. "The cost of running a music service has been too expensive, and we can't outpace it with our efforts to monetize it and cut costs," Turntable writes.
 
The service's final day of operation will be December 2nd, when Turntable promises to throw one final party. "If we also want to give Turntable Live a real shot, we need to fully focus on it," Turntable writes. So far, it's happy with the response. The streaming shows — all of which are hosted from Turntable's SoHo studio — try to recreate the live concert experience, straight down to asking fans to buy tickets ahead of time. Eleven shows have been run so far, with the last one bringing in $670 from 170 total viewers. While recreating the feel of a concert may be an exciting goal, Turntable.fm's users will likely be upset over losing the charm of being a digital DJ.
 
Source: The Verge

Everyone's entitled their opinion and that's cool. And I'm a bit like you. I'm not too fond of "modernization" either, but every now and then it works out just fine, and this is one example on this. Sherlock is truly an excellent series, and while not on par with some of the films and earlier series, still amazing. The reason for "modernizing" are obviously the fact that there's already half a million films and TV-series based on Sherlock Holmes. It was time for something new. Despite not being a fan of "modernization" just like myself I would recommend you to check out. It's brilliant. Truly is.
 
The chemistry between Sherlock Holmes and Martin Freeman are excellent and the acting is great for most part, it's well written and well directed. There's just not much to put your finger on here. If I have to put my finger on something "weak" I would have to say "The Hounds of Baskerville". Not a bad episode at all, just not on par with the rest of the series.
 
And about the ending (BEWARE! SPOILER!):
 
I've only seen the last season once as soon as it came out so I might be a bit off here, but the big truck and the man on the bicycle are the main things to watch here. I'm sure Sherlock fixed some help and landed on something soft in back of the truck, and while this happened a bicyclist jolting against Watson made him miss it and it all seems real. I'm also sure he used the of the small balls seen earlier in that episode (or the previous?) one to stop his puls. Hide a ball under your armpit and squeeze and you're making it hard for the blood to come through as one of your major arteries is there, your pulse will gradually slow down and then completly disappear.
 
I'm not sure as I am not an expert, but I believe this might be the thing. I gotta rewatch both seasons soon enough, though. I might be far off as it is almost two years since I watched the episode, but that's how I remember it at least.
 
 
Elementary is awful by the way. Godawful series.

Cortney's clean vocals are pretty damn awesome.
 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_4BqMnPnKVQ

LMAO wut kind of question is this. If a band is crap it's crap, if it's good it's good, screw what the fans are like. ;<

..

I wore a kebaya and had tons of make-up for today was my brother's graduation day. The kemben was made from a certain material which made my upper body look more stuffed than it actually is.. haha.

new PV

Shameless bump, BECAUSE I NOW HAVE THAT GAME TOO.


But yeah, I played SC 2, 3, and now a bit of 4 and 5, and in many aspects 5 is indeed the weakest of them. I haven't played much of the story yet, but the removal of the indivudal story arcs is a bit disappointing and the game has some aspects that I just find outright confusing. I still haven't figured out what I unlock how and when, and how I can use whatever I unlock. Are there different weapons? What do they do? How do I use them? It's just very puzzling and was much more clearer and obvious in older games. Also, when I'm in Offline Game mode and want to do a quick fight, it wants me to play against other player-generated characters? Wat? I thought it's offline?

Also, removing Taki and semi-removing Kilik (well, he's there, but he - literally - could be anyone), and replacing them by their obnoxious clone versions Natsu and Xiba was just a bad move. Especially since Taki was always my favourite girl to play. ._.


Music is decent, but when the most memorable song is one taken from another game (Venice Rooftops) that's not a good sign.


The good things:

- Ezio!! (He seems a tiny bit OP though? At least I dashed with him through Arcade mode when I was struggling with others.)
- Viola (Hard to control, but much fun! From all the new characters she finally adds a new and unique style.)

- Online playing!!!! I only played a bit against Cat the other day, but it was fuuuuun. Much more interesting than fighting against the CPU. I'm not much of an online player, so I'll probably just play against friends, but still...


So yeah, I'll probably use SC5 mostly for the online fighting, and SC4 for the offline parts.

Also, looking for more people to fight against, if anyone else has the game, add me on PSN and come at me Bro! xD

As the title says, let's talk about our favourite songs from games or game soundtracks in general!
I'll start with a bit of an obvious choice, but Skyrim does have some amazing music. "Wind guide you", the main "map" music is just beautiful, especially the middle part.


And obviously, "Sovngarde" makes my viking heart shed heroic tears of epicness. XD


Other than that, I really like "Venice Rooftops" from Assassin's Creed II as well. I can't be the only one who was doing the checkpoint races over and over again just to hear this song? XD (And well, the races were my favourite sidequests anyway.)


And, going a bit further back, the whole Monkey Island Soundtrack was just great.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULvGZREDSp4
So, what are your favourite songs/soundtracks?

Hello people who probably don't know me! I am Manda. My job is to make things look pretty and function on the front end of Deadeyes-star.com (Kai gets the back end, hehehe). Here I present to you my first "Letter from the Designer"!
 
The past couple of weeks I've made huge progress in coding out DS's theme with pyrocms. However, we discovered the hard way that pyro is great for back end development and completely sucks for front end. There is little documentation on how to properly set things up functionally in regards to front end functions so it's been a whole bunch of trial and error and making shit up! So I apologize for my part of things taking a little long ;__;
 
As of right now we have the following functioning:
User login and login forms User registration and registration forms User Profiles and control panel User shoutbox "Featured" slider Articles and all article functions complete Category and site wide tagging system Commenting system Static Pages All of this not including the massive amount of work Kai put into building the custom module for bands. Before we can open to the public we need we need to finish up the following:
 
Index page set up Band profile layout coded Search Function MH to DS user accont integration
Once these features are complete the site can launch in it's test phase and designated staff can begin work on entering information into the database! SO EXCITING!
Adding in these features shouldn't take very long. I estimate less than a month if we can keep up a good pace with only a couple of brick walls to run into. 
 
And now I leave you with screen shots of progress!
 
 
 

 

 

Ahhh I hadn't realized Robin Aoki was working on this when I heard some of the songs on FB but I totally got a downy vibe so it makes sense. Just going to reiterate my excitement for this release (and the new downy for that matter), I expect nothing short of epic. 

Off the top of my head and sticking to VK.
 
D'espairsray - "Squall" is probably the prime example of this for me. I've never liked them (borderline hated them back in the day truthfully) but I love that song. Even though Hizumi's "emotion" looks cheesy as hell in the PV, it's the only song where I really feel anything from that band. It also happens to be one of my best/go-to karaoke songs. 
 
SuG - "Scheat". I liked it when it came out and had hopes for their heavy positive shtick but by second release it was obvious that they were pretty awful. Haven't listened to it in years though. 
 
Kaggra,... I never thought they were bad like the others listed but I could never get into them really except for "Utakata", which I really love. Sid's "Otegami" is a similar song in this case too. Back in the day one of my best friends loved Sid but I just couldn't get into them otherwise. 
 
(I'll leave Gazette and Rentrer En Soi out of this since even though I'm not a fan per se I like at least an album's worth of song's from both.)
 
Diverging from parameters to admit to genuinely loving AKB48's Beginner despite hoping they suffer in an endless hell fire. 

New music video, 
"鉄の夢"


 
 
10/10 this is insane

So I'm into anime and stuff and thus when I first got teh internet I met a lot of girls who were crazy about Gackt and Malice Mizer and whatnot.
 MM and Mana's subsequent act Moi dix Mois have been teh two Japanese bands I listen to most. I like MdM but I enjoyed Gackt-era Malice Mizer's sound. It's softer and sweeter than their last album or the more full on Goth metal Moi dix Mois employs.
 
So I was wondering if anyone can recommend me a visual kei band with a similar sound to MM in Merveilles? I was thinking maybe Oshare Kei could be my thing since it's supposed to be the lighter, poppier type of VK. What are some good Oshare Kei bands then?