CAT5

宇宙コンビニ
 


Daijiro Nakagawa / だいじろー　(Guitar)
Emi Ohki / えみちょこ　(Vocal , Bass)
Yuto Sakai / なずお　(Drum)

They seem to romanize their name as (uchuucombini). I bought this band's debut mini album a few days ago after a cursory listen of their samples, AND I'M SO GLAD THAT I DID!

Having formed in January of last year (2012), they're still really new to the scene, but their sound is already wonderfully polished! They don't look like much (not that looks really matter outside of VK), but they're quite talented for their field of music. They describe themselves as a "progressive pop" band, and while that label is accurate, they could be more easily be described as a math-pop or math-rock band with female vocals. I'm an absolute sucker for math-rock, math-pop - math-anything basically! I adore the the playing style. My friend and Japanese-indie hero Steve Tanaka described them as so:
 
"Amazing vocals and tricky instrumentation with buttery smooth, clean and sublime guitar tones and creative drumlines."




There are already quite a few math-rock bands in the Japanese indie scene, but there aren't quite as many in this form (with female vocals). Sure, you have bands like ハイスイノナサ‎ (haisuinonasa), but their sound is much more than just straightforward math-rock. The closest band I could think to compare uchuucombini to is tricot. However, I think uchuu has tricot beat hands down. The only thing that tricot has over uchuu right now is their raw aggressiveness, but I think uchuu trumps tricot in every other aspect.

After a year of letdowns and being severely underwhelmed by a number of Japapanese indie and former Japanaese indie bands, I was elated to come across a band like this! Some female fronted bands that were initially very promising (like akai ko-en and tricot) put out some highly dissatisfying releases this year, so I'm happy to see a new wave of promising female fronted bands like 宇宙コンビニ and chouchou merged syrups. storming the scene.

I can only hope that 宇宙コンビニ will go on to release more quality material in the future. Their sound isn't perfect, though. I'd like to hear them write some slightly more upbeat or aggressive tunes, but I do enjoy their laidback, post-rock aesthetic since they can pull it off beautifully. They could also write some slightly stronger melodies, but that's not a major issue here since the melodies on their mini album are already quite nice! So yeah, they're not flawless, but their debut is splendid and they're one of the brightest new lights to appear on the J-indie scene imo!

Would probably also go with either Matenrou Opera or Plastic Tree. I don't know the particular songs, but I tend to prefer Plastic Tree to Matenrou most of the time (for the exception of a few songs).
 
1. Gackt - Missing
2. 東京事変 - 秘密
3. Girls' Generation - Stay Girls
4. SHINee - Dazzling Girl
5. Kagrra, - 恋綴魂
6. Lorne Balfe - Risking Everything
7. 東方神起 - ANDROID
8. DEAD END - Dress Burning
9. Lorne Balfe - Laying Up The Trap
10. NICO Touches the Walls - 恋をしよう
 
Lots of Japanese K-pop on this one, lol. Normally I would go with NICO, but tbqh the 東方神起 song is just really really catchy and fun. Tokyo Jihen comes in second, as I haven't really gotten into them yet.

im fapping II: electric fapparoo

^Thanks, Trombe!

LOVING that bass and atmosphere.
 
Perfect gif.

and they just posted a song on their youtube-channel...

Well, that's the internet for you. It pretends to be a place of tolerance and personal freedom, but the collective hive of the internet is actually rather small-minded, conformist and reactionary.
 
 
Either you conform to a very narrow ideal of appearance and conduct - or you're meme material.

As Aion started one for folk, I'm starting one for electronics! I know Pandabear made a similar thread in Global for all electronic-related music, but I'd like to specify this to instrumental electronics (though some occasional vocals for effect are ok), if you catch my drift. Anyway, to give a few examples and therefore immediately favourites:
 
ESNO
 

 
ESNO basically mixes jazz elements with electronics and the result is his debut album Visionary, released last year. CAT has it in his best of 2012 list, might you be looking for more samples.
 
M-Koda
 

 
All his stuff got deleted off YT recently so this was all that I could find that is fairly recent. M-Koda's tunes are just really ambient and you probably need to be in the mood for this, but I can really recommend checking the album out he released this year, great stuff!
 
Ametsub
 

 
I find Ametsub's stuff hard to describe as he does a bit of everything when it comes to electronics, though I'd probably put him closer to M-Koda than other electronic artists I know. It's ambient, though a bit more upbeat than M-Koda's stuff.
 
Jimanica
 

 
I actually really didn't like his last album because the distorted vocals are just not my thing, but this song off the album greatly impressed me. If you don't mind the vocals, I'd say go for it.
 
I'd love to hear your contributions!

No matter how much we love our favourite artists, there is always that one (or more releases, depending on personal opinions) release which we just can't enjoy, isn't up to par with the rest of their material or is just so plain bad that we wished it had never been printed to disc, mainly because it just stains their entire discography. This is not limited to VK by the way, all Japanese rock counts! This also isn't limited to releases that you considered 'bad'. Mediocre or just general underwhelming releases count too.
 
This can be a whole release, like a single/mini/album, or if you can't think of those, just individual songs that ruined otherwise great releases (that one song that kept you from giving it five stars).
 
I'll start with BUCK-TICK's Yumemiru Uchuu. Even though this album isn't BAD, it's certainly their weakest album yet and apart from a few catchy tracks there is nothing particularly interesting going on, as in most of the previous albums. I find it a bit of a stain on their otherwise fantastic album discography.
 
Next up, lynch.' INFERIORITY COMPLEX. I liked a total of 2 tracks off this album, of which one was a single. The EXODUS EP excluded, I've digged every lynch. release so far, but INFERIORITY COMPLEX was just a really weak album imo that just put me off for quite a bit of time. It felt like it wasn't ready yet, if you know what I mean.
 
Anyway, let loose!
 
NOTE: THE "EVERYTHING RELEASED SINCE..."-THING IS NOT MEANT FOR THIS THREAD, BUT FOR THE "BANDS THAT WENT DOWNHILL"-THREAD. THIS IS SPECIFIED TO ONE OR SEVERAL RELEASES SPREAD OUT THROUGH A BAND'S DISCOGRAPHY THAT YOU STILL CONSIDER AMONG YOUR FAVOURITES.

Except Kamijo. By now I am convinced that he will take that gothic-aristocrat-thing to his grave. XDD
 
 
In all fairness though, most vk bands drop the vk image long before just getting too old. Actually most vk bands disband before they get to the point of dropping vk imagery, lol. I can fully understand though that after a few years of needing more time to prepare your makeup for a concert than actually spending time on stage, you want to tone down your visuals. And, since being in a vk band typically doesn't pay your bills, some people may just drop the pink hair in favor of getting a decent job. XD

some attempts at halloween makeup. I realize only now my lipstick was too pink.
 
 
**EDIT:
 
here's what i actually did:
 

 

Um yeah, here is mine: http://elmtree213.tumblr.com/
Maybe I will even use it one day. XD

http://bemoansdivas.tumblr.com/

I totally thought I posted mine before e__e
 
http://orangetarts.tumblr.com/
music, anime, art, stupid shit, etc

I haven't seen this thread for once, weird
 

 
So, this is Kiyoharu's "2nd" (consider Kuroyume to be the 1st and his solo to be the 3rd) project
He doesn't need any further introductions (well, almost everyone in MH has heard of him in one way or another) but
SADS is where he lumps all his glam rock-ish/punky/metal stuff, briefly put.
 
About my part I'd say that I haven't listened to them for awhile but BABYLON and THE ROSE GOD GAVE ME are still my jam even to this day, although other common listener favorites SAD BLOOD ROCK'N' ROLL and THE 7 DEADLY SINS are fine too.
 
Won't have much to say about them for now though.
 
 
 
 
Except that Kiyoharu is such a troll for forgetting SADS' tribute album completely - it's the end of autumn already, where is it?

Lol, yeah, THE NOVEMBERS have been super prolific lately...I'm not sure what's gotten into these guys, BUT THEY ARE FUCKING INSPIRED. Seriously, everything they've been releasing recently has been QUALITY!
 
This album is gonna kick so much ass.
 

This album and THE NOVEMBERS album are gonna be KILLER.

probably both are contenders for AOTY top list of 2013

ooooooo dammmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmn

はじめましてみなさん！
 
My name is Ryan, but I go by the moniker "TheStoic" as I use it in most blog/forum communities I take part in.
 
My love for Japanese Rock and Japanese culture originates from 2001 when I moved from the U.S. to live in Okinawa, Japan.  My best friend, whom was half Japanese-half American, introduced me to Japanese music through Arcade games, anime and manga and before you knew it, I was heading to my local Tsutaya Record Store to buy my favorite "introdcutory" artists I fist came to know and love, such as Bump of Chicken, The Blue Hearts, L'arc en Ciel, Siam Shade, Luna Sea, Hide, X-Japan, and Gackt.  However, as I started buying new CDs of artists I would see in Shoxx, Fool's Mate, and Cure magazines, I came to grow and fall in love with darker, heavier acts like Dir en grey, Mucc, D'espairsRay, and The GazettE.
 
Today, over half of my music library is strictly Japanese, and I have been lucky enough to see several of my favoirte acts live both in Japan and in the United States.  I have been a part of other J-Music communities before, and after reading the review section of this fourm, I saw I liked the layout, quality and discussion and have decided to join in the mix.
 
I look forward to meeting everyone!
 
Thanks for the great content here.

I personally love Cinema Staff more.  Their vocalist has a very recognizable voice that I love.  The melodies always seem to give me a very emotional feeling and at one time I was stuck ina month long addiction to their discography that still resonates with me.  Hearing songs like Gate and 君になりたい [Kimi ni Naritai/I Want to be You] always give me a rush of comforting nostalgia that I can't shake.
 
Arukara has a playful and eccentric spirit that doesn't allow me to connect with the music like CInema Staff does.  The music is good, but it does not hold the power that EPs like Blue, Under the Imagination held for me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJspVE355Do

it is announced at Lament. presents live "Lamentation of "Canvas" -Scene 3-" at Ikebukuro CHOP at 2013/10/29 that their new maxi single "Beautiful Creature" will be released at 2014/02/01 (1,050yen), which will be sold in advance at their one-man live "Beautiful Creature" at Ikebukuro CHOP at 2014/01/12
 
[track list]
01.Beautiful Creature
02.Because of you
 
 
SET-LIST at 2013/10/29:
 
01.Canvas-Scene 0-
02.Morrow
03.In The End
04.Daylight
05.Late show in Bathroom
06.Because of you
07.On Your Mark
08.The Screaming Pain
09.Lily
10.Swimmer
11.Door

have they made a hide vocaloid tribute double CD already????