cali≠gari will release their new album titled "13" on 2017/05/10 in 2 versions: limited "Kyoushin-ban" CD+Blu-ray edition (￥6,000+tax) and regular "Ryoushin-ban" CD-only edition (￥3,000+tax). The limited bonus Blu-ray will feature scenes from the album's recording and various offshot footage. Also, the "Kyoushin-ban" cover art will be done by mangaka Maya Mineo (apparently known for classic shoujo and BL style manga).
They will also hold their Japan tour "cali≠gari △15th Caliversary”2002-2017″ TOUR 13 -Hell is other people-" from June 3 to July 22.
not much else that we know other than this. between me and @Ro plzthis wont be much more than a coupling tour and an excuse for the pierrot ojis to get some diru coin, but i hope its a full on collab orgy
http://www.arlequin.jp/
For a band with 20+ years of activity and plenty of hit singles along with great albums it's hard to pick an area to to focus on when it comes to the work of L'Arc~en~Ciel. They are my favorite band of all time and I thought it would be great to share some of the variety of music they've released throughout their career. This mainly focuses on the b-side tracks from the many singles they've released and these usually are not featured on albums either. There was a compilation album for re-mixes and P'UNK~EN~CIEL but those were from a few years back I thought I would share my favorites from their b-sides.
P'UNK~EN~CIEL (2004 - 2012)
P'UNK~EN~CIEL started in 2004 where members swap their traditional roles in the band to play "punk" versions of their songs. Instead of their typical line-up they change to tetsuya on vocals, hyde on guitar, yukihiro on bass, and ken on drums. It's definitely one of my favorite "alter ago" bands if you can call it that, mostly because my favorite member takes over on vocals and he's already a very outgoing, fun dude and it definitely shows when he takes over during lives. Originally they started the idea with their first line-up with original drummer Sakura with the name D'ARK~EN~CIEL but record label issues at the time prevented the single they were featured on to not be released until a much later date.
First up on the thrill ride is the most classic of classics "DUNE" and it's a revamp that's a punch to the face of tasty pop-punk flair. The song already has a very memorable guitar riff that has a heavier twist to it in this particular version and gives it new life. It shows when the song reaches the guitar solo taking you a ride of it's own.
"HONEY" is already a very energetic and upbeat song on it's own so throwing it into the P'UNK blender gave it an interesting result. It starts with a slower paced rhythmic dance through the verses that almost makes you think that this song is sticking to it's more melodic source. That is until it surprises you with a sucker punch of fast punk style delivery of the chorus that makes it difficult to not get up and mosh to or at least head-bang happily to at your desk... WHAT? DON'T JUDGE ME....
L'Acoustic (2011-Present)
Instead of a role swap L'Acoustic is pretty much as it is shown, redone versions of previous tracks played with acoustic style. It began when they stopped P'UNK~EN~CIEL for a much different and smoother type of b-side. There aren't many tracks they've done in this style but I do like it a lot. It's some of their best lesser known songs in a really chill style. Some of them haven't been released on singles yet but they're still nice to hear from the live versions.
"Kasou" is already a very chill song but the studio version has more a dark vibe to it given the funerary nature of the song. Making it a purely acoustic track seems to bring it more to life, making it feel like a song that could be played at a wake. It brings you closer to the emotions of loss that are sprinkled throughout the lyrics and instrumentals.
The acoustic version of "I'm So Happy" gives it a very lounge vibe with very gentle instrumentals and vocals that sound very unclean. As you listen to it you almost feel as though it's being played in a smoky room with a soft jazz quartet playing a beautiful love song that touches everyone who listens to it.
yukihiro remixes
When yukihiro took over drums for the band in the latter half of their career he showed off his technical skill by making fantastic remixes of their releases. Most of the tracks have a very psychedelic feel to them but are sometimes the perfect mood setters. They're not entirely my cup of tea but if you're into trippy remixes/tencho/dub then these might interest you.
B-sides (1991 - present)
Sometimes there is no variation/remix track and instead a regular b-side track is featured like most releases from any band in circulation. Some of them are my favorite tracks and I feel they are special little gems hidden in the rough, especially bravery which is possibly my favorite song from their entire discography.
Got two copies of the 100-copy limited album "LAST FIRST LOVE" from the lovely mid-2000s band 恋-れん- thanks to one of my super lovely friends that went to their one-day revival live.
evenor got a reaction from nxbitakinema in Your last music-related buy!
evenor got a reaction from Yukimoto in Your last music-related buy!
evenor got a reaction from emmny in Your last music-related buy!
