This. So much.
I think a lot of this supposed "rivalry" or bashing stems from people's distaste in STU, hell even possibly Rinkaku and The Unraveling. Its pretty much just spite. And its not as if we didn't know that DIR EN GREY was going to take it down a notch. Kaoru specifically stated MULTIPLE times that their newer releases are going to be simple and quite honestly, its understandable. They successfully progressed substantially after the Marrow of a bone to Dum Spiro Spero. That takes a lot, especially having to deal with 7 strings vs 6 strings and fairly complex song structures. To want to tone down, while still keeping the essence of groups sound for a while is OK. It shows maturity. It shows that they too are human beings who know when to take necessary breaks. There are other bands other than DIR EN GREY that one may listen to at the end of the day if one isn't happy with the direction the band is going in. The end.
This sudden spark of "hate" is what's the popular thing to do. And while Kyo is the front man for Dir en grey, he doesn't even have that much musical say compared to Kaoru or Die. So if anything the comparison music wise vs Sukekiyo makes absolutely no sense...
As far as Shinya goes, he is one of my favorite drummers but its no secret that once the band started treading into more difficult territory, he's flawless in the studio but live, he cannot hold his own for some reason. Kaoru and Die have done a better job being clutch on the areas they may have had issues in, but I consistently notice the same minor screw ups in every single recent live DVD release. I dunno if its him not practicing or what....Chances are, the newer stuff they'll be playing will be better for him.