doombox

Oh this topic has been dead for a month! Well, time to revitalize it.
 


Visual kei fans are paradoxically some of the most open-minded and some of the most close-minded music lovers on the planet.
Now why are we open-minded? Take a look at your average visual kei band.
 
 


  There's no way in hell that shit would fly in any other country but Japan. One band could do it and it would be seen as a gimmick. But an entire scene revolving around that concept died out in the 80's with glam metal and there's still a bad taste in everyone's mouth about bands that don't prescribe to some pre-approved dress codes. I still live in a country with a split personality; one half wants to accept and embrace diversity. The other thinks that being gay is some unhealthy sin because you happen to like the parts you came equipped with. How many of us on this forum don't talk about visual kei to our real-life friends because they "wouldn't get it"? Are you afraid of being judged for listening to your "tranny metal"? How many of us are here because this is the only place on the internet where we can talk with other people that do "get it"? The fact that we're able to look past the visuals enough to give the music a try says a lot. There are a lot of fans of Japanese music who look down on visual kei because they think all the fans are horny teenage girls and all the music sucks.  We gave it a shot and all discovered something to love here, and that's why you're reading this post, right?
This is where the paradox comes in. Visual kei fans can be the most irritating, closed-minded individuals you will find on the Internet. We rival black metal fans in how obnoxious we are in claiming what is and isn't visual kei, and there's no consensus on what "it" actually is. What's worse is that we have some preconceived definition of what "real visual kei" ought to be. If you don't look a certain way or if you don't play "the right kind of music", it's much harder to keep anyone's attention. You could play the exact same music as a visual kei band and get no attention just because of that. When a session or band member leaves the visual kei scene to go play in another band very few fans will actually follow them to see where they end up - simply because they aren't in a visual band anymore. Bands that straddle the line between visual kei and something else get universally ignored no matter how amazing their music is.
Most notably, we've given off the impression that a band can pull a NOCTURNAL BLOODLUST and do nothing but add visual kei hooks and ugly costumes and they'll get tons of fans simply because they have visual kei hooks and ugly costumes. What the fuck guys? I thought we were supposed to be open-minded and about the music.
But of course, it was never about the music. It's about the looks. It's always been about the looks long before most of us got here and it will be long after we leave. If you're the kind of person who says that you listen to all sorts of visual kei and you go on to name 30 of the same band, 28 of which are recently started indies bands please be honest with yourself. You like the way the bands look and that's why you listen to visual kei, and that's fine. Just don't lie to yourself and say it's about the music when the bands you listen to range from average to absolute garbage. I honestly feel like if I hadn't thrown my administrator weight around earlier this year and exposed I.T.G for the lazy, cheap sacks of shit that they are someone on this forum would be hyping them all crazy.
Oddly enough, the reasons why we don't give chances to fringe visual kei is the same thing other people to do us if we try to expose them to visual kei. How open-minded can we actually be about visual kei if we ourselves don't give all of it a chance?
Take this not as a rant from someone who thinks he's got better musical taste than you. Take it from someone who was where you were quite some time ago (if said rant applies to you), who has some regrets about his visual kei phase, and wished he looked beyond the borders of visual kei to find other types of music sooner. There is some irrational fear in the back of many fans minds where they think if they start listening to other types of music that they will be "less" of a visual kei fan. I was one of those people once. That's false. None of us here believe that. Monochrome Heaven won't blow up because you decided to listen to something else. Visual kei isn't going anywhere either and you'll discover that all types of music can coexist peacefully on your MP3 player. So if you have some sort of irrational fear about trying out something new, the only person that's stopping you is you.
After all, the worst thing that could happen is that you discover you don't like something and that visual kei music is the only type of music you enjoy. But I can assure you, with all the blatant stealing and "inspiration" vk bands themselves find outside of visual kei, there's something out there that you will like. It might not even be metalcore.

Basically.
 
It's just music. Anyone who is taking it that seriously is probably not enjoying it as much as they could. Go. Be free little butterfly, and go listen to new things. Seriously. No one is mad because you want to listen to other music. VK isn't a prison. You can go explore other things. Heck, you might even come back to it some day. *le gasp*

Hey, I'd still do Reita.

People have been bitching about Dir en grey for as long as I can remember. There's so much controversy over Uroboros and Dum Spiro Spero that everyone forgot what happened around six Ugly and VULGAR.

Yes sorry i read it too rapidly and i just realized it this morning but i couldn't change the news :c
 

2014.12.03 Release
[CD] PECF-3111 ￥1,500＋tax
 
Tracklist:
01 真空から
02 ロードショー
03 プールサイドガール
04 二月
05 君、想ふ頃
06 グリーングリーン
 

Those videos are too precious. xD Any of the slowed down sections made me lose it completely. This is like, misheard lyric galore! This is just too amazingly random.
 
In all honesty, most of the things I find ridiculously funny are just texts I find on the internet. Like, the fanfics of VK musicians, or even Tumblr posts that, like the videos, twists words or pictures for comical effect. Those 'macros' or GIFS you see on Tumblr sort of thing. Makes my day. About the fanfics, I'm all for shipping people, I genuinely do that to people in real life. xD But, those intimate scenes fans write can be a bit, hey, wow now. Ahem. I just love fans of bands who put together funny compilation videos haha. It's these that makes me think, what dedication and love so many have for such weirdos. xD
 
 

What are some of the most ridiculous Jrock things you've found on the internet? 
 
I watch these videos at least once a year every year to remind myself why I love this fandom.
 

So to sum it up, Arlequin simply played it SAFE with this album. The end.

I'm sorry if I misunderstood. I thought you were referencing the other bands you mentioned as well. I was just making a point that playing with passion and interest in expanding aren't mutually exclusive.

Okay let me reword this. As a musician you may want to try new things out of your comfort zone not because you have to but because you want to. The new ideas you may have you might feel are "too risky" but trying something new in music is always risky. This doesn't mean stepping out of your genre or losing your sound, it just means taking your outline and doing it differently. A good example is the novembers. They have released things that have consistently sounded like the NOVEMBERS it's still them, but can you say all there songs sound similar and have the same formula? No I wouldn't say so. But they still sound like them. I like fourth wall but if all of their releases had the same feeling and direction as fourth wall of be pretty disappointed, not because it sounds bad, but if I wanted to I could just listen to the fourth wall on repeat all the time. Same is for arlequin, their past releases all fall with in the same genre, but they are all unique in their own way, but with the album it just feels like the new songs have the same phrasing and formula/feeling so it's hard for it to stand out.
I'm not saying and haven't said for them or any band to take risks in the direction of another genre, but maybe try to convey a different feeling or direction in a song.
It's like a riff you enjoy playing so much that you try to incooperate it in to each song you play. No matter how much you spice up that riff or change the note placements, it becomes too repetitive.
Or like candy. Or food. If you eat the same kind of candy over and over again, you lose your taste for it. Candy is still candy, so you can try different flavors.
Let's put it this way....
Candy is music, and the different types of candy are genres. (Lollipops, chocolate, gummies etc etc.)
Let's say arlequin is lollipops.
Instead of having only watermelon lollipops, you can have cherry, blueberry, bubblegum, etc etc instead of watermelon all the time. They'd still be a lollipop.
Idk if that makes any sense at all.

I've only listened to the album once very casually and i don't think i'm in the position to comment on the quality of the album, much less give a proper review. But my own view is that there's no value inherent in taking risks just for the sake of doing it. I mean, if i'm in a band that has found a unique niche sound and accrued a solid following, why would i not want to keep to my sound? Moran's songs sound "samey" too, and enough people buy their sound, so I don't believe being a successful musician is all about changing sounds every few releases and trading a group of fans for another as the band becomes more "mature". To be honest that would be ridiculous. Instead it's about being able to stand your ground in what's alr a very challenging scene, consolidate some sort of identity for yourself/your band, and then explore how to vary elements of your music meaningfully. I feel it's important that the variation comes in at the last step (and note the emphasis), otherwise the result will be the polymorphous disaster that's Sadie's last album ._.
For me arlequin has managed to find their own sound (already impressive given how young and relatively inexperienced they are), and i'm more than happy to give them time to take the last step. Simply because it will take time.

I'm sorry if I misunderstood. I thought you were referencing the other bands you mentioned as well. I was just making a point that playing with passion and interest in expanding aren't mutually exclusive.

that's all I'm saying

This. Here for Ray and MAST, tbh. All my Aliene Ma'riage feels. ;^; <3

They seriously need to work on a new project. These sessions are a tease haha

NAMBA69 "21st CENTURY DREAMS" NAMBA69 ALBUM Special Web Site：http://namba69special.com/ Directed by UGICHIN(FOOLISH GRORY STUDIO)   2014/12/10 ON SALE!!! Album comes in 2 types, regular edition CD only, and limited edition with DVD. 【CD+DVD】 CTCD-20013/B ￥3,300-(+tax) 【CD】 CTCD-20014 ￥2,500-(+tax)   【Tracklist】 -CD- 1. INTRO 2. 21st CENTURY DREAMS 3. TRUE ROMANCE 4. SUMMERTIME 5. ON THE ROAD 6. STRAY DOG 7. STARTING OVER 8. THE WORLD IS YOURS 9. JUST BECAUSE 10. NMFN 11. GHOST 12. TRASH 13. FOREVER KID   -DVD- MUSIC VIDEO 01. TRUE ROMANCE 02. TAKE ME TO THE STREETS 03. 21st CENTURY DREAMS 04. SUMMERTIME    

emo band nim and post-hardcore/screamo outfit to overflow evidence will release a split CD on the December 10th, 2014.
 

 
1. 跡に幻 - To overflow evidence
2. 舟を編む - To overflow evidence
3. not too late - nim
4. Amanda - nim
5. 雨音 - nim to To overflow evidence
6. Ascetics - To overflow evidence to nim
 
http://tooverflowevidence.jimdo.com/
http://www.nim-jp.com/

even if ROGUE doesn't come back I'd like to see these guys as a formal band...or even Mast and Ray working together in a new band

This album was released in early 2014 and today, it's still my favourite album of the year.
 

I'm still addicted to this album.
 

ah nah i didn't take it that way that you meant that. It was just in reference to what you quoted. But this applies to more than just relationships. Granted it's tough to try and be the support for someone who is less confident... but they have their mind made up that they aren't good enough already, so sometimes people say things like "Maybe if you smiled more, maybe if you cared more, maybe if you loved yourself more..." I don't think it's a matter of people who dislike themselves don't deserve to be loved because they are.... but from personal experience... I think when you're so focused on yourself not being perfect you become more obsessed with the fact that you can't love yourself and you forget to LET or SEE other people love you. It's a toxic black tar that fills your veins and really blinds you from anything outside your own mind. 
 
It's hard though, to get out of that mode where you can't stand to look at yourself, you don't care if you sleep until the sun goes back down, you either hate food or love it way too much (and the outcome isn't very effective to your mood either), you feel exhausted just from talking to people so you make excuses to avoid seeing them, you get headaches literally from thinking too much and picking apart each flaw you have physically and mentally which creates a trail of thoughts reflecting on past life decisions and how you won't be able to change things. It's hard to get out of that mode where over active thinking is why you can't sleep at night and when you do sleep it's because you've been up for more than 48 hours. It's hard to find a reason to start caring about things that don't seem to matter anymore because they don't matter because they failed to get you to where you wanted to be and you're too tired to step outside and try something new today because life is a little more understandable and comfortable inside the walls you build up to block out the world.
 
There's that pretty cliche saying, "You can't love anyone until you love yourself."
 
This is true. It doesn't mean you have to be enthusiastic to the point that your ego is over 9000, no. It just means that you need to care about yourself enough to trust, compromise, understand, need, want, give, take... and most of all you need to be able to be selfish sometimes. How CAN you feel these things if you're too busy shutting the world out? 
Of course everyone deserves to be loved, but not everyone lets themselves be loved.
 
EDIT: This post got way deeper than I originally planned, and I apologize. I've personally found someone very patient with me (even during my breakdowns) and even though he doesn't know it.... has helped me accept myself in many ways. No we're not together so yes I'm still allowed to post in the singles thread D<

BOOM BOOM SATELLITES mysterious countdown has been shown in their OHP

Homura Uta (2002), Zekuu (2003) and Kuchiki no Tou (2004) are all worth a listen. Their pre-Homura Uta stuff seems to be widely liked too, but I'm not too familiar with those.

Welcome to the madhouse. XD
Nice band list. I'm fond of exist†trace, DELUHI, UNiTE, girugamesh, and Mejibray as well. Hope you enjoy it here.