doombox

Hello everyone, I literally just signed up for Monochrome Heaven and I thought I'd go ahead and introduce myself. 
I found this website by searching for J-rock communities by the way.
I'm a pretty easy going person, go with the flow, quiet most of the time but I'll give my thoughts here and there.
 
From the Japanese music scene I mainly listen to the following bands but I'm looking to widen my band list:
exist†trace, DELUHI, THE KIDDIE, UNiTE, the GazettE, girugamesh, Canzel, Golden Bomber, Gremlins, DELACROIX, SLOD, Royz and Mejibray.
 
I hope to have a great time and meet a wide variety of people to discuss and develop anything related to the Asian music culture or European even American too ╰(°ㅂ°)╯

Just for the record, I think there should be a seasonal Winter/Christmas/Other winter holiday themed plug session. ^^

It's too early for this kind of poll I think.
 
We can't judge because there are DIR EN GREY's and MERRY's albums on December !!!

No, there is one today! I made an announcement at the top of the forum! Hopefully ppl have noticed it! :'3

they have played their unreleased song "I'M SHIT NOODLE, BUT..." at their live at Sendai CLUB JUNK BOX at 2014/11/14

in fact GHOSE has also successfully completed their 12-month consecutive release (despite eventual disbandment)

Artist: アルルカン Album: ニア・イコール Score: It's called near equal because all the songs are just as good as one another.
In life, the first impression is everything. This applies even to music, doubly so for visual kei bands. The first visual kei band in a long time able to combine metalcore with dubstep in a way that didn't make me want to smash my head against a wall, アルルカン's single 墓穴 left a good impression on me. With all their ducks in a row, the announcement of their first full album piqued my interest. I was curious to see what direction this nascent band's first full-length would go in, how many risks they would be willing to take, and how far they bend their approach to music before something gives.
 
However, the second impression is just as important. アルルカン play it safe with near equal, opting to neither amaze nor disappoint. Previously released singles 墓穴 and Eclipse hover a cut above the rest, but there's not a gulf of difference between the old tracks and the new tracks. If anything, they all sound interchangeable. This is both a good and a bad thing.

This is a good thing because it shows that the first few releases weren't a fluke. Their overall sound remains the same, borrowing elements from their peers while also excelling at what they play. 暁-aki- has nice growls with a penchant for catchy hooks and the guitarists have an ear for good riffs. Many of the songs give off the same vibe and toy with the same ideas in a different way. I understand that they are a new band still finding their way, but their bag of tricks is small. They've already recycled such ideas like the dubstep sample over a breakdown, or the overused aggressive verse/uplifting chorus dynamic. As always, the melodic parts kick ass, but it wouldn't hurt to let in a few more influences take over during those moments. The melodic bits are 90% of why this band sounds as good as it does.

We can break up the songs on near equal into three categories. The first is the energetic metalcore numbers that form the backbone of their sound, such as opener 暁 and single 墓穴. There are some more electro rock oriented tunes such as Alive and あの窓に教わった事. Then there is アルルカン's softer side with ending track clepsydra and カレイドスコープ, where one can catch some power chords and piano on display. One look at the track list and it's clear that similar sounding tracks are close to one another. Thus, this album flows in phases instead of hopping between all the different approaches. Whether this is intentional or not I do not know, but it wouldn't be wrong of me to say they had three ideas going into this album and they made those three ideas work as best as they could.

This also leaves me with little else to say about any song in particular, as all points of praise or criticisms noted apply to most of the songs equally.

Does アルルカン miss the mark? While I would have been pleased if they had exceeded my expectations a second time, they delivered at the level I expected them to. It's an enjoyable, but forgettable album. That's not to say that near equal is bad. It's all rising action and no climax, and the abundance of familiar tracks don't help any. There are also moments in individual tracks where the transition between two phases of the music aren't as clean as they could be. There's an undeniable feeling of dissatisfaction at the end of the album, as if the blistering pace and raw energy teased at with prior singles doesn't translate well into a full album. Next time around - and there better be a second album - these rough edges should be polished up.

This is a contender for one of the top visual kei albums of the year - although that's not saying much - and アルルカン has set the bar for visual kei at a comfortable height. If this band continues activities at their current rate and find some way to make their sound more memorable, I can see them gigging at Budokan in a few years.

Three cheers to no tragedies and more music from visual kei's new poster boys.

I usually try to check out this band's material, as they have enough songs that I enjoy. One thing I like about the vocalist is that he actually sings in Japanese pretty often...i know a good amount of bands in this scene sing in a similar manner, but it's usually in Engrrrish. (which i'm really picky about XD)

Release：2014.12.03
Price：￥1,080（Tax In）
Item#：SRBM-1008
 

Tracklist:
01.Blue Echo
02.Closer
03.Sheltered
 

【Release】2014.12.17
【Item#】DLCR-14121
【Price】1,200円 +tax
【Label】BUDDY RECORDS
 

Tracklist:

1. 間もなくフィクション
2. 世界は嘘で出来ている
3. イミテーション・ワールド
4. 歌うカメレオン
5. ほころび
6. 空中遊泳
 

To celebrate their 20th anniversary, legendary indie/alt/"art"-pop band Clammbon will release their very first tribute album next month, 2014.12.03. Participating artists/bands listed in the tracklist below!



2014年12月3日（水）発売
3,000円＋税
発売元: 日本コロムビア（㈱）
品番:COCP-38844



【収録曲】
01.「Folklore」 / ストレイテナー
02.「ある鼓動」 / 蓮沼執太フィル
03.「アホイ!」 /salyu × salyu
04.「大貧民」 / レキシ
05.「華香るある日 ～clommbon loves clammbon ver ～」 / ハナレグミ
06.「SUPER☆STAR」 / NONA REEVES
07.「ロッククライミング ～Let's Roooooock Mix～」 / Buffalo Daughter
08.「5716」 / downy
09.「246」 / GREAT3
10.「はなれ ばなれ」 / TOKYO No.1 SOUL SET
11.「海の風景」 / HUSKING BEE
12.「雨」 / 青葉市子
13.「ハレルヤ」 / Mice Parade (featuring Chancellor)
14.「バイタルサイン～Tetsuya Komuro Remix～」 / 小室哲哉

http://columbia.jp/clammbon20th/COCP-38844.html


Wonderful tracklist, can't wait! Especially looking forward to salyu x salyu, downy, GREAT3, ichiko aoba, hanaregumi, and Shuta Hasunuma Philharmonic Orchestra!

idk I felt like messing with my make up and stuff.... eeeeeeeh.
 
 
I'm chubby ok?

SWANKY DANK「Magna Carta」
2015.01.21 Release
GMRF-1005 / 2,300+tax
 
Tracklist:
01.New World
02.Monster feat.Ryo(from Crystal Lake)
03.the answer
04.Party Rock
05.inside of you
06.Promise
07.number
08.Nightmare
09.Stay with Me
10.Pardon Me
11.Hero
 
New artist photo by Rui Hashimoto.

 
 

寺尾順平(terao jumpei)(ex-THE STARBEMS) & やよい(yayoi)(つしまみれ(tsushimamire)) have got married at 2014/10/26

accurate

Haha, so we're pretty much vise versa. And i agree completely,late this year was my come back year into K-Pop and these last few months have really REALLY been impressive. My iphone is filled with more K-pop than usual.
 
 
I can respect that. To me, their music resonates with me and they kind of remind me of Shinhwa in their earlier days. 
Yes, please do. I have a feeling they're gonna go very far as a group.
 
BTW:
 
I copped the AOA come back album last night. This was my first time really listening to them and I must say, next to T-ARA's And and End, this is one of the best releases this year. 

haha, definitely. This one is pretty good. The hair at least matches the shape of my own (although not quite the texture ofc lol).
 

I also wanted to have a go with the new one. XD Everyone looks so cute. 
 

was expecting UTADA ROXXX — VK nobodies covering utada hikaru for a single-time media presence chance — (feat. Nao of kaggra, and Aoi from ayabie)

Artist: coldrain Album: UNTIL THE END Score: coldrain are fighting for international attention, but are they ready? Hailing from Nagoya, coldrain is a five piece band that over the last few years has found itself stepping out of Japan's alternative rock scene and into the global post hardcore market. Most recently, they've spent their time recording with notorious hit-maker David Bendeth. coldrain are the type of band who hit the ground running seven years ago and have no visible intent on stopping any time soon.

coldrain crack open this mini album with some stereotypical teen angst lyrics on "AWARE AND AWAKE". Moving past that, the music has a nice groove to it. The time-signature changes and the transitions from heavy verses to arena-rock choruses show small hints of the band's diversity. However, the entire song is quite cookie cutter, predictable, and falls into mediocrity. I can imagine this serves well as an introduction to new listeners who may not know quite what coldrain are capable of. It's wrapped in an easy to grasp package with all the mainstays of mainstream metalcore virtues. If you enjoyed this song, then the rest of the album will bode well for you, but if you're long-time fan, it might leave much to be desired. "EVOLVE" blasts you in the face with much more intricate guitar work straight away. Just when you expect to hear a standard post-hardcore chorus, the song teases you with a sludgy bridge first, which at least is a step in the right direction. This track shows more diversity in the first minute than the previous track en masse and sounds infinitely more brutal- partially due to Katsuma's solid double bass drum work. "AWARE AND AWAKE" sounds whiny and weak in comparison. Lyrically, "YOU LIE" treads familiar territory that other songs on this album have already covered, but it's much more emotional and bears a stronger alternative rock influence that gives contrast to the bridges and breakdowns. This song proves that sometimes less is more, and band's needn't reinvent the wheel to remain poignant and connect with the audience.

 
"FADE AWAY" has a fun, fast-paced, bouncy feel and is the high point of this EP, even if the lyrics are contrary to the atmosphere. This feels like the major crowd pleaser on the record and could easily fuel some fierce circle pits. It also carries the album's most infectious chant-along mantra, "until the end, you never learned, you never learned what it means to love". The band 'chooses their moments', so to speak, with the sparing breakdowns to retain a strong momentum throughout the song. They do a good job of keeping things from becoming monotonous by injecting a monstrous breakdown instead of the default pop formula ending that repeats the chorus into oblivion. Opening with an emotive, squealing guitar, "MARCH ON" is another strong showing. This track ushers in some restrained verses and continues the album's theme of chanted vocals, making this song's title easy to remember. The song builds on solid guitar work and explodes into machine gun riffing before the breakdown (which is unfortunately located at the exact same place as the previous song). The interesting guitar effects from the intro return to add dimension to the end and transitions nicely to the next song. "HOUSE OF CARDS" starts slow and sultry, with a lonely resonating bass line and a delayed piano effect that sounds both haunting and seductive. Drums fill in the hollows of the second half, and by the time the instruments have gelled together, most of the song has already passed you by. The last chorus feels like it slips through your fingers, all too soon, as it returns itself to an echoing wisp of notes. Normally I take issue with ending mini albums on somber notes, but this one leaves us with a great cliffhanger for the next release.

 
UNTIL THE END does as much right as it does wrong and it's hard to say who I would specifically recommend this release to when it comes down to new or old fans. They did the smart thing and tacked these songs onto the deluxe edition of their previous album, The Revelation, for international fans. The variety in the tracklist feels like the band wanted to show all of their strengths in the short number of tracks, but it also brought some glaring weaknesses to light. As for strengths, it really plays on Masato being one of the few English singing Japanese vocalists who was raised bi-lingual from birth. His English is about as perfect as you'll find in this scene. The band has a great pop sensibility and knows how to change with the times; being one of the few bands that has actually gotten heavier as they've gained popularity. Regardless, the major weakness of this album is the stale and formulaic songwriting. One of the pitfalls of having good pop sensibilities is the double-edge of sticking to the cookie cutter format of pop songs. The moments when this album gambles on mixing up that formula are when it truly starts kicking some ass.

 

Got some good news from the band by Tatsuya on twitter like two months ago. I didn't know where to share it so gonna post it here.  

 

 
So, some new stuff from AIS coming soon.

六合 just came up in my shuffle as well lol
 
01.Gari – Starcade
02.謝霆鋒 – 繼續唱
03.the GazettE – ATTITUDE
04.ＦＬｉＰ – Deedandi Gan Diesta
05.東京ヒーローズ – 若気の至り
06.GalapagosS – Black including all
07.Crucial Star – C'est la vie
08.少女-ロリヰタ-23区 – id cito reposcit quod dedit.
09.Knock The Knock – หากเธอต้องไป
10.ムック – どしゃぶりの勝者
 
Definitely the MUCC song, but the Gari song would be a close second.