Ikna

 

(edit: hups, forget the s in the title >_< can someone fix that? ^^'

Edit => use full editor => corrige your title...  nothing complicated!

 

Lol, thanks. I have forgotten I have to hit the full editor button ^^;

hmm, to be fair, the last time something went wrong with my foobar scrobbler (it was giving me some "API key suspended" message), i contacted the last.fm staff and they got back to me within a few days. i was kinda surprised since almost everyone i know says terrible things about them. that said, there was once started a thread to give some suggestions on how to manage scrobbling multiple artists with the same name, but none of the staff responded and my thread died *shrug* so it's a matter of luck i guess?

i'll be quite sad if last.fm dies cuz i made quite a lot of friends there, some of whom i still chat to frequently. and like Ikna said it's an efficient way to find new artists, manage track statistics (though i suppose you can do that locally), etc. well, if/when that day comes, i think everyone will realize what a waste of time it was to squabble over stuff like whether Raphael or Ｒａｐｈａｅｌ is the "correct tag" XD

It seems they are quick helping you, especially over twitter, when the problem is minor. Fixing a small issue? No problem. Fixing an issue, that may take 3 days maximum, because you have to program the plug-in differently? Takes ages. What bothers me the most is how they almost never answer in the client or website problem forums. People have been rightly complaining that they often have to wonder if there is still a staff.

The thing with the correct tags is a big issue. I really hate it when I have to migrate to unicode and loose all my old scrobbels. Even shiitier that recently a lot of unicode pages have been relinked wrongly. See: Ｇｈｏｓｔ was and should be ＧＨＯＳＴ

I'm waiting for a competitor to arise that does exactly what Last.fm does, but with a few key differences:

• A scrobbling tool that actually works! It's amazing how the official client can't scrobble from my Android but a thirty line script included with my portable media player can. Last.fm developers make web services seem like rocket science.
• A more sane way of categorizing artists. Categorizing artists by name was a terrible idea, although anything else has it's own warts to deal with too. If you must categorize by name, do what Wikipedia has and default to a disambiguation entry and have listener's pick the artists (or even better detect the album name and try to auto-match first!)

I agree with all points. Especially the artist disambiguation feature, which people have been requesting basically since forever. Not sure if the staff actually promised to work on it, but it shouldn‘t be impossible to program and it would make things a lot easier, especially end all those silly wars between fans of different bands sharing the same name.

Well, some people want different things from the site and are happy what they get. A lot of people here write that they don‘t need a radio streaming service, cool features or have never had any problems with scrobbling. I too could care less about the radio, I have used it maybe three times. I am using spotify now mainly for streaming (and there is even an implemention of spotify in lastfm. I am sure they could extend this feature somehow). Spotify isn‘t everyone's cup of tea either, I know, but for those who want to stream music or listen to radio stations it‘s a great alternative. However: a lot of people really liked the lastfm radio and were upset when it was gone. We, who mostly use it only for scrobbling, stats and finding new artist may be rather a minority. Te people who brought the money into the service were mostly those, who wanted to stream music. Lastf still needs money to run, hence the focus should always be on how your services can appeal to a mass of people and make them pay or donate. Sure, you can use the site for free. And maybe the streaming option isn‘t so important. I still think that lastfm need to make their service better or they won‘t last long.

And yeah, I am using itunes alternatives at the moment. I am glad have some, because I won‘t downgrade or use other temporary fixes. Now itunes itself is quite the horror somtimes, but that still means that the scrobbling client should be updated regularily to work with the players it‘s intended to be compatible with. It‘s not apples fault that the lastfm staff are lazy. I too had scrobbling issues since ca. 2012. Since then the scrobbler played roulette when I wanted to scrobble my ipod and did only a few times (most often not and they were lost). Multiple scrobbles or tracks vanishing (or not scrobbling at all) are common. For a website that is all about statistics and charts it‘s actually impossible to get your listening habits accurate (except you are lucky and your client never does this shit with you).

I am surprised there is no thread like this here, since a lot of people from Mh have an account there. Those who have been scrobbling music for a while now might have noticed it: ever since Lastfm was bought by CBS the site has started to go down in quality, features and support. Now it‘s understandable that with an old age as lastfm and more and more better music streaming alternatives popping up (such as spotify) it would loose it's position on the market. But lastfm has finally reached an all time low.

As a lot of news have reported, lastfm has made huge losses over the last years. And then there is the totally useless support team, who rarely fix technical issues both on the website and/or the client. At the moment hundreds of people are pissed, because they can‘t scrobble any music from the recent itunes 12.1. update. This issue was known since january, yet lastfm replied to work on this 10 days ago. So far they haven‘t updated their client and people still hang in the air. Now you could say “then just downgrade or find another player”, but temporary fixes are no real fixes. And lastfm does a terrible job, they have updated their scrobbler the last time in 2013! Such a thing shouldn‘t happen, not only because it‘s unprofessional, but it will also drive even more people away from the service. It almost looks as if they are deliberately letting this site die.

I really like lastfm for what it is. It's really an excellent way to discover new music. There are a lot of music databanks, but none of them are as extensive as lastfm. So it makes me worried to see the site standing in the grave with one foot. What will happen with our scrobbles and libraries?

Maybe I am just very pessimistic and the site may in some way survive for a few years, but it doesn‘t look so bright. CBS have managed to slowly ruin the website. Even if thousand people would be subscribing now it would possibly not rescue it. There isn‘t even a point or reason why one should even subscribe. Maybe I haven‘t checked it out so well, but I think that a subscription doesn‘t really give you much of an advantage (which it actually should). All the features you got when you payed have been elimenated (the radio mainly). No wonder people stopped paying. Instead of lazily resting on the issue with the comment “we can‘t do a thing about it” they should have tried to become more active and aquire music licenses with another tactic. Or they could have implemented other features, which will attract people.

Even spotify seems to do better, despite the majority of their listeners not paying for premium. Lastfm are just really doing something terribly wrong.

So yeah, that‘s my stance on the issue. What do you thing? Will lastfm be abandoned, become as empty as Myspace (it actually already is) or will be sent to the webgrave? And what do you think are the reasons for it's current status?

edit: hups, forget the s in the title >_< can someone fix that? ^^'

Dir en Grieva (can't remember who made that one up...)

I have it on my profile (for longer than one year), maybe you have seen it there. But I think someone else mentioned it here on MH once before? I cant remember.

And why the fuck am I noticing this thread just now? I should lurk in this little corner here more often…

The Gackt-kackt thing is a very popular joke here in the German speaking realm. And everytime I mention Gackt to my non-Vk or Jrock listening friends they ask me if I am serious and if that‘s really his name

Funny how everyone was expected something big, just because Mast and Ray are doing something together. They both showed bad luck (or choice) with their musical career in the last years (except maybe for Nega, though I was never a big fan of them). It was clear from the start that this won’t be another Aliene and at best just a new Nega.

^ well, there are quite a few bands who sound like they could be from that era. It‘s not so obscure as actual 90s style oldschool bands. See DEZERT, Kuroyuri to kage, Gossip, AvelCain, Crimson Shiva, Sibilebashir, etc. The 00s sound hasn‘t completely died out yet. In fact, some of the bands of this era managed  to survive way into the early 2010s. I remember there were still enough Gazette copycats around in 2010. True it‘s slowly starting to fade away as Metalcore has become the next big thing, but a few bands still clinge to it.

Being a hopeless nostalgic I can understand where you are coming from, but can‘t agree 100%. The style has changed and the scene is pumping out one Royz-clone after another, but it would be wrong to idealize the past and say, that everything was better back then. The video and production quality seems to be the scapegaot in most discussions, but honestly: it wasn‘t as good as we claim. That doesn‘t mean that all PVs in the 90s and 00s were Matina-style low budget crap filmed on a shaky handcam with the band dancing around in the forest or wrapping themselves in toilet paper, but there wasn‘t as much budget as today. PVs nowadays look a lot better, because the technology may have become more affordable.

I also don‘t think that the production has gotten worse (it can‘t be worse than the ‘production’ some obscure VK bands had in the 90s when they recorded their songs in a 5m2 bathroom), maybe their instrumental just happen to sound bad. One thing I noticed with many indies VK bands emerging since the early 00s were the boring 3 chord (or less) riffs. Those were particulary bad in some low budget Nu Metal bands (plus half assed growls). My main beef with modern VK is that the bands want to play Nu Metal or Metalcore so badly, but either don‘t have the skill or the will to learn it. I am not an expert on this issue, since I am not really a big Metal fan, but I am sure that 90% of these VK bands don't even scratch on the surface of what are good growls or ‘harsh vocals’. I really can’t stand listening to random or reptitive guitar slamming and growls and screams so bad it gives me a headache. Which is the main reason why I stay away from this music (even though I listen to AvelCain and Karma‘s voice sometimes exhibits the same problem. I then often just skip the song or part…)

Can absolutely agree with The Gallo, AvelCain and DEZERT. I may also add Sibilebashir, who have become really fucking awesome in the last two years (before 2013 they used to look and sound very different).

Then I‘d recommend you to check out Emmurée and …。【サイレンス】. Both bands have the same vocalist, Sou, and the sound is placed somewhere between melancholic alternative rock, post-punk and goth. The former aren‘t really new, but underrated as hell.

Tried them out, but I don‘t like it really. REMNANT was better (or maybe it‘s just that I am not a huge fan of this whiole future pop thing)

I was already wondering when they will announce something new to release this year. True, the singles are a nice way to cash in (at least they don‘t make 10 types *cough* Kiryu *cough).

Glad that they have find a new drummer. Now I wish too that they would start doing something new. It‘s nice that they like early 00s VK so much, but that doesn‘t mean that they can‘t move outside the genre and style border a bit (and they ran out of Diru songs to copy too). But let‘s just wait and see, maybe that new mini album will be more promising than the previews of these songs. I have to say though, that I like their new look and costumes. Kyouki looks rad with pink hair.

^A Silent Hill pillow. Nice look and concept. I never listened a song by them but that bandpic makes me curious…

Their previous look had more similiarities with grieva, which even made it difficult to tell them apart when they where seen together on photos. This one is actually decent (typical early 00s style)

I am one of the few who liked their demo more than the first single. Hope this one will be better. The kagerou copy pasta is funny as much as their habit of reusing gazette song titles.

So you praise nekkichi and you praise Jrockdrama but you don't praise the actual god Zeus? And you expect me to smite your foes? Hah!

I'll worship you, Zeus. I like being an evil heathen

Ugh, looking shit recently. That photo is the only decent one.

Crimson Shiva are one of the few "neo VK" bands who do it right. Their visuals are great and so is their music. Don't mind that the single is softer, as they already have a good reportoire of fast, heavy ones.

Seems that now without Rui they have calmed down with popping up new releases too fast. But still great to see a few new songs. I hope we can still expect a few releases in 2015.

I am surprised no one has posted any Minimal Wave or retro Darkwave yet. Or maybe I am misunderstanding this "retrowave" thing and it's more like a revival of more mainstream or typical 80s synth pop and electro, than being a revival of actual (New) Wave?
 
Anyway, I think this artist might still fit here:

It def has the characteristic 80s wave sound. This has been a trend for a while and I mostly "blame" it on the hipsters having rediscovered old retro music.

I have honestly not seen a comment yet about them having old school sound. Where did you guys read that? :v 

Seikun has said "Very much like old school Visual Kei."

They for sure don't sound very oldschool. Neither do AvelCain for example (despite Seikun too always commenting on how they would).

I can see why people are comparing them to DEZERT though (both music and styling wise. Their vocalist also has a similiar look as Chiaki). But to be honest… I personally am not hooked by any preview. I guess I'll have to wait and see once the album is out if I like it (but so far I prefer the other Ains bands, gossip and grieva).

^in VK it happens so every often that two totally different bands go on tour or share venues. It surely is strange, but better than pairing sadiesmarry with other bands. (though Vampire Rose would have been a good choice).

But yeah, great news. Would be even cooler if they would revive for longer

^ sinister doesn't always just equal Metal either… I can only assume that seikun may be referring to some of the musical elements in old VK which are derived from Post-Punk, Goth or maybe Deathrock. There weren't really as many VK bands playing straight Black Metal (and Thrash isn't that gloomy).

I still don't understand the drama. Sure, it's sad that most VK bands have ditched this sound, but it's nothing you can do about it. This scene has always been about adapting to trends. The old bands sounded a certain way because it worked or sold. I agree to sai. You either cherish what the past is giving you or you move on. For me it works to listen to the old stuff and trying out familiar genres (although western). There aren't non-japanese bands who really sound exactly like oldschool Visual kei, but you can get fairly close by checking out all the bands and music which had a major influence on it (New Wave, Punk, Glam, Hardrock, Goth, etc).

In no way did I specify this conversation as being only about 90s visual kei. Dio-distraught overlord and UnsraW are still a fairly recent bands. I'm perfectly fine with the current style of vk existing I'm just sad to see the more drastic aesthetics and atmosphere go away completely. I was mostly talking about the visuals but the music also obviously. I'm not going to lie and say I don't give a shit about the visuals at all. I think there's a lot of artistic value in the crazy makeup and outfits. A lot of bands seem way toned down in both style and music. People seem to think visual kei as being stupid or something you "Grow out of". I disagree. There's many on this forum who can attest to that.

And I am only saying that there are modern VK bands with a drastic style. You may, however, percieve them not as "drastic", because you base your definition off of how VK used to look like 10 years ago. I would agree that the Visual scene had a mass of rather boygroup looking bands just few years ago, but now I see a wave of new groups wearing a shitton of make up, costumes and having flashy hair colours. I don't have the time to dig in the news section to list all the new bands who sport this style, but I think the ones I mentioned should be enough of an indicator for this trend.

I have never stated that you would or should grow out of it and neither have I. I just accepted that whining about how great the past was won't change the present. You either accept that the world will move on or you will stay stuck in your fantasy world where it is always 1999 for ever. I for one have become happy enough to have found access to a lot of great music of said era. It makes me happy if a band tries to revive this style, but I don't see why they have to.

I thought it was becoming boring to me between 2006 and 2008 and stopped listening to new releases. But then I realized that I still like the old stuff and that there is even more old music I haven't heard yet. I think even if the new bands are becoming more repetitive you can still listen to the oldies. Or you realize that you no longer like it, move on and listen to something else.

What I don't understand are people who stop liking VK and then try to diss it, probably to show how much more mature they now are for having "grown out of it." In the vein of "I used to be such a Visual kei weaboo, but now I listen to real muzic. How could I ever like this? Only little kids listen to it, bcuz VK is silly and sucks!!" I found a whole blog with people like this on livejournal once. They tried so hard to look cool, it's funny and sad at the same time.

My future:

CRAZY CAT LADY 5EVAH

Didn't we already have this topic covered in other threads? I am sure this will too end again in a dumb "new skewl vs. old skewl" debate.

First define "drastic style". At the moment there are actually a lot of very visual looking bands active, such as Grieva, Crimson Shiva, Mejibray, Lycaon, AvelCain, The Gallo, Dezert and more. However none of these, except maybe Grieva, are simiiar in style to those from the 90s. The other may come close to what bands looked like in the mid 00s. I feel many people confuse drastic, visual styling with the old school look. They can be the same, but don't have too; not every band in the 90s used to dress like your average Matina group. And not every band that sports leather, spooky make up and neon hair is old school.

Even though I don't like the current way of visual kei styling, there are still many groups who pull it off as well as the old bands did, they just happen to look very different. As others have already said: VK isn't really a genre per se and it has to adapt to current fashion trends in order to stay somewhat relevant. The fact that so many groups look like Hosts is because this look is popular. In the 90s you had Soft Visual, in the 00s Oshare and now them.

I know I may contradict myself a bit in what I have said on this forum some years ago. But the more older I get the less fucks I can give about how VK bands look today. Surely, I still love and miss the old "Kote kei" style, but it's nothing that will ever come back and I have accepted it. I am not expecting all VK bands to dress like this and make music like in the 90s when it's not even trendy, fashionable or contemprary anymore. The good thing is that the old times had a large output of material, audio and visual. You can always go back to enjoy the music and look at old photos. Sure, it would be nice to see a renaissance of this style and a few bands are doing it (La'veil Mizeria for example). But I doubt it will ever get popular again.

I think I develop a different outlook at this thanks to all the discussions we had here. It's really a topic that pops up every now and then. I am sure we will lament over how much newer VK sucks in 40 years. I am of course biased and say "90s Veekay for da win!".

Circa 2004 thanks to Moi dix Mois' european release of their Nocturnal Opera album. Followed by D'espairsRay and Dir en grey (in 2004 and 2005)

So when I get back to MH there is lotz of DRAMA. Seriously, what happened to MH? Since when did people here start to play the "I am such a poor victim" and special snowflake card?

And lol at that autism post. Nobody said anything about mental problems (I am sure most of us don't care) and it makes you look like those 13 year olds crying that neurotypical (=not autistic) people are always assholes and you always have it much worse which then means you think with that argument you can get away with saying rude shit to others.

So after thinking about starting this topic for a while I finally did it. I will update it randomly, whenever I feel like it.

Most of my drawings are made digitally in photoshop. I mainly draw my stupid angsty OCs from my story, but posting them only on DeviantArt. Here I plan to show some fine weaboo and goffick shit. So prepare yourselves for some old skewl crap and spooky kids!

drawings are under the spoiler :>

 

Random VK dude:

 

 

Deathrocker:

 

 

Hisui (Madeth gray'll):

 

 

I am impressed! I never manage to put so many details on an image. Hell, I can't even draw two characters interacting with each other >_<

Cool videos. I like how easy it seems for him to come up with good poses and composition.