Ikna

The about me is back again, but limited to 200 characters…

Hopefuly the other features will return soon too. Scrobbling works for me fine, thankfully.

The good thing lastfm had (and still somewhat has): it's a really great database of bands no one knows about. That's what I used it for mostly. But considering that the futire of the site now looks really dark… I wonder where I can continue to search for new and unheard bands (especially old visual kei groups)

The fancy looking music library is now a boring, shitty list. Also you can't sort by alphabet any longer.  Oh and the "top listeners" will be gone forever. And I thought this was a music community, where people can look at stats, see who listens what and find friends with similiar tastes.

^hope this gets fixed. On the beta version the playcounts are correct though, at least for me.

This doesn't seem to be the only error that happens since that test run. Since Friday I can't upload any images to bandpages or changing my avatar. Am I the only one?

Also the website is terribly unstable. I get so many bad gateways and when the site actually loads it takes forever. Really bad move. That's not really how you update a website design, when the result is the old current site being fucked and no one can use it properly.

I wonder how long does the photoshop work on those vk promo pictures take?

Not so long, considering how bad it is most of the time.

It's actually a wonder they managed to survive with all the departments in the last years. I hope they find new members and a better label.

Considering their look and Ruki being so obsessed with hipster aesthetics I would have preferred something like "Witchhouse kei" (dark synths instead of dubstep, alternative rock, maybe some punk or new wave elements). But as people say, the Gazette never do such severe changes, instead they lazily adopt the metulcooore music style that every other boring stale VK band plays nowadays. Seriously, when have they put out anything interesting in the last 8 years?

But then I am not a fan and stopped caring about them after their NIL album and so my opinion probably doesn't matter.

i know right! i watched about 150+ other series but nothing could give me the same feeling that i had watching LOST. FlashForward and The Event kinda gave me some LOST wibes but both were closed after first season :/ if you want you can read Stephen King's The Dark Tower books which are also unique and awesome. and as you might know LOST creators were big fans of S.K. and The Dark Tower. i bet some of ideas were borrowed from there! 

Yeah, it's a shame how such shows never truly make it. Even though Lost and X-files were immensily popular, which might make you think similiar shows have a chance. I haven't read so much Stephen King yet, but plannend to get my hands on more of his books, especially because of the influence that his work had on shows like Lost or the X-Files. I've heard someone planned to do an adaption of The Dark Towers, is it true? There is also Under The Dome based on the same called book, but I heard the show isn't so good.

Also started Heroes after Lost. Actually I am in search of a TV show that can fill Lost's place (I already know Fringe and X-files and I'll plan on finally finishing Twin Peaks). Doubt that there is really one as Lost was really unique and amazing.

Oh and I am also watching Sense8. So far it's good and I can't comprehend the shitstorm the show caused.

Something classic from Germany and the 80s: Marquee Moon. Amazing and nearly forgotten band.

A recent find and a band I am currently spinning and listening to a lot is The Soft Moon. Amazing bland between shoegaze wall of sounds and post-punk. Totally recommend this stuff!

How many people have received their package? I am still waiting for mine.

After Akane dropped his "I am so anti religion" attitude he had to choose something else to be angry at. Let's see it positive: now we have something new to laugh about.

Also yes, I am one of those filthy leechers. Like others I have not the privilege to buy shittons of music, especially japanese music. Most of my buys are now from bandcamp or alternative stores (or secondhand shops), but as many have said, japanese bands have the tendency to make access to their material very difficult for foreigners. Or you could still get it, but it costs just so much. And while once in a while I spend 80€ for a few CDs, I am not going to do that all the time.

But then I mostly listen to old, obscure shit. And I don't know how much the 90s VK bands that had 10 fans feel about it (they probably don't care).

I wouldn't give a shit about what the fandom says. VK has the most delusional fanbase, like Kareki. I remember her from a German Manga board and she has always been an entitled bitch. She was exactly the same rabid fangirl/bangya who thinks she knows the banmembers the best, as if they are her BFFs in real life. And fans like this who believe they are the bands true fan/waifu will think they have the right to dictate others what they are allowed to do or not. They are utterly pathetic and to be ignored.

I also hope things would run more smoothly in the future. I was waiting so long for the invoice, I was not especting to receive it today, hence my Paypal is empty now. I will pay within the next days or next week, once there is money on it again. But I wish I had received the invoice way sooner, so that a situation like this could have been prevented.

My tip would be to limit the amount of sold items. 400 was way too much. To be honest, it was really difficult to sit through 7 hours of streaming and the logistics behind it are just insane as well.

50% of the bands I listen to. But especially the kings of kvlt Veekay, Madeth gray'll. Or at least Hisui should come back to the scene.

Phobia/Kisui to retrun would be nice too. Also La'Mule (Cell just weren't as good and I am afraid that's because Isuke wasn't a member).

I'd rather want Metis Gretel back than Megaromania. Also I am probably one of the few people who thinks D'espairRay desbanded for good.

could be worse. But maybe I am just too used to crap kei and mid 00s mediocre VK. It‘s a bit too nice and sweet for my taste though. Especially for a band with a concept like this, but maybe I expected too much since I hoped for another Lulu too.

Okay, thanks for the update. It's just that my Paypal account currently has money, but I don't know for how long. (I'll try my best not to buy so much until I get the invoice then)

So, have all shipping invoices being sent? I am still waiting for mine.

I do not know if reviving this thread from the dead is wise, but I am still doing it, because I have to share the work of god that pinkmakona is doing with her nice tumblr blog: http://fuckyeahfemalevisualkei.tumblr.com/

Nice photos and collection of the women in VK. I never realized how many bandmember were actually female. But it seems it‘s no longer an oddity.

(sorry for doublepost, but the last link does not work otherwise)

And lastly: the amazing post-punk group Belgrado hailing from Spain, who bring the original punk energy back into Wave music. Or music in general. Their songs are energetic and cathy and the fact that the lyrics are not in english add some nice variety.

Speaking of German goth: Xmal Deutschland are an absolute must-listen. Probably one of the most well known dark punk/goth bands from Germany, they were often compared to Siouxsie and the Banshees. Their first albums (Fetisch and Tocsin) are truly great goth rock. Their later releases were more straight forward Pop influenced New Wave

It seems female fronted Goth is quite popular, so I‘ll share some more of my favourites, of which many bands are coming from the deathrock end of the genre.

First Christ vs. Warhol, a contemporary deathrock band formed in 2009 with some killer Line-Up, featuring members from Scarlet‘s Remains (the older band of the singer and also sharing the same sound as this one. Recommend it as well!), Marzia Rangel and Steven James, who were in Faith and the Muse (another great band)

Fangs on Fur are next. For me they were a harder band to get into, but after a while they started to grow on me. I personally find they have a very own, unique style that sets them apart from other deathrock bands. That’s mostly because their vocalist is a lot squeakier and they have a very interesting, native american/western inspired concept.

Crimson Scarlet are making music in the vein of Scarlet‘s Remains and Co. If you liked the previous bands, then you will like them as well. It’s just that they have only released two singles and an EP so far, so I am hoping for more material to follow soon, because they are really promising.

Wake up my children.

Versailles and BLACK CAT are asleep. How peaceful

You all forgot a classic:

Seriously, we probably need a thread for this.

Well, more female fronted dark, electronic minimal wave: Lebanon Hannover is a english band active in Germany. If you like Sixth June, Linea Aspera and the like, then Lebanon Hannover might be your thing too. I like the deep and monotone voice of the singer.

And here is something old, but obscure: Look Back in Anger was an early 80s goth rock band. Their sound is a typical mix of late 70s punk and early goth (as it was quite usual at that time, ca.  around 1981). I totally love the guitar playing and the vocalist is amazing. It‘s really a shame that they didn‘t last so long and only had a very few realeses.

My mum knows about it since 2005/2006. I mostly bought CDs without her knowing, but she stumbled upon VK, because I also bought Anime magazines with articles about it. I actually showed them to her and asked her about her opinion. She is not bothered by dudes wearing dresses and make-up (it actually reminds her of Bowie and Boy George, who she likes), but she just can‘t stand the music and generally has not a high opinion of anything Japan-related. Like many other parents she constantly makes fun of it and whenever I buy any CD she always asks if it’s "your japanese anime stuff”. But apart from that she does not really care much about it.

My other relatives do not know about VK. My father knows I like Goth, and that already worries him to no end, even though he ironically likes punk rock and used to collect Rock CDs, when it was frowned upon in his country (his parents are muslims and were very much against his lifestyle). So it angers me that he is so ignorant and dismisses anything in that direction as satanic and dangerous. In effect I never introduced him to VK. My grandfather (mother‘s side) and my aunt’s family are your typical conservative central europeans. For them everything was better in the past, before evil rock music perverted youth and people had “Christian values”. They are thankfully not as hate-filled as your average conservative (might be because my family still associated themselves more with social-democrats and because my grandfather hated his Nazi father), but they are still close-minded. I already have some issues with them, as they think me wearing black indicates that I must be traumatized and in need of therapeutical help, so I do not expect them to understand VK.

@Gaz

I am planning on watching Lost, since I watch Fringe (which is by J.J. Abrams as well). I never found the whole “stranded on Island” thing to be much of interest, but then again it is supposed to be a mystery show. Is it in any way comparable to Fringe or X-Files?

Also started watching Orphan Black this weel. Am still in season 1, but so far I like it very much. But bad to hear the third season seems not to deliver. I feel they premise of the show could potentially lead to it becoming a bit too soap-y.

Also has anyone watched the new Penny Dreadful episodes? I am really impressed, I must say. I think I will like this season better than the first. Season 1 had a good start, but I didn’t like the end so much. Season 2 is starting much stronger and it seems the writers are now finally working up to tie some threads together. I still hope Dorian Gray will get to do more than just fucking everyone, lol

I also use watercolor and traditional media. It is actually faster than drawing on the computer, but I like digital media better because of the effects you can achieve and of course ctrl+Z XD

But these were made with watercolor for example:

When it comes to ressources and stocks I try my best to search for accounts that offer free-licences, so I can use the work for all kinds of purposes. For textures there is this amazing guy: http://sirius-sdz.deviantart.com/All of his textures are free to use, including commercial.