Kaito-sama

Honestly, my first exposure to these guys..lets see how it goes... 1.Heim - My gawd! can it be..? I like I slow track? This is a really nice little intro to the album, and actually, I kinda wish it were a full track. Doesnt leave me expecting whats next... 2. Shoutotsu - Solid first song, it starts out stong and doesnt let out for a minuet. Instead of sitting on top of the music, the vocals take complete control. Mix in a kick-ass solo, and you've got an all around good song. 8/10 3. Bicycle - When I first heard the PV for this, I wasn't a huge fan of it. After giving it a few listens, though, its actually pretty decent. Nice beat, good riffs..not bad. 7/10 4. Carousel - Not too sold on this one, has a bit of a weak start in my books. If most albums have a few "meh" songs, this is one of them. Not that catchy..not terrible I guess, but eh. 4/10 5. Kyokutou ID - Silly intro is silly, has a nice flowing feel to it. Maybe im just a sucker for playful songs, but I really like this one. Simple riffs and nice vocals, yep, checks out with me. 8/10 6. Endless Roll - At first I thought this would be another mediocre song, and for a while, it was. It attempts to save itself halfway through, but its just not enough to make me want to go back to it. Nothing particulary special. 5/10 7. Gyogyou - Love how this starts out, hard hitting and all. I think that, plus the vocals are what most attract me to this song. I think they should stick to this sound, its working for them. 8/10 8. Demon (Is there?) - For a ballad, this is actually pretty good. The solo brings it all together nicely. His voice is floaty and relaxing, pretty nice. 7/10 9. Te Wo Tatake - Another hard hitting song. If they keep pumping out stuff like this I may have to look more into them 7/10 10. Te Wo Tatake (NICO edition) - Undecided on which version I like more. Still, this isnt bad. 7/10 So..that was actually pretty damn good...considering ive never heard these guys before. If your new to these guys or not, id check this out. Its an interesting album.

Suikoden (awww yeah) and Vandal hearts 2

Ali Project - Hizamazuite ashi wo oname

I wish they would release something more along the lines of their older songs, their first couple albums were great. I dont even think this is a bad band...hell, its my moms favorite band xD I just wish they would take more risks, musically.

Hizaki Grace Project is pretty snazzy, although its not the same kinds of metal you guys were mentioning. Symphonic metal fits in there too

The Haunting(1963) I wish more horror movies were like this, im really bored with the whole "cheap scares. stuff jumps out at you" movies we've been getting these past few years T_T

7/10 I need to pick up a hat myself

I think that older music just leaves something behind so that music as a whole can learn from it, and improve. At the same time, I know a lot of bands claim to take influence from older bands to make themselves look better, but that shouldn't be the point at all. It should be the same as it is with history, learn from your mistakes, to make something truly memorable for this generation, and to be looked back on by future ones. Sure I listen to mostly recent music, but I still see the value and importance of the past, even if its not in my personal preference.

Recently found this band a few weeks ago, and there pretty interesting. I guess the best way to describe them is Alt.rock/disco which sounds strange as it is. Anything from Pala is amazing, favorite tracks are: Live those days tonight and blue cassette. Check em out

Ill have to look into them some more, but if its anything like their Crazy cat EP, then they could become a regular thing for me For me there "just" different enough from the copy pasta VK bands like Royz, unIte and others that I could like them, probably.

For sure these guys have a unique look, it may take me a while to fully appreciate this band, but I do like their artistic/contemporary feel they have with their dancers and look. It reminds me of watching a really old play with cheesy/strange props, but that's probably what I find so interesting about them.

Togarimuneeso - Finnally, some more of that energetic catchyness that I want to see from this band. Seriously, I tried getting into this band so many times, but nothing matched up to their Walking Ashland EP...until now Bouncy into filled with some strong guitar riffs, vocals arent too bad either. Overall, great song. 10/10 Fukou no Knife - Nice, solid intro with some strong vocals from Tenten make for an overall decent track. 8/10 Denshikiki - Vocals..are not quite on par with the rest of this release, not terrible tho. Not something id go back to a lot, but I wouldnt change it if it came on my ipod. 6/10 Overall: 8.5/10 Why couldnt their earlier albums be this good?? Ah well..at least there on the right track now. Great maxi-single

Technically this was released along with their "Black Album" but that's just a re-release, and imo, not nearly as interesting. If you havent heard of these guys, its worth a listen..they have a very unique sound that separates them from other VK bands. Grafton Calling - Very strong violins in the intro, this is a lot more upbeat then some of their earlier work. No matter how many times I listen to this, it always puts me in a good mood. 8/10 Masquerade - Starts off sounding like a ballad, which left me completely unprepared for the rest of the song. It picks up shortly after, and starts to add sort of a foreign feel too it (cant think of where it reminds me of). Nevertheless, a strong song that kept me till the end. 7/10 Sakura - Reminds me too much of Black Album, which didn't leave much of an impression on me. Nothing special here. 4/10 Goddess - About as close to a ballad as you'll get from these guys, not bad, but not amazing either. 6/10 Viva La Casta! - Its a song like this that reminds me why these guys are good. Nice build up in the intro, then quickly gets carried away into an upbeat, energetic song with nothing really bad to say about it. 10/10 Overtura - Good overall, loving the violin. Its relaxing, yet not boring. The vocals are clear and flowing, which is a new thing for this band which was done fairly well. 7/10 What did you guys think?

For the most part, I haven't paid much attention to these guys since their Sleeper EP, and I actually really like this album. I just feel this similarity between "Swallowtail" and the gazette's "Suicide circus", as if they were riding their coattails. Not that im saying this hard hitting sound is bad, just that it wasnt something new and exciting, which is what I look for in any band. There are way too many VK bands that sound the same lately, and you have to do something differently to get noticed

Kaito-sama here, look forward to some cool discussions. As for me, ive been into J-rock and such for about 4 years now, some of my favorites include: Versailles Lin/Rin -End of corruption world Kurara Zeroshiki NoGoD MoNoLith Ali Project SiM Theres too many others, anyway, just wanted to say hi