fitear1590

I wish I had more time to join, but it's always fun when I do. A great way to check out some new music and connect with the other members.

But, it would be awesome if plug allowed videos from other sites (vimeo, jpopsuki.tv, etc.)

(LOL, I wanna hear from the people who vote for "FUCK this site. It's ruining MH! (ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻")

I wish I had more time to join, but it's always fun when I do. A great way to check out some new music and connect with the other members.

But, it would be awesome if plug allowed videos from other sites (vimeo, jpopsuki.tv, etc.)

(LOL, I wanna hear from the people who vote for "FUCK this site. It's ruining MH! (ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻")

I don't think this list was meant to be the be-all-end-all list of THE BEST songs, but more of a collection of songs that the review staff really liked. To shed some light on the process of how we got to this point, all organized by everyone's favorite feline: everyone had to come up with a list of 15 songs from this year. From there, the participants were asked to listen to all of them and pick at least 2 from every list up until we all had a total of 25 songs. You could not vote for songs you picked unless someone else also selected that track and you were also not allowed to pick songs from the same artist twice (trust me, there were at least 5 different options from Arche present).
 
From there, the end list was compiled by how many times each song was voted on by the number of people who placed it in their list of 25. The results were as shown above-- a little bit from everyone's list, sometimes reflecting their personalities and tastes, and sometimes not just because of how the votes resolved (i.e.: was not expecting that Uchuu song to be selected from my list, but here we are!).
 
Worry not: we definitely know there are plenty of other fantastic songs from 2014 and I don't think any one person agreed with this list wholeheartedly, but this was the result of the most democratic solution amongst 9 people on a super subjective topic Thank you for the feed back!

Monochrome Heaven's Top 25 Tracks of 2014

Presenting The Top 25 Tracks of 2014 as voted by our Official Reviewers and staff members. Any Japanese song released in 2014 was eligible, although our primary focus was on J-rock.

25.
TAMTAM - "シューゲイズ"

24.

宇宙コンビニ (uchu conbini) - ­ 光の加減で話した (Hikari no Kagen de Hanashita)

23.

シナリオアート (Scenarioart) ­- "アオイコドク" (Aoi Kodoku)

22.

DIR EN GREY -­ "懐春 (kaishun)"

21.

LLLL -­ "Oddness"

20.

BACK­-ON -­ "セルリアン (cerulean)"

19.

101A ­- "Forbidden Sky"

18.

DIV ­- "漂流彼女 (hyouryuu kanojo)"

17.

PLASTICZOOMS ­- "Sleepwalker"

16.

ねごと (NEGOTO) -­ "黄昏のラプソディ (tasogare no rhapsody)"

15.

sow ­- "to growth, for growth"

14.

TK from 凛として時雨 (ling tosite sigure) -­ "unravel"

13.

DIR EN GREY -­ "輪郭 (rinkaku)"

12.

tayuta ­- "夢見た 蒼 (yumemita ao)"

11.

八十八ヶ所巡礼 (88kasyo junrei) -­ "攻撃的国民的音楽 (kougeki teki kokumin teki ongaku)"

10.

Mono -­ "Recoil, Ignite"

9.

和楽器バンド (Wagakki Band) -­ "千本桜 (Senbonzakura)"

8.

DIR EN GREY ­- "phenomenon"

7.

la la larks -­ "end of refrain"

6.

黒百合と影 (Kuroyuri to Kage) - "「浴槽」 (yokusou)"

5.

アルルカン (arlequin) ­- "墓穴 (hakaana)"

4.

mothercoat - "trickster"

3.

Boris -­ "雨 (ame)"

2.

THE NOVEMBERS -­ "Rhapsody in beauty"

1.

sukekiyo ­- "Aftermath"

Disclaimer: incoming rant is not directed at Slsr or anyone in particular in this thread.

This has bugged me for a while, but does anyone else find the term "non-VK" to be obnoxious? It's such a contextual term that seemingly groups together music that has nothing to do with other music, simply by the fact that they are not visual kei. Are all people who take up jobs that aren't in the engineering field "non-engineers"? (Yes, it's a silly example, I know.)  But seriously, I cringe when I see sentences like "I only like non-VK music." or "Ew, please no non-VK music." It just emphasizes the arbitrariness/superficiality that people can use to judge music. I think the split would just help to further validate this silly division.
 
If the split does take place, please just call it "general" news like we did with the general download section.
 
I think Pho3nyx sums up my thoughts pretty well on the whole matter. I'm against splitting the news forum.

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW GUYS <3
 
ender-ender I loved  
 
Benibana very good 
 
Fitear1590 I loved tooo
 
CAT5 OMG <3 AWESOME, I loved, start looking about about this new releases !!!!
 
Great job guys, im so excited to this month febuary

I've been meaning to reply to this, so I'm going to comment on some notable picks. Here goes!

chouchou merged syrups. - While I do agree it's better than since, I'm still having trouble getting into this. I'm just not digging the vocalist (though she has improved!)

Cloud nine(9) - This is solid! Didn't listen to really any math-rock stuff last year, so I'll have to check this out. Unfortunately, their bandcamp link doesn't seem to work anymore!

CONCERT - Lawd, the accuracy of your "Lamp x cornelius" comparison. This sounds fantastic!

macaroom - Lovely! Might fill the the gap that neue nahel has left in my heart. And interesting about the Croatian songs.

mothercoat - Quirky... I like!

orcaorca - I can get on board with this. Beautiful stuff!

アルカラ - I've been meaning to officially check them out and this seems like a good place to start!z
 
ふつうのしあわせ - I love me some off-kilter, spastic shit. Like a tamer (but catchier) version of the act we act?

撃鉄 - I remember this being played on plug and loving their energy

FKA twigs - Miasma introduced me to her EP last year, but it slipped my mind to check out her new album. Cool stuff.

Kan Wakan - If this sample is any indication of the rest of the album's material, I will love this.

Kilo Kish - This is great! Her voice works really well with the sing-talking.

Kimbra - As far as I'm concerned, Kimbra has now surpassed Janelle Monae. Good sample pick; "Madhouse" is one of my favorites from the album!

Monogrenade - Gorgeous

Temples - Definitely a solid album, but they were just edged out by Moodoïd on my list.

Tide/Edit - I've seen their name around, but haven't checked them out yet. Nonetheless, glad to see a Filipino band made your list!

PS: nothing wrong with a "self-indulgent" EOTY list
I'd rather read that and get an actual feel for someone's taste, than just what "should" be included on the list according to "popular" opinion.

Thanks for sharing, bruh!

The Worst
ミサルカ (Misaruka) - Rosary
This song was made for this thread. As if watching what's-his-face's over-acting (yes, even for VK) weren't enough, the vocals on this new track are even worse: so confusingly terrible. Here's a summary of some of the most egregious parts:
-Pathetic growl that goes on for waaaaaay too long
-"Having a seizure" vocals at :54
-Forced deep vocals at 1:02
-Awful VK vibrato at 1:50
-The sneeze (??) at 3:10

The fact that the production simply plops the vocals on top of everything just makes it worse.

I swear my loyalty to Trombe, and no other.

Nevermind, I thought it was the other GRIM band.

The Worst
ミサルカ (Misaruka) - Rosary
This song was made for this thread. As if watching what's-his-face's over-acting (yes, even for VK) weren't enough, the vocals on this new track are even worse: so confusingly terrible. Here's a summary of some of the most egregious parts:
-Pathetic growl that goes on for waaaaaay too long
-"Having a seizure" vocals at :54
-Forced deep vocals at 1:02
-Awful VK vibrato at 1:50
-The sneeze (??) at 3:10

The fact that the production simply plops the vocals on top of everything just makes it worse.

No comments yet? Come on, people!

I didn't follow cocklobin, but I checked this out because the previews sparked my attention. While I wasn't too impressed with the single as a whole (I agree with your rating), the band is decently refreshing for the scene. I wouldn't mind checking out whatever they put out next; hopefully, they improve!

No comments yet? Come on, people!

I didn't follow cocklobin, but I checked this out because the previews sparked my attention. While I wasn't too impressed with the single as a whole (I agree with your rating), the band is decently refreshing for the scene. I wouldn't mind checking out whatever they put out next; hopefully, they improve!

Artist: Develop one's faculties Single: フラスコを振ると天秤揺れた Score: Could be better but could be much, much worse.
When two members from cocklobin form a band together, I'm almost obligated to check it out. It's reasonable to expect at least cocklobin levels of quality in the music and the previews for フラスコを振ると天秤揺れた were intriguing. I'm not quite sure what direction I was expecting フラスコを振ると天秤揺れた to go in, or what to expect from Develop one's faculties, but this wasn't it.
 
Now before the hype train leaves the station, there's good news and bad news. The good news is that this is something different. In a scene where bands can and will play almost any type of music, it's hard to find a good, honest rock band. Both tracks are good, although I prefer the second track "結果論". The way they blend electronic feedback with noise into their rock groove is something visual kei definitely could use more of. The single itself has overtones of LIPHLICH crossed with amber gris on a heavy day, but doesn't sound too much like either. Its indie sensibilities also lend the song a vibe uncharacteristic of the scene with husky vocals to remind the listener that this is a visual kei band. yuya doesn't have the strongest vocals, but he has control, can harmonize, and it goes well with the music. I can't say if DOF has the chops to become the flagship rock visual kei band in a few years, but they are worth keeping an eye on.
 
The bad news is that フラスコを振ると天秤揺れた isn't a strong first impression. Two tracks are not a good enough yardstick to measure this band's potential. In this case, it would have been better if their first release was a mini album. Then they would have had more chances to refine their sound and win the listener over. What I heard on the single caught my passive interest. I don't find either song memorable in the long run and I wouldn't go out of my way to listen to it again. I would even go as far to say that I only remember this band for who their members have played with and not their own music. For a first single, that quality is undesirable. In all honesty, DOF might drop off my radar as 2015 progresses unless they aggressively promote themselves and drop the mini album this should have been by early fall.
 
This isn't the brazen first release that was devils in bedside or Dark Design Catalog, but フラスコを振ると天秤揺れた was good enough. I was expecting more from DOF based on the two ex-cocklobin members, but I'm well aware I wouldn't have paid attention to them without the association in the first place. It's not often that I get to say that the worst thing about a new visual kei band is their name. DOF has plenty of room to progress and seem to have a knack for melodies and experimentation. The music just needs a good layer of polish.

Interesting.
Just out of curiosity, still Mana behind it?

Via Facebook and YouTube, 吉澤嘉代子 (Kayoko Yoshizawa) has announced her first full album, entitled 箒星図鑑 (houkiboshi zukan). Throughout 2013 and 2014, she put out three mini-albums.
 

2015.3.4
CRCP-40399　￥2,778
 
1. ストッキング
2. 逃飛行少女
3. 未成年の主張 (from first mini-album, 魔女図鑑)
4. ブルーベリーシガレット
5. なかよしグルーヴ
6. キルキルキルミ
7. 美少女 (from second mini-album, 変身少女)
8. チョベリグ (from second mini-album, 変身少女)
9. ケケケ (from third mini-album, 幻倶楽部)
10. シーラカンス通り (from third mini-album, 幻倶楽部)
11. 泣き虫ジュゴン (from first mini-album, 魔女図鑑)
12. 雪
13. 23歳




===============================================================================

I marked the songs I recognized on the tracklist and indicated which release they came from. I'm thinking at least the ones from the first mini will be rerecorded, since that was during her indie period.

Got this e-mail today. It's the latest update about the album:
 

This just went from fucking stupid to fucking confusing... hold up...
...
Oh wait, I got it now! TYPE H,I,J are the only ones with bonus tracks, and buying them all will total ¥1,620, which is roughly the cost of one type of a previous single, so that's not bad! Total of four tracks being released, like most BP records singles.

Finally made it to your list, benibana!

Here's some of my thoughts:

TK from 凛として時雨 - I've been meaning to check this out since your review. Sample sounded nice! (I don't know why I find it so amusing that he tacked on "from 凛として時雨" to his name; anyone who's ever heard ling tosite can identify him instantly, haha.)

Plastic Tree - So good. Blasphemous, but I've never really tried them out... I'm gonna have to right that wrong, now!

yazzmad - More like YASSmad. I just got into them last year, but I overlooked this mini in the sea of great 2014 releases. Just listened to it and it seems to be another helping of awesomeness. Definitely would've made it on my own list, at least in the honorable mention section.

PLASTICZOOMS - The Engrish isn't my thing, but I can see some definite potential here.

Shiina Ringo - Another album that squeaked past me in 2014... :/

Ferri - Sounds quite relaxing. Might listen to this while studying

MACO - Not my kind of thing, but I will say her version of "Roar" is much better. Katy Perry is trash!

Good variety, btw!
Thanks for sharing

Post 1 - Top 10 Japanese male musician releases (♫ Just keep scrolling, just keep scolling~ ♫)
Post 2 - Top 10 Japanese female musician releases (I'm more of a J-pop head then I thought!)
Post 3 - Runners up (that should be in the above two categories but couldn't fit in), the mixed vocals + honourable mentions (all previously brought up in ChristMHas list)
Post 4 - Top English album + single (only one of each because I'm more of an Asian music listener than anything else)
 
My top 10 Japanese male musician releases
 
TK from 凛として時雨 - Fantastic Magic /

 
asobius - pray & grow / 

 
THE NOVEMBERS - Rhapsody in beauty /

 
MEJIBRAY - シアトリカル・ブルーブラック /


 
Lycaon - 馬鹿ね。+ 悪女の微笑 + Shadow /


 
AvelCain - AvelCain / 


 
Plastic Tree - echo /

 
PLASTICZOOMS - Secret Postcard /

 
yazzmad - niche['ni:tʃə] /


 
LM.C - PERFECT FANTASY / 

 
For the full length (unedited) review, click on the spoiler tag below:

The chili dog is important in fully conveying my feelings.
 
True, but this is way better than 2013 and 2014 without Itsue!