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fitear1590

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  1. Like
    fitear1590 got a reaction from touma in Mamo from R-shitei being homophobic   
    As someone who doesn't follow the behind-the-scenes VK gossip (also, I just don't care about R-shitei), I am definitely surprised.

    What a tool.
  2. LOLOL
    fitear1590 got a reaction from avaritonista in 0.1g no Gosan x Mathilda drama   
    @emmny a tidal wave of tea, featuring ur boiz
  3. Like
    fitear1590 got a reaction from Zeus in Happy Belated ChristMHas Gift: Top Albums of 2018   
    Well done, ORZ!

    I am so damn behind on J-music, but from the list, I definitely co-sign on GRIMOIRE's release. Definitely in my top three active VK groups.
  4. Like
    fitear1590 reacted to Zeus in Happy Belated ChristMHas Gift: Top Albums of 2018   
    Another chapter has been written and filed away into the ever growing library of visual kei history, so we resume our customary annual review of all of the great albums that saw the light of day in 2018. Unlike previous years, we elected to wait until the middle of January so the stragglers of the year had their fair chance to weigh in. This list is also not in any specific order, although DIMLIM's CHEDOARA deserves a mention for getting the most votes internally and therefore kicks the list off with a bang. Even in our most challenging years, there's always something fresh and new around the corner waiting to be discovered. Like always, this isn't an exhaustive list and plenty of the hidden gems slip through the cracks, so if you have anything to add to the list tack it on at the end so the entire community can find something new to enjoy. 

    Without further ado, here are some great J-Rock albums of 2018.

    DIMLIM -- CHEDOARA

    @The Reverend
    @emmny
     
    @helcchi

     
     
     
    Sigh - Heir to Despair

    @The Reverend
     
    @helcchi


    Dir en grey - The Insulated World

    @emmny
     
     
    emmurée - lightless

    @The Reverend
     
     
    キズ - 「傷痕」

     
    @platy
     
     
     

    Mass of the Fermenting Dregs - No New World

    @The Reverend
     
    @Zeus
     
     

    陰陽座 (Onmyo-Za) - 覇道明王 (Hadou Myouou)

    @Zeus
     
     

    The GazettE - NINTH

     
    @Zeus
     
     
     
     
     
    グリモア - プシュコマキア

    @platy
     
     

    DADAROMA - dadaism#4


    @helcchi
     
     
    @platy
     
     


    lynch. - XIII
     

     
    @YuyoDrift


    Thanks for reading!
  5. Like
    fitear1590 got a reaction from Deremie in 愛狂います。(Aicle.): 5 Levels of Crazy   
    http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c49/fitear1590/CD%20cover%20scans%20and%20band%20pics/aicle%20neko%20no%20kiza%20mairi%20group%202_zpsk00neimw.jpg" width="791" />
    愛狂います。 (Aicle.): 5 Levels of Crazy

    Vo. えみる (Emiru) Guitar: ルビ (Rubi) Guitar: けいた (Keita) Bass: さらん (Saran) Drums: 玲音 (Leon)  
    If you were part of the VK fandom during the past 7 years or so, you may have come across 愛狂います。 (Aicle.). Depending on who you talk to, they’re known for being “that colorful oshare group” or “that band with helium vocals”. Peruse the YouTube comments of any of their PVs and the word “kawaii” is sure to pop up, regardless of how bizarre and growl-filled the song is. I’ve always said that 愛狂います。 is not “underrated,” but they are generally “rated” for the wrong thing. While the aforementioned elements might play a role to some degree in the band’s sound, I’m here to show you that 愛狂います。 should be remembered for so much more than their one-dimensional legacy! With a more comprehensive, analytical look at the band, I hope to stop feeling like I'm Mugatu on crazy pills and just maybe, 愛狂います。's true style will shine through for more listeners.

    Forming in late 2006 and debuting in early 2007, they emerged in the scene around the same time as bands like Versailles, キャンゼル (canzel), ゾロ (ZORO), and ClearVeil. However, unlike those bands, 愛狂います。 was practically a group of newcomers from no notable ex-bands. They dabbled in live-distributed songs, compilation tracks, and a series of singles for their first two years, including the summer 2008 consecutive single series of シドロモドロ(shidoro modoro), ネクロノミコン (nekuro nomikon), and トウメイニンゲン (toumei ningen). This followed with the release of their first album 心臓。 (shinzou.) in March 2009. Uniquely enough in the VK scene, this was a disc of entirely new songs— a complete anomaly in the scene! Two months after the release of the album, rhythm guitarist Keita retired from the band on amicable terms. Not letting Keita’s departure slow them down, they released 3 more singles between August 2009 and January 2010. Consecutive singles エキゾチック。 (exotic.), ドラマチック。 (dramatic.), and a split CD with R指定(R-Shitei) followed in late 2010 and in early 2011, they released their second album アルク (ark), this time featuring previously released singles and only 4 brand new tracks— see, that’s more like what we’re used to. Finishing out the year with one-coin single 東京スカイツリー (Tokyo sky tree) and the stylistic 180 that was maxi-single 皇帝ペンギン (koutei penguin), 愛狂います。 finally called it quits in early 2012. Upon disbanding, they released a anthology compilation (愛狂います。2006-2012), collecting all of their songs from before their second album and their final single.
    So how could one describe the special music that 愛狂います。 created? To help analyze their music, I came up with an unofficial scale that lends itself surprisingly well to categorizing their discography. Under the description for each level, I have provided my favorite exemplary songs, in chronological order of their release.
    Level 1: Fairly straightforward pop-rock. These songs would occur sporadically in the band’s earlier discography, but by 2010 with the release of consecutive singles エキゾチック。 and ドラマチック。, the style started to become alarmingly prominent; the nail in the coffin was when the band’s final single 皇帝ペンギン hovered exclusively around this level.
    Favorites: 心臓。 (shinzou.), ゴメンなさい (gomen nasai) [see mp3], ひらり。(hirari)


    Level 2: Think of this as an upgrade of level 1. While these songs are still fairly tame overall, there might be an alternative, math-rock, or other unique tinge in the music that amplifies the compositional prowess. Wacky lyrical content might also bump up on-the-fence songs to this level, such as “メルトダウン (meltdown)”. There aren’t too many tracks at this in-between level.
    Favorites:, メルトダウン, 相対性【秘密】理論~タイムマシン2~ (Soutaisei [Himitsu] Riron ~Time Machine 2~), オーバードライヴ (overdrive), あおいろ1号 (aoiro 1 gou), 春夏秋冬 (shunkashuutou) [see mp3]


    Level 3: The first level of what I’d call 愛狂います。’s “sweet spot.” If people think about the band, I would hope that songs from this tier (or higher) are the ones that immediately come to mind. Most of the songs here are approximately half-pop and half-crazy—that was the band’s signature style after all! Many of the band’s singles fall under this category.
    Favorites: 僕は魔王 (boku wa maou), 猫の刻参り (neko no kiza mairi), トウメイニンゲン (toumei ningen) [or see mp3], 骸骨のうた (gaikotsu no uta), オカルト・キラー (occult killer), サイコ×レタア (psycho x letter) [see PV above]


    Level 4: This forms the second half of the “sweet spot.” These songs tend to do without the poppy choruses of level 3 and/or they ramp up the craziness in the rest of the song. As such, this level is mostly relegated to b-sides and other miscellaneous tracks, although their very first single (the first song in this list) was just wild enough to edge into level 4!
    Favorites: 球形無限連鎖~ミズタマ~ (kyuukei mugen rensa ~mizutama~), くるくる。と胎児は廻る (kuru kuru. to taiji mawaru) [see PV below], デスロリ調ポップス (death lolli-chou-pops) [see mp3], 裏姫 (urahime), 【d2b2】, 暗殺 -ANSATSU-, チョコサンドビスケットクリーム (choco sand biscuit cream)

    Level 5: This is reserved for 愛狂います。’s sole craziest venture: 豚の王様「ニトログリセリン」(buta no ousama “NITROGLYCERIN”). With squeals, frenetic guitar work, grunts, and literal oinking, this song is in a tier of its own!

     
    Disclaimer: the “levels” do not necessarily refer to quality, so much as the “crazy” factor. While I tend to prefer songs at levels 3 and 4, there are still a handful of level 1 and 2 songs that I’ll listen to any day over certain level 3 and 4 tracks.
    Now that we have an idea of my hopefully not-so-arbitrary tier system, let’s talk about the actual music! With due respect to all the members, it’s clear that vocalist/composer Emiru and guitarist Rubi form the brunt of the band’s unique sound. Back in the day, a lot of people would stan bassist Saran, but he’s not so notable to me, other than looking like a VK version of April Ludgate. I will say the drummer occasionally caught my attention, because of his affinity for punchy toms. Anyway, let’s start with Emiru. If there’s one sticking point about this band for a lot of people, it’s likely Emiru’s “special” vocals. Admittedly, he started off quite rough. If you listen to early singles like 記念日。 (kinenbi.) or 球形無限連鎖~ミズタマ~, you can definitely hear him straining to reach higher notes, but hey, that’s always been part of the charm of VK, right? He legitimately sounds like Cartman in "シドロモドロ (shidoro modoro)". Fortunately, his general vocal quality improves over time and becomes much smoother (this is most obvious by comparing the original and rerecordings of songs like "ゴメンなさい" and "チョコサンドビスケットクリーム"). It would be easy to write Emiru off as a “bad” singer, but that would mean ignoring how commendably he “compensates” in all the other things he does with his voice. What really contributes to Emiru’s success as a vocalist is his variety. In any given song (especially levels 3 and higher), you might hear any combo of the following: growling, oldschool Madeth Gray’ll-esque “fast talking”, shrieking, maniacal cackling, whispering, and more. Some absolute highlights include Emiru chanting off the number sequence of π (pi) in the punky "球形無限連鎖~ミズタマ~", the demonically adorable alter-ego he takes on in "まみむめモンスター君 (mamimume monster-kun)", or the sheer fuckery that is level 5 track "豚の王様「ニトログリセリン」" [see mp3 above]. What also takes the band over the top are the strange lyrics. Emiru has a knack for writing in a way that is paradoxically blunt, yet impenetrable in meaning, with a healthy sprinkling of kookiness. One of my favorite songs (vocally, musically, as well as lyrically) is “くるくる。と胎児は廻る (Round and Round. The Fetus Turns)”, which can be viewed below; thanks to moonwalkingpenguin for the translation!

    But the vocals are just half of the fun when it comes to 愛狂います。—let’s not forget about Rubi, the guitarist obsessed with apple imagery! As I mentioned, Rubi was essentially a rookie upon joining the band; his only previous known endeavor was with the short-lived 愛狂います。-predecessor known as モノもの (monomono), which also featured Emiru and bassist Saran. That’s why it’s all the more exciting that Rubi rose to such enigmatic, virtuosic playing! While Emiru is credited with composition, I find it difficult to believe that Rubi was simply his guitar-brandishing puppet—there is some real magic in his riffs and it’s not just guitar solos. In fact, his most impressive guitar work is just what he’s doing in the background. Let’s have a look at some specific examples. Listen from the second verse of “デスロリ調ポップス”. Then, check out the second verse and bridge of “ハンマー≦ヘッド (hammer≦head)”. Finally, in the first 1:20 of the above PV, Rubi provides a nice selection of his guitar offerings in “サイコ×レタア“. In all three songs, we hear Rubi’s non-stop efforts, whether it’s creepy-crawly riffs or progressive noodling not too far off from something indie-favorites 八十八ヶ所巡礼 (88kasyo junrei) might do. But beyond his extremely technical showcases, there is also plenty to enjoy in the “lower-level” tracks, like the pop-punk/math-rock influenced “あおいろ1号” or the buoyant fret-tapping of ”春夏秋冬” [see level 2 mp3]. Another aspect that helped to emphasize the band’s paradoxical sound was their bubbly arrangements, always democratically attributed to ”愛狂います。” as a whole. Sounding almost anachronistic compared to current VK’s overly electronic arrangements, the band often opted for simple synth beats or chimes, which produced a disarming effect, making it all the more surprising when the band jumped from a bouncy chorus into a growling, proggy chug fest. The icing on the arrangement cake was the band’s fun use of sound effects, such as the cartoony munching of cookies in “チョコサンドビスケットクリーム“, the vivid tentacle (?) noise at the beginning of “文化≠包丁 (bunka≠houchou)”, or the ambiguous animal roar that uncannily resembles the click-clack of a roller coaster in “オカルト・キラー”.

    Towards the end of 愛狂います。’s career, long-time fans unsurprisingly started to turn on the band. With singles like ”スターマイン (star mine)” and ”皇帝ペンギン”, the band started to settle down in level 1. Prior to that, the only PV track at this level was ”心臓。”, from their first album and while it was a saccharine pop-rock number, the rest of the album satisfied the kind of craziness fans craved through the aforementioned level 5 track or the many spooky, Halloween-inspired tunes. And therein lies the problem for the last leg of the band’s career. There was no longer a balance of the levels. The band’s most successful releases were those in which they displayed variety. For instance, the maxi-single 怪体新書。 (kaitai shinsho.), my personal favorite release, had two songs at level 3 (“眼球ワルツ(gankyuu waltz)” and “猫の刻参り”) and one at level 4 (“デスロリ調ポップス“). Singles サイコ×レタア and ケセラ:セラ (que sera:sera) both had title tracks at level 3, coupled with a level 2 and level 4 b-side. It’s unclear whether 愛狂います。 really was this methodical in constructing their release tracklists, but it undoubtedly worked in their favor. Although the final releases left fans with a sour aftertaste, we shouldn't let them spoil the entire 愛狂います。 experience. While vocalist Emiru (now “Suzuki Satoshi”) has since moved on to Yeti, an outlet where his softer, indie rock composition style is really thriving (let’s just say I like Yeti’s output more than late level 1 愛狂います。), it’s an absolute shame that Rubi hasn’t resurfaced in another band yet. To this day, he remains one of my favorite VK guitarists and it pains me greatly that his return to music seems so unlikely at this point. Still, there’s plenty of great music to remember him (and the whole band) by! And forget about caveats. 愛狂います。 was not crazy for a pop/"oshare" band; they were just crazy, period.
    If you’re new to 愛狂います。, be sure to check out all of the links/PVs! Hopefully, you can use this as a guide! For any seasoned fans out there, let me know what you think of the 5 level system. Does it make sense? Do you agree with the categorization? What are your favorite songs at each level? Do you agree that 愛狂います。 tends to be remembered superficially (i.e. only referencing their appearance)? Whatever you have to share about 愛狂います。, let’s discuss it!
     
  6. Like
    fitear1590 reacted to colorful人生 in 椎名未緒(Shiina Mio) (ユナイト(UNiTE) goes solo !   
    If anyone wants to see which songs the guest musicians are involved with:
    https://www.shiinamio.com/guest
     
    Depending on which store (or one live venue) that you choose, you get the Shiina Mio vocal ver. of the song on a separate CD w/ the regular edition (1,000 sheets limited for the regular edition, and 100 sheets limited of the Shiina Mio ver. per store/venue)
    ライカエジソン全店 (Like an Edison):CD (Az -椎名未緒 vo ver-) little HEARTS.全店:CD (二アリー -椎名未緒 vo ver-) ZEAL LINK全店:CD (鋼鉄のリンネ -椎名未緒 vo ver-) BRAND X:CD (−273.15 ℃ -椎名未緒 vo ver-) 自主盤倶楽部 (Jishuban Club):CD (彗星 -椎名未緒 vo ver-) ライブ会場 (Live Venue):CD (レムリア -椎名未緒 vo ver-) Limited ed. version is now available for pre-order on the ユナイト goods store via mail-order:
    https://www.official-store.jp/unite/products/detail.php?product_id=240
     
    Also, an alt. look:
    Additionally, this year's Halloween costume, lol
     
  7. Like
    fitear1590 reacted to Deremie in [German] Der NEUE deutsche Faden!   
    Meine persönlichen deutschen yt Lieblingskanäle sind coldmirror und Doktor Allwissend 😄 Wenn es dir darum geht, die berühmtesten deutschen Youtuber zu sehen, sind vielleicht auch die, die bei BUBBLES mitmachen was für dich. (idk ich glaube die kids mögen sowas heute?)
  8. Like
    fitear1590 reacted to Shir0 in [German] Der NEUE deutsche Faden!   
    @fitear1590 Die meisten Influencers die ich in meiner Seminararbeit genannt habe sind Englisch sprachig sorry aber wenn du ein Deutschen Influencer und Youtuber  sucht dann schau mal nach dem YT Kanal Bibisbeautypalace sie ist Vorallem unter Teenager(inen)  beliebt 
  9. Like
    fitear1590 reacted to PIZAZ in Recommended Tracks from Summer 2018   
    Of the stuff I've listened to the clear winners are DEG and DIMLIM, but I haven't checked out any of the non-vkei stuff listed yet. Excited to listen to new toe and heck out NITRO DAY, sounds like they could have a place in my playlist based off of the description. I've also never given Mass of the Fermenting Dregs a try, so I'm going to rectify that later.
    I was unaware of new Shiina, fitear1590. I love when she goes full cinematic, really looking forward to checking that out.
    As always, thanks for putting this list together everyone.
  10. Like
    fitear1590 got a reaction from PIZAZ in Recommended Tracks from Summer 2018   
    Nice list, team! I'm sorry I couldn't contribute officially this time, but these would have been my picks:
    "Brightly, Brightly" by DIMMDIVISION. - shoegazey goodness from my fave inactive boiz (check it out on YouTube)
      "獣ゆく細道 (kemono yuku hosomichi)" by Shiina Ringo and Miyamoto Hiroji - the queen is back with a return to her lush jazz sound that would be at home in a spy movie soundtrack or a Jacques Demy musical; would have been perfect on her Heisei Fuuzoku album from 2007 (check it out on Spotify)
      "DISCO (rerecording)" by 女王蜂 (Ziyoou Vachi a.k.a. QUEEN BEE) - a rerecording of their chaotic classic; a bit too clean, but for those who aren't loving their current direction, this is at least an attempt to bridge their two sounds (check it out on Spotify)
  11. Like
    fitear1590 got a reaction from Spectralion in Recommended Tracks from Summer 2018   
    Nice list, team! I'm sorry I couldn't contribute officially this time, but these would have been my picks:
    "Brightly, Brightly" by DIMMDIVISION. - shoegazey goodness from my fave inactive boiz (check it out on YouTube)
      "獣ゆく細道 (kemono yuku hosomichi)" by Shiina Ringo and Miyamoto Hiroji - the queen is back with a return to her lush jazz sound that would be at home in a spy movie soundtrack or a Jacques Demy musical; would have been perfect on her Heisei Fuuzoku album from 2007 (check it out on Spotify)
      "DISCO (rerecording)" by 女王蜂 (Ziyoou Vachi a.k.a. QUEEN BEE) - a rerecording of their chaotic classic; a bit too clean, but for those who aren't loving their current direction, this is at least an attempt to bridge their two sounds (check it out on Spotify)
  12. Like
    fitear1590 got a reaction from CAT5 in Recommended Tracks from Summer 2018   
    Nice list, team! I'm sorry I couldn't contribute officially this time, but these would have been my picks:
    "Brightly, Brightly" by DIMMDIVISION. - shoegazey goodness from my fave inactive boiz (check it out on YouTube)
      "獣ゆく細道 (kemono yuku hosomichi)" by Shiina Ringo and Miyamoto Hiroji - the queen is back with a return to her lush jazz sound that would be at home in a spy movie soundtrack or a Jacques Demy musical; would have been perfect on her Heisei Fuuzoku album from 2007 (check it out on Spotify)
      "DISCO (rerecording)" by 女王蜂 (Ziyoou Vachi a.k.a. QUEEN BEE) - a rerecording of their chaotic classic; a bit too clean, but for those who aren't loving their current direction, this is at least an attempt to bridge their two sounds (check it out on Spotify)
  13. Like
    fitear1590 got a reaction from Zeus in Kisaki Drama 2k18   
    Thanks for archiving and translating this, cvltic.
  14. Like
    fitear1590 reacted to Peace Heavy mk II in Homage-系 - The Art of Being Someone Else   
    The visual-kei scene is full of its own quirks and oddities that make it stand out from any other subculture in the music world; these hallmarks also appear to resonate at a national level, in spite of the culture stemming from several metropolitan hubs, each with their own small variants. One of these traits, for better or for worse, is how willing the scene is to reference itself. Since 2013, “willing” has become the incorrect word. “Obsessed,” “addicted,” “driven,” “obligated”; these words seem to fit the bill closer. References to older material is not uncommon in any medium of art, but visual-kei takes it four steps further to emulation. Today is the day we talk about homage-系 (Kei), kids.

    “Homage-kei” is a made up word. It isn’t a real category to anyone else other than people who use this board, to be honest, but it is an apt descriptor for this phenomenon. This is when a band reuses melodies, thematic, aesthetics, and even titles from an older, typically more successful, band or bands. However: their music also contains many original elements, which sets them apart from being a literal cover band. It also needs to be more than a single occurrence as well: Dir en grey “””borrowing””” the main riff of Luna Sea’s “G” is not enough, but borrowing the front-man of 黒夢 (Kuroyume)’s aesthetic for several music videos is.
     


    There are several bands that would fall under this umbrella from the late 2000’s. Two I want to touch on are Ru:Natic and the infamous Vajra. The first was one of the earliest examples I can think of that tried to revive the aggressive and bloody punk-meets-goth-meets-pop style popularized in the mid-90’s. They wore black clothes, had neon hair, and sang about being a crazy person invited to dinner parties that they had no business attending. While they weren’t the only group doing this (re: Sadie’s Mary and Sadie’sla), they were the first to start reusing melodies from older bands, namely La:Sadie’s, Madeth Gray’ll, and Aliene Ma’riage. There was even a hard-to-come-by single that was a reinterpretation of Baiser’s “undersea” and they had a demo tape that contained covers from some of the bands previously mentioned. They even lost a bunch of members, changed record labels, and released a lot of rare material: all cornerstones of “what an old school band does.” In my memory of the scene, this was the first time we got a real taste of bands reinventing the 90s sound that many people liked, but had fallen out of favor.
     



    Vajra was fun for the wrong reasons. Their costumes were kind of similar to UnsraW and thematically they were a bit too close to Dir en grey for the fan base at the time’s comfort. One of their singles was apparently a near 1:1 facsimile of another Dir en grey track and that caused a shitstorm on last.fm . For days people were arguing back and forth about whether it was a copy or not. Our own dear @Zeus requested someone overlay it with the original so we could see how similar it was. I personally did not have a horse in that race, but for hours or entertainment seeing the bickering between the hordes of people in outrage vs that one person who apparently went to their shows regularly and gave sympathetic updates about how this was affecting the band personally. Take his with a grain of salt, as it is only a Western interpretation of what happened and I cannot speak to how it was received by fans who could actually go see them in person. Regardless of where you stood in this fight, history’s take is that it did not end well for Vajra; they broke up shortly after only to be remembered as “that band that tried to be Diru.”
     
    Both examples were, in retrospect, unsuccessful. Ru:Natic, in their heyday, missed the boat on people eating up old-school revival acts by about 3 years, then only played again in one-off events. Vajra, on the other hand, failed for a couple of reasons. The first is that the fan base wasn’t ready for their style of tribute-meets-original-works. Secondly, there wasn’t enough time passed between what they performed and when their source material was released. Based on later act’s success, time helps prevent “a homage” from being seen as “a rip-off.”
     


    Earlier I had mentioned 2013 being the starting point for “homage-kei,” in a more official (but still unofficial) sense. That’s because グリヴァー (GRIEVA) happened and caused a shift in the scene. For those unfamiliar, Grieva’s whole schtick was that they dressed like a modern version of 1998 Dir en grey and made music that sounded like it could have came from from the same time frame. However, after people got a hold of their first album, it became alarming clear that it was one big tribute to “Gauze” (Dir en grey’s first album). A lot of songs “borrowed” the melodies of Gauze-era songs, their music videos were kind of like high school kids reenacting their idol’s work for a class project, and you were even able to draw parallels to the lyrical content. Grieva handled this clearly stating their theme is to bring back the feeling of the old days, and even fabricated a whole interview about how they went on a quest for band members that held the same ideals. Unlike Vajra, when people confronted them by saying “You’re just stealing,” them saying “Yeah, but that’s like the point???” it worked. Granted, there were plenty of people who weren’t buying this act and loathed the whole idea, but there was more than enough support for it to keep them at the forefront of the scene up until 2015. In fact, it worked so well that their label made it happen AGAIN, but this time with a band that pretended to be The GazettE and another that mixed all different concepts from the eroguro scene and western nü-metal together. This was the first time in visual-kei where blatantly copying on purpose wasn’t met with more backlash than praise.

    Several other acts spawned at the same time, due to a strong desire for “bands that sound like old school groups.” This was in part due to Cell, an offshoot of La’Mule that made somewhat similar music, Lin, a Kisaki band that came after he swore he was retired, and a general sense of boredom from the run-of-the-mill bands that dressed like host boys. Other groups that come to mind include Gauzes (a La’Mule homage-kei group), DEZERT (their first singles were nü-metal interpretations of groups like D’espairsRay and Nega), and AvelCain (who took more influence from groups like Lamiel than their fan base wanted to admit). Suddenly, it was cool to be like someone else.
     



    Eventually, the hype waned a bit. Grieva started writing their own music and then eventually split after being worked to death by their label. It was mostly the same case for AvelCain, Cell went on break because frontman Kon can’t keep focused on one thing, DEZERT found (and then killed) their own style, and most of the other old school sounding bands weren’t big enough to really make a lasting impact. This was the death of homage-kei.


    Or was it???


    Interestingly enough, in recent years, this scene metamorphosed along with the scene at large. We started seeing groups now begin to “take influence from” more recent acts (which I guess are still old if you’re younger than 20??). We had メディーナ (Mediena), who took a lot from Phantasmagoria, ガンミ (Ganmi), which sounded like an early 2000s band without a real influence to pin point, and Mamireta, who tried to restart the subculture in high gear with their refreshing takes on 蜉蝣 (Kagerou)’s music. There are even big acts forming side projects that “sound like a 90’s band!!”, like Diaura(who are not guilt-free themselves, when it comes to Pierrot worship) and ぞんび (Zonbi). Even Gossip-ゴシップ- went from copying The GazettE to emulating their label owner’s old band (albeit at gunpoint (allegedly!)). It is worth noting that another significant change: aside from a few examples, the current trend has become "I want to sound like ___," rather than "guess which ___ songs I combined!!!" Arguably, the style should have started with this mentality, but controversy creates buzz.
     


    Unoriginality in the visual kei scene is nothing new. We even have an entire thread dedicated to specific instances where someone took a riff or theme and matches it to the exact source material it came from. But homage-kei really takes it to the next level. Bands want you to know who they’re sounding like. Could it be for nostalgia sales? Or because recreating a well liked motif makes it easier for someone to like a new creation (they’re already emotionally invested)? Or is it just a lazy cash grab, which requires 40% less effort to produce material? Maybe it is fulfilling a fantasy to reenact what you love about your idols? In spite of how much I adore everything mentioned throughout this article, I would be lying to you if I didn’t say that it is probably a mix of all four.
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    fitear1590 got a reaction from kuyashii in Kisaki Drama 2k18   
    Thanks for archiving and translating this, cvltic.
  17. Like
    fitear1590 got a reaction from lichtlune in Kisaki Drama 2k18   
    Thanks for archiving and translating this, cvltic.
  18. Like
    fitear1590 reacted to cvltic in Kisaki Drama 2k18   
    Development: The account was deleted. Not really surprising considering the seriousness of the allegations, the amount of tanuki attention it attracted and the fact that the police are reportedly involved. I might screencap the archive I saved of the account for posterity?
  19. Like
    fitear1590 reacted to cvltic in Kisaki Drama 2k18   
    If you were here early, the translations are complete now. While I was working on them, the OP deleted the pictures of her children. They happen to be in the archive I saved, so if necessary I could crop out everything except Kisaki and his tattoos, but I'm wary about doing so at the moment.

    @colorfuljinsei, thank you for posting the tattoo pic -- I might quote you in the top post so people can find it easily if/when this thread blows up.
  20. Thanks
    fitear1590 reacted to cvltic in Kisaki Drama 2k18   
    (Thank you to @ricchubunny for posting about this in a status, which led to @Chi linking it to me!)
     
    An account on Twitter, @KISAKI54175241, has begun to make some fairly serious claims against Kisaki, so here we are in the rumors section yet again. At the time of this posting the account has 66 tweets and multiple images. I saved an archive of the page at it is at this moment in case anything happens to it, so please let me know and I will post that somewhere.

    Disclaimer: What follows is a translation of allegations made by twitter user KISAKI54175241. I neither endorse nor deny any of the claims made below, and I made a conscious effort to avoid sensationalizing anything in my translations... If you have any questions or feedback in that regard please let me know.

    More importantly some of the content below is disturbing. There are mentions of domestic violence and child sexual abuse. Please read at your own discretion or skip to the summary below if you would like to know what happened without getting into explicit detail.

    KISAKI54175241's posts (oldest to newest, although sometimes self-retweets that reordered her twitter timeline will cause discrepancies)
     
    The translation as the account stands at 2:28 PM -6:00 GMT is complete.

    This picture provided by @colorfuljinsei (originally from Kisaki's official twitter?) can serve as a tattoo placement/design reference if you would like to do any comparisons.


    In summary, Kisaki has been accused of:
    -Inappropriate sexual contact with a young child
    -Domestic violence
    -Being a habitual benzo seeker/user
    -Being suicidal and using this as a manipulation tactic
    -Astroturfing tanuki, working to have critical articles and twitters suspended
    Allegedly, these matters have been brought to police.
  21. Like
    fitear1590 reacted to chemicalpictures in PELICAN FANCLUB major debut, new mini-album   
    nice! they definitely deserve it!
  22. Like
    fitear1590 reacted to Chi in PELICAN FANCLUB major debut, new mini-album   
    Sad that they are only 3 now but happy for this!! Ki/oon has so many good acts and I hope this will bring them even biggerp opportunities Still 2 months to go but I'm excited
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    fitear1590 got a reaction from chemicalpictures in PELICAN FANCLUB major debut, new mini-album   
    Indie rock band PELICAN FANCLUB is making their major debut with Ki/oon Records (home of ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION, L'Arc~en~Ciel, NEGOTO, LILI LIMIT, Chatmonchy, KANA-BOON, etc.).

    On November 7th, they'll release new mini album Boys just want to be culture. They will also embark on a new tour.

    More details to come.


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    fitear1590 got a reaction from plastic_rainbow in Show Yourself (again)   
    Me and my sleepy pup.
  25. LOLOL
    fitear1590 reacted to suji in ZON will pass "GAS"   
    ZON new single, "GAS" will be released on October 31. (2300 yen)
     
    [tracklist]
    1.GAS
    2.(title tba)
    3.(title tba)
    DVD
    1.GAS (Music Video)
     

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