Ito

The title of this thread greatly confused me at first.

Dir en grey is a good example of a band who is taking international music styles into their sound without being generic. They toured with BMTH and came back with deathcore influence...so what. They didn't suddenly spam two-note breakdowns. They legitimately began using the mix of thrash and hardcore with their previous death and progressive tendencies, and apparently some nu metal (!) for extra effect (re: bass technique). This is all potential evidence of a desire to play the bits they want to play (or at least what their lead composers want, re: current drummer issues) regardless of current popularity. Hell, they even (arguably) pulled off some variety of doom/drone/sludge, and since when has that been popular? I'm not well-versed in them but as far as I'm aware I think the answer is "never" (though if anyone knows differently, please tell). Funnily enough, this mix of primarily-European-based styles has brought them straight into my interests.
 
Girugamesh, on the other hand, are just ticking boxes off a list. While Incomplete manages to successfully integrate dubstep with (almost) nu metal, Drain is a pointless rehash of these elements; I think this means they lucked out the first time they did attempted it, and that (again as Ito said) they're making use of the (imo cheaper) aspects of post-hardcore for the achievement of a faux-heaviness. I would be inclined to believe they genuinely liked this style if it was less popular, less omniscient, less of a mass-produced commodity, but I'm afraid I can't trust any band using so many cliches at an eerily coincidental point in time (especially since they released two singles only months ago that somehow lacked most of it).
 
Then yes, the bottom line is I fucking hate it to begin with. I liked Incomplete, and the original singles, but if the two singles are being re-done in this "MONSTER" style, and the teasers are just displaying more and more of these elements, I think what little novelty they had will expire very quickly. While I'm hoping the album will prove otherwise (like Max the Hormone did), I am not feeling enthusiastic (as, unlike MTH, Girugamesh has not shown an overt sense of humour and/or self-awareness [certainly not since they decided to be Linkin Park]).

Yes - currently in the military.  I am making my transition right now.  I have bigger dreams and goals in my mind, and the military has done a lot to help me reach my future goals.  I have gotten to see a lot of the world in the last several years thanks to my military service, and hopefully I can fulfill my goal of visiting 50 countries by age 50.  I have seen 23 thus far, and still have a ways to go.  But the journey has been worth it.

American living in Seoul, South Korea.  I have lived in many different countries (Japan, Germany, United States, Korea, Afghanistan), but the culture, eccentricities, and music of Japan has been the most mesmerizing.  I hope to live there again, someday.

For those who are incredibly curious:


United States - 11,139 Japan - 5,231 Germany - 4,878 France - 3,571 Brazil - 2,807 Russia - 2,520 Finland - 2,165 Netherlands - 1,878 Italy - 1,771 Canada - 1,618

I was being sarcastic. The amount of v-neck, stretched-ears, Verb the Noun, post-hardcore-derived outfits themed after videogame characters is so massive that nobody can say Girugamesh are being original by taking these elements up. There's nothing underground about a genre that's has been infecting America since about 2007. It's not that I think the genre is shit. It's that THERE IS TOO MUCH OF IT. It's called oversaturation and it's what killed nu metal.
 
I don't want Girugamesh to be something they've already been. They won't do it, and why should they? I'm pissed off that they are doing all the hallmarks (and the most generic hallmarks at that) of every currently popular scenes. I mean, the breakdown in Drain...how many times have I heard that exact same riff? My old guitarist used to play that whenever he was testing his guitar for fuck's sake...when we were both 16.
 
And like Ito said, they're writing pop songs with some breakdowns and minimal-note chug riffs to pretend they're heavier, so even if I COULD tolerate what they're doing, I'd just be pointing out how they're not doing it very well. They're working on a checklist. Do we have chug breakdowns? Yes. Do we have random bass drop noises? Yes. Do we have a pop punk upbeat chorus at the end? Yes. Is one of our members dressed like a schoolboy? God knows why, but yes.
 
I loved MUSIC. Even though they were ripping off Linkin Park, at least they did it at high quality, with some sense of self. There was nobody else who sounded that close to early Linkin Park. In fact they were so good at sounding like Linkin Park that somehow they managed to avoid sounding like a mere shitty copy.
 
Here, well, they are rapidly becoming a shitty copy, just like nearly every other VK band currently going.
 
If they're going to ride trends, I'd appreciate if they did it well.
 
But I'd prefer they didn't ride trends.
 
Let alone saturated, omniscient trends I have never been able to like that could do with one less, previously (somewhat) original band participating in.

Looks like I posted the video in the wrong thread earlier.  Gomen ne.
 
In regards to the new PV - It rocked.  The agressive edge is there with soaring vocals from Satoshi.  The one thing that I am noticing, espcially in their recent lives, is that Satoshi is focusing much more and hitting notes cleaner and longer, but in doing so is sacrificing some of the performance, emotion, and power behind his vocals.  The growls and screams are much more rare and more controlled, and I think it takes some life out of the performance.
 
That aside, these recent efforts have restored my faith in the band.  Being obsessed with everything from 13's Reborn to Music, the buildup to the release of Zecchou -BANG- had me let down and I was about to write them off completely.  If Zantetsuken wasn't released, I don't think I would have even tried to sample their work anymore.  These recent efforts reignited the excitement I had for their music.
 
As for the album art - it looks - ametuer at best.  Band in the woods with instruments feels very DIY homemade demo and the art style of the lettering doesn't match very well.  I am not a fan.  Luckily, I am much more interested in the muisc.  I have to admit, it has promise.
 
Thanks for the turnaround Giru.
 
EDIT: VOLTAGE preview hits fast and hard!  I love it!

I'd be the first one to admit that all they've done in the past years is somewhat linked, but I remember when I saw them live during their Crazy Crazy Crazy tour and MUSIC just sounds the best live. I'm glad there's a bit more of that again.
 
GO is the most boring album ever though. Everything on that release was so clean and overproduced that waiting for any kind of edge or "rawness" was pretty much a waste of time. So if anything, MONSTER will be a huge step up from that.
 
It's been showing in the bands they hang out with and the line-ups they get thrown in though. Girugamesh likes being part of the underground rock scene more than any type of VK. Wish they'd somehow go a bit more post-hardcore, but I'm already glad Satoshi's voice sounds better in these recordings.

I came across from AnimeNewsNetwork about this issue and I think this editorial sums it up.
 

はじめましてみなさん！
 
My name is Ryan, but I go by the moniker "TheStoic" as I use it in most blog/forum communities I take part in.
 
My love for Japanese Rock and Japanese culture originates from 2001 when I moved from the U.S. to live in Okinawa, Japan.  My best friend, whom was half Japanese-half American, introduced me to Japanese music through Arcade games, anime and manga and before you knew it, I was heading to my local Tsutaya Record Store to buy my favorite "introdcutory" artists I fist came to know and love, such as Bump of Chicken, The Blue Hearts, L'arc en Ciel, Siam Shade, Luna Sea, Hide, X-Japan, and Gackt.  However, as I started buying new CDs of artists I would see in Shoxx, Fool's Mate, and Cure magazines, I came to grow and fall in love with darker, heavier acts like Dir en grey, Mucc, D'espairsRay, and The GazettE.
 
Today, over half of my music library is strictly Japanese, and I have been lucky enough to see several of my favoirte acts live both in Japan and in the United States.  I have been a part of other J-Music communities before, and after reading the review section of this fourm, I saw I liked the layout, quality and discussion and have decided to join in the mix.
 
I look forward to meeting everyone!
 
Thanks for the great content here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJspVE355Do

went and picked up one of these bad boys today
 

 
just got to say this is one of the most comfortable controllers I've ever held in my hands, good job Sony!

have they made a hide vocaloid tribute double CD already????

I should check this out...cause YOLO
::proceed to shoot self in face::

I don't care about the visuals in VK:  I say this is an unpopular opinion because I've been told countless times that it's impossible not to care about the visuals and anyone that says that is lying and on and on.  But I don't and I never have. I have some kind of sick attraction to the music itself, but I don't give a flying fuck about the band's appearance and would prefer they didn't look so ridiculous if I had a choice, just so it'd be less embarrassing to point them out to people.

Everyone has those opinions on music that either garner condescendent and judgemental sideeyes, or incites flame wars and shitstorms. I'm interested in learning what music opinions you all might have like that. Since popularity and unpopularity are relative and depends on the setting, please also provide a bit of context with your opinions!
 
Also, feel free to discuss the opions that others post!
 
 
 
As for my opinions:
 
"VK isn't all bad". "There's some good VK". Now to give you all a bit of context. These opinions are hardly controversial here on MH, but all of the music-heads I consult with outside of MH are adamant about their distaste for VK. Simply put, most of them hate it. So I usually refrain from mentioning anything VK-related in their presence, but IF I DO, I always find myself having to defend this opinion and go the extra mile to show them how credible VK can be.
 
"Dir en grey is still VK": Ok, technically they may not be considered VK and the band may not consider themselves VK anymore. Sure, they've changed their image and have shunned a few traditional VK aesthetics. Sure, they've added harsh, guttural vocals, changed the tuning on their guitars, and have taken on more organic song structures. However, their overall sound is still so battered and deep fried in VK, that it's nearly impossible for me to mentally segregate them from VK as a whole.
 
The fact that VK still has so many Kyo worshipping vocalists doesn't help either. Their influence on VK has been undeniable, so for me to regard them as something completely different now is pretty difficult.
 
 
I will return later when I think of some more. But for now, that's enough to kick this thread off. What are yours!!??

After well over a year's worth of work, I'd like to present to you all: RarezHut! This is one of the first international store for used visual kei music. Myself, along with my two associates, have been working hard to deliver a store to meet the needs of the international visual kei community, offering a wide selection of products at a reasonable cost. At the moment, RarezHut has over 600 items for sale, each of which includes a listenable/watchable sample! We've got a total inventory of well over 2000 items and will be working hard over the coming months to deliver updates(at least once a month) with as many items as we can stuff in there. Currently available are a multitude of CDs, DVDs, cassette tapes and VHS spanning over 200 bands.
 
Features of the store include:
"Fuzzy search" system: when you search for a band, it'll pull up any other items available by bands with members from the band you searched for in addition. Listenable/watchable samples for every item to give you a little idea of what to look forward to. Newsletter: If you create an account, you can opt-in for our newsletter which details all of the recent additions and will be sent out the moment they're added to the site, allowing you to get first dibs on any new goodies! Remember: once they're gone, they're gone for good~ Digital copies: along with any cassette/VHS purchases, we offer high-quality digital copies free-of-charge. We realize that not everyone has the means to play these aging formats, but we aim not to let that get in the way of you being able to enjoy them! In an effort to make sure that buying goes smoothly, all items added will have the digital copies ready before addition so that packages can be shipped out on the next business day.  
Thanks for taking the time to look at this and we sincerely hope you enjoy the store(and whatever goodies you buy from it )! Given the small nature of the visual kei community, we rely on word-of-mouth for most of our advertising, so any friends you can tell about the store will help us immensely <3
 
If you've got any questions/comments/feedback, feel free to post them here or send me a PM and I'll try to reply ASAP~
 
Update 3/13/2015
So we've finally joined the 21st century and started a facebook and tumblr! You can follow us on either(or both if you really love us <3) for product spotlights, updates, corgi pictures and more! To celebrate this, we're running a special 10% off sale from now(3/13) until next week Friday(3/20). To get in on this sale, just enter the code SOCIALSALE10 at checkout and you'll be on your way to (even) cheaper rarez in no time!
 
In addition, I'd like to welcome Rob(robkun) to the RarezHut team! He's been a huge supporter of our store since the very beginning and we're honored to have him as part of the staff! He'll be writing the product spotlights on both our facebook and tumblr pages, so definitely go check them out because they're really awesome

Some day I will switch off of iTunes and use foobar...maybe if there was a way to sync my libraries between the two, because my main problem is I still want to be able to manage everything on my iPod.

So this is an EXTREMELY belated introdution! I've decided to be more active on this forum (hopefully) but all you guys seem cool and awesome and I get intimidated easily, also i'm not the best at describing music when I want to introduce others to it, so I tend to keep quiet because you guys are so much better at it! >< so you may see me lurking around on the chat occasionally, most likely being that one person who never seems to know what's going on and having to repeatedly ask and be awkward
I did come at first mostly because of the downloads section and I would love to upload stuff BUT I JUST DON'T HAVE MONEY GUYS hopefully a time will come when I can actually upload my own stuff and not just be a notorious leecher -sigh-
 
Anyway onto music, I don't really have any bands that I stick to religiously as music tends to reflect my mood a lot/ or reflects what I want my mood to be/ I just like finding new bands so I become obsessed with them for really brief periods of time and then find something else. Or maybe that's just because MH introduces me to so much good music I just want to listen to all of it...
Either way, a few bands that i've been listening to recently are
Plastic Tree amber gris Janne Da Arc Dir en Grey NightingeiL Alice Nine cocklobin D DELUHI Not sticking to VK i've been listening to
Kuroki Nagisa (due to MH THANKS GUYS!!!) school food punishment Asako Nasu Kenshi Yonezu GYZE Just in case you're interested, some English bands i've been listening to recently
Northlane The Antlers Rishloo La Dispute Ne Obliviscaris Lydia I listen to a fairly wide variety of music and it tends to change up a lot, I also have a tendency to ramble on a lot, excuse the ridiculously long post and lists, so i'm just going to stop here and I hope I can pluck up the courage to get to know some of you guys better
-flies away awkwardly-

makes them an uncalled plan then.

^That was pretty much me yesterday evening

Call me crazy, but this stuff is the shit! Sprecher Root Beer is fantastic by itself and it's hometown brewed as well (the brewery is 40 minutes away from my house). The use all local stuff whenever possible and they only sweeten their drinks with local honey. The hard root beer is fermented in bourbon barrels for 1 year and it comes out tasting awesome. It's really interesting, there are like 4 distinct layers of flavor to it...I really dig it.

I wish I could say I knew more about classical music. I enjoy some of the stuff I listen to, but I just don't have enough exposure to it. Would anyone recommend a good album to grab (especially with really high recording quality) because I would love to get in to it more.

I'll meet them here in Chicago on the 16th Next month. If they don't play Mushi I'm going to be pissed.  
 
Link would be cooler.    Any idea what kind of tracklist they may play in this tour? I missed their las NA tour a few years back so I don't know what they already played.

Gonna make my obligitory KuRT post here:
 
I think for them it has to be Sweet Lemon Broker...it's the song that first comes to your head when you think of them
or at least that's been my experience with it.
 
another band that I was really into way back when, was LuLu and I think the song for them would have to be 精神鎮痛剤 (seishin chinstsuuzai) mostly because its like the only song they have a PV for and they've put it on damn near every album lol.
 
also, in my own opinion I think 'Guren' did it for NoGoD, but then again Atria was really popular too if I recall correctly?
 
Idk, these are just some of my opinions.