enyx

Sorry for not posting in this thread earlier! I hope you guys don't mind if I pick out some of the albums from the list and drop some quick comments on them.
 
I have to echo CAT5's sentiments regarding TK from 凛として時雨's Fantastic Magic. It's not bad by any means but I can't help but find its more simplistic song-structures and poppy undertones somewhat disappointing overall, especially after flowering which was my favourite album of 2012. I think it says a lot that my favourite work from TK this year has been Acoustic Installation and his remix for sukekiyo. I also have to agree with others that have mentioned the title track being one of the best tracks on the album, as well as unravel's popularity probably stemming from Tokyo Ghoul rather than the song itself.
 
THE NOVEMBERS really are coming into their own as of late. I find that noisy albums tend to have a habit of either being really good or coming across as too gimmicky without any actual substance. Rhapsody in beauty is definitely is a case of the former and not the latter, and I feel rather comfortable in listing it in my personal top three albums released this year. I also think 今日も生きたね deserves some love; sure it's only a two-track release rather than a full-length but I found both tracks to be very good.
 
I found HOLLOWGRAM enjoyable but certainly nothing revolutionary. I'd say Qualia is one of the more enjoyable releases of the year but there have definitely been other releases that deserve more praise. Still, I'm interested to see what they put out next so it must have done something right.
 
As for sukekiyo, they're definitely a band that people either seem to 'get' or 'not get'. That's not to say that people that don't get them are musically inept or anything, it's all subjective in the end. I think one of the main problems is that a lot of people tried to compare sukekiyo to 9GOATS/RES/DIR EN GREY when in reality sukekiyo seems to be going for something rather different to all of those bands; with the similarities being more of a natural by-product of its lineup rather than a direct attempt at emulation. What I enjoyed about IMMORTALIS is that is genuinely comes across as a labour of love more than anything else, and ultimately has a sound that can't be directly compared to anything else out there at the moment - at least not in its entirety. Still, I'll admit that it's definitely not for everyone.

They do seem to have some innate ability to act as a catalyst for petty arguments. I feel like Firewall could somehow turn that into some cheesy marketing tool for their next album
 
Anyway, I wouldn't necessarily consider this to be my 'favourite' performance because I find it really hard to think of one specific performance that I can consider entirely better than the others, but I've always found this version of LOTUS from the 輪郭 DVD to be particularly impactful. It might seem like a weird choice since Kyo's voice is absolutely shot here, but that's precisely why I like it so much; there's something inspiring about watching him continue to put in so much effort while his voice is in such a bad state. 
 

Man, it always has to be with DEG, huh... what a magical band.
 
(don't mind me XD)

Kareki created a buzzkill here? You don't say

My god are you guys throwing a fit over some petty, sarcastic jokes? Calm your tits and don't cause a buzzkill in here like Kareki or Patrik @fukkatsu/batsu pls
 
(Batsuisms are not cool y'know + I am not defending anyone - sometimes it's just much easier not to take everything around here seriously, kek)

sukekiyo new mini album "vitium" will be released on 2015.02.04.
 
no more detail yet.

I think "Promotion edit ver." -subtitle should be noted since DEG are quite known for cutting "the best parts" away from such versions (compare: Rinkaku's promotion edit ver.).
 
About samples: "Cause of fickleness" and "Phenomenon" sound very Vulgar/Kisou-y to me. Kind of nice so far

m-koda, Kashiwa Daisuke, agraph, Fugenn & The White Elephants, Daisuke Tanabe, lycoriscoris, Himuro (himuro yoshiteru), moskitoo, cuushe, piana, serph/Reliq, go-qualia, AOKI Takamasa, Fourcolor/filfla/fonica, fragment, riow arai, rei harakami
man...there's a lot more of this stuff in Japan, but those are some of the big ones for me. Also, anything on the "PROGRESSIVE FOrM" label is worth checking out!

Sorry for bumping an old-ish thread, but I felt compelled to mention Fightstar's Follow Me Into The Darkness here. I'm actually surprised that I didn't think to mention it the first time 'round. It progresses fantastically from a quiet and reflective piece to a dramatic and cinematic climax, before tastefully finishing off with a lone piano melody that really leaves an impression once the album is over.
 

Great. I propose you a few stuff (maybe not at all what you're looking for XDD).
I'm starting with one of my fav band, kHz:
 
 
L'AME IMMORTELLE knows how to make good intro too:
 
 
Astarte :
 
 
Saturnus (if you love violin, you should like this one) :
 
 
Enter Shikari with 'Stand Your Ground' :
 
 
Virgin Black - Weep for me :
 
 
If you want a sweet atmosphere with piano, violin etc, you should check Dark Sanctuary's songs.
 

TIME TO FORMALLY JOIN THIS THREAD (finally). I recently discovered a band called 雨のパレード (ame no parade). They've formed in 2012 but only released their first material this year after being signed to Zankyo Records. So far they've released two mini-albums, though the first one can't be found anywhere (I've tried iTunes, zankyo's bandcamp, CDJapan, etc.) the second one CAN be found and it really impressed me!
 

 
They seem to go for a sort of shoegaze sound, but since they're relatively new I'm curious what more they'll bring to the table!

D'espairsRay- Lost in Re:birth

Heidi. - Last Piece
 
NoGod - Ring-a-Ring-O

Malice Mizer - Unmei no Deai
 
73Shiki-  Sakura
 
These are just some of the songs that resonate with me on a certain level.  There are much more to list.

Romancé PV:
 

Romancé PV:
 

also they've just posted it here
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKYzrvTsAoM

Anyone listened to Aureole's new single? It's available as a free download on their site here. Here's a PV for one of the two tracks. Personally I think both of them are really good. 
 

Album artwork:

Source

In regards to the special edition, I hope to god it's not in a digipack. Those things are the worst.

Could you describe a little more specifically ? I know djent but who is on this current bandwagon ?

Anyone listened to Aureole's new single? It's available as a free download on their site here. Here's a PV for one of the two tracks. Personally I think both of them are really good. 
 

Enter Shikari - Common Dreads
Intro to their second full-length of the same name. Ominous, and a total change in tone from their first album. Although Enter Shikari's switch to a more politically-driven band (which pretty much started here) has certainly turned off a portion of their fanbase over the years, I think most can agree that this is a fantastic intro regardless. Also, it transitions fantastically into the following track, Solidarity.

 
DIR EN GREY - SA BIR [Remastered & Expanded ver.]
Intro to the remaster of their seventh full-length 'UROBOROS'. I already liked the original version of this track, but this version takes the cake. The slow ambient build-up, the ticking clocks, and the pounding bass of the original track all combine really well to kick off a great remastering of one of the most memorable albums of recent times.

 
the GazettE - OMEGA
Outro for their fifth full-length 'TOXIC'. If there's one word I could use to describe this album as a whole, it would either be "boring" or "uninspired". I think that's part of the reason why this outro stands out to me so much. After a mind-numbingly dull 50 or so minutes, you go into what you assume is going to be another generic "wubwubwub" SE, then it out of nowhere it suddenly breaks down into probably the most disturbing 30-40 seconds in the band's discography. That final scream creeps me the hell out. Unfortunately this video cuts out the eerie final few seconds after that scream, but you get the point. 

凛として時雨 - mib126
Closer for their third full-length 'just A moment'. One of sigure's best songs in my personal opinion. It starts off as a rather subdued track that builds up slowly before completely exploding into one of their most intense tracks in the second half. Undoubtedly one of their finest moments to date.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bwudsetJDU
 
THE NOVEMBERS - GIFT
Closer for their third mini-album 'GIFT'. Well, I did say in my description of Moiré in the best album openers thread that I consider GIFT's title track closer to be at least on par with its terrific opener, so I pretty much have to include this here. I almost consider them to be two halves of the same song, at least in terms of their overall feel. In particular, I really find the final few minutes of this song to be absolutely beautiful.

 
Opeth - Faith In Others
Closer for their eleventh full-length 'Pale Communion'. I feel a little weird including this considering that the album it's from only came out last month, but I pretty much immediately identified this as the best closing track that the band has ever done. Time will tell whether I'll truly consider it to be one of the best album closers as the months and years go by, but it's certainly given me a fantastic first impression. Just a quick note, this Youtube version seems to have the first 10-15 seconds missing, but it's basicaly just an extended fade-in so you're not missing too much.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f2Zbuh6nWGs

凛として時雨 - mib126
Closer for their third full-length 'just A moment'. One of sigure's best songs in my personal opinion. It starts off as a rather subdued track that builds up slowly before completely exploding into one of their most intense tracks in the second half. Undoubtedly one of their finest moments to date.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bwudsetJDU
 
THE NOVEMBERS - GIFT
Closer for their third mini-album 'GIFT'. Well, I did say in my description of Moiré in the best album openers thread that I consider GIFT's title track closer to be at least on par with its terrific opener, so I pretty much have to include this here. I almost consider them to be two halves of the same song, at least in terms of their overall feel. In particular, I really find the final few minutes of this song to be absolutely beautiful.

 
Opeth - Faith In Others
Closer for their eleventh full-length 'Pale Communion'. I feel a little weird including this considering that the album it's from only came out last month, but I pretty much immediately identified this as the best closing track that the band has ever done. Time will tell whether I'll truly consider it to be one of the best album closers as the months and years go by, but it's certainly given me a fantastic first impression. Just a quick note, this Youtube version seems to have the first 10-15 seconds missing, but it's basicaly just an extended fade-in so you're not missing too much.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f2Zbuh6nWGs

Basically the opposite of this thread, but same concept (rules etc.) is still applied - and as a reminder:
 
MAX. 4 PICKS PER PERSON/POST AND NO OUTROS ALLOWED (I consider outros to be one form of cheating tbqh)
 
Also:  some people were curious about whether they are allowed to post non-Japanese stuff too - answer is: yes - feel free to post anything, as long as it's a "proper" closer (in your opinion) + make sure to explain briefly why you chose the certain song etc.. Just because we are "J-music based community" doesn't mean that we should be "STRICTLY" limited to "only JP music" policies FFS - so cast your prejudices aside and go-go!
 
OP's example/picks:
 
1) Plastic Tree - Circus

La Grande Finale of one of my favorite Pura releases, "Puppet Show" - pretty much showcases their talents and ability in expressing their unique, dreamy imagery through britpop-ish influences (and most britpop-influenced acts don't really showcase their "messages" vividly imho). I also like how it changes its tempo fittingly along the way and gives a nice spotlight for Ryutaro's vocals as I knew them back when I began to know them. Gorgeous song is gorgeous.
 
2) Dir en grey - Inconvenient Ideal

What would sound like a normal semi-power ballad in the beginning soars beautifully to the immense levels of "wow"-factor til the end - as a Dir stan I found it difficult to find a fitting favorite out of their closers, but "Inconvenient" hands down gave me the same impression today as it did back in November 2008 - pure pleasure. I got to note that I find build-ups during the chorus and climax (along with "300"-y gang chants) really epic and something what you'd memorize even after many years. 
 
3) MUCC - Hanabi

One of those "totally unexpected, but neat" closers - you'd normally put your volume down/skip when you hear opening notes that remind you of those cheesy piano ballads way too much, but...BANG! And there goes almost "festive" part of Mucc's Hanabi. I might be the only one who feels this way, but "Hanabi" feels very "Japanesque" to me but not in stereotypical a la "Kiryu/Kagrra" fashion - perhaps the melody has some folk-ish tinges? That aside - Mucc has many good closers (Zutazuta, Freesia...), but as I noted earlier - the "wow" factor is important to me whether I listen to certain parts of an album, and "wow" here is totally existent - and BIG too.
 
4) The Dillinger Escape Plan - Mouth of Ghosts

Moody and emotional, almost jazz-ish in parts and immense build-up...here might lie my key recipe to "closers that totally get me in". Sure - the song itself isn't necessarily of what they're doing normally (this sounds more like an unique approach on some late FNM song), but you gotta give kudos to them for total surprise! Might not be your cup of tea, but "one of a kind-ness" is certainly retained in MoG - as I see it.