Shmilly

Artist: DEZERT Album: 「タイトルなし」 Score: Sometimes, you just want some DEZERT before dinner.  
 
DEZERT fall under the umbrella of “up-and-coming” visual-kei bands influenced by earlier acts— “homage-kei,” if you will—with “friend bands” Grieva and AvelCain. Grieva is on the far left of the spectrum, providing the most old-school-meets-modern-day sound; DEZERT is on the far right, as they are the heaviest of the three and mix later influences, such as Merry, Lynch., and D’espairsRay with nü-metal; AvelCain is in the middle, drawing on influences from turn of the century~mid 2000’s bands while remaining as a happy medium between the two styles of the other groups in question. All three have similarities, such as dark themed music and resounding feelings of angst, which provide a modern twist on the visual stylings of days past. In addition, these bands appear to tour with each other quite often and have even participated in some beautiful photo collaborations. Of this trinity, DEZERT is actually the least discussed aspect on MH, even though they are actually the oldest (and last to release a full LP). So, how does 「タイトルなし」 hold up to other visual-kei releases of this year?
Originally, titled “嘔吐ニ関スル勅語(outo ni kansuru chokugo)”, an abrupt name change to「タイトルなし」 ("Untitled"), generated a bit of anxiety amongst fans. As this band has released a handful of singles and 2 mini-albums before now, I was fairly concerned that an uninspired album title would pave the way for an album taking a page out of 朱’s (Suzaku) book—in case you’ve gotten, they had a whole album with only 4 new songs, 1 of which was a short intro. Thankfully, this album did not fall for the enticing, lowly hung, fruit and pulled a lynch. by releasing an album made of entirely new material out of nowhere. From the get-go, it dishes out hard-hitting tunes in their Sunday best nü-metal style, presented in a way that is 3~4 steps above the quality of their previous releases. As someone who didn’t care for their two previous works, 精神科医(拒食症)のスナッフフィルム集 (Seishinkai(Kyoshokushou)no SNUFF FILM Shuu) and 特製・脳味噌絶倫スープ〜生クリーム仕立て〜 (Tokusei・Noumiso Zetsurin SOUP～Nama CREAM Shitate～), and somehow always found something preventing me from really digging these guys, I went into this album rather aloof. With the start of “----,“ I immediately lost my jaded / faded disposition. Finally, this had done it for me.
One of my immediate thoughts while listening to this album was that fans of early Mucc will probably dig this. The first two songs, “----“ and “「嘔吐」“ (Outo) are both short, but heavy, numbers with a ton of emphasis on bass. It’s nice to hear a visual-kei song, let alone two songs, with this dynamic—usually there is a lot of guitar wankery and soloing for the sake of soloing. Here, SaZ steals the show, while キラ-Kira- supports this bass-driven melody with brooding guitar harmonies. In terms of vocals, those lovely aesthetical vocals from “「眩暈」” (Memai) are back, but quickly turn turbulent at the start of “「嘔吐」,” which I suppose is where 千秋-Chiaki- vomits his feelings, aptly happening in song who’s name translates to “vomiting.” What works really well here is that after guttural part, the melody of the song returns to the original theme, showing that these songs are of the same idea.
A good chunk of this album is in the band’s typical style—still in the realm of nü-metal, mixed with a bit of –core and angsty “ZETSuBOu!!!” delirium we’ve all come to know and love from the early 2000’s. If bands like Mucc, Kagerou, and Vidoll—groups that often used heavy verses and a poppy chorus, sometimes paired with mumbling or frantic breathing—spark some feelings of nostalgia, then you know exactly what I’m talking about. “「殺意」,” (Satsui) the promo track for this album, falls into aforementioned category, is typical DEZERT in a slightly more disjointed form. One strength here is that “「殺意」” has quotable lyrics. However, the flow of how he says "satsui" eight consecutive times is awkward: with a 4/4 time signature over a chorus in a different tempo and key, it sounds disjointed. Since the pv showed up, I was not into this song for whatever reason. Listening to it in the context of the album, I do like it a bit better, but it is far from the best track on here.
“Infection”, “「教育」,” (Kyouiku) “脳姦少年,” (Noukan Shounen) “doze.,” fall into this category as well, ordered from least preferred to most. “Infection” felt like a filler track to me; “「教育」” is more of the same heavy verses with poppy chorus –core song that I’ve heard before that is almost redeemed with some neat riffage; “脳姦少年” has some interesting Merry-like guitar work going on, albeit the chorus is really weak; and “doze.” sounded like something off of –OZ-‘s Versus, which was cool. I would also like to note that “doze.” has the frantic mumbling motif going on during one of the breakdowns. Nothing like a breakdown in your breakdown |D
DEZERT also threw in some lighter songs here as well, which is fairly new for them. I personally did not care for them myself, but, if those are your cup of tea, be sure to check out “さぁミルクを飲みましょう。” (Saa MILK wo Nomiamshou) (a more melancholy ballad about drinking milk), “「軽蔑」” (Keibetsu) (fairly straightforward indie / ojisan rock song), and “-26時の冷凍庫-” (26ji no Reitouko) (which is a decent piano outro). Without these tracks to break up the flow, this album would have undoubtedly been exhausting to listen to.
In addition to the first two songs, there were a few songs that I did really enjoy. The first is “胃潰瘍とルソーの錯覚” (Ikaiyou to ROUSSEAU no Sakkaku) : where did this Matina-styled riffage come from? From the get-go, this song has a mesmerizing draw. What’s interesting here is that this isn’t just an old-school revival song, it actually mixes a few different genres around in a way that I haven’t often come across before, especially in visual indie bands. Somehow “胃潰瘍とルソーの錯覚” sounds like a mix of Madeth Gray’ll and 鴉 (Karasu) and it works, gawddamit. I enjoyed the airy and wistful chorus, as well as how this song played on some new ideas that are not just dissident chugging. “「擬死」” (Gishi) is another powerful track. This song is one of their slower ~ mid-tempo’d numbers that brings back what DEZERT does best: creepy atmospheres that build into an angry mash-up of rage and smeared eye shadow. My favorite part is the guitar riff paired with a vocal melody that gently progresses upward in pitch as the tension in the song swells – phrasing like this is something visual-kei is in dire need of. Every so often, “「擬死」” gets quiet and then explodes into a break down with千秋-Chiaki- freaking the fuck out. Not to be shady, but Kaya could not.
Overall, this album is a decent debut for DEZERT, especially as a band who isn’t actually new and has quite a few releases prior to this. On the plus side, none of their earlier material is featured on here. On the down side, there isn’t enough of a change in style amongst the songs presented here that I never felt like “yeah, I’ve heard something like this before.” In comparison to the rest of their discography, the maturity they’ve shown here is enough to not feel like this was more of the same, but I would have been far more impressed had I not heard their earlier works before. With that being said, this is one of the best visual-kei albums I’ve heard this year. If you’re in the mood to feel your angst-kei oats, give this one a spin.

Congratulations! You have realized how shallow the depths of visual-kei is. Now feel free to look beyond the lake that is visual kei and move into the ocean of alternative J-music.
[/sarcasm]
But in all honesty, the reason why we split the download forums into two is precisely because of users like you - people that tire of visual kei music but not necessarily Japanese music and are looking for a bit more. Don't limit yourself because of labels or phenomena or "omg what would zess think!?!?!". If you don't like visual kei anymore, look elsewhere. I guarantee you there's plenty of music in Japan alone to keep you occupied.

NBL FUCKING TOLD YOU TO BUY THEIR ALBUM YOU LITTLE SHITS NOW LOOK WHAT YOU'VE DONE

After the previews we've been teased with, I was really excited to give this album a listen. Before I make any judgment, here's my thoughts as I listen to it for the first time through.
 
Intro: Calm introduction to ALSDEAD's new world. Sets a nice atmosphere.
IDEA: The energetic, somewhat heavy opening of this song is a bit of an abrupt transition from the intro, but it's nicely reigned in so as not to become just another forgettable rock romp. The chorus is better for it. Also Maki has really toned up the harsh vocals, it's nice to hear them return from his NOCTURNAL BLOODLUST cover, even if just for a brief appearance in one song.
STARLESS: One of the two tracks we've already seen (or rather, heard) from this album. It fits better here than as just a single. An energetic track with a great flow between the verse and chorus.
Twilight: A more electronically driven track. The production is great, and Maki's vocals are strong once again.
HERO: Upbeat rock with that familiar but not intrusive electronic element so prevalent in ALSDEAD's style. Not the most memorable track so far and also a bit of an abrupt ending.
D.9.N: Another one of those 'just what does the name mean?!' songs! This sounds like one that could be a lot of fun live, with the forcefully energetic but not excessively heavy (and again very catchy) chorus carrying it. Maki has definitely refined the husky edge to his clean vocals in recent years.
KILL THE KING: I was super excited to hear the rest of this track after endlessly repeating the PV preview on their YouTube channel, and it didn't disappoint. This for me is the standout track of this album and the pinnacle of the 'IDEA' ALSDEAD are presenting. The chorus and vocals are once again powerful, but here the instruments are playful with some bass licks and a gorgeous, atmospheric solo from Shin. I just can't get enough.
Adrenaline: True to its title, this song keeps the blood flowing and the energy running through the album. I think its placement following the previous two tracks helps, though it's still a strong track in its own right. As it gets into full swing, it becomes quite enjoyable indeed and one of the heavier songs with its fade out riff.
ノスタルジア: Though a completely different song, the intro to this one and its placement in the tracklist remind me of Heaven from their previous album (which is one of my favourite ALSDEAD spins). The electronic motif comes back in the thoughtful chorus to nice effect. Shin also has another nice solo here.
Picture: The other track from this album's sole single. It's a calmer song but the uptempo chorus and consistent instrumental keep the pace to stop it from becoming dull.
Behind The Pride: There's a good balance of guitar and synth in this one. The simple intro riff does a good job of finding the energy from before the calm, though on the whole this does feel like a very standard ALSDEAD song. I hate to make a second comparison, but the end of the chorus really is slightly akin to Heaven.
Worlds End: In contrast to the previous song, this one is definitely led by the prominent guitar. It's a kind of upbeat rock track with the aforementioned guitar keeping the pace and heavier riffs attempting to push the sound in that direction. A third nice solo rears its head (or neck?) here too. The live-style ending does a good job of feeding the impression that the listener is partaking in this album as well.
Gravity: Lighter ballad-style closer. Somewhat uplifting, it does a good job of finishing the album on a positive note.
 
For me, IDEA is a strong contender for visual kei album of the year. If you look at the run time, a lot of the tracks are regrettably short, so the whole album flies by, but this is not necessarily a bad thing. We recently had some glaring examples on Sadie's album GANGSTA of songs outstaying their welcome, but rather than leaving you wanting more of any particular track, IDEA just begs you to listen to it again. And again, and again. I could happily call this the best thing ALSDEAD have done so far.

After the previews we've been teased with, I was really excited to give this album a listen. Before I make any judgment, here's my thoughts as I listen to it for the first time through.
 
Intro: Calm introduction to ALSDEAD's new world. Sets a nice atmosphere.
IDEA: The energetic, somewhat heavy opening of this song is a bit of an abrupt transition from the intro, but it's nicely reigned in so as not to become just another forgettable rock romp. The chorus is better for it. Also Maki has really toned up the harsh vocals, it's nice to hear them return from his NOCTURNAL BLOODLUST cover, even if just for a brief appearance in one song.
STARLESS: One of the two tracks we've already seen (or rather, heard) from this album. It fits better here than as just a single. An energetic track with a great flow between the verse and chorus.
Twilight: A more electronically driven track. The production is great, and Maki's vocals are strong once again.
HERO: Upbeat rock with that familiar but not intrusive electronic element so prevalent in ALSDEAD's style. Not the most memorable track so far and also a bit of an abrupt ending.
D.9.N: Another one of those 'just what does the name mean?!' songs! This sounds like one that could be a lot of fun live, with the forcefully energetic but not excessively heavy (and again very catchy) chorus carrying it. Maki has definitely refined the husky edge to his clean vocals in recent years.
KILL THE KING: I was super excited to hear the rest of this track after endlessly repeating the PV preview on their YouTube channel, and it didn't disappoint. This for me is the standout track of this album and the pinnacle of the 'IDEA' ALSDEAD are presenting. The chorus and vocals are once again powerful, but here the instruments are playful with some bass licks and a gorgeous, atmospheric solo from Shin. I just can't get enough.
Adrenaline: True to its title, this song keeps the blood flowing and the energy running through the album. I think its placement following the previous two tracks helps, though it's still a strong track in its own right. As it gets into full swing, it becomes quite enjoyable indeed and one of the heavier songs with its fade out riff.
ノスタルジア: Though a completely different song, the intro to this one and its placement in the tracklist remind me of Heaven from their previous album (which is one of my favourite ALSDEAD spins). The electronic motif comes back in the thoughtful chorus to nice effect. Shin also has another nice solo here.
Picture: The other track from this album's sole single. It's a calmer song but the uptempo chorus and consistent instrumental keep the pace to stop it from becoming dull.
Behind The Pride: There's a good balance of guitar and synth in this one. The simple intro riff does a good job of finding the energy from before the calm, though on the whole this does feel like a very standard ALSDEAD song. I hate to make a second comparison, but the end of the chorus really is slightly akin to Heaven.
Worlds End: In contrast to the previous song, this one is definitely led by the prominent guitar. It's a kind of upbeat rock track with the aforementioned guitar keeping the pace and heavier riffs attempting to push the sound in that direction. A third nice solo rears its head (or neck?) here too. The live-style ending does a good job of feeding the impression that the listener is partaking in this album as well.
Gravity: Lighter ballad-style closer. Somewhat uplifting, it does a good job of finishing the album on a positive note.
 
For me, IDEA is a strong contender for visual kei album of the year. If you look at the run time, a lot of the tracks are regrettably short, so the whole album flies by, but this is not necessarily a bad thing. We recently had some glaring examples on Sadie's album GANGSTA of songs outstaying their welcome, but rather than leaving you wanting more of any particular track, IDEA just begs you to listen to it again. And again, and again. I could happily call this the best thing ALSDEAD have done so far.

After the previews we've been teased with, I was really excited to give this album a listen. Before I make any judgment, here's my thoughts as I listen to it for the first time through.
 
Intro: Calm introduction to ALSDEAD's new world. Sets a nice atmosphere.
IDEA: The energetic, somewhat heavy opening of this song is a bit of an abrupt transition from the intro, but it's nicely reigned in so as not to become just another forgettable rock romp. The chorus is better for it. Also Maki has really toned up the harsh vocals, it's nice to hear them return from his NOCTURNAL BLOODLUST cover, even if just for a brief appearance in one song.
STARLESS: One of the two tracks we've already seen (or rather, heard) from this album. It fits better here than as just a single. An energetic track with a great flow between the verse and chorus.
Twilight: A more electronically driven track. The production is great, and Maki's vocals are strong once again.
HERO: Upbeat rock with that familiar but not intrusive electronic element so prevalent in ALSDEAD's style. Not the most memorable track so far and also a bit of an abrupt ending.
D.9.N: Another one of those 'just what does the name mean?!' songs! This sounds like one that could be a lot of fun live, with the forcefully energetic but not excessively heavy (and again very catchy) chorus carrying it. Maki has definitely refined the husky edge to his clean vocals in recent years.
KILL THE KING: I was super excited to hear the rest of this track after endlessly repeating the PV preview on their YouTube channel, and it didn't disappoint. This for me is the standout track of this album and the pinnacle of the 'IDEA' ALSDEAD are presenting. The chorus and vocals are once again powerful, but here the instruments are playful with some bass licks and a gorgeous, atmospheric solo from Shin. I just can't get enough.
Adrenaline: True to its title, this song keeps the blood flowing and the energy running through the album. I think its placement following the previous two tracks helps, though it's still a strong track in its own right. As it gets into full swing, it becomes quite enjoyable indeed and one of the heavier songs with its fade out riff.
ノスタルジア: Though a completely different song, the intro to this one and its placement in the tracklist remind me of Heaven from their previous album (which is one of my favourite ALSDEAD spins). The electronic motif comes back in the thoughtful chorus to nice effect. Shin also has another nice solo here.
Picture: The other track from this album's sole single. It's a calmer song but the uptempo chorus and consistent instrumental keep the pace to stop it from becoming dull.
Behind The Pride: There's a good balance of guitar and synth in this one. The simple intro riff does a good job of finding the energy from before the calm, though on the whole this does feel like a very standard ALSDEAD song. I hate to make a second comparison, but the end of the chorus really is slightly akin to Heaven.
Worlds End: In contrast to the previous song, this one is definitely led by the prominent guitar. It's a kind of upbeat rock track with the aforementioned guitar keeping the pace and heavier riffs attempting to push the sound in that direction. A third nice solo rears its head (or neck?) here too. The live-style ending does a good job of feeding the impression that the listener is partaking in this album as well.
Gravity: Lighter ballad-style closer. Somewhat uplifting, it does a good job of finishing the album on a positive note.
 
For me, IDEA is a strong contender for visual kei album of the year. If you look at the run time, a lot of the tracks are regrettably short, so the whole album flies by, but this is not necessarily a bad thing. We recently had some glaring examples on Sadie's album GANGSTA of songs outstaying their welcome, but rather than leaving you wanting more of any particular track, IDEA just begs you to listen to it again. And again, and again. I could happily call this the best thing ALSDEAD have done so far.

WRITE-UP:
 
INTRO:
  The latest album by ALSDEAD, featuring the debut of their new drummer NIKKY (ex. GALEYD), and another obligatory change in their overall sound, feel, and direction.   An album that feels much more 'complete' than its contemporaries, with a solid feel and delivery throughout, providing another replay-button-friendly experience to my library.  
THE SOUND:
 
As similar to previous albums as it is different, they have kept the hard edge to their sound, while putting more emphasis on the individual instruments, and made the vocals fit in more as not necessarily leading the track, with melodies that are still strong and memorable, but do not rise above the value put on the guitars, or other instruments.
 
The signature cinematic ALSDEAD synth sound is back, with an even higher quality than ever. They definitely distinguish themselves as having some of the best synth's today, with more tracks that allow you to pleasurably follow the synth all the way through, and simply enjoy the unique tone, melodic value, and refined nature of production surrounding them. To me, the usual sign of having great tone is having notes that sound not as if they are coming from an instrument, and aren't registered by the listener simply as strings being picked, or keys being pressed on a keyboard, and ALSDEAD definitely accomplishes this on IDEA 
 
THE FEEL:
 
The tracks STARLESS and KILL THE KING should give you a starting point of what this album will sound like. It wavers in both directions: Softer with more synths, and harder with more grit and rough guitar. It is atmospheric, yet still comes off as a track-by-track experience, based on emotional expositions, raw emotions put into words that are either carefully articulated in Picture, or rudely shouted in D.9.N. 
 
It's emotional, atmoshperic rock-music storytelling that is delivered not with sap and melodrama, but with attitude.
 
HOW IT STACKS UP TO PREVIOUS ALSDEAD ALBUMS: 
 
If you have been following them, you have probably noticed that each album marks the end of one term in ALSDEAD's sonic history, and begets another. Their debut had an emphasis on heavy emotions, bad mental states, and a wailing, dramatic sound to match this. MODALITY felt like a series of short stories, with more of a straight-forward rock feel. Seperator felt like one long, interconnected story with a deeply atmospheric feel, and dark, sleepy nature to it in between harder songs.
 
IDEA almost feels like it mixes all of these elements together, while adding in some hard rock, some soft ballad elements, and some 90's rock mechanisms.
 
In terms of overall experience and enjoyment, I think after the initial adjustment to your expectations, and the fact that it doesn't sound exactly like older ALSDEAD, it holds up very well as another great entry into their library.
 
 
Track Count: 13
Listens: 20-25
Production Quality: 
Overall Rating: (This rating took some time to think over, as my first impression was of a 4.0, then built up to a 4.5 after about 20 listens, yet if I go with my gut, and realize how every track on this album hits home with me, and how much I am now enjoying it, I have to give it a 5.0)
 
Worth the Purchase?
If you have enjoyed their singles since Seperator, and have been a fan in general for any of their past releases, I highly recommend this. A solid album throughout, that shows no signs of inserted filler. The tracks are all solid, none get left behind in memory, each one brings something to the table, and overall this is a stand-out album that brings a lot to the table.

I'll be watching this topic like a hawk and swooping down to assault unsuspecting customers with deals.

Some brief thoughts on my first listen, written as I'm listening to it.
 
01 MODE OF GANGSTA: reminds me a little of the intro to the GazettE's TOXIC album. Poor intro and far too long.
02 DEAD END: definitely a Sadie song, and I think it's that quality that makes me quite like it more than anything unique going on.
03 WELCOME TO THE UNDERGROUND: an interesting clash of styles but this one doesn't do much for me.
04 SHOOT THE TARGETS...: this one's quite fun and I think it would be good live, but it's a little repetitive.
05 GESSHOKU: I like this one, though perhaps more for what it comes after. It's also kinda standard Sadie fare.
06 TOKYO GYPSY: a little all over the place, but the bass is prominent. Not particularly memorable though and outstays its welcome a little.
07 RIZE A FLAG: nice riff but essentially the same structure repeated like 4 times.
08 HOWLING: the chorus is pretty catchy, and it's nice to get some heavy riffs on this album. Decent solo and bass work and electro elements aren't too intrusive, it's not like we've had much of them so far. I could dig it.
09 HATE ME OR LOVE ME? not what I was expecting from the title. Unfortunately forgettable after a promising heavy(er) start. Also too repetitive to be this long. Maybe it could be OK live?
10 BLEACH: well it's the same song from the mini, and the only one we've heard before. I think it fits better here than in front of a bunch of re-recordings. I like this one, I always found the chorus to be really catchy. (Bonus fact: I sang it at karaoke once xD)
11 THE NEVER: decent Sadie rock ballad. Not a lot else to say about this one at the moment.
12 MESSAGE FROM HERE: decent Sadie non-rocky ballad. Little on the long side. Could have ended nicely with a piano fade at 3:40ish instead.
13 PHRASE OF LIFE: actually a really nice instrumental. It's just a shame that sticking it on the end of the album instead of somewhere in the middle means it's easier to just skip it and listen to something else. Also the run time on this adds to that problem.
 
Songs I liked: DEAD END, GESSHOKU, HOWLING, BLEACH.
 
The overwhelming impression I got from the first listen was just... average. There's not enough memorable material here, which leaves me (despite having no expectations as such) disappointed. There's a handful of tracks that are either too long or too repetitive as well. It's nice to see Sadie trying something a bit different, but this album is just a little too inconsistent to recommend easily.

-makes playlist-

This is a weird question because in my mind there are loads of different ways to 'remember' a song. One is the way it makes me feel when listening to it - for example, some songs seem to inexplicably alter my mood (OOR's The Beginning has always been a really powerful song for me, whereas something like the opening riff to Signal's Undertake just gets the blood rushing). Obviously I tend to instantly forget songs that haven't made much of an impression, but as long as something catches my interest like interesting vocals, solos, riffs, lyrics, etc then it will probably warrant at least a second listen.
 
Music that I listen to a lot I can remember pretty much entirely. I could run the song through in my head without listening to it. And others where I took the effort to find out the lyrics (or translate them myself) I could also literally sing along to as I do it. On a related note, if a song I've been listening to recently or one I have listened to a ton of times pops into my head and I can't recall exactly which one it is, I can usually follow it through until I recognize a part of it that reminds me who the artist is or the name of the track.
 
Actually, my 'thing' is being able to name tracks just by listening to them. I know it's not a particularly unusual skill, but friends have told me even when listening to artists they really like that they need to look up what the track is called. If I listen to an album a lot, I could probably tell you its tracklist, or at least every song on it but not necessarily in order.
 
Basically in a rough answer to your question, if I'm not interested in a song the first time through, I probably won't bother with it again unless it's from an artist I really like. If I hear something I've listened to before, odds are if I liked it I'll be able to tell you exactly what and who it is.

An album like that would end up a lot like V, with individual tracks that are above average, but the album as a whole is unimpressive and there's no one memorable killer track.
 
If I were to put together an album by them, there would be more tracks like Tsumibatsu Egoist, Saikou no Sekai, Ring-a Ring-o, Ban Kuro Shinsou Dai Circus, II-懐柔, etc. and less tracks like BANZAI!!!, 十人十色, Raise a Flag, EZ LIF3, etc. I could even live with tracks like pendulum and Kinshi Suzume if they're placed effectively in the tracklist. I'm looking for more maturity and thought in their compositions and organization of music on their album, but they seem to be content tracing their steps too often and throwing shit together haphazardly.
If they release content like this every 13 months, I think they should take an extra 6 to refine the next album.

Here's a question for you: why film a promotional video if you aren't using it to promote music?
The answer is, there is none! To expect people to buy the promotional video to see it defeats the purpose of it's design, which is to promote your music. You aren't supposed to be able to directly make money off of the PV. The money you put into the video either comes out of your budget for the album or is something you recoup when you make sales. It's called the cost of doing business. Sometimes it's necessary to spend money to make more money. If you do make money off of the PV, that's just a bonus.
That's why visual kei bands seem to run into so many monetary issues. They spend a lot of money up front to get their costumes, photo shoots, albums recorded, etc. and then expect fans to pay up front for everything. Here, pay up front for this ticket to get this live distributed song which didn't cost us a fraction of the cost we're charging you to get it! Here, pay for this promotional video so you can see the song that we're going to make you buy twice so you can get all of the music. Also, buy both editions and get some meaningless poster bonus too! But you have to buy them from Like An Edison only to get the deal! Like shit, I get that you need to recoup your losses but there are better ways to do it. I'll name a few below.
Why don't Japanese visual kei bands run an official YouTube channel where they can place all of their PV's (or hell, all of their music if they wanted), and some live performances and just make you sit through an ad first? That's extra money that doesn't cost them too much work to get. Why don't really indies independent Japanese visual kei bands put their releases on Bandcamp or iTunes and set a minimum price? There are lots of ways they can cut out the middleman and save themselves some serious cash, but they don't.
But yet it's expected that we should just shell out $40 for the music? It's 2014 music doesn't work that way anymore bb.

While I hate AKB and most of what it stands for and does (which this article does talk about), it seemingly jumps off the deep end...which Zess seems to have covered quite well. I mean, there is no doubt that these girls are being paraded around as objects of sexual fantasy. I'm one to believe that the reason the members can't have boyfriends is so that the "ronries" can project themselves in tot his spot.  I also think the group as the music value of a wet noodle.
 
And while I find most of it deplorable, I don't think that this is anything new for Japan. So much of his comments lack any information to back it up. This feels like something written by a conspiracy theorist.

The thing with AKB is that everyone wants to be a part of it. There's huge nationwide auditions for new members, and singing/dancing schools where hopefuls go to learn how it goes. I don't know how many young girls are forced into applications by family members or coerced by talent scourers, but I think there's plenty of them who willingly try to join the idol steamroller that is XXX48. I find it hard to believe that this many people either don't know or care if it's really true that the rate of entering the adult industry is so high.
 
Also don't forget that AKB members aren't even allowed to find boyfriends. The reason there's so damn many of them is because the different groups are rotating performances since they're so in demand for TV, concerts and shows, etc. I don't know how much the girls earn but at least the frontrunners (who star in TV ads, magazines and whatnot) are probably getting a decent salary. And I've seen plenty of examples of those who 'graduate' going on to other sectors of the entertainment industry, or beginning solo careers, rather than the adult industry.
 
Don't get me wrong, I think it's shocking that these girls are denied a normal education and upbringing from such a young age, but I personally don't see enough evidence that they aren't enjoying the AKB lifestyle or regret signing up for it. After all, they competed with thousands of others to get in. Yes, it's over sexualized, but that's unfortunately become part and parcel of the group's identity. I can't say how much it's still rooted in the darker origins.
 
And in reference to the inequality in working conditions for men vs women, a recent poll actually found that over 60% of women wanted to become housewives rather than work full time like their husbands. Gender roles are pretty well entrenched in Japanese society right now.
 
I'm only speaking here from what I've gleaned myself in the last year or so of living in Japan - I don't follow AKB48 at all or even listen to their music, there's just a huge exposure to them, particularly here in Tokyo. As for the author of the article, there's a fair amount of bias in there, but I respect him and his book Tokyo Vice is a good read. The man worked for Yomiuri Shimbun (the biggest newspaper in the country) in the past.

The thing with AKB is that everyone wants to be a part of it. There's huge nationwide auditions for new members, and singing/dancing schools where hopefuls go to learn how it goes. I don't know how many young girls are forced into applications by family members or coerced by talent scourers, but I think there's plenty of them who willingly try to join the idol steamroller that is XXX48. I find it hard to believe that this many people either don't know or care if it's really true that the rate of entering the adult industry is so high.
 
Also don't forget that AKB members aren't even allowed to find boyfriends. The reason there's so damn many of them is because the different groups are rotating performances since they're so in demand for TV, concerts and shows, etc. I don't know how much the girls earn but at least the frontrunners (who star in TV ads, magazines and whatnot) are probably getting a decent salary. And I've seen plenty of examples of those who 'graduate' going on to other sectors of the entertainment industry, or beginning solo careers, rather than the adult industry.
 
Don't get me wrong, I think it's shocking that these girls are denied a normal education and upbringing from such a young age, but I personally don't see enough evidence that they aren't enjoying the AKB lifestyle or regret signing up for it. After all, they competed with thousands of others to get in. Yes, it's over sexualized, but that's unfortunately become part and parcel of the group's identity. I can't say how much it's still rooted in the darker origins.
 
And in reference to the inequality in working conditions for men vs women, a recent poll actually found that over 60% of women wanted to become housewives rather than work full time like their husbands. Gender roles are pretty well entrenched in Japanese society right now.
 
I'm only speaking here from what I've gleaned myself in the last year or so of living in Japan - I don't follow AKB48 at all or even listen to their music, there's just a huge exposure to them, particularly here in Tokyo. As for the author of the article, there's a fair amount of bias in there, but I respect him and his book Tokyo Vice is a good read. The man worked for Yomiuri Shimbun (the biggest newspaper in the country) in the past.

That's probably what their manager at PSC said when he or she saw their sales on their last trainwreck.

I agree with most people in that showing off is basically the essence of visual kei. Did it not start out with 'visual shock'? If VK bands are trying to be dramatic and impress the crowd, that pretty much marks them as VK to me. Even when I've seen super indie bands who don't even have a single out they're giving off this same flair and that's what makes the scene what it is. If I saw a visual band and they just stood in place and performed I would be somewhat unimpressed (even if the music was of a high standard).
 
Although there's obviously a point where you can objectively criticize a song by looking at its composition or its individual parts, and there are times where solos are not really necessary, a lot of these comments seem more likely to be coming from people who simply don't like the music (or occasionally even just the band in question). And to those people I say, find something else to listen to.

Brief comment about foreign fans: the ratio of us gaijin at NB's Shinjuku BLAZE oneman last week seemed to me higher than usual. One of my friends even got into the meet and greet session for drawing a signed cheki. Those guys definitely know they have the beginnings of popularity overseas. Hell, as someone mentioned before about bands being as 'tech savvy' as us, if Masa is smart enough to tweet about piracy he already knows that these download links are on foreign sites and being downloaded outside of Japan. The interest is there.
 
And I don't want to start anything with nekkichi but that comment a few posts back about NB being mediocre even within the VK scene is just a bit of a dick point. Everyone is entitled to their own taste in music and if there's one thing I truly hate about fans it's their unfailing ability to trash talk anyone they don't listen to themselves. Seriously, I don't know why more people can't just enjoy the music they like and stop giving a damn what everyone else does. It's great when we can share enthusiasm about the ones we like, or even introduce someone to a new favourite, but there's no need to enter an argument about illegal downloading in relation to a band and say it's irrelevant because they're not even good. It's called taste, get over it.
 
Edit: Also the whole comparing bands to other bands thing. If people haven't listened to Suicide Silence, BMTH, before NB, why should they have any reason to think they are a 'copycat' band or imitating their style? Looking at VK being primarily a Japanese genre, I get that lots of Japanese listen to music from overseas, but that's no reason to imagine a VK fan listens to loads of Western metal too. I'm sure there are plenty of Japanese visual fans who listen almost entirely to VK and only find out about new bands through the VK scene. 
 
As for rsasai's abridged thesis, I can see a lot of good points in there. And since we are talking about VK in particular, it's fair to discuss the Japanese market. In Japan at least, I think the whole in-store bonus scheme actually does a lot of good. It invites fans to actually go to a brick-and-mortar store and buy a new release, and even get a little comment DVD (or even something like live or off shot footage). There's so many little indie stores in VK - Like an Edison, Jishuban Club, Little Hearts - that distributing extra goodies between them means the kind of fans in VK will go out of their way to get the member they like, or the best bonus, even buying more than one copy. Then there's in store events, which allow fans to actually talk to the bands they love and share their enthusiasm in person, and for anyone else stumbling into the store that's more word of mouth. 'Did you see that crazy bijuaru band in Tower Records yesterday? I think they were called Nocturnal Bloodlust or something.'

Brief comment about foreign fans: the ratio of us gaijin at NB's Shinjuku BLAZE oneman last week seemed to me higher than usual. One of my friends even got into the meet and greet session for drawing a signed cheki. Those guys definitely know they have the beginnings of popularity overseas. Hell, as someone mentioned before about bands being as 'tech savvy' as us, if Masa is smart enough to tweet about piracy he already knows that these download links are on foreign sites and being downloaded outside of Japan. The interest is there.
 
And I don't want to start anything with nekkichi but that comment a few posts back about NB being mediocre even within the VK scene is just a bit of a dick point. Everyone is entitled to their own taste in music and if there's one thing I truly hate about fans it's their unfailing ability to trash talk anyone they don't listen to themselves. Seriously, I don't know why more people can't just enjoy the music they like and stop giving a damn what everyone else does. It's great when we can share enthusiasm about the ones we like, or even introduce someone to a new favourite, but there's no need to enter an argument about illegal downloading in relation to a band and say it's irrelevant because they're not even good. It's called taste, get over it.
 
Edit: Also the whole comparing bands to other bands thing. If people haven't listened to Suicide Silence, BMTH, before NB, why should they have any reason to think they are a 'copycat' band or imitating their style? Looking at VK being primarily a Japanese genre, I get that lots of Japanese listen to music from overseas, but that's no reason to imagine a VK fan listens to loads of Western metal too. I'm sure there are plenty of Japanese visual fans who listen almost entirely to VK and only find out about new bands through the VK scene. 
 
As for rsasai's abridged thesis, I can see a lot of good points in there. And since we are talking about VK in particular, it's fair to discuss the Japanese market. In Japan at least, I think the whole in-store bonus scheme actually does a lot of good. It invites fans to actually go to a brick-and-mortar store and buy a new release, and even get a little comment DVD (or even something like live or off shot footage). There's so many little indie stores in VK - Like an Edison, Jishuban Club, Little Hearts - that distributing extra goodies between them means the kind of fans in VK will go out of their way to get the member they like, or the best bonus, even buying more than one copy. Then there's in store events, which allow fans to actually talk to the bands they love and share their enthusiasm in person, and for anyone else stumbling into the store that's more word of mouth. 'Did you see that crazy bijuaru band in Tower Records yesterday? I think they were called Nocturnal Bloodlust or something.'

I'd love to see a collaboration between Leda and Meku, though I don't know exactly what would happen when they argue over who gets to write the songs. xD

Yeah I love these guys too. I see the similarities to DELUHI, but for me GALEYD are more melodic metal than core (and let's be honest, DELUHI took it much heavier). The vocal style is also completely different. In this case 'indefinite hiatus' is definitely the same as 'disbanded' though - their website is gone, they lost their composer and guitarist, and Nikky is now officially with ALSDEAD. It's a shame we'll probably never hear from them again, since the overall quality of their songs was great. It got a bit weak towards the end (as I guess Meku took less control over the composition) - they suffered a little from 'song title is chorus' syndrome. Still, really energetic and one of just a handful of bands I followed from the very start to the very end.

Obviously this is an issue much larger than NOCTURNAL BLOODLUST, but it does get the ball rolling again when an actual musician or group acts on it. In NB's case, I'm actually a bit confused about their concerns, because although they're starting to reach that level of popularity in the indie scene where people clamour for their releases it's not like they're not shifting copies. I had to go into two VK CD stores yesterday (the day of release) to buy their new single because in the first one it was already sold out. I think I may have grabbed the last copy from the second too because there were no more on the shelves, although I guess there could have been some in storage since they were still clearing up after an instore event. That said, I also bought a ticket for their one man next weekend which has yet to sell out (and probably won't). Now I don't know whether NB make more money from their CDs than their lives (there's a strong used market in Japan with stores like Closet Child and Puresound, and of course the auction sites). But in today's reality the way most foreign bands (especially indies) gain recognition overseas is by someone on the internet saying, 'hey this band is awesome, check them out' and people sharing downloads. It's great to see more bands these days like NB use an official YouTube account to advertise their music and PVs, but people still need to know about them to watch them. It's a tricky issue, but as people have already stated suing your fans seems like it can only do more harm than good at this point. I'm looking forward to see if NB have any announcements to make at Shinjuku BLAZE.

A kind of side point that I think applies mostly to the visual kei scene is live-distributed singles and DVDs. Not only are they ridiculously limited to begin with, but not just foreign fans but even domestic ones probably have no chance to ever hear/see them. If bands are so worried about losing money to piracy, why do they invest the time, effort and money to produce a limited run of a new song and then give it away free to a handful of fans who go to one concert, never to be seen again? I'm frustrated to no end by this practice. Case in point, I missed Signal's last live and I've been searching for the single Crossing fate ever since. It doesn't seem to exist in the used market or on auction at all. This is also relevant to NB because recently they distributed Triangle Carnage and it even shows up on their site's discography page. "We don't want you to pirate our music, but by the way here's a song you can't buy and you will never know what it sounds like".

Obviously this is an issue much larger than NOCTURNAL BLOODLUST, but it does get the ball rolling again when an actual musician or group acts on it. In NB's case, I'm actually a bit confused about their concerns, because although they're starting to reach that level of popularity in the indie scene where people clamour for their releases it's not like they're not shifting copies. I had to go into two VK CD stores yesterday (the day of release) to buy their new single because in the first one it was already sold out. I think I may have grabbed the last copy from the second too because there were no more on the shelves, although I guess there could have been some in storage since they were still clearing up after an instore event. That said, I also bought a ticket for their one man next weekend which has yet to sell out (and probably won't). Now I don't know whether NB make more money from their CDs than their lives (there's a strong used market in Japan with stores like Closet Child and Puresound, and of course the auction sites). But in today's reality the way most foreign bands (especially indies) gain recognition overseas is by someone on the internet saying, 'hey this band is awesome, check them out' and people sharing downloads. It's great to see more bands these days like NB use an official YouTube account to advertise their music and PVs, but people still need to know about them to watch them. It's a tricky issue, but as people have already stated suing your fans seems like it can only do more harm than good at this point. I'm looking forward to see if NB have any announcements to make at Shinjuku BLAZE.