Youko_o

Nope, you just seem to be kind of shy.
 
When I read some words I see other words that in my native language correspond to porn, pussy, blowjob, shit, fuck and that kind of stuff. Am I weird?

Slenderman (first thing that came to mind) lol
 
Have you ever been on a band or is at the moment?

I'm not much of a gamer at all. I just own a Nintendo 3DS to play Pokémon and some random other stuff. Marked "Nintendo DS" too because I also have one to play older games with.

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.

I'm listening the whole album now for the second time and I can agree totally with you. Also, it's nice the way you write your reviews.

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.

These kinds of people exist literally everywhere.

miyavi told us that it wan't dead so who do we believe

He's an idiot. The shit that has been coming out of his mouth lately is purely controversial to get himself back in the headlines.

http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/celebrity-life/gene-simmons-of-kiss-tells-depressed-people-to-kill-themselves-cops-triple-m-ban/story-fnk822dn-1227025850379

It's middle of the road for me. I was hoping it would grow on me but I find it kind of forgettable. I'm hoping the other songs on the single have a little more oomph to them. I do really like Ken's cleans in the verses, but thats about the only parts of the song I enjoy. Tatsuya and Hiroki feel like they got put in the backseat and told to keep it lowkey this time around, and the drums are a huge factor for me in what keeps them equal parts metal and electronic. But they really upped the electronic parts in this to where all I walk away with is the vocals and synth. Guitar riffs in this weren't as catchy as some of their other material either, so that also left things fairly lackluster for me. Maybe all of those teasers made me expect something way more epic. 
 
Overall, I'm just hoping this was a test for Sony to water them down a bit and see what crowds react to it so they know how to market them since this was a debut single... but it's too early to tell. I'm not ready to throw in the towel yet, and I don't find the song to be so bad I can't listen to it or anything, it's just not gonna be on heavy rotation in my playlists.

So, what do you guys think about the new song "MADNESS"? I personally loved it. I kinda miss the screaming, Kenta's screaming is pretty unique, but hey!, his clean vocals are nice too. 

So, what do you guys think about the new song "MADNESS"? I personally loved it. I kinda miss the screaming, Kenta's screaming is pretty unique, but hey!, his clean vocals are nice too. 

INHALE

Five Finger Death Punch

Ghost - Per Aspera Ad Inferi

Hmm... I don't think there's any particular "road", but I suppose there are a few different tiers. These only apply to VK bands in Tokyo, so I don't know how it'd be for others.
 
Tier 1:
This one is the lowest of the low and are where bands you've never heard of play at. This includes venues such as Urawa Narciss, Ikebukuro Cyber and Birth Shinjuku(formerly Holiday Shinjuku).
 
Tier 2:
Bands who play these venues generally(but not always) have a slightly bigger audience. Venues in this tier would be ones like the Ruido venues(K2, K3, K4), SHIBUYA-REX, Takadanobaba Area and Ikebukuro EDGE.
 
Tier 3:
Once bands have made it here, they are usually pulling in much larger audiences(these venues hold 500+ capacity). The big venues here would be Shibuya O-West, Shinjuku LOFT and Shinjuku BLAZE.
 
Tier 4:
There's probably a lot of mixing inbetween tier 3 and 4, but I'll consider tier 4 to be venues with 1000+ capacity. The livehouses here would be ones like Shibuya O-East(~1300), Akasaka Blitz(~1300), SHIBUYA-AX(~1500) and Zepp Tokyo(~2700).
 
Tier 5:
God-tier. If you've made it here, then you've pretty much made it as a band. This includes the biggest venues like Budokan(~14,000), Saitama Super Arena(~37,000) and Tokyo Dome(~56,000).
 
This is by no means a definitive guide, but should at least give you an idea on "how far" a band is along that road

Well, I wouldn't mind it Alice Nine turned a bit heavier...
 
I always liked the Yami ni chiru sakura side of the band.

I like that Shou stated they want to go back to their basics as well. This makes me excited for the future. 

For most of us (males at least).... Its a happy ending
 
Who is somebody you would curse upon your death?

Painfully obvious DEATHGAZE wrote and recorded a painfully obvious DEATHGAZE album yet again. Almost literally the only standout tracks are those of previous singles: DEAD BLAZE has such top-notch energy and aggression that I'm even able to forgive Typical Desugaze Chorus #3445, while THE UNDERWORLD is quite beautiful and elegant in its gothy-ness and provides a bit of well-deserved fresh air among the stale surroundings. Opening song ENIGMA manages to ignite a spark too (that distorted-to-hell-and-back bass is a nice touch btw!) but ultimately falls prey to its own idiotic repetitiveness. Otherwise a fitting starter. Other worthwhile moments include SADISTIC SMILE and FEAR, neither of whom I can remember anything except for digging them upon listening. The rest either couldn't even elicit a reaction from me or sounded atrocious (lookin' at you, READY GO a.k.a. obligatory ending-on-a-happy-and-genki-note song). All in all, it's good for what it is but I doubt I'll recall any melody or riff, say, tomorrow. xD
 
| the usual average-to-okay display, what you see is what you get

Ask him if he liked 50 shades of grey

On 08.08 Crossfaith updated the Japanese side of their OHP with:
 
Crossfaith will be releasing their first major label single on 10.08.
"MADNESS" will come in 2 types; Regular and Limited edition.
Artwork and mored details to come.
 
This is exciting... so anyone who sees them this fall on tour might get to hear the new song(s) they recorded with David Bendeth. 

You're supposed to listen to it upside-down.

Boyband ??
Lol

should I post this in a DIR EN GREY thread?
 
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BuG5WrtCMAA5mNX.jpg:large