nomemorial

Thoughts on this album so far? I'm digging it. I always think it's bold for a new band to drop a full-length straight out of the gate so not all of the songs are winners, but I think there's more good here than bad. A lot of interesting guitar work hidden under some of the denser layers - hope they get better production on the next outing so the more interesting elements are easier to hear. Definitely not a game changer by any means, but it's all pretty solid heavy VK and I love their looks so far. I'll definitely follow them. Past that, I will say production is a bit wacky - they really tried to push the low-end to cover up the less-than-fantastic sounding elements, but it doesn't sound bad.

very excited for this - clip sounds great!!

Not much to go off of overall, but I have a weird feeling that I will end up liking these guys a whole lot.

Oh yeah, I fully agree. Have liked where these guys have been headed.

Of all the VK metalcore bands, these dudes sound the most like western metalcore. Counting the days til they get signed to Rise Records or something 👀

These guys have grown on me a lot. Interested to see how this is.

yeah, that makes sense. still hoping we get them over here to the US...

This album confounds me. There are some very good tracks on here - well written stuff that sounds full, atmospheric, and energetic. On the other hand, for every great track, there's another one that feels empty and half-cooked. One of those all-too-common cases where an EP would have been better than an LP. I don't mind the softer style, I don't even mind the trip-hoppy SE tracks, but the tracks that feel most successful to me are where they finally dig in and let it get a bit heavier. That overdriven rhythm guitar that shows up in a few tracks just makes it feel meaty, while some of the all-clean tracks feel incomplete. There is clearly bass recorded here (whether it's synthesized or real, I can't quite tell), but it's mixed so low in most of these songs that it barely even registers. Here's to hoping they fill out their lineup and stick with it long enough to really make something great with these stylistic changes. They're almost there, just need an editor or more stubborn producer (read: someone to challenge Retsu, I think).

fingers crossed it's more band members 👀 expecting tour dates/another MV, though.

Really dug this. Curious to see where the album goes.

Just woke up, it is 5:47am where I'm at, here we go

looks like a teaser for GazettE in Beat Saber

Sounds like DIMLIM to me, which is about the most I could ask for?

Big agree with this. Katsuya really seems to know his stuff and it doesn't hurt that he's a killer musician in his own right.

lofi hiphop radio - beats to delay your album/not wear makeup to

I dunno where things go for them after all this, but I will put money on the table that either the entire band will dive back into VK or they split and at least one member shows up in VK again (praying for Sho 🙏)

Really hope this album is good and they've worked out their live kinks, but damn, these guys are really bad at marketing (not trying to knock them, I love them, it's just the truth). I guess there's a part of me that wishes they kept the VK thing going for selfish reasons (I legitimately think they had great looks and were kind of at the top of the scene in musical quality), but I think dropping it the way they did really only serves to hurt them even more from a marketing perspective. I get it, you wanna be "true to yourself," etc., but pulling away from that scene in conjunction with every other marketing misfire just seems really ill-conceived. Not that I'm in any position to see them live again in any part of the near future (unless they decide to take this world tour business to the US), I think my opinion of them in their current state would dramatically improve if they'd just fill out their lineup. I think performing over backtracked bass and rhythm guitar is kind of "cheap" to say the least and if your international fans are willing to pay the big bucks to see you play some songs you should have enough self-respect to actually perform said songs the way they're meant to be performed. Who knows, I could very well eat my words in a few months, the album could be fantastic and they could really turn it out for these shows, but I really just want to see them at the top of their game for their sake and for the sake of the people who dig them. And lastly, I still think if they stuck with their heavy sound (impressions making me worry they also dropped that) they would do some serious business just riding the djent/metalcore train in the west. They'd definitely fit in on a mixed bill of those bands in the west (hell, even some of the noodly post-hardcore bands like DGD and such). But that whole discussion in the "make visual kei great again" or whatever thread has made it clear that Japanese bands have no real desire to capitalize on band relationships or playing to their strengths with like-minded artists and just wanna be supported on a one-man bill, something that literally no other artists do on an international level outside of the tippy-top, long-standing hitmakers.

At this point I'm just really intrigued by this album. From the impressions of the new song and the lack of information, it could literally be ANYTHING. For all we know it could be a fucking ska record or 2 hours of harsh noise.

I guess in the end Kevin Lyman kinda sucks overall, but I'll hand it to him for making a big-time push to get some VK artists over here back then. I never got to attend any of the Taste of Chaos dates, but it was cool to see those names on the roster. On an opposite note, I've never been a huge fan of ACME's music, but it's cool to see them doing a proper tour with other cool bands. They definitely seem to "get it" to some degree. Sucks what happened to their van, but I swear that seems to hit every other small touring band these days.

That really speaks volumes on the whole deal. I'm very used to the concept of bands partnering with other bands (or, in some cases, just riding their coattails) to gain a following in the States, so to see just how dramatic the difference in thought is kind of amuses me - especially in a genre that, we can all probably agree, produces a lot of cookie-cutter artists at a rapid fire pace.

I absolutely appreciate what you're saying here, I think it just further sums up how distant VK is as a culture from most other forms of music. 1. Most music fans I know aren't teens (I mean, I'd hope not, I'm in my 30s...), but are people who would probably like a lot of the output of modern VK and don't give it a shot because of how daunting it is. It feels incredibly "other," even bands that fall very closely in line musically with non-VK acts (Western or otherwise - I know dozens of people into Japanese music who still won't touch VK). I've introduced tons of people to bands I think they'd objectively like from a musical standpoint but the second they look into it, they just kinda lose interest based on the density of everything. 2. I think the concept of fan projects, fan-books, so on and so forth are incredibly foreign ideas to most people interested in music, casual or otherwise. I respect the efforts being put into those things and very much understand their place in the world of VK, but I don't blame the casual fan for not participating - it's again just very different. 3. I think the biggest disconnect for me is marking K-Pop or so-called "mainstream" artists as the parallels for VK. I think most VK artists should be thought of as exactly what they are - indie rock bands. Most of them are small-time, most of them are independent or signed to niche labels, and most of them operate on a tight knit fanbase. The biggest difference from most indie VK bands and most Western indie bands is the theatrical element of it all, but even still that's kinda viewpoint dependent. Most modern emo/screamo/etc. (and even a lot of metal) is theatric in its own right, maybe just sans full costumes and production. I think if a lot of VK artists were placed in parallel with those kinds of scenes, they'd find a lot more international success, which is why we saw some more of that happening during the "scene boom" of the mid-2000s. I think when I think "unattainable" I mean that in reference to my third point - I think they seem unattainable when placed against other bands in an independent rock sense. And I mean like...really independent - not like major label artists that still get tagged "indie." I agree that they would be far more attainable than just about anyone in the mainstream. I agree with most of your final point, too. The world is incredibly casual with its music habits now and every time I watch one of those silly "kids/teens react" videos online I'm reminded of the lack of enthusiasm most people have. I don't fault people for being cavalier or just listening to what is easy - that's how most of the world goes about their business and that's fine, but I do see less excitement over "rock" music (I use this term lightly) from younger crowds and it honestly feels like a lot of people consider it to be a relic of another age (which is something I'm still coming to terms with). To the opposite end, VK really connected with me as a kid because I wasn't really that into music otherwise and this was so significantly different from what I knew, so I wasn't someone who was into music and found VK - I got into VK and then found more music, so I feel like that may color my viewpoint on things a bit. All-in-all, I think a lot of my "drive" in talking about this comes from the fact that I think the musical climate on an independent scale is actually quite ripe for VK and there could be a lot of international success for these bands if they detached a bit from the classic trappings of the genre (in a marketing sense, at least). With that being said, I don't really foresee that happening so it's all really neither here nor there, I'd just love to see a few more bands break out and really "take the plunge."

That's the thing, though - I think that a lot of visual kei fandom is rooted in buying merch/etc. when that's just not how most music fans operate these days. The problem with visual kei's accessibility doesn't begin and end with their merch-selling capabilities - it starts with getting people on board in the first place and keeping them engaged. I think a lot of that is rooted in a strong internet presence. As unfortunate as it is, we're not living in the era of CD sales and purchased merchandise any more - at least outside of live shows (and even then, arguable) - and while I understand the importance of those things (trust me, I spent 10 years of my life on the road as a down-on-my-luck-broke-as-a-joke DIY musician), I think we're expecting far too much of the average consumer to conflate fandom with opening one's wallet. (again, not arguing for rightness, just reality) Past that, I still find that a lot of the lack of international interest in VK is that it is classically very difficult to enter and navigate as a fandom. Not only are fans classically elitist (visual kei is one of the only fandoms I've encountered where people have actively hoarded content from their faves with the explicit purpose of keeping it from others), the artists do not follow the same sort of cues that most other bands do and they don't engage their fans in the same way, either. I mean really, this conversation can extend into the realm of photo-free gigs and cheki sales - things that I absolutely understand, but are likely doing more harm than good in the long-term nowadays (an easy buck to make from the aforementioned horny fan, but something that simultaneously makes these artists feel very distant and "unattainable," which just isn't sustainable in a world where the concept of the "rockstar" has basically been deconstructed entirely.) Add that to too-expensive albums and merchandise and no matter how interested one is, it requires a lot more cash and die-hard effort to support someone you enjoy. Again, most of this is being analyzed from a strictly Western point of view, but really just trying to answer the opening question. Japan clearly functions very differently from the rest of the world when it comes to music, but VK still feels even further removed. I highly doubt we'd ever see some major international renaissance focused on kote kei groups or something - stuff like that is and always will be incredibly niche - but there are a lot of bands in the game right now that have HUGE crossover potential and if paired up with the right artists would skyrocket in popularity on an international scale.

I know it's been brought up a lot already, but I think social media is probably going to be what sets the heavy-hitters apart from other bands in the scene from now on. I think it's part of the reason why gulu gulu has picked up so much steam so quickly (outside of just being really good) - they're VERY active on social media and also seem very interactive with fans. I've noticed a trend toward more activity (especially on Twitter/Insta) from a lot of smaller artists/bands, too, but it seems a bit further removed from their actual "craft" so to speak. I think there may be a bit more "hype" generated for these artists if they just get better at the social media part of the modern music "game."

I'll just say it? Visual kei as an international music scene is and has for many years felt incredibly elitist and gatekeepy. There are very few places to interact and discuss it, very few reliable international news outlets, and even as those things do pop up or grow they seem to fade away just as quickly or come off so dense that it's hardly worth the effort. Add to that the fact that it has a very high cost of entry for supporting bands with your wallet ($15+ for a single? $30+ for an album on CD? Multiple types?) and a minimal chance of ever getting to see your "fave" live, it often feels like more effort than it's worth in a world where there is basically an endless supply of good music and over 90% of it is much easier to consume. I respect the idea of wanting more people to enjoy something you enjoy - but I don't think it's effective when packaged in a way that makes it seem "better" or "more valid" than other things. Hell, I'm pretty sure most of the people on here enjoy visual kei with a certain level of self-awareness that it's extremely niche (and kind of goofy) ((and often honestly kind of really bad)) but we still dig it for our own reasons.

If they release this on vinyl, I'm fully in.