Tetora

I cant really access anything on mobile.

Mostly need access to band directory, all I can do is blindly search and hope the band is there.

Either that or a button to switch to PC version. I dont use mobile versions of any site including this one.

Started travelling alone when I was 16.

In life, I was mentored by money-makers who wouldn`t spend a dime in excess, and would pinch every penny.

Look for cheap bus routes that make more stops and take longer,  but are way cheaper.

Book all planes as far in advance in possible.

It can be half the price to fly to one country, then take another flight to the one you want to go to by a cheap airline. For example, if you want to go to one European country, which is popular, it may cost $1000, but if you fly to a smaller, less popular country, then take their airline to your destination, it can be $4-500.

Hostels are good, but have their downsides. They can be dirty, or noisy, or less safe, but you will also meet many other travellers, learn things, and save money.

In Japan, you can stay in a regular hotel in Shinjuku for 10,000 Yen, or stay in a Capsule Hotel for 2,000...

If you want to teach in a foreign country, try to get the job before you go there. I know many people who work in Taiwan, South Korea, etc... 

Staying in Japan is hard if you are a foreigner, the best thing to do is enroll in a school, or transfer schools. Exchange programs are possible from High School upwards if you have good grades, and a little bit of money to put down sometimes.

When things have not worked out, I have had to sleep on the street. Find a good spot, either so secluded nobody will ever pass by, or in a busy place where there are enough people to be witnesses, so no-one will try anything, or steal your bag while you are sleeping. Wash in a bus station, airport, or go pay for one entry to a gym with showers. Do a short workout so they dont see what is up, and then hit the showers. I have always befriended homeless people, and found out the good spots to sleep, like one sweet place in a park, but the sprinklers turn on at a certain time, so you have to move...

Anyway, I have some experience, and like to share, so let me know if you guys need any help. Would love to hear you advice and stories as well.

Btw, in areas warm to foreigners, always mention you are not from around there, it makes you exotic and interesting, and people will want to get to know you, or give you good advice. Life is like a video game when you are travelling, and I find it pretty nice.

Let me show you how it`s done:

Computer I found.

Split between French, English, and Japanese. Dunno how to convert it all to one language at a time, and have to restart it everytime I want to switch back to Japanese. Restarting takes almost 15 minutes. No joke.

All sorts of stuff new and old on my desktop, didn`t read it all so hopefully nothing incriminating.

Amongst the icons there seems to be C.V.`s I made for African people, research, and a rip by Linh-San/Sama/Senorita which I used to compare. The rip seems quite nice btw.

I don`t like to use computers outside of work so I don`t care about buying a new one, I mostly use this when I absolutely have to, or to store stuff on my External Drives, otherwise I do everything on my phone.

Hey guys,

What emotions inside of you, or the music itself initially drew you to Japanese music (from Visual Kei, to Japanese Rock, to Japanese Indie, etc...) and has that list of emotions grown or changed over time as you grew, and discovered new bands?

Do you find unique feelings in Japanese music that you can`t find elsewhere?

Do you relate more to the musicians or sound than other kinds of music? 

For me, I grew up listening to Classic Rock first. I heard The Rolling Stones as a child, and I was like: Wow, this is real music! Then I fell in love with guitar riffs and solos, and played air guitar in my room until I got a Fender.

I loved it so much, but there was still more I was looking for, some kind of energy, and feeling that I wasn`t quite getting to feel complete.

I saw a TM Revolution PV shortly afterwards, and I knew that was what I was looking for. I started learning of other bands and musicians over the years, like L`Arc, Gackt, etc as I grew and the list of Japanese music grew, but it all fit with me so well even if it was so different.

I loved the energy, attitude, the look, and then finally, the hope.

I still loved Classic Rock, but it was like I already saw them all as old now, and they never found that love, they never reunited with that person, they still sing about the same things, etc... And I kind of slowly replaced it all with younger people, who may not find what they are looking for, but are still young, and the story is still ongoing, there is still some hope.

For me, the strongest things that still draw me to my favorite bands are the emotions tied to hope. I love Gackt and Buck-Tick for example... but it seems like they have accepted the sadness, and I have all this sadness and sorrow in me too, but I wont settle into it like some people have, I want to continue living with this Never-Give-Up attitude, even if it is seen as foolish, or unrealistic.

One of my favorites, Takanori Nishikawa of TM Revolution, formed Abingdon Boys School. I talk about both projects often, as they inspire me. Anyway, to me, TMR was always bad-ass, and full of hope and courage and attitude, even if it was sad sometimes. Then comes the debut album from Abingdon Boys School, self-titled, and it was mired in sadness and sorrow, and so straight-forward in how he expressed things other people are afraid to say. but it was still bad-ass underneath, his attitude was still there... And I loved it. Then comes their second album, Abingdon Road, and it was like he moved on from that sadness, while keeping as it is a part of him forever, but he had so much more strength to stand and walk-on, with tracks like Strength, JAP, SOUEN, Dusk til Dawn, etc... It was really inspiring to me, as he and the band had the attitude to fight, with that spirit, and not just stay in the same place.

Anyway, enough about me, please share what feelings and emotions draw you to Japanese music, I`m sure everyone will love to hear it!

Hello, here I am. Necessary eyepatch.

I was at some venue listening to a random band and some chick fail crowd-surfed her finger right into my eye. ☆⌒(＞。≪)

 

  

Mirin' Realm Reborn in the background.

I dunno if this one works, but clow_eriol posted this in another thread:

 

Read FAQ how to use MegaCrypter.
The main advantage is that this service encrypts the links to make it impossible to report them plus you can add the option to only work if the link is accessed through a specific domain (by this we avoid thefts links).
I will share in this way from now on.

http://goo.gl/jTqpkL

 

 

Interested to see what CAT has in mind...

As for me, I would say if it really is a huge issue to you:

1: Nvm, I was unaware.

2: Use something like GoogleDrive, where you make a private folder, only friends can see, you have to add people before they can download. Easy to keep track of who is doing what as it records names of who downloaded if you set it up right.

3: Upload only in flac, people on blogs would rather swim through a sea of piranha with their nipples being electrocuted and with Ryan Seacrest's fart as their only air supply than download a flac.

4: Upload only bloated files that are at least a gig, so people run in fear from the file size .

Agree that it is short, and full of old tracks which were not hits...

Again the album and band are marketed towards fujoshi...

I dont like Shou's singing, I dont find a single riff or beat on the album interesting, only Shou's vocal melodies, but he sings then all in the same high pitch which I dont feel...

I can understand why people would like the album, but it is really not me... There is dubstep influence on two tracks, lots of other modern pop things spreaf throughout the album, and the general feeling that this album was made not as a work, but as a product.

Tbh I dont even agree with this approach being good business sense either as their sales have stopped growing and actually shrunk, and they charted some releases lower than how their earliest album and indie releases charted.

Kid is my fav. New track, it is kind of the same approach as Mucc on Falling Down album ver. or Asterios by DIV.

Overall I find the albun decent and will continue listening, but so far I give it 6/10.

I feel as though they could have been one of the best Japanese bands of all time, but they went in a different direction.

This is an amazingly hard topic for me since I really don't like to share my dearest songs with anyone else. It's not like the songs I consider to be the most personal aren't liked by others too - because naturally they are. I feel that if anyone close to me criticizes these songs I'd probably just feel pretty devastated. While listening to these songs I've cried a lot. They have so much emotional value for me that it's really difficult to listen to these songs on a daily basis.

 

DaizyStripper - 星空と君の手

 

vistlip - Black Tail

 

SINCREA - Liberation

 

X Japan - Art of life

 

Royz - RISK_144000

 

摩天楼オペラ – 悲哀とメランコリー

Oi, I really love 星空。。。by DaizyStripper too... I was really sad when it came out and used to just listen to that and smoke. That track made me a fan of them.

One place I stay, full of antiques and art / artifacts from all over the world, with hints of Gawf / Wiccan influence. I imagine guys like Kamijo Gackt or Akane would like this place, well, maybe if the walls were painted black.

Posting some 90kbps pics with my face obscured.

Hey guys,

What songs either mean something to you, or bring memories and feelings up to the surface whenever you listen to them?

Some for me to get the ball rolling:

BUCK TICK - Dress

Always a song that feels deep and hopeless, reminds me of sad times.

Gackt - Secret Garden

The song that originally made me a huge fan. It resonated with me, and even now when I listen to it, it seems so true.

Alice-Nine - Cradle to Alpha

I listened to this track and the album it was on non-stop a short while after it came out. Listening to this reminds me of how distant the me I want to be is, and how hard I have to work to get there, and live out the life I truly want to.

TM Revolution - Tomorrow Meets Resistance (U:C2 Ver.)

I remember listening to this while waiting out under the hot sun to meet some dumb girl. Good times, listening to this reminds me of that and cheers me up.

Abingdon Boys - (The Entire First Album)

This album seemed so fresh, and so real to me. Still to this day, it seems like the feelings expressed on it are completely bare and true, nothing is hidden.

Please share some of yours!

OMG it's your lucky day then, because there's actually a fan translation in progress right now for type-0, it's been going on for the past two years and they are finally nearing completion and eeven recently announced a release date for their patch, August 8th seems to be the date. this thread HERE has all the information you would ever need I've actually been following this translation for quite some time and can vouch that the end result is gonna be some quality stuff that will even rival an official localization.

 

and if that's not enough to get you excited just watch this amazing trailer Sky and the team just put out out a week ago

 

 

that shit is amazing.

type-0 was one,of the best games to come out in the past few years. It was when Square was really on a roll with portable titles. I reccomend t to everyone.

Is it pay to win?

Wow, good stuff, you could go places if you keep at it.

As for the one you want advice on, I would recommend looking at some drawings and characterd with similar forms and look at their overall anatomy and length. As for the foot, use the horizon line and draw lines from the first foot to the horizon passing the point you want the second foot to be. Hope I am being clear.

Welcome.

I like your message style, how about sharing more about your musical taste etc?

Came in expecting a beastly album with DIV, UNiTE., Giru, Alsdead, D.I.D., MUCC, Ken, etc... lol.

But it is very cool that they are showcasing less known artists and building the industry as usual. I very much look forward to this.

Cool drawings.

I always enjoy your posts here.

I love:

Takanori Nishikawa (TM Revolution, Abingdon Boys School)

His never-ending range, controlled tremolos, amazing melodies, honest lyrics...

But beyond all that, the attitude, the Never-Give-Up spirit. The effort he puts into everything, the diverse discography, the work with other artists, etc... My vocal hero.

Shou (Alice Nine, Givuss, Lost Age)

Loved his nasal tone, deep melodies, tremolos, energy, and transparency in tone.

Prefer the early stuff up until Gemini tbh. It is more my style, though I love what he does in smaller live performances.

Big inspiration to me.

Gackt (Solo, YFC)

Deep voice and style that inspired many.

Great emotional touch, soft falsettos, moaning lyrics, very original melodies and presentations...

Another big inspiration.

Keiyuu (Kra, Tokyo High Black)

Never really thought about it, just simply, and purely love his work.

Yui (UNiTE)

I really connect with him and his vocals.

Nice, youthful, and feel real to me.

Hyde (L`arc En Ciel, VAMPS, Solo)

Distinct, deep, vocals that don`t have to be harsh to hit hard.

Chisa (DIV)

New-comer by comparison, but just like his band is moving up in the ranks fast.

Something about his slightly deep voice that rings so clear and aesthetically that it is just a pleasure to turn up the volume and listen to. Love his original lyrics too, using PS Vita instruction booklets, talking about feelings through flavours, telling ghost stories, etc...

These are just some of my favorites that I enjoyed sharing with you. I have many more.

Nice favorites, I am all over DIV and UVERworld as well.

Hope the Japanese learning is going good for you.

Nice.

I am a rabid DoginTheパラレルワールドオーケストラ fan.

I also love some of the other bands mentioned like SuG, so I like your musical taste.

Hope you have fun here.

if anything, psc will promote them towards a pony canyon major contract in a few years, I can't see this "awesome" band getting any worse tbh

As far as I remember SuG was the only band that went from PSC to Pony and that was due to Takeru's networking and leadership of the band. I dont see how that means we can conclude how every other PSC band now signed will inevitably end up on Pony?

Other bands on the label also usually transition to major way later than they need to, such as GazettE, A9 etc....

I am sure concerns of fans in the thread are regarding PSC's seemingly strict and unappreciated direction of their bands.

As for the cover arts, I loved the Butterfly Dreamer ones actually, it was different and cool. I like that they and they dont use the market positioning having a band full of good looking guys selling the cds to girls. All their covers are different and cool to me. You's cover is more consistent to their history, but I liked that,Butterfly coverd stepped outside their.mould and VK marketing in general.

Saw TM Revolution Hot Limit PV... Was awesome.

To add to the discussion on language:

 

Sometimes I feel so differently towards expressions in 2 different languages that basically mean the same thing. I don't really know how to describe this, but I feel there's a lot more "depth" and "indirectness"/ambiguity in Japanese than in English.

 

Since DIV's "Seasons" happens to be playing now, I'll take 2 lines of lyrics from it as an example:

春霞たち　淡く名残り雪

梅雨寒し　肌を寄せ合いながら

 

Now there's almost no way of having an English equivalent of this without sounding somewhat pretentious or lame. EVEN if it's possible, I suspect there's no way of reconstructing the "seasonal" feel that emerges from just these 2 lines of lyrics.

 

Then again I dunno if all these have to do with the language itself, or it's just something to do with me (because I'm obviously more familiar with English than I am with Japanese). By the way it's also quite fascinating to me that a lot of vk artists (well not ONLY vk i suppose, but also in the larger Japanese music industry) seem to listen to a great deal of Western music. Numerous vk bands have cited famous Western musicians as their inspiration during interviews. Perhaps it's just a human thing that there's always a part of us drawn to more "unfamiliar" territory.

I know what you mean. To me, Japanese is a cleaner language, and just feels more free and pure to use or listen to, or read.

As for the good points made about nature being more a part of their culture, etc...

One thing that many historians cite as a big factor in Japan`s development and current state is the fact that they transitioned so quickly between the Samurai age and paper houses, etc... to their modern age. During WW2 many of the paper houses were burnt to the ground and cities destroyed. They rebuilt immediately from these to Modern-American structures once the U.S. took over, and they quickly reshaped everything from an age where Samurai were just finished dying out (turn of the century), to jumping into a semi-industrial age.

This transition from the times of artisans building quality works with artistic merit to production lines actually retained many of the traits of the artisan, and Japanese products started coming out with a much higher quality than standard for modern countries in almost all of their products, which eventually led to leading worldwide in electronics, motorcycles, automobiles, etc...

IMO this led to an emphasis in industry and quality being mixed and retained in their more hermetic culture, even with American and European influences. This is also the same factor that I believe led to the history and tradition being retained to such a great degree, including their thoughtful way of expressing themselves, and appreciation of things like nature, temples, hanabi, etc... even in large cities.

I interviewed mangaka about the origins of anime, and basically, they attribute the combination of wood block illustrations, with their thoughtful and silent storytelling, combining with the first forms or recognized anime being made as a rip-off of Mickey Mouse during WW2 to raise morale of the Japanese people. So once again we have the combination of old Japanese tradition being suddenly shot forward in time by WW2, and having the more hermetic culture of Japan adopt something yet make it their own.

I think it is the same with many forms of Japanese music, including Visual Kei, where music kind of stayed in one place for a period of time, as Japan does not abandon things or move on as quickly (it seems, IMO) and then it suddenly shot forward with a certain influence, and we get a new style of something that retains old qualities, and has new ones added on.

Rock music, comics, etc... really died off in many other modern cultures, but things like this seem to live on and be appreciated. Fads aren`t as quick moving or impermanent in many facets of Japanese society, it seems. Even now we can listen to many VK songs, and see different styles of writing, or composition, some new, many old, many original, where-as in the music I hear around here, you can easily tell the era of music by the way it is worded, composed etc... There are those that stand out everywhere you go, of course, but not as many IMO.

Anyway, that is just my opinion on things, and why Japanese lyrics are different. Feel free to disagree.

Also, I really love Chisa`s writing... The way he can make such cool and original songs, like Taste of Life, Golden Kinema, Love is Dead... etc...