Yukimoto

SUGOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOI *O* <3 [2]
SOOOO excited to download this and hear everything else they have in store for us in the following months!

Pretty much! Its always a pleasure looking forward to their releases. Tomo looks really good with black hair looking at him for the second time in the video.

Pretty much! Its always a pleasure looking forward to their releases. Tomo looks really good with black hair looking at him for the second time in the video.

vistlip literally never disappoints

at this point i can't even be sure whether the posts above are serious questions, but let's assume they are...
 
this qualifies as vk news because he used to play in a vk band, even if what he's doing now isn't ostensibly vk. it's the same reason why d=out's vocalist's stuff is also classified under vk, and will continue to be even if the band doesn't exist anymore. being a gaijin or not is irrelevant. and as much as you might like to insist otherwise, there are plenty of overtly japanese aesthetic elements in the pv above.
 
now that i've made this post i realize i've wasted a few minutes responding to downright meaningless accusations that no one would even think of raising if the artist in question is japanese. it's sad and funny that seba and yohio threads are always magnets for such off-the-charts cynicism and bashing to the point that the mere mention of their names alongside 'vk' (or existence of threads about them) would somehow pulverize the untouchable sanctuary in our minds that is vk, or japanese music, or whatever.

I love it!

I like it

Sounds like MEJIBRAY to me.

Artist: アルルカン (Arlequin) Single: 道化ノ華 (Douke no Hana) 1. 道化ノ華 (Douke no Hana) 2. 身を知る雨 (Mi wo Shiru Ame) 3. 人形-ヒトガタ- (Hitogata)
Rating: | A perfect example of when reversing the track list would have had much better results.
 
アルルカン is that band with promise and growing pains. If they haven't already, they are on the verge of becoming one of the next top indie bands of the scene. What keeps them from becoming a serious force is their inconsistency: their choices from composing music to presenting it aren't always the greatest. This is what kept their first full-length album "ニア・イコール" from being anything more than a fun, but ultimately shallow debut release. This single continues right along in that vein with some good ideas, some bad ideas, and ultimately a feeling that the single wasn't as satisfying as one had hoped.

This issue would go away if the track list was reversed. As the most dull song of the batch, I do not think "道化ノ華" makes for a good single. The intro is deceiving, bursting forth with aggressive chugging and their trademark electronic influences, only to melt away into a melodic chorus that tapers off as the song progresses. The metalcore and rock sections don't gel as well as they do on some other songs, but it is passable. Vocalist 暁-aki- dominates the majority of the song with a vocal melody that doesn't reach it's climax and has about as much impact as a BB gun: you'll remember it, but you won't catch yourself humming it anytime soon.
This is a problem because 暁-aki- is the centerpiece of the band. He's the one with the sweeping melodies and when he's on fire, the songs feel much more alive. To an extent, this holds back the next track "身を知る雨" as well. Contemplative piano keys give way to their trademark electronic chugging souffle which actually makes a nice atmosphere, but another uninspiring chorus and a misplaced breakdown halfway through the song moves the song into a direction it doesn't quite recover from. The chorus is at least better this time around and the breakdown isn't bad enough to ruin the whole song. It deserves a listen or two but it's not their Sunday best.

The oddball of the single, "人形-ヒトガタ-", has all the elements which go into making an effective title track. But much like their last single, Dilemma, the best track lacks the attention it deserves. Similar to "imp", this should be the single. It is here where アルルカン finds their groove with melodic, catchy riffs and a chorus guaranteed to get stuck in your head. While the previous two tracks were a mixed bag of good and bad ideas, this track isn't. The build-up to the chorus features the type of growth I was expecting and the chorus is killer. It's no coincidence that the best track of the single is the one where 暁-aki- puts the most energy into singing.

I took a long break from this band after their disappointing debut but I'm pleased to find that this band isn't completely out of ideas yet. アルルカン needs a lot of help in understanding where the music they play and the way we perceive it intersect. This band would have much more effective singles if they focused on catchy, energetic rock or aggressive metalcore and less on power ballads with riffs that vaguely resemble Versailles' "zombie". If the track list were reversed, and "人形-ヒトガタ-" placed first and "道化ノ華" placed last, this would have easily gotten a whole star higher. It would have also signaled good things about their next full album.

It's not as awesome as 墓穴, but it will do.


Support the band! Purchase Type A
Purchase Type B

I am glad the band is releasing WOD2/FER digitally and not only as a live-limited CD. This is a good move and I hope other bands do this more often.
I hope all these digital singles are available on the US iTunes store. I can technically buy them if they're on the JP store only, but using the US store is more convenient for me! XD
I am so fucking excited that we'll be getting final versions of W.O.D. II and Fatal Error Race in less than a week!
Also stoked for the new album, and glad that we'll be getting all those digital singles to tide us over until then, though I'm sure that most of them will be re-recordings, and 27 is quite excessive. >.>

Artist: グリーヴァ (Grieva) Album: 妄想主義者ノ背徳。(Mousou shugisha no haitoku.) 1. Type[艶] (Tsuya) (SE) 2. 自己精神殺害推進會 (Jiko seishin satsugai suishin) 3. 妄想主義者ノ背徳 (Mousou shugisha no haitoku) 4. Art play 5. 夢デ逢ウ貴女ガ削除デキマセン。(Yume de au kijo ga sakujo dekimasen.) 6. 密室104号室～暗イ部屋二僕ト君～ (Misshitsu 104-goushitsu～kurai heya ni boku to kimi～) 7. 腐『furan』乱
Rating: | No need for grievin', visual kei is not dead!
 
Grieva sure came into their own over their few years of activity. Starting out as a glaringly obvious exercise in old-school DIR EN GREY fanboyism (pretty much producing a blueprint replica of the Gauze album), they raised lots of eyebrows but also gained an ever-growing fanbase. They've been churning out release after release like clockwork, a practice that few can pull off successfully while maintaining quality. These guys, however, not only manage to put out consistent tunes, but also seem to be slightly evolving every year. While there's no drastic change in sound (thank god for that!), they're constantly tweaking their formula and instrumentation to achieve a greater effect. Their latest mini album, Mousou shugisha no haitoku demonstrates this tendency excellently.

From the kick-in-the-teeth industrial beats of the intro to the impressive sonic diversity of the closing track, Grieva presents a fine-tuned version of their vision: building upon the legacy of the old-school with youthful vigor, and a tad more than a pinch of craziness. On the one hand, compositions like the title track or "Yume de au kijo ga sakujo dekimasen" burst forth from the speakers with a mixture of yesteryears' melodic sense coupled with a truly modern (or post-modern?) approach. On the other hand, we're inevitably treated to a small number of songs where Grieva wear their hearts on their sleeves a bit too obviously. It's hard not to recall exact moments from DIR EN GREY's back catalog when you hear the intricate lead guitars of "Art play" or the jackhammering bass in "Misshitsu 104-goushitsu～kurai heya ni boku to kimi～". The difference this time (compared to, say, their debut album) is that they were able to fully integrate these parts into their songs, not sticking out like a sore thumb throbbing with plagiarism. "Misshitsu 104-goushitsu..." even has a music box interlude reminiscent of a certain DEG classic – it's hard not to crack a smile of appreciation at the homage.

The arrangement and delivery of the songs deserve praise too, where it's due. Even though the mini album starts off in a rather repetitive fashion (after a surprisingly bangin' intro SE) with "Jiko seishin satsugai suishinkai", they more than make up for that later on. Tracks like "Art play" employ a wide array of styles, from metal chugging to upbeat ska-influenced guitars, resulting in nice changes of pace and dynamics. As soon as you're beginning to feel you're listening to 'just another typical Grieva tune', they change it up ever so slightly, introducing an interesting guitar tone or effect. In short, it's hard to get bored while listening to Mousou shugisha no haitoku. This statement is ultimately solidified by the closing track "furan", an ambitious composition that goes from a punky, all-out shoutfest (props to those pipes, Kyouki!) to an unexpectedly sweet melodic guitar solo, short bass and piano interludes and a driving chorus. It is a thrilling, dare I say progressive, finish to an already cool release.

A year ago, with the release of their 2nd full-length album Shuuen, I couldn't imagine Grieva going any further in terms of quality, but along came this release and blew me away. Granted, Kyouki and co are still far from being the most original bunch of visual kei musicians, but who needs that when you have a reliable, constant supply of kickass tunes to rock out to? I could hardly ask for more.


Support the band! Buy the mini album @ CDJapan
Buy the mini album @ Yesasia

dadaism#2 sounds like a re-release of dadaism#1 but with more songs and not live-limited. Hopefully its more than that though.

Awesome look! Hope some sort of samples will appear in a not too distant future.

Yeah they could've probably came back with it as an ending actually. That would've been good but it was still an amazing song

A little video to make us more excited xD

And Full PV for 雨のワルツ

Also, a single coming at 2015.9 called 最終電車 and dadaism ♯2 on 2016.1 as the album.

maybe thats why the original got taken down lol

Well when they first came out they had announced their one year anniversary in January so I think it's to celebrate their one year anniversary. 

凛として時雨 will release their new mini-album「es or s」on 2015.9.2. The Regular Edition will contain the main CD only, whereas the Limited Edition will also contain a 7 inch vinyl.


 
Disc 1 1. SOSOS 2. Mirror Frustration 3. Karma Siren 4. Tornado Mystery 5. end roll fiction   Disc 2 (7inch) Side A: SOSOS Side B: Mirror Frustration 
 
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D free magazine "Mad Tea Party MAGAZINE FREE Vol.1" will be distributed since 2015/07/21
 
[artists]
◆D
◆GOTCHAROCKA
◆DIAURA
◆MEJIBRAY
◆Sadie
◆Moran
◆己龍(kiryu)
◆Royz
◆Black Gene For the Next Scene
◆DaizyStripper
◆FEST VAINQUEUR
◆The LEGENDARY SIX NINE
◆KAMIJO
◆摩天楼オペラ(matenrou opera)
◆lynch.
◆Mix Speaker's,Inc
◆DuelJewel
◆アルルカン(arlequin)
◆ペンタゴン(pentagon)
◆BLESSCODE