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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!