The complete output of THE BLACK SWAN thus far

[one-eyed waiter 28]

Mission statement and introduction

 

I wanted to review something of theirs and I figured I'd write about everything they've done so far lol, since I feel there are some unfortunate tendencies in their material. I will rate songs a) based on personal preference and how much of an actual finished song it feels like since many of these don't actually seem like much more than riffs thrown together with swoosh transitions. A relevant point is that I absolutely adore ネガ's first 3 EP:s and, progressively less, the rest of their output. I also liked PERESTROIKA and loved the absolute fucking trainwreck that was VANITAS.

So, basically, THE BLACK SWAN is in some ways Jin's continuation of late NEGA. The metalcore ambition is there but this time we are presented with two guitarists that actually seem to be able to play the written riffs*, bass lines that are audible** and a drummer that is pretty technically good***. Jin however carries over, along with what seems to be a lot of the songwriting such as the ever-missed PERESTROIKA synths.

* this point I am factually unsure of as there seems to be no live footage of TBS anywhere. I stand however by ネガ fucking everything up after losing Hiroki
** at the expense of being really cheesy
*** again, in the studio. I'm not at all saying that Yuu was bad, but a lot of the TBS drum lines feel more solid than NEGA's

 

 

Review part

自深傍観者
Rating: ★★☆☆☆
How finished: ★★★☆☆

☑ Long piano intro
☑ Swoosh transitions
☑ Clean guitar delayed to oblivion
☑ Obnoxiously loud bass

Sadly, having watched the first TBS teaser video, you had pretty much heard all of this song. I guess it's pretty cool that it's mostly in 3/4 time or something and the main riff is actually kind of refreshing the first time. Things like the unexpected accentuated bass in the chorus makes for some kind of a twist and it's pleasant. There is however nothing at all new or interesting happening for the rest of the track after the chorus (which is all in all pretty bland), not even a proper breakdown. Where is the kitschy bad metalcore goodiness? This doesn't leave a huge impression on me at all, so I move on.



TRIPPER
Rating: ★★★★★
How finished: ★★★★★

☑ Clean guitar delayed to oblivion
☑ PERESTROIKA vocoder
☑ That fucking guitar whine thing

So judging from the name I expected some "sexy" sounding shit like MINDLESS from PERESTROIKA which I would most rather forget tbh. Instead we are treated to some pretty cool sounding dissonant-ish ~mysterious~ delayed guitar, turning into a pleasant mid-tempo main riff that keeps the arpeggiating melody theme which is a nice thought. The guitar work sounds pretty interesting during the verses and there's even some exciting trade-off with the bass! Wow! Later, shit hits the fan when we get a fantastically catchy dubstep-ish breakdown that transitions into a really epic guitar solo. The song then rounds off without feeling like a chore. Never during this song do I feel bored and this borrows the exact right proportions of PERESTROIKA and NEGA to make it enjoyable.



I SOLATION
Rating: ★★☆☆☆
How finished: ★★☆☆☆

☑ Swoosh transitions
☑ Obnoxiously loud bass
☑ That fucking guitar whine thing

Also being featured in the initial TBS teaser, there really isn't much more to this song than the first half. It's a little bit heavy and it's pretty fast and there are some budget D.I.D.-sounding elektronix idk. The verse feels pretty badly disjointed. There is a swoosh transition between every fucking part of the song. The chorus sounds like a more boring version of NEGA's VORTICAL [E]MOTION. What's pretty cool however is the breakdown, introducing(?) that whine that one of the guitarists seems to really like. After that however, there is, as in 自深傍観者, absolutely nothing interesting going on whatsoever.



THE HOPELESS
Rating: ★★★★☆
How finished: ★★★★☆

☑ 15 NEGA songs fit into one
☑ Swoosh transitions
☑ Obnoxiously loud bass
☑ Clean guitar delayed to oblivion
☑ That fucking guitar whine thing

TBS' first single lead is probably the most NEGA-sounding song they've done. We have verse shouting, swoosh noises and a brooding church organ synth or whatever. The works! The pre-chorus however offers something new to the table which is pretty exciting. We are then subjected to a chorus that really oozes NEGA cheesiness. The trademark guitar whine then leads into a breakdown and a kind of awkward insipid guitar solo. All in all, this is basically the formula of NEGA's VANITAS singles but much more cohesively executed and featuring every TBS indulgence so far. Bonus mention for OK though lulzy video.



HATE YOURSELF UNTIL YOU DIE
Rating: ★★★★★
How finished: ★★★★★

☑ Phantasmagoria level SE
☑ Better than 壁

So this is, as far as I understand, the live closer song of choice for TBS. After a totally emotional SE intro we are given a very straightforward, catchy mid-tempo metalcoreish main riff which alternates with a standard fast-paced "blastbeat" part throughout most of the song. The verse leads into a really solid chorus with interesting bass work and the "HAATE YOUUURRSEEEEELF" parts are fun. Drums are really solid throughout. All in all, this is very stable and really sounds like the whole band working together. There are no swooshing sounds either (as far as I could hear anyway), which is amazingly refreshing!! I'm actually sure this is equally as solid live.



long japaneez title song
Rating: ★☆☆☆☆
How finished: ★☆☆☆☆

☑ You have heard this before
☑ Fucking wooden bass or whatever
☑ Clean guitar delayed to oblivion

I honestly did not know what to expect from the long-awaited ballad but saw that it would feature like a stand-up bass or sth? That seemed like a pretty cool gimmick. Starting out with that chord progression that you've heard at least 10 times in VK played on an acoustic guitar, we are then introduced to a half-hearted drum beat. At around 1:30 we finally get the promised wooden bass which really doesn't do anything interesting at all. The line could have just as well been played on a regular bass (maybe for an even better effect idk.) By 2:45 we have a pretty bland build-up and the chorus is just meh. Jin has thus only used his ~quiet voice~ so at this point we can safely expect an EXPLOSION OF EMOTIONS later on. Idk, whatever, I just don't care. At 3:40 or something some sketches of potentially interesting guitar effects trikkery appear and pass by unnoticed. An arpeggiating guitar break with engrish whispering just isn't enough to save the song at this point and when the chorus hits for the climactic final stretch, it is accompanied by the most boring drum line imaginable. Basically this is that excruciating track WILL from NEGA's VANITAS but somewhat ~darker~ and somehow even worse. This seems like a sketch of a sketch of a finished track and is painfully bland.



INSIDE SILENCE
Rating: ★★★★☆
How finished: ★★★☆☆

☑ InSSSSSSSSSSide SSSSSSSSSSSSilenCCCCCCCCCCCCe
☑ Swoosh transitions
☑ That fucking guitar whine thing
☑ Key change

Fast song. At some point we get a verse with clock ticks instead of a beat? Whatever, I forgive you just give me more of the fucking synth voice goodiness. The next thing I know I'm at a fun bass solo after which the tempo actually slows down (NEGA did this a couple of times and it's so cheap and dirty and I love it) for the really sweet breakdown, where a whine™ leads the way into a crazy (faster) guitar solo. The rest of the song isn't much to write home about and I guess it has an overall "basic" structure-wise feel but one cannot deny the fun factor.



失い
Rating: ★★★☆☆
How finished: ★★★☆☆

☑ Piano intro
☑ Swoosh transitions
☑ Obnoxiously loud bass
☑ Key change

From the start, this feels like business as usual. The piano intro sounds like a 2009 ネガ SE which suddenly and really nicely erupts into a cool early ネガ level haunting low-tempo riff. Rushing through a fast part, the verse is quite exciting with interesting guitar and actually pretty surprisingly tricky drum work from Len, transitioning into an alright, slightly cheesy chorus. Another verse leads into the build-up for the fast part from the beginning but then dissolves into... another build-up... or something... Anyway, this eventually results in a really solid headbanging breakdown. Then the song goes back into the chorus and then into the chorus again with a key change, a guitar solo and a really loud, almost painfully cheesy bass line. The chorus then slows down and the song kind of dissolves into nothing. All in all, this is kinda disjointed but the components are by themselves solid and fun. Bonus mention for cool video.



I'M SHIT NOODLE, BUT...
Rating: ★★★★★
How finished: ★★★★☆

☑ i like girl. i like sex. i like money. i'm shit noodle
☑ Jin trying to sound like a girl
☑ Swoosh transitions

From the beginning this is slated to be completely amazing. The main riff of this is like exactly 瞋恚の炎 by PERESTROIKA but with super wild synth, making it so much more fun. This is precisely the kind of kitsch I want to hear from a band like TBS. I don't even know what to write, everything about this is just super fun, from the headbang parts to the chorus to the guitar solo to the fact that this is Jin venturing into weird semi-ironic V-ROCK IS DEAD territory.



ETERNAL SLEEP
Rating: ★★☆☆☆
How finished: ★★★★☆

☑ NEGA level drum machine
☑ You have heard this before

Can TBS deliver a good ballad? This does not answer the question as this track really isn't anything special as far as VK ballads go but kind of OK I guess? At least it is a well-defined song compared to the long ass japaneez title one and has a guitar solo and actually decent arrangement. Thankfully, there's no wooden bass in earsight. Whatever, songs like this are not the reason I listen to TBS.



SICK (黒夢 cover)
Rating: ★★★★★
How finished: ★★★★☆

☑ Swoosh transitions
☑ Juicy ass bass slides
☑ Clean guitar delayed to oblivion
☑ That fucking guitar whine thing

OK so this is from a Kuroyume tribute album which got uploaded here recently. Now I basically don't know anything about Kuroyume or the original song but this is a controlled and quite pleasant, fun and unique (featuring all the appropriate hallmarks) sounding effort from TBS where all of the band really comes through in quite technical ways. Especially the piano-tinged breakdown and the solid guitar solo sound really fresh.
 

 

 

MIRROR,MIRROR

Rating: ★★☆☆☆

How finished: ★★★☆☆

 

☑ Clean guitar delayed to oblivion

☑ Swoosh transitions

☑ Broken glass SFX

 

This is TBS' first attempt at a fast ballad-ish song I guess, and I must say I expected more. We are introduced to a gentle guitar intro which turns into a slightly weird main riff... Which is okay, since the verse actually sounds good! The chorus is not great though and the following breakdown is just plain awkward. The guitar solo is slightly more solid. All in all, just nowhere near 17歳の孤独 #sorrynotsorry

 

 

Some kind of conclusion

 

I suppose this indicates some kind of trend of half-assed song writing but also some technical proficiency. There is hope for some good music to be made and songs like TRIPPER genuinely show promise. This seems however to more often than not be eclipsed by contrived transitions and generally some late NEGA awkwardness. Though once again, the reason why I listen to TBS is to get my dose of gimmicky metalcore with that guitar whine used as much as possible.

 

P.S. the trailer for the new single has a really bland chorus. Man oh man.

P.S.#2 eagerly awaiting first faux jazz song and a decent ballad

[Peace Heavy mk II 7200]

☑ stealing this format for a future review

 

 

What do you mean by 'delayed guitar?'

[one-eyed waiter 28]

☑ stealing this format for a future review

 

 

What do you mean by 'delayed guitar?'

 

This kind of effect:

[hariwenjiyu 23]

This is a really late comment, but I just had to give you props for an awesome review.

 

ネガ was one of those bands I listened to when I wanted to hear some dramatic (albeit cheesy) visual music. I agree that TBS is pretty proficient, but it seems too much like a continuation of ネガ. According to their official site, Jin really wants to continue making "real" visual-kei music (I get the feeling he hates all of the new bands coming out), but his songwriting formula (I am assuming he has a hand in writing because of the similarities to ネガ), while effective, are getting a little stale. I miss Ray's basslines too.

 

「苦悩に響く赤い…something」　(I can't remember long japaneez title song's title either lol) is actually my favorite TBS song for some reason because of the use of wooden bass instead of the dark piano you hear in most of their more atmospheric songs. It works well on repeat as background music for me.