featured list Copy/Paste: 5 Similar J-Rock Songs

[Zeus 7997]

 

"セックスと嘘" by cali≠gari

stems from "I Would Die 4 U" by Prince

Homage or Copy: Both. Can it be both? I'll go with both.

 

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I'll level with you guys; I'm not one to bemoan visual kei and their lack of diverse inspiration, but the day @Carmelzors and @Disposable uncovered this gem is a good one. It is an uncommon occurrence for visual kei artists to take inspiration from 70's American pop and R&B artists, but the reach of the Prince of Motown even reaches Japan! Ten seconds is all you need to know where this song comes from and if you play both tracks at the same time they line up almost perfectly! Had vocalist Ao Sakurai not admitted in an interview that this was intentional, Walmart might be hosting a discount pitchfork sale right now. But honestly, it's so obvious it wraps around the continuum of copy and turns into one of visual kei's best homages.

 

 

 

 

 

"BELIAL" by SILENT DIFFERENCE

stems from "ピンクキラー" (Pink Killer) by Dir en grey

Homage or Copy: Leaning towards Copy

 

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The line gets a little blurrier here. For those not in the know, SILENT DIFFERENCE is a doujin band. Doujin bands take established themes and melodies from video games, anime, or even other artists, and then remix it in their own style. One popular video game franchise that many artists use as the basis for their compositions is Project Shrine Maiden, but you can find many popular and even some uncommon rearrangements. Since copying is the name of the game here, the similarity to ZUN's 平安のエイリアン (Heian Alien, Nue Houjuu's Theme From Touhou 12: Undefined Fantastic Object) is intentional. However, I wouldn't blame you for only hearing Dir en grey's ピンクキラー surgically attached to half of a Skindred's song. I don't know how I feel about it. This is the earliest example I have of a doujin artist trying to cross into visual kei territory. Every man and only band member しるへい proudly wears his influences on his sleeves - this entire album is a collage of musical bits ripped from different artists and plastered together with cum and passion - and he actually turns an almost unbearable song into one that's slightly less unbearable. On the other hand, there are doujin groups that compose original compositions around doujin themes and in comparison, しるへい takes the easy way out. Even though copying is the name of the game, this is a little too blatant for me to let slide.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"パラサイトイヴ" by ヴァルナ (Valluna)

stems from "「タトエバ」キミ...ガ...シンダ...ラ" by D'espairsRay

Homage or Copy: Homage

 

 

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Now for one of the more egregious examples of blatant stealing in recent memory. I have made peace with becoming part of an older generation of visual kei, but in my day any indie visual kei head worth their weight in yen could identify the main riff and vocal melody of D'espairsRay's "「タトエバ」キミ...ガ...シンダ...ラ" in a heartbeat. So when a nascent visual kei band by the name of ヴァルナ (Valluna) shows up next to ALSDEAD on an omnibus designed to "bring together old and new in the scene", I didn't expect them to take it so literal. Once upon a time, depending on who you talk do, Valluna was poised to become "the next big thing" before this song came along. I believe it's a homage to their heroes in D'espairsRay as it's only the harsh vocal melody after the chorus that was sampled, but it sullies the song all the same for me. This was a common sentiment among many who sampled this omni when it came out, disappointment magnified by the fact that we expected more from them.  I listen to パラサイトイヴ and immediately wonder why I'm listening to a budget version of D'espairsRay when I could just listen to the real thing. I'll chalk up their disbandment shortly after the release of this song to unrelated circumstances.
 

 

 

 

 

 

"Psychedelic Jelly" by Lycaon

stems from "GET READY FOR THIS" by 2 UNLIMITED

Homage or Copy: Neither!

 

 

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This entire series is devoted to musicians who take ideas from other musicians, sometimes rather liberally, and run with it. I've covered some of the most egregious examples and even some more obscure examples. But Lycaon's "Psychedelic Jelly" is the poster child for tweaking inspiration just enough to avoid infringement. It's synth line is oddly reminiscent of 2 UNLIMITED's "Get ready for this", but it's not easy to spot outside of an A/B comparison. That's an accomplishment, considering "Get Ready for This" is one of the most recognizable dance songs of the modern era. I lack the proper musical terminology to express this, but it sounds as if they chopped the synth line into four equal measures of two beats, and then switched the even-numbered sections around. I remember reviewing "Masochistic Red Circus" and lamenting on one or more facet's of Lycaon's performance that I wasn't too fond of, but I didn't catch this the first time around. And apparently, no one else did until 2016, so in all good conscience I can't say they copied it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"蒼白の底に沈む孤独と空しき疎外感" by VAJRA

stems from "冷血なりせば" by Dir en grey

Homage or Copy: Total copy.

 

 

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It's become a tongue in cheek insult to label a new band as a Dir en grey clone, but make no mistake: these guys really wanted to be Dir en grey. VAJRA's career can be summed up as wearing paper-mâché face masks while playing self-interpretations of late 2008 Dir en grey while vocalist Nobro masturbates on the crowd. It would be one thing if they had lifted inspiration from multiple bands and rolled it up into one collage of modern visual metalcore, but Uroboros had dropped the year earlier and made massive waves. Instead we got an eighteen month biopsy into the most low-effort section of the scene, lending more ammunition to jaded fans claiming everything sounds the same. Fierce debates aside about whether the band was talented in their own right (hint: no), this is their interpretation of "冷血なりせば". They copied everything, even the interlude! What a shame, considering that VAJRA is a dope name for a band and it will be forevermore tied to this failed attempt at riding the wave.
 

 

 

 

 

 

[saishuu 3220]

This is the sole reason I can't take DEZERT seriously to this day.

 

[itsukoii 1300]

 

[Tokage 5930]

when will you finally write about that time Klaha ripped off Michael Jackson?????

[Zeus 7997]

5 minutes ago, Tokage said:

when will you finally write about that time Klaha ripped off Michael Jackson?????

 I'm gonna need sources

[Tokage 5930]

 

Judge for yourself....

[Atreides 454]

VAJRA >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Dir En Grey

[Ito 2438]

I don't know, man, that Valluna feels less like homage and more like copy to me. If you are going to be the blatant about it, might as well have just covered it.