[BAND BATTLE] LITE vs toe

[Tokage 5930]

BATTLE OF THE MATH ROCK KINGS.... WHO NOODLES W/ THE BEST???

 

LITE

Lite, stylized as LITE, is a Japanese rock band that has been termed "one of Japan's top instrumental rock acts." All of their albums have charted in Japan, with For All the Innocence charting the best, at number 85 on the Oricon chart. Lite's sound combines the precision and musicianship of prog rock with the emotionally charged cinematic compositions of art rock, in a heavier, more modern package that they describe as "math rock". The band has performed overseas more than once, in the UK and Ireland among other places.

 

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toe

toe is a Japanese rock band from Tokyo. While mentioned in many post-rock circles, their song structure and dynamics are also similar to many popular math rock artists. The group was founded in 2000 and consists of four members. The vast majority of the band's music is instrumental in nature and is also known for its melodic, clean guitar settings. Additionally, the compositions have repetition from typical rock motifs, but use very subtle changes in beat and rhythm to form a unique sound. The band has changed their sound over their musical tenure by incorporating acoustic guitars, Rhodes piano, and vibraphones in their most recent releases. Like LITE, toe has also toured outside of Japan on multiple occasions, and their album "The Book About My Idle Plot on a Vague Anxiety" was pretty well-received by international critics.

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So, who wins this duel in your opinion? I find it very, very hard to choose, personally, cuz I enjoy jamming to both of them.. I guess in the end I do listen to LITE more though.

 

[CAT5 9075]

FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF

 

This is a brilliant match-up. Both bands are amazing, and both have released top-tier, classic material. I'm gonna have to give this to toe, though. LITE are amazing, and they definitely have a leg-up in terms of diversity. They are also have more fierce, raw, and face-melting math-rock jams than toe, but their discography is highly inconsistent. Don't get me wrong, I love that they continuously experiment with their sound, but they've also wound up with quite a few misses on their side because of it. In example, "Phantasia" and "filmlets" are both brilliant imo, but their subsequent releases haven't been as strong overall.

 

On the other hand, toe's sound has remained pretty consistent throughout, but it works because no one can truly emulate toe - while LITE have played with so many different styles that they don't necessarily have an instantly recognizable sound. The quality of toe's work has even remained steadfast as well. Even their weakest album "HEAR YOU" is still lightyears ahead of any band that attempts a similar style. toe also has a really keen melodic sense to their songwriting. This really seals the deal for me personally, because more often than not, LITE seems a bit more focused on instrumentality and musicianship than composing truly standout melodies.

 

This is definitely a tough comparison, though. Both bands are pretty much gods, ahaha.

 

 

[midnightskywalker 122]

They're both really good, but LITE are sometimes quite boring, toe is more "inventive" and varying.

[enyx 903]

It's gotta be toe. I mean both are really solid bands; LITE is one of those groups that I feel can always be relied upon to release something good and enjoyable, but toe is just... toe. Other than their first ep toe have knocked it out of the park with every release and have pretty much spawned their own 'toe clone' sub-genre at this point. Like @CAT5says, their sound is far more iconic. This might sound like a strange way of articulating it, but LITE, while I think fairly consistent, have always felt like a product of the Japanese math scene as opposed to one of the artists that defines or pioneers it. I still find time to listen to every release they put out, though.

Edited November 16, 2016 by Pho