#104: キズ (Kizu) - 蛙-Kawazu-

[The Reverend 3566]

 

 

 

 

Tracklist:

1. 蛙-Kawazu-

2. ラブソング

3. ELISE (Type-A only)

4. 十五 (Type-B only)

 

 ｜Prosaic, but with potential

 

Should a band be held accountable for not living up to hype created by fans before they’ve released a single note of music or even revealed their identities? That’s the question I pondered as I listened to キズ (Kizu's) second, and newest, maxi-single 蛙-Kawazu-.

 

The conjecture surrounding Kizu started near the beginning of this year when a red and black flier was handed out at VK venues with precious little information other than the name of the band, details of their first show, and a phone number prominently displayed. Callers of the phone number were greeted by a recording informing them that the band would listen to “your pain, your worries, displeasure, and anxiety”.

 

All VK fans had to work with was a new, mysterious, melodramatic, emo as hell band that had left no direct clues about the members’ identities; not even a group shot in silhouette or with the faces obscured by masks! The biggest clue being that the other bands performing at Kizu's first show (DOGinthePWO, Unite) were popular bands in the scene, so this new band must be made up of people with connections… probably from playing in bands with some success themselves. This wasn’t a bunch of newbies who would be unknown whether or not their names and faces were public knowledge!

 

Little by little more info leaked out of the Kizu camp (the vocalist of the band would actually answer calls to their number, more fliers with references to despair and scars and blood and loneliness) but still no one was quite sure who was in this new band. Theories about vocalists from all sorts of recently disbanded acts were entertained. One that gained traction that I hoped would turn out to be true was that this was Karma from Avelcain’s new band. The signs were all there: Karma is the queen of teen-angst-zetsubou and these promotional materials for Kizu had that in spades.

 

When it was finally revealed that the vocalist was Lime previously of Lezard there was a collective “not bad… but I wish it had been *insert my favorite vocalist who isn’t in a band right now*”. By the time their first (extremely energetic and polished) PV came out many people had already come down from their speculative excitement.

 

With all that being said, what about the actual songs?

 

The music is not the backdrop for despair that their promo fliers would imply, which is a blessing because Lime is a capable vocalist but it’s hard to imagine him pretending to cut his wrists or mumbling to himself trying to quiet the demons in his head. In fact, the least worthwhile parts of this maxi-single come when Lime tries to showcase his harsh vocals. Too much of "ラブソング (Love Song)" is marred by Lime trying to contort his voice into shapes it just wasn’t meant to fit into. He’s much better highlighting his slightly staccato, higher range such as in the otherwise rather moribund "十五 (Juugo)".

 

Kizu is at their best playing the frenetic, vaguely djent-inspired fast-paced VK you can hear in the title track "蛙-Kawazu-" or after the jarring Beethoven intro homage has ended in "Elise". When the big riffs and digital effects combine into some bouncy, undeniably fun rock'n'roll you can see why Kizu have scheduled a second oneman live at Tsutaya O-West less than a year from their formation and having released only two singles.

 

Ultimately, I'd place my bets on the slightly brasher Razor or the even more scatter-brained Lack-co to be the 'winners' of these djent-kei experiments, but if Kizu can continue to channel the relentless energy of the performances in their PVs (shoutout to them for the throwback 'VK band in the woods' video) into their live shows and releases they should be able to make a name for themselves in the crowded and often staid VK landscape.

 

Support the band: CDJapan

[qotka 433]

I haven't listened to the whole single yet, but I have to say I really like the direction they're taking with Kawazu. Lime's vocals are really fun - sweet nostalgic power metal done right. I also really like that white-noise like sound they use - sometimes as 'micro-intermissions' throughout the song, and sometimes layered with the other instruments (idk how to really explain it?? but it sounds cool).

[Shmilly 519]

Nice review Rev. I agree with your assessment for the most part, although I'm not sure if I'd put RAZOR in the same group as Kizu. While RAZOR has been known to experiment with some interesting song structure, it usually pays off well in not only shaking up the standard rock/metal song structure but also highlighting the individual members' skills. On the other hand, some of Kizu's attempts (particularly on this single) just end up a little messy and incoherent, despite the well-polished sound and production.

 

I think the thing that got me into Kizu was Lime's vocals - his unique voice and the catchy melodies really help their songs get stuck in your head. Oshimai was a fantastic debut and despite lacking the same impact, Kawazu has quickly grown on me too. While the B-sides are a mixed bag, I think these guys definitely have a lot of potential to grow in the visual kei scene.

Edited October 20, 2017 by Shmilly

[chemicalpictures 1888]

I've been giving Kizu a tons of spins lately, and I have to admit I had a slightly change of heart about them, specially about Lime. I still don't think he is a formidable vocalist, but I can now understand the "fun" appeal you guys talk so much about. While Oshimai, Elise and へのへのもへじ (fuck that annoying nanana, really) all honestly sounds like harder edgier LEZARD leftover songs, definitely there is heart in Kawazu, and I feel there's a lot more originality here.

 

As you said, Lime is good at one thing, vocally-wise. That means they will have to be one of those one-trick pony bands to work? Does that uniqueness really work on their favor? Lime's lack of range still sounds like it will be really detrimental to the band as a whole, but for now I'll take back my criticisms until further releases

[madygrain 515]

So here's the thing some people keep bringing up:

 

1 )There is potentia in this band

 

2) Lime suposedly is dragging that potential down because of performance/range

 

but:

 

3) AFAIK Lime is credited in everything for this band

 

I don't know shit about Lime or how Lezard sound. So far it seems Kizu is fun but they have not shown too much flexibility. I'm really looking forward to see how they develop and if they can do different things. I think I will probably enjoy their releases but I fear I am going to get bored of them if they don't surprise me positively at some point that is not very far in the future.

 

I don't think this is a big issue overall though, since people can like a lot bands that are good or serviceable at doing 1 or 2 things if they like their style.

 

On the single itself, I think the title track is very likeable but the b sides are not as good as in oshimai. I like all the songs in that release but I can't say I see myself coming back to listen much to Kawazu's.

[Kaleidoscope 195]

Great review, I agree that they need to become a bit more versatile to unlock their full potential!

 

However, I'm surprised that people think that Lime has a bad range. His range is honestly pretty massive, some of the high notes he hits are insane and he  seems to have a decent lower register as well. While I do agree that his vocals will determine on how good they will be on the long run, I feel positive about his potential to develop a more versatile style.

Edited October 29, 2017 by Kaleidoscope

[platy 3018]

I've been listening to kawazu on repeat lately. So I can finally give an opinion on the single. 

Oshimai really didn't sell the band to me. This single however, is addictive, fun and feels like a breath of fresh air. 

I wasn't sure about Lime's vocals at first, something bothered me about them. Then I realised what it was. 

Lime sounds like the protagonist of a shounen anime.  

Once I got that out of the way, I'm no longer bothered by his voice, only amused lol. 

My favourite tracks are ラブソング and十五. The former is actually a great ballad(?) and the latter gives me a powerful, deviant vibe. Like someone else mentioned above I really like some of the "white noise" or background sounds they play usually at the start of a song. 

 

Overall there are no tracks I think about skipping. I think my only complaint is that annoying part in one of the songs where they just repeat "i" over and over. That's it. Count me in as a kizu stan. 

 

[violetchain 912]

53 minutes ago, platy said:

Lime sounds like the protagonist of a shounen anime.  

Lol, that's why I like him so much. I love shounen anime.

[chemicalpictures 1888]

On 17/11/2017 at 8:53 AM, platy said:

Lime sounds like the protagonist of a shounen anime. 

 

AYYYY LMAO

 

you freaking nailed it (and god, this is the first I'm learning about this anime and I already hate that dude and his VA).

[Azaeroe 40]

Preferred the costumes, video and song in general from the first single, which I thought was brilliant and listen to almost daily.