Dir en grey

[Tokage 5930]

3 hours ago, emmny said:

sukekiyo calling!!!

even they dont have anything completely on the same level rn....

 

also, funny how everyone seems to hate on Mask when it comes to Gauze, I always thought Schwein no Isu was rather lame

 

Pink Killer, The Deeper Vileness, Decayed Crow and The Inferno are all up there among Dir en grey's all-time worst btw

[Saishu 1589]

Schwein no Isu is just typical squonky VK metal, German shouting and all. 

[Hakari 282]

The Deeper Vileness is terrific, I think the song's chorus is a gut punch. And I never really cared for Schwein no Isu or any other "heavy" old dir en grey tracks like Zan and every other track on Kisou.

[Pretsy 1343]

OKIE-DOKES as mr. President would say:

 

MISSA: "S" - miserably utilized potential of kotekote riffage

 

GAUZE: "Akuro no Oka (album version)" - as much as I LOVE "Akuro no Oka", plastering -mode of eve- into it was pretty much the biggest mistake on GAUZE. Who would like listening to the soundtrack of prison toilets right after Die's acoustic touches?

 

MACABRE: hard to say which songs would stick out sorely here but I gotta go with "Hydra" because despite its renowned, "loved" status among "old hands", it's so far off from the actual focus sound-wise (even "Audrey" has a lot more in common with "KR Cube" for instance).

 

KISOU: "24ko Cylinder" and "Pink Killer" - yeah yeah, hating on the former would be blasphemous according to some but hey, does it really progress anywhere? No it doesn't - it might work out better if it has been renovated with Kyo's "more emotional" takes like he usually does with certain older songs (e.g. Ain't Afraid to Die). "Pink Killer" on the other hand is an illogical choice as a non-instrumental finisher.

 

six Ugly: "Byou Shin" - the Gargoyle/old 80s Japanese heavy metal-ish vibe of the original rocks much harder than this nu/alternative-mumble jumble of drop riffs. Even the prototype of this remake (2001,  live remake - NOT 2012 one) sounds more pleasant despite various buzzkill nuances.

 

VULGAR: "R to the Core" - it was lovely back in the day but now this pop punk parody is nothing short of being a sad filler. What.

 

Withering to Death: "Beautiful Dirt", "Merciless Cult" and "Spilled Milk" - the weakest Dir album has no bigger flaws in the mixing, mastering and ordering field than it has with these fillers comprising otherwise okay ideas. Boo.

 

TMOAB: It's already great in its own when we consider the replay value and "live sound" (since this sterile studio quality is obviously what pushes me nowadays away from anything Dir, let's be honest). Nonetheless, I am skeptical about new "Clever Sleazoid"...

 

Uroboros: "Red Soil", "Toguro" and "Gaika, Chinmoku ga Nemuru Koro" - the first is the most disjointed attempt at genrebending on Uroboros, the second is a very snoozy grunge number with less to no special attributes and the third one works much better live but sucks ass with both mixings/remasterings and studio approaches. BRRRBRRRBRRBURRR. Also: engrish versions of single tracks.

 

DSS: "Amon", "Diabolos", "Akatsuki", "Hageshisa" rerecorded and "Vanitas" - the first tries to do something and I still cannot understand what exactly. The second one rips off Vinushka's blasting moments and tries to lean too much on Kaoru's 20-30 sec riffing sample. Why not just fix that 5-min demo a little bit and be done with it? The third one takes the disjointedness of "Red Soil" and makes it suck even bigger ass. Hageshisa was totes butchered on DSS and there's not much to say about it - single version is the only thing what matters now. "Vanitas"? Mac & Cheese in the form of lazily written ballad.

 

Unraveling: "Unknown" has been butchered as cited in earlier posts. And the title track itself isn't doing much to serve its memorability

 

ARCHE: "Revelation", "Soshaku", "Phenomenon" and "The Inferno" - the first three have some good ideas but poorly combined entirety. The last one? As the showman of current elections would say, "it is a disaster". I think I already took a piss at other people desperately defending the overall structure of ARCHE too.

 

So there you go, not much to say about their repertoire other than the fact that consistency seems to be underrated in this fanbase.

 

 

[Saishu 1589]

Addendum:

 

Diabolos totally should have been the demo version with that gorgeous solo incorporated into it. The heavy sections from the album version are not helped in any way by Shinya's rudimentary "blast beats".

 

Yeah, album version of Hageshisa is poo. The punch from the guitars is totally gone. Single version of Lotus is also superior with better dynamics. 

 

Forgot to mention Soshaku. I mostly have just gotten really tired of the chorus. 

[appl- 313]

I'm so random but.....

I need someone to resell tickets for DIR EN GREY @ NakanoSunplaza on September 20 or 21. Pretty pleaaaaase. If you will see someone selling it. Plz inform me. Thank youuuu.

[emmny 4139]

i didn't care for merciless cult until i saw it live, its a beast on stage. they way the band chimes up the tension leading to the heavy parts is so...erotic

[Saishu 1589]

So while we all question the quality of Utafumi and the b-sides, the DVD that comes with it is pretty damn awesome! Like Arche Budokan quality. It's a smaller venue and Kyo gets super intimate during Rasetsukoku, actually jumping into the crowd. 

[Zeus 7997]

45 minutes ago, Saishu said:

So while we all question the quality of Utafumi and the b-sides, the DVD that comes with it is pretty damn awesome! Like Arche Budokan quality. It's a smaller venue and Kyo gets super intimate during Rasetsukoku, actually jumping into the crowd. 

Questionable Dir en grey B-sides are the norm rather than the exception. Can't remember the last time I heard a Dir en grey B-side worth listening to whether it be remixes, new songs, live songs, etc. These guys just can't put together an engaging single to save their lives. They're lucky their singles are good. They're lucky Utafumi is good.

[Saishu 1589]

I don't know, I liked the reimagined older tracks quite a bit. But there hasn't been a  b-side that's actually an entirely original composition since... Fukai?

[Ro plz 1290]

Missa: Don't care for it.

Six Ugly: Don't care for it.

Gauze:  I used to hate Yokan but that Psyconnnect performance is very heart warming. And I've grown to like it. 

Macabre: The last song. I never got the name of it because i never bothered tagging it nor looking it up since i burned the album to a blank back in high school. It's a terrible ending for what is a near flawless album.  I just wish i listened to it more. 

Kisou: Anything that's not Undecided, Keloid Milk, 24ko or Mushi is a snooze fest. Who know's maybe if they drop a DVD for the live they're doing for it, i may revisit. 

Vulgar: Asunaki and R to the Core. Mess.

Withering to Death: Beautiful Dirt is the only song I have to skip when bumping this album. Other than that, i can bump this from start to with no issues.

Marrow of A Bone: All the songs I used to have grips with: Disabled Complexes, The Fatal Believer, Rotting root, are tracks that i've grown to love. This was my first Dir album/experience with em and its easily top on my fav albums of all time. Gem.

Uroboros: Another album I can bump from start to finish. No complaint's.

Dum Spiro Spero: Take out Shitataru and its a 10/10

The Unraveling: Everything except Karasu, Macabre, and Karma. 

ARCHE: Anything that isn't Chain Repulsion, Uroko, Behind a Vacant Image, Midwife, Tousei or Tefu Tefu can go. 

 

 

Also: This performance of Uroko further reinforces why I enjoy Dir much more in smaller venues. This shit is raw. More personal. 

And Shinya....oh my goodness.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-Xl_rFi6Ls&spfreload=10

Edited August 4, 2016 by The MAD Stallion

[Puriwate 28]

Awesome thoughts guys X3

 

and i wonder if they really will announce and release a 10th album before the depression to _______ tours and the best of album... i know its not unprecedented for them to release albums on a two year cycle. Idk it feels sort of too soon to be feasible?

[Pretsy 1343]

Also, regarding the reimagination of Byou Shin back in 2001 as I mentioned earlier:

 

 

You may notice some possible ideas which were later encapsulated in a bit more nu/alternative form on "six Ugly" (in the middleway)

[Saishu 1589]

So many people hate Shitataru Mourou. 

[Saishu 1589]

My 4 year old son requested a Dir en grey song in the car today. Never been prouder. 

[Wicked Teletubby 528]

parenting done right!

 

this one instantly came to my mind.

 

[fiz fiz 3]

I wish they would play Ware,yami tote live again

[nullmoon 784]

12 hours ago, Saishu said:

My 4 year old son requested a Dir en grey song in the car today. Never been prouder. 

What song?

[Saishu 1589]

1 hour ago, nullmoon said:

What song?

 

Un deux

 

A while back I was listening to samples or something like that, and the chorus of Un deux popped up. He said "Daddy that's the song from your car!" Which proves I listen to Arche a little too much while driving.  Later I watched the Budokan performance of Un deux on my phone and he runs over and watches with me. I asked him if he liked that song and he said "YEAH!"

 

So yesterday even though he didn't ask for it by name, I kind of knew what he meant the way he described it. So now I'm working on getting him to know band names. 

[nullmoon 784]

@Saishuthat's so damn cool

[Nowhere Girl 189]

On 03/08/2016 at 11:48 PM, Saishu said:

I don't know, I liked the reimagined older tracks quite a bit. But there hasn't been a  b-side that's actually an entirely original composition since... Fukai?

There's also G.D.S.. Arguably, some of the more unrecognisable remakes like AGITATED SCREAMS OF MAGGOTS -UNPLUGGED-, Tsumi to Kisei, and Kiri to Mayu are new songs.

Recently, we also had and Zero and Tefu Tefu.

[Saishu 1589]

2 hours ago, Nowhere Girl said:

There's also G.D.S.. Arguably, some of the more unrecognisable remakes like AGITATED SCREAMS OF MAGGOTS -UNPLUGGED-, Tsumi to Kisei, and Kiri to Mayu are new songs.

Recently, we also had and Zero and Tefu Tefu.

 

Well, I consider and Zero and Tefu Tefu as actual Arche tracks and not just leftovers. I get the feeling they just didn't want to overstuff Arche with 18 tracks at nearly 80 minutes. 

 

And Kiri to Mayu is a lot closer to the original than people think. It isn't immediately recognizable, but the more I listened the more it made sense. And even Tsumi to Batsu has moments where it really clicks. With that one its just the dramatically reduced tempo that messes with you. 

[Saishu 1589]

Huh. Utafumi single has English translations. I guess they're going back to those?

[Ro plz 1290]

On 8/9/2016 at 2:37 PM, Saishu said:

 

 

And Kiri to Mayu is a lot closer to the original than people think. It isn't immediately recognizable, but the more I listened the more it made sense. And even Tsumi to Batsu has moments where it really clicks. With that one its just the dramatically reduced tempo that messes with you. 

Tsumi To Batsu is more closer to its original than Kiri to Mayu i believe. Its just the tempo as you pointed.  Kiri is almost entirely a new song minus the intro riffage and chorus. Iirc Kaoru mentioned that in an interview

[Pretsy 1343]

On 10/08/2016 at 0:26 AM, Nowhere Girl said:

There's also G.D.S.. Arguably, some of the more unrecognisable remakes like AGITATED SCREAMS OF MAGGOTS -UNPLUGGED-, Tsumi to Kisei, and Kiri to Mayu are new songs.

Recently, we also had and Zero and Tefu Tefu.

I don't think "almost unrecognizable" remakes should be taken for totally new, separate compositions when you know that there's a still significant share and/or the basis of the original song (including Kiri to Mayu). Fukai was the original product and offspring of 1st VULGAR recording sessions, which would have been serving the similar purpose akin to Red...[em] for instance. "And Zero" and "Tefu Tefu" are still paired as bonus with the album so they technically have no fixed "b-side" status so to speak. So they are still "Arche tracks" -  and considering their usual habits, "Arche b-sides" would be most probably met in the context of upcoming album instead.

 

"GDS"? The one on Saku single (?) is a live take as well if you didn't notice (it's possible to muffle the audience sound away for a moment). Cannot say it's the "original b-side" either really. So all in all, I doubt that original b-sides will come out in the near future since they usually find their way in the next album instead etc.

 

also

 

@SaishuShitataru Mourou is hated? I dug the Deftones-y vibe ("Digital Bath", anyone?)  it had so it's really hard to dislike imho - at least it makes more sense as a composition unlike "Amon" or "Akatsuki" where god knows what is happening really.

Edited August 11, 2016 by Alroy