5 Things I Hate About VK

[suji 8317]

On 6/1/2018 at 5:21 PM, Saishu said:

You can absolutely get international shipping with Sukekiyo. I ordered Adoratio directly from the Galaxy Broad shop.

Isn't their international shipping like $50?! I once tried to order some Merry stuff way back and a representative messaged me that shipping in the US would be $50, and $55(?) for Europe...I dropped that shit immediately. Back to proxies for me~

[suji 8317]

I agree with just about everything here; the live-limited releases, the multitype releases, the downloads, the fan jealousy, the conditional disbandments, ...everything. It's pretty different than being into general bandom back in the day. A lot of shit like this has been sitting in my head for a while, so I'm just gonna spill it here, so excuse the sloppiness...

 

I will admit tho, I'm quite guilty of being jealous of certain people, because I can't afford a trip to Japan just to see my faves, nor do I have any friends who are just as passionate as I am about my faves. I don't know when, or if, that day will come, but I always couldn't help getting pissed off when other people talk about the lives they attended, the shit they got, and interacting with other fans or my faves, while I sit here on my fatass doing nothing but moping (like I am right now ;w; ). VK isn't even hot in the states (and all we get is shit bands at fucking anime cons), and I fucking hate how I have to go to another country, learn to speak another language, and face potential culture shock just to enjoy my faves...it's fucking ridiculous. It makes me feel less as a fan and more of just a outsider, which is why I even dread being in this ass fandom sometimes. (can I also mention how I can't fucking read tanuki and enjoy the shitslinging of various bands, unless I have to visit a blog run by an ELITIST BITCH who barely does jackshit??? fuck that cunt btw)

 

Even worse, when there's live-limited shit that I can't get, it sucks because the song(s) in question could (1) take ages to be rereleased in a regular release, and I'd have to waste time searching auctions for at least a year, or (2) be lost forever or be sold for like 9000 yen on mercari (and prob end up sounding like taking a shit in the sewer)...it especially sucks when I've amassed most of a band's discography, only to be lacking their live-limited cds and it's so nervewracking for a perfectionist like me. 

 

As for other shit, I'd say keeping certain things private or vague, like how a member is dismissed from a band, the REAL reason why a band broke up from outta nowhere, label drama, etc., is what kinda annoys me about visual kei. As a drama-loving gal, I'd like to see a LOT of spillT tea, and read even more about these bands other than their general history. Who is the shittiest kusoman of them all? What "deplorable acts" did this shithead commit to get kicked out of the band?! Whatever the fuck happened to Hisui/Klaha/Karma, etc...? It is a mystery...

 

The multitype bullshit is probably one of the worst things to come out of this genre alone. What's the point of spending an extra 1500+ yen for a release with a different song/discs/purchase bonuses, etc.?! Why can't yall just sell that extra shit individually, or put the songs all together (that'd usually be enough for a FUCKING ALBUM, HELLER??????) None of the bands I care about have really done this much, except for Sui's solo project which is shilling its mini-album with 2 types with different tracklists, AND another edition coming up via webshop only....which I can see having both tracklists combined to add to its uniqueness and basically make it a cashgrab. That also brings me to distributing songs as bonuses if tickets are purchased, which is exactly what David is doing, and I can't help but roll my mo'fuckin eyes..........like what is even the point besides getting asses in seats??? At least it's better than getting 5 tickets to all the tour lives in order to UNLOCK the Grand Prize of TEN THOUSAND DOLLA---a one-coin CD...??? Just another unreasonable cashgrab, which makes me wanna collect even less from this project.

 

Adding onto buying 50 types of the same release, buying shit when you're in the US, and poor as fuck btw, is fucking expensive, especially when it comes to shipping. HOLY HELL. Usually I have to pay an extra ~$13 or so to have my shit shipped out within a week (and that fucking sucks when the item I buy is initially like, 1 yen). What I keep forgetting however, is when I buy more than just one CD (like mags, posters, etc.), and the shipping price fucking skyrockets to about the same price I'd pay for EMS...not to mention having to pay extra fees like item weight, domestic, service fees, packaging, breathing...it never ends. I'm not good at math, so that just makes it even more stressful just buying shit. But I still love it though 😭😭😭............idc about my wallet's feelings :)))

 

I may add more later, there's just so much shit about vk that frustrates me....

[Saishu 1589]

4 hours ago, suji said:

Isn't their international shipping like $50?! I once tried to order some Merry stuff way back and a representative messaged me that shipping in the US would be $50, and $55(?) for Europe...I dropped that shit immediately. Back to proxies for me~

It definitely wasn’t cheap (¥3,400 for shipping), but the total was far less than what CDJapan was going to charge me via their proxy service. 

[Bear 1817]

The fans, lack of proper vinyl releases and the fact that I think the vast majority of bands fucking suck annoys me the most. Have to check out 50 new bands to find a mediocre one, and 100 to find a good one.

[Komorebi 2193]

On 6/6/2018 at 12:12 AM, suji said:

it especially sucks when I've amassed most of a band's discography, only to be lacking their live-limited cds and it's so nervewracking for a perfectionist like me. 

 

Missing that one Malisend release, that one first Jiluka single, that one rare VRZEL distributed CD... it's killing me, man, killing me slowly and painfully.

 

I never replied to Zeus because I was busy/being lazy, but Hiroki explained more or less what I meant to say. I do not blame overseas fans for poor VK sales, I mean that for the average VK band there's probably no more than like 8 overseas fans interested in actually purchasing a CD they distribute live, so for the band it's probably not worth the trouble of releasing a live CD through a regular shop, with all the added expenses that would entail, just so like 3 dudes in Europe and one in the States can get a copy. Basically what Hiroki explained. It sucks ass for us but I really see why bands would go that route. And most don't even care about that extra 3 bucks they'll get from us if we get the CD on any store, it's not relevant, when they can push a live limited release that will draw fans from Japan who will not only spend 1000 yen on the CD, but, while they're at it, they'll spend 2000-5000 extra yen on cheki and merch, AND the ticket.

 

As Zeus mentioned, it's probably a few hoarders at the top of the food chain who are keeping VK from taking the smart route when it comes to music distribution, and for bands it's not an easy thing to just ditch the labels, since, as I understand, livehouses have deals with music labels and if you want to actually perform you gotta sell your soul to the devil somehow. It really sucks, but for us to get VK music on bandcamp and such it would require much, MUCH more than just an artist saying "K, so I have a bunch of chicks tweeting me in English, gotta sell for them as well" 😕

[Masato 365]

I hate a lot of these aspects, too. 

Multiple releases.... web-shop/live limited stuff.... just making it hard to get things...

 

I used to like bands like that and it took me forever and the help of lots of friends to get my collection... also some things I still don't own because of this... 

 

So yeah, they only want to milk their fans!

 

So when I started to like Kaitou Sentai I was honestly super surprised! They are the biggest indies around, but had a super large youtube chanel, they had 2 physical buppan-limited CDs, but all their songs were also on a super cheap album on international amazon (14 songs, 6€ !?!). So yeah, physical copies are hard to get, but they do digital releases with everything they publish. The new songs that are actually released in CD stores are also up on digital stores and what surprised me basically the most was that they release full MVs of their new singles on youtube weeks/months before the CD gets out... 

 

Super unusual move, but it does prove that if you are making music for fun/enjoyment you can do it, too! And you can make your music accessible for everyone. They have been around for ~3 years maybe? 

 

So yeah.... i guess it also depends on what a band's aim is. Making quick money? Being able to live from your band activities? Just enjoying having a band? A mixture?

 

Most bands are too focused on the money aspect and loose sight of the enjoyment of making music. It sucks when they disband because they could not mobilize xxx people or sell xxx CDs.

 

If you like making music and still kind of get along with your bandmates just tone down your activities... like just do stuff on the occasional weekend.

 

I am actively boykotting merch and cheki sales of some bands I like at the moment because they are too obviously milking their fans for money...

They still get my ticket money but nothing else

[AwesomeNyappy 98]

My biggest issue with VK is the fan-band relationship. While I think it's nice that fans (mostly in Japan because it's often too expensive for overseas fans) want to actively support their favorite bands (buy the CDs instead of downloading everything, buy merchandise), it often evolves into some intense hero worship that I feel uncomfortable with.

Instead of just enjoying the music, there is often jealousy and resentment among fans. I go to a concert to enjoy the music, and maybe I'm also curious about how certain members look in real life, I am not there, however, to a) insult other fans, b) touch band members without their permission, c) trying to crowd them after the show.

I also feel uncomfortable with the way that some VK artists use fans to pay their bills (it's prostitution, basically). I just feel that most of these relationships are based on girls being alone and projecting their fantasies onto these men that they do not know. They want them as their boyfriends, but are paying to spent time with them....it's exploiting them.

I'm not generally against these types of arrangements if it's consensual, but some girls probably pay money for affection of a bandsman, and that's just...no.

 

Don't get me wrong- there are some nice VK fans out there. But I've been to some concerts, and I've seen people being super disrespectful. 

[Komorebi 2193]

18 hours ago, AwesomeNyappy said:

I just feel that most of these relationships are based on girls being alone and projecting their fantasies onto these men that they do not know. They want them as their boyfriends, but are paying to spent time with them

Pretty much, and I love it because it erases the pressure for sex I'd get in a real relationship.

I am super comfortable with this kind of relationship with the bands I follow tbh, it's what I need right now and I know many other fans feel the same.

[Tanishi 598]

17 hours ago, Komorebi said:

Pretty much, and I love it because it erases the pressure for sex I'd get in a real relationship.

I am super comfortable with this kind of relationship with the bands I follow tbh, it's what I need right now and I know many other fans feel the same.

This is the exact same sentiment the anime/general otaku industry operates with. Whether it's good or bad is another issue but it's what some people want and there clearly is a market for this type of relationship projection/simulation.

[AwesomeNyappy 98]

On 7/26/2018 at 4:24 PM, Komorebi said:

Pretty much, and I love it because it erases the pressure for sex I'd get in a real relationship.

I am super comfortable with this kind of relationship with the bands I follow tbh, it's what I need right now and I know many other fans feel the same.

I was more talking about the "rumors" that girls pay VK band members for spending time with them, etc.

But, of course, the industry in general pays into that. Which, you know, I do not have a problem with IF fans understand that's it's an illusion. Hell, I go to concerts, and I'm paying for an illusion. I go to conventions and watch actors during Q&As, and I've also worked behind the convention scene to know that actors are, well, actors, and they want to please their fans. Nothing wrong with that.

It is just that I think that many fans do not know that it's not 100 % real. And that's where we have a problem.

[Miku70 214]

15 minutes ago, AwesomeNyappy said:

I was more talking about the "rumors" that girls pay VK band members for spending time with them, etc.

But, of course, the industry in general pays into that. Which, you know, I do not have a problem with IF fans understand that's it's an illusion. Hell, I go to concerts, and I'm paying for an illusion. I go to conventions and watch actors during Q&As, and I've also worked behind the convention scene to know that actors are, well, actors, and they want to please their fans. Nothing wrong with that.

It is just that I think that many fans do not know that it's not 100 % real. And that's where we have a problem.

O_ o Really ?  For me it's an evidence maybe I'm old. But same I was young, for me is a evidence is not real. And this is the same problems with  Japenese and Korean Idols and other artits.  Certain fans don't the difference between the reality and their imagination.

Edited July 27, 2018 by Miku70

[Komorebi 2193]

25 minutes ago, AwesomeNyappy said:

It is just that I think that many fans do not know that it's not 100 % real. And that's where we have a problem.

I was discussing this with my gf 2 days ago... that happens a lot in the western fandom, in social media-based circles that don't look much into the scene and have no clue of how it actually works in Japan. I think the fandom in Japan in general knows how things are. Of course, there are whackos like everywhere else.

[AwesomeNyappy 98]

A big yes to you both!

well, there are fans out there who make videos about why their favourite ship is totally real (especially seen that in VK, but I’m sure there were dir en grey fans like this too at some point), so it certainly raises the question how in touch these fans are with reality. They might even sent shipping fanart to their favs etc.

but I guess most older VK fans are not like that, and enjoy VK for what it is, which is great

[Alsdead14 191]

I don't know if anyone mentionned this, but the stuff bands release only in japan, like, for example, ALSDEAD's last live DVD. In 7 years, they never released any dvd but they released it only in japan, and I had to paid like 100$ for that god damn dvd, and got it like 2 years after it was released. Why the hell didn't they released it internationally? I wanted to hear them live so bad, they even played some shows in the US. They are my favorite band, and it was killing me not having their dvd. I was searching for it everywhere and couldn't find it. I agree with most of what people said. The fan base is also a pain in the ass. I don't have friends that like Visual Kei, I tried several times online, this year I even joined some facebook groups, but god damnit, all they could talk was The GazettE and only that one band. I've been following the scene since like 2006 and never made a online friend that I could share my passion with. People often judge me because I listen to japanese music. I remember one girl that once said to me, "Why don't you listen to music like everyone else?". I also hate the live-limited releases. They cost so much if they someone wasn't kind enough to share it. And well, the shipping from Japan to Canada. I bought Dadaroma's DVD and that shit cost me 120$. 70$ for a live dvd is soooo expensive. For an example, I bought like Delain's dvd, it cost me like 40$, but I had 2 live cds with it. Same with Nightwish. Why does VK cost so much? I'm also somehow that likes to buy cds and have a collection. My current collection probably cost me 5000$ since 2008. and well, I often have to download stuff as I don't have much money, and well, when I share stuff it gets uploaded everywhere. I rarely buy stuff anymore except for alsdead (now AllS). Anyway, that was me complaining haha.

[raspberrynilla 85]

Everyone has basically mentioned all the things I hate about VK haha, but I will like to add one of my pet peeves is when singles only come with the new title song and the rest two/three tracks being re-recordings of their old songs or live versions of songs. I just find it annoying since most of the time I don't enjoy them whatsoever.

[monkeybanana4 1732]

I agree with the crazy expenses/prices for items as far as VK music goes. If it's an artist I like, I'd prefer to buy/own a hard copy for my collection. But the exorbitant shipping costs. Ugh >< I usually pick EMS because the post office likes to lose my package somewhere over the ocean all the time, so it ends up being $40 or more dollars for shipping depending on what I want to buy. And that price only skyrockets astronomically if I'm buying magazines/posters or some other stuff. Plus, some of the stuff is released in Japan only, so there's the added fee of a third party buying the stuff for you. It makes my head spin in circles when I think about the amount of money I spent on the actual item(s) vs. the shipping costs, lol. Not that this has stopped me from buying stuff and causing massive pain in my wallet >,>

 

I think someone else mentioned this earlier, but one pet peeve I have is when bands release live-limited goods. I understand it's meant to award the fans who go to that live, but that stuff isn't free. You still have to shell out money to buy it even though you're physically there. Why not just sell it there and release it on some online shop later? It only kills the band out of money when they could be making from those who might want to buy it but may not/can't go.

 

I know this has been mentioned earlier as well, but I just wanted to add that when mini-albums and albums started to be released in three types, that was when I banged my head against the desk. Most mini-albums/albums cost around almost $30-$40 for one type, and with the addition of a third type, I sometimes didn't buy the release at all or only bought one type since I felt the amount of money I would be spending wasn't worth the amount of content coming with the releases. It also irks me when live DVDs get split into different types with different content x_x;  Erm, anyways, despite my complaints I still love the fandom f^^; Just some things that bug me about it.

[GreatNorthernVK 183]

14 hours ago, Alsdead14 said:

I don't know if anyone mentionned this, but the stuff bands release only in japan, like, for example, ALSDEAD's last live DVD. In 7 years, they never released any dvd but they released it only in japan, and I had to paid like 100$ for that god damn dvd, and got it like 2 years after it was released. Why the hell didn't they released it internationally? I wanted to hear them live so bad, they even played some shows in the US. They are my favorite band, and it was killing me not having their dvd. I was searching for it everywhere and couldn't find it. I agree with most of what people said. The fan base is also a pain in the ass. I don't have friends that like Visual Kei, I tried several times online, this year I even joined some facebook groups, but god damnit, all they could talk was The GazettE and only that one band. I've been following the scene since like 2006 and never made a online friend that I could share my passion with. People often judge me because I listen to japanese music. I remember one girl that once said to me, "Why don't you listen to music like everyone else?". I also hate the live-limited releases. They cost so much if they someone wasn't kind enough to share it. And well, the shipping from Japan to Canada. I bought Dadaroma's DVD and that shit cost me 120$. 70$ for a live dvd is soooo expensive. For an example, I bought like Delain's dvd, it cost me like 40$, but I had 2 live cds with it. Same with Nightwish. Why does VK cost so much? I'm also somehow that likes to buy cds and have a collection. My current collection probably cost me 5000$ since 2008. and well, I often have to download stuff as I don't have much money, and well, when I share stuff it gets uploaded everywhere. I rarely buy stuff anymore except for alsdead (now AllS). Anyway, that was me complaining haha.

The cost and the continued obliviousness of some bands is what led me to listen to more American and Canadian bands back around 2005-2015. I’ve gotten back into VK recently, but I’ve pretty much given up hope of bands coming anywhere within driving distance to me. If they wouldn’t do it during the “boom”, they certainly won’t do it now.

[TheMadameGrotesque 10]

I'm personally needing to do a lot of research on the underbelly of the Jrock scene, I've got a project in the works and I don't have the ability to get to Japan, or read much Japanese if Tanuki is strictly nihongo. Overall shit costs waaaay too much and as much I would love to see what songs get released at lives I will have to wait until the more major bands have international fan clubs

Edited September 17, 2018 by TheMadameGrotesque

[Paraph 826]

On 6/5/2018 at 6:36 PM, frayed said:

jealous overseas fans. 

 

[avaritonista 116]

For the ones that complain so much about the live limited and other releases that aren't easy to have, I'd like to know: 

do you also get angry when you finally get them by downloading/buying them?

As if the answer isn't obvious, of course. So impresive.

Edited July 12, 2019 by avaritonista