Date released: 16.7.2008.
Track list
1. Prelude
2. Aristocrat's Symphony [PV]
3. Antique in the Future
4. Second Fear-Another Descendant-
5. zombie
6. After Cloudia
7. windress
8. The Revenant Choir [PV]
9. To The Chaos Inside
10. SUZERAIN
11. History of The Other Side
12. Episode
It was just a matter of time before the Visual-metal legends Versailles release their first full-length album. The band was pompously announced as a Visual kei megaband consisting of members from various notable Visual kei metal bands and similar. You might even consider that everything done by Versailles from sound to image is a bit pompous.
Listening to NOBLE is like watching an opera: it all looks grand and fascinating, the performance is even exciting on a few parts, but most of the time you're bored, looking at the clock wondering when they are going to finish, and you understand nothing from it.
The dramatic orchestral and choral PRELUDE makes way for the compositionally rich but rather over-the-top speed-symphony metal firework Aristocrat's Symphony. I was right in the last issue of Baku when I have recommended the Noble was born in Chaos single as a warm up for the album Noble because all three songs from the single have managed to get on the album, including Aristocrat's Symphony.
I really liked Antique in the Future or at least it's awesome heavy metal intro with balls!!! which was, as I could have thought, soon followed by some overly-dramatic symphony-metalness in Versailles way and matter. Shame actually, I was kinda hoping for some extravagance and not their typical thwack-thwack-as-fast-as-you-can-with-orchestra-behind. Second fear is actually interesting, fierce with a lot of fast harpsycode-playing-riff and Kamijo's English singing sounding muted, hoarse, actually cool (as if you are listening to some cool foreign metal band), though as same as Antique in the future, this song is only partially awesome though pretty cool as whole.
We come then to zombie, my all-time favorite Versailles song primary because it doesn't sound like your average pompous Versailles song. You just have to love the trashy D-production horror movie sound to zombie, most closely sounding like how you would feel if you had 10 of the equally named cocktails. Ah the genius, love it, makes me want to paint my skin green and devour the brain of the person next to me.
After Cloudia comes as a hangover after zombie, average, boring, similar to The Revenant Choir, telling you that you're listening to the Versailles, though it surprises with Kamijo's pretty intense singing, like he's singing for the first time right out of his chest and not being somewhere in between mumbling and singing as usual.
Windress is for Noble what the dying of a fat lead lady is for opera: a dramatic and stretched out bore. There is this short hard-rock part in the middle that draws the attention and really sounds great, but what would have been a great riff for some crazy moshing/banging tune turns to 17 seconds of showing off and checking if somebody is still listening.
We come then to the lyrics-wise laugh number The Revenant Choir, luckily without the boring lady speaking part, still being a X-Japan hommage ala Versailles, fast, long, quite uninteresting. Length-wise some songs on the album are simply too long, making you forget what was the catch at the beginning, making you circle with your finger above the skip button coming near the end.
Following The Revenant Choir is the melodic death metal resembling To the Chaos Inside which is quite a fierce song, with grinding riffs, evil sound to it and even an interesting chorus. And Hizaki's solo's melt faces. Period. Due to death metalness (though I really don't know why I am so attracted to death metal) To the Chaos Inside wins me. As a great complementary to To the Chaos Inside comes SUZERAIN, an already released speed-metal track with elegance, great riffs and solos and not so flashy as some other Versailles songs. Moderate and great.
The album reaches its grand finale with History of the Other Side, which is not bad, has got some really good and impressive parts but sounds as if you have thrown several different songs into one mixer and left them mixing for over nine minutes. I like the end of the song particularly because of the echoing, dimmed, distorted riffs.
One of the jewels of the album is the last song Episode being a duet of Kamijo and a piano. Gentle, beautiful, emotional with the probably most perfect vocal performance by Kamijo I have ever heard. Honestly your rarely hear so refined and profound ballads, without them sounding pathetic or over-the-top. Episode did left me speachless, gotta admit that and I will surely count it to my Versailles favorites.
Have I expected a lot of this album? No. Was it predictable? Well, mostly yeah. Is it good or bad? I wouldn't call it bad, nor particularly overwhelming, but it's decent and it does have a few song that break the monotony, but this album is the one only Versailles fans will enjoy the fullest as well fans of Visual kei bands with a metal sound. Versailles have got their specific sound and approach which you may like or not. But like them or not they're still better than any other Visual kei band sounding metal around.
Date released: 16.7.2008.
Track list
1.afterglow
2.悲しみに眠る陽だまり (Kanashimi ni nemuru you damari)
3. Ridicule (Live recording)
It's simply incredible and rare to see a band with such a sense for elegance such as Sugar. Whatever they make they make it with style, with feel and beauty. Their songs are simply mesmerizing, once you're caught up in their world there is no escape. The last month's single antlion showed Sugar in a more jazzy mood and it was a great single, but ruddy afterglow is even better.
afterglow is a balladesque song with rich sound and mood. Not to mention the layered feelings of regret, melancholy and hope mixing up and harmonizing. The song is similar to their Youkoso, but little less intense and a bit more cool. It's incredible how every note in Sugar's music is simply shining with elegance, while not being pompous nor standing out. Just by hearing the minimalistic, yet brilliant beginning in the fresh, summer-like and wonderfully vivid Kanashimi ni nemuru you damari you must admit that there are truly a few bands that really know when to hit a note and how, bringing out the fullest of it both in expression, mood and emotion. Kanashimi ni nemuru you damari is my definitive summer favorite by now, sounding like a wonderful ride next to the seaside on a upcoming sunset while the breeze plays on your face. Beautiful, brilliant and the antlion-style touch is that what makes it vivid.
The limited edition of the single comes with a live recording of Ridicule which is a bit of a darker song reminding me in a way of Kagrra,'s slightly sinister Kotodama (or at least on it's hypnotic beginning), though I must admit that Ridicule does sound even more sinister and rockier and masculine. And Loki proves his great vocal capabilities both in studio and on stage.
I simply can't describe the complexity and elegance (can't even found a word in English that would come the closest to the Croatian adjective profinjeno , what Sugar are) that Sugar shine with. Even though these guys are rockers in core I wouldn't be surprised to see one day in their old age still bashing out in jazz clubs with their excellent music. As I've said for antlion so I will say for ruddy afterglow, even more firmer: Sugar are a rare jewel among the Visual kei bands and a band you must not let slip away.
Quoting Miss Thrillz : If you can’t get into Sugar something's wrong with your ears.
Date released: 2.7.2008.
Track list
1. 布教和音 (Fukyou Waon)
2. Radical Gothic
How do you know it's UNDER CODE by not even listening to it? Why, by the multiple single releases on the same day that could conveniently be released as a mini-album on one CD. But the heck, let's rip even more money outta those listener bitches by splicing the release on two. Two CD = Twice the money. Now isn't that ingenious! That's why we are going to release Zopiel and Cherub in August as well as Cherubiel and Throne in September. Why release one full debut album when you can release 6 singles and get more money.
Hope you don't mind my little digression in the intro, but I find this releasing on the same day really silly and unfair. So here is the review of Lamina's second single Seraph that was released on the same day as Samael. Samael is a bit better though both singles are somewhere on the same level.
Fukyou Waon is pretty interesting when you think about it and has got a better production than some recent UNDER CODE releases. This song has got screaming, catchy refrain, pointless singing on certain parts and good riffs but as any other UNDER CODE band it still lacks some originality and kick. Radical Gothic isn't any of the both, it's more of a chariots song with another vocalist (just like Succubus). For me the closest to the term Radical Gothic is D's Schwarzschild's beginning. Lamina's Radical Gothic is simply too short to me memorable, with metal parts pointed in blank and with no excitement.
I didn't expect too much from the both new UNDER CODE bands Lamina and E'm~grief~ so I wasn't dissapointed nor thrilled by them. But Lamina still turned out to be a better band than E'm~grief~, though still stuck (and with no ambition to go higher) in the UNDER CODE Kote kei band average. If you like it, please... don't let me get you off these singles.
Date released: 2.7.2008.
Track list
1.ジェネシス (Genesis)
2.夢魔-サキュバス- (Muma -Succubus-)
The second new UNDER CODE band that had it's first (and second) release this month. E'm~grief~ was pretty much a laugh, but Lamina turned out to be better (relatively speaking). Their band concept is "Radical Gothic" though Lamina aren't really radical, nor so gothic.
Genesis is actually pretty decent, a little above the UNDER CODE average, something like the chariots but faster, with a more metallesque touch and pretty convincing. Sure it doesn't contribute anything new to the genre but it has got a few well arranged parts that sound just right.
Muma-Succubus- drops even deeper into the chariots sea of well production but weak concept, though it's more catchy than your average chariots tune. The singer Ibuki doesn't hit every note right, but his voice is at least not irritating, with a colorless timbre.
Samael isn't great, but it isn't as horrid as E'm~grief~'s Eternal melody. But seriously, the band's sound is really washed out and feels like your listening to any other semi-gothic UNDER CODE but with a vocalist who is bored to death. Unless you're really into such really narrow sound-range and style I guess you'll be checking this single out whether out of curiosity whether out of boredom.
Note: pronounced "Eye-o-light", not "Eo-lee-tay". And my first review for about a month, gomen ne~ (See my last post for explanation - here.)
As you all know, I'm really terrible at consistently updating, but I have to excuse myself for the past 3 weeks - I was away. Unfortunately, I'll be away for the following two weeks after this one, so I've pretty much been on a one month hiatus. Don't worry though, I'll post up some things this week.
Date released: 2.7.2008.
Track list
1.Eternal melody
2.独白の空 (Dokuhaku no sora)
3.Eternal melody(instrumental)
4.独白の空(instrumental)
As I have already mentioned about a month ago, UNDER CODE got richer for two more bands, both under the producer's hand of KISAKI. And when it goes to UNDER CODE bands they are either really really good or mediocre. And hmmm... what would you think of a band with an old-school name and style to be?
Eternal melody is like a weak Versailles song with all the old-schoolness you can get. The positive thing about it is that the song is metal, but metal twicked with much synth sounds ala Moi dix Mois and a bad vocalist. Honestly Rita's voice is like UnsraW's Yuki's but more irritating. At least Yuki knows how to growl and puts at least effort in singing, but this guy is simply mediocre.
But yet is Eternal melody nothing compared to the nuke named Dokuhaku no sora. This song is overdone with almost everything and is turned into a mass of chaos. It's like your having a siezure attack or something, or like their playing blindfolded... No there are no words to explain the trashyness as Dokuhaku no sora. Spare your ears, they are not worth this.
I had a bit of hope for the new UNDER CODE band but unfortunately they didn't match up to my expectations. E'm～grief～ are simply aaarrrrgh.... they make me want to point at them and laugh. If you really want to check this band out that's fine with me, but avoid the chaos Dokuhaku no sora. Rather give a try to their collegues at Lamina, they're better.
Yeah people you've read it right. I've finally bought myself an electric guitar (just as promised). I've bought it yesterday in Zagreb (it was really cheap that I couldn't believe the price when it was told to me). Sooo here is my guitar *tada*.
My model is the Stagg S300-BK. A great model shaped after the famous Fender Stratocaster. The guitar was made in China but the factory is the same as the one where Fender makes it's models, just they label the guitar differently (lol). But according to online reviews Stagg's starter models are better than Fender's Squier model. Overall I'm very pleased with the guitar. It's not very heavy and it's easy to tune.
With it I bought also 4 1mm black picks, a digital guitar tuner (which works really good and the tuning is very easy, even though the strings don't need that much tuning, also by Stagg), gig bag and a great amp.
My amp is the Laney LX12 model that sounds great,is loud enough for my needs and has got the distorsion effect (overdrive/crunch) which will allow me to play any decent metal goodness. God I'm so happy about it! My sister is almost like my roadie, she knows how to tune the amp for jazz, blues, rock or metal style and she helps me also with the guitar tuning so I'm very thankful to her.
Of course my friends came yesterday because they wanted to check my guitar so we had fun playing it and trying to play some of the regular legendary-riffs-every-guitar-noob-must-learn-first such as Smoke on the Water and The Man who sold the World. But I also played the starting riffs from D'espairsRay's HOLLOW so I think I'll learn that song first.
I'm no virtuose on the electric guitar but I'm learning. The things I must learn now is how to hold a guitar properly so my joints won't hurt and how to optimally order my fingers on the frets so I can play. Every beginning is hard but practice and patience makes perfect.
So I'm off to practice then XD. Wish me luck.
*drumming*
I'M BACK V(｀▽´)V
Oh yeah! It has been one hell of a two weeks. Really so many things have happened that I still can't believe that are over me. But I must say it feels great to be back on Rockerica, I've really missed writing here.
So to tell the story all from the start.
Last time I've written something here was on the day of my prom. And as predicted the prom night sucked. First of all I was pissed as hell because my styling didn't end up as I wanted it. Instead of having my normal wavy hair, they've ended up making my hair look like a doll's: all curly and cute. And the last thing I'VE wanted was to look like a cute doll. Blah. And my mom put blush on my cheeks and then I looked like a doll even more. Though I've got quite a lot of compliments on the look, I wasn't satisfied with it. But to hell, prom night's are supposed to suck anyway. Oh and not to mention the terrible band that played, whose music made me wish I was born deaf.
After the prom it was learning time for the college entry exams. I've been learning all the days, from morning till evening and it was really tough to sit over six hours and more working over hundreds of tasks from physics, chemistry and biology. And on the top my cell phone died :(. Ok not really died but I couldn't turn it on on a normal way because the on/off button has broken. But I've got a new fancy cell phone: Sony Ericsson W760 with 2GB stick, music player, guitar tuner, games, videos, camera and more. I'm still getting used to it, but I'll never forget my old one who has served me over three years.
And another thing that is new and that surely has brighten up the life of my whole family are our baby kittens! They are like the cutest plush toys you can imagine, just alive and rebellious as rock stars.
Back to the entry exams.
On Tuesday I've had my entry exam for the Faculty of Nature sciences (in short: loooooot's of chemistry, biology and physics). The exam was pretty hard (taking the fact that there were a lot of questions about animals and that I haven't learned anything about animals). Fortunately I have passed and had a reserve in case I wouldn't make it on the medicine.
The day after the exam was a slaughter. I have been going over all of my books, learning hard and trying to memorize as much details as I've could (though I hate memorizing, I learn by understanding). It was really tough.
Like 900 people applied and only 240 were to be taken as medicine students.It was pure chaos to see such a mass of teenagers coming and most f them looking like your average genius. The exam began at 9.20 but I have arrived like an hour earlier with my dad to not miss it. The exam was a real slaughter. Hardcore questions, nightmare physics tasks from hell and three hours to decide upon my future as a doctor or not. After the exam I was quite pissed because it was so terribly hard and I have even cried back home because I was soo angry. I thought all of my hard work was for nothing. I was really pissed and sad.
But in the end it turned out fine.The results were published and I was in the top 40% that have manged to get in. I was partially shocked to see such a good result (I don't have to pay the scholarship EVER!) and also because I was emotionally discharged I didn't jump around from happiness but I was really really happy. My folks of course invited all the neighbors, friends and close family and we have gone out to get drunk (I've drank Blacky, cassis vodka).
So tomorrow I'm off to the college to give my documents and so and maybe I'll buy my guitar (I won't break my promise). So yeah.
I'm a medicine student.
The holidays have officially started.
I'm gonna buy myself a guitar.
I've got kittens I've love.
And I can write on Rockerica.
In short: FUCKING YEAH!
They arrived today, I love it!
My Groups
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J-Rock Fans Updated: 1 hour ago
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Japan Updated: 4 hours ago
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Vampires Updated: Apr 10, 2007
Neighborhood
Explore friends, family, friends & family, or entire neighborhood.
Links from my Friends and Family
The best (and only I know) online gothic, punk and metal ...
An excellent blog with not just some of the most honest a...
A kanji lyrics blog with a lot of lyrics for various artists
VISUAL KEI DICTIONARY 《ヴィジュ辞書》
A Visual kei dictionary with a lot of info. Worth checking.