17 posts tagged “alice nine”
Date released: 14.1.2009.
Track list
1. the beautiful name
2. 百花繚乱 (Hyakka ryouran)
3. RAINBOWS
4. Kiss twice,Kiss me deadly
5. CROSS GAME
6. 昴 (Subaru)
7. www.
8. Drella
9. MIRROR BALL [VANDALIZE EDITION]
10. イノセンス(Innocence)
11. Waterfall
The pretty much awkwardly titled third album by the pop-rock oriented Visual kei band alice nine. Even though last year's single output was pretty much disappointing, one thing I've learned when I was listening to their second album Alpha was that when it comes to albums, alice nine. don't really dissapoint. Zekkeishoku packed quite a punch with it's bright yet powerful song pallet, Alpha was similar but on some parts more intense. The main question is: Did VANDALIZE follow the same path?
VANDALIZE opens with a wide and wast the beautiful name which can be almost described as Viva la vida by alice nine. These guys sure love to rip-off songs for their album openers. The globe-hugging, bright chorus that soars in the air combined with background epic strings sure birngs some Coldplay reminiscence, but such style really emphasize a rather irritating trend these guys are following: loud, flashing choruses coupeled with playful pop-rock melodies into songs that sound all alike.
The album lifts some hope with Hyakka ryouran that delivers a really good Alice in Wonder Land reminiscence, the electro flair gives a special kick and it all sounds great until the copy/paste chorus that calls back to reality. God damn, it's like Shou can't sing the chorus in any other way than on this soaring, loud way that seriously irritates. The choruses were more creative back at the time when Shou didn't sing so well like now, at least he tried to compensate his vocal limitations with something new. Now he simply sings every single god-damn-chorus in the same way.
Then we come to the disco-power-rock anthem Rainbows which sounds just as surprisingly powerful and refreshing like on the single version. Following Rainbows is this very interesting and groovy garage-club-rock'n'roll piece Kiss twice, Kiss me deadly with a laid-back, seducive feel and I must admit that even the obnoxious female backvocal abuse sounds here more than fitting and it works! (Unlike with some other bands *coughgazettecough*). Despite some really good ideas Kiss twice, Kiss me deadly lacks some certain excitement even though the different approach does make it kind of memorable.
CROSS GAME reminds us on the uninspired, formulized same-titled single that was released a month or so ago (don't know nor care) being totally tiresome in it's flashing INYOURFACE chorus and flow (the song quality of alice nine. singles is unfortunately reversly proportional to the guitar quality). Subaru has got this quiet, almost ambiental intro and it moves to a glimmering guitar intro fitting for the starry song title. What starts pretty much atmospheric (the ambiental start reminds me on Mugen, bet Saga wrote this one) turns just into another alice nine light song like Eraser, but less memorable.
But then www. and Drella come...
My God.... www. and Drella would have made the BEST ALICE NINE SINGLE EVER.
www. may seem to have a strange title at first but in this song this title has a complete other and insightful meaning (World Wide Warning / World Wide Despair). www. has got the riffs and guitars as if they were taken straight from the GazettE's last single LEECH, especially the main riff reminds on the one from HOLE. Even though somehow reserved on the verses, the song has got a intense, incredible chorus with expressive guitars in the back and Shou delivering one of his better performances. And the guitar solo is simply beautiful, simple but very expressive and it just strenghtens the overall bitter mood of the song. But the jawdropping continues on Drella which is a pure metal song! It's got the chunky grinding riffs, it's vicious, hard ground-shaking piece with some serious attitude. Though Shou's relatively mild vocals don't exactly fit, but the way he sings and how his voice is distorted it all leaves a crooked, mad kind of feel. An unexpected metal surprise from this POP-ROCK band.
As a break from the intense album middle comes MIRROR BALL but in a piano arrangement which brings the song's feelings a bit closer. I've seen this arrangement for the first time on their last DVD as a live performance and I really liked it and I'm happy they've used this version for the album (the original version would have simply too much Shou's chorus bombs for me).
The album ends with a generic alice nine pop-rock piece Innocence and Waterfall which sounds like Subaru which sounds like atmosphere which sounds like Eraser... yeah it's alice nine recycle time. If people would have recycled trash as alice nine does songs, there wouldn't be any ozone holes (caused by the very hairspray abuse by Visual kei bands). Waterfall is, despite the promising intro, the ARMOR RING of VANDALIZE, a ballad-at-the-end that doesn't want to end.
VANDALIZE is indeed the weakest album from alice nine., not because of the song quality but because the fillers on this song outmeasure the songs that are actually really good, even amazing. Alpha and Zekkeishoku didn't have such power-tracks like www. and Drella on Vandalize, but their other tracks were worth more the while than those on Vandalize. Despite that fact Vandalize still offers more listen-worthy material than 2008 alice nine singles did and doesn't really fail on the premise that Alice nine albums are worth the while.
The very turbulent 2008 is coming to it's end and I think it's a good time to see which releases and bands marked the 2008. So sit back and hopefully enjoy my little summary of what I think is the best-of-the-best this year (with other stuff that for some certain reason marked the year) has delivered.
BEST SINGLE
1. the GazettE - LEECH
2. D'espairsRay - Kamikaze
3. -OZ- - Bulk
Best underground indie debut single of the year: Lucy - Discord
This year has delivered a mass of excellent singles from various bands (some bands releasing several excellent singles) that it was a really hard decision to decide which single had the balls, the oomph, the wow and awesomeness painted all over. I think LEECH was the single that really stood out this year because each track was pure dynamite, totally in-your-face, simply bombing you with energy! A Visual kei rock firestorm!
Among other great singles was D'espairsRay's bipolar Kamikaze with the best B-side that has ever emerged from this band: Scissors. Also -OZ- showed their fangs with the intense, aggressive and overall awesome metal-compound single Bulk. In the special category I have Lucy, a small and relatively new band with a big and broodingly dark single Discord (which can be also considered as the darkest single of the year).
1. Rentrer en Soi - MEGIDDO
2. Dio ~Distraught Overlord~ - Heaven's Call
3. Deluhi - Surveillance
Most ear/eye piercing mini-album: SuG - I SCREAM PARTY/punkitsch
Rentrer en Soi closed their final chapter and became legends with the epic last mini-album MEGIDDO which makes both fans and non-fans get the chills before this great and brilliant masterpiece. Among the runner-ups was Dio with their first and amazing Heaven's Call that delivered a full-pack of metal spiced hard Visual kei songs in the outstanding Dio manner. Also the newcomer's DELUHI first release Surveillance was just an announcement of this band's intention to take over the Visual kei world with their version of strong power-metal fusions and technical perfection.
Oh and there is a band that caused a lot of brain/ear hemorrhages with both it's releases and mini-albums and that is
SuG. If the color/kitsch overused album artwork wasn't enough of a warning to you, you'd be left off in a sugar coated mass of sticky, E-colored candy-punk mass. Do not listen unless you have an insulin syringe with you.
BEST ALBUM
1. Dir en grey - Uroboros
2. Kagrra, - Core
3. MUCC - Shion
Best album not reviewed : Sugar - Sweetest
What? You thought that the best album part wouldn't go without the legendary Dir en grey and their highly anticipated Uroboros, did you? When Dir en grey releases and album, you can be almost more that certain that is predestined to be the album that will mark the year and that will stand as a new level and measure in Visual kei. Though slightly dehumanized and a skillful showing-off nerve play, Uroboros is definitely an album which sets new borders, both in Visual kei as in the music world overall.
Following Uroboros we have the excellent album Core by the neo japanesque kings Kagrra having both their traditional oriental flavored songs as well as some new rock experiments that were successful. Also the most versatile album of the year Shion by MUCC came out as a pleasant surprise with a showcase of such a variety of songs, different in genres but united in a board, recognizable MUCC-style.
Ironically the only five star album this year wasn't reviewed and that was Sugar's SWEETEST: a balanced out, unique, jazzy influenced rock piece with songs that take the breath aways both in style, refinement, expression, paired up with the incredible talent of each member, especially the astonishing voice of the singer LOKI and the guitar-hero skills of the guitarist SIZNA. If it was reviewed, Dir en grey would have been pushed in a one-on-one fight party to the top with Sugar.
BEST PV
1. the GazettE - LEECH
2. Dir en grey - Glass skin
3. alice nine. - Rainbows
Most sexy (fangirl-unfriendly) PV: SCREW - Gather roses
What makes an excellent PV? Well a lot of things. When your jaw literally detached from your skull, the complementary fusion of both the visual and auditory aspect, a unique concept, an artistic approach, a certain aesthetic and of course the omg, wow! aspect. And I think the PV for the song LEECH has it all and leaves everybody simply breathless with one of the most interesting, aesthetic and symbolic PV's around. Also their PV Guren was pretty damn great, but we have to leave the places for other bands right?
Glass Skin by Dir en grey wass a soothing, transient and floating monochrome PV that just seems to take you into a different world, where time stands still. A very pretty and interesting PV. The PV with the fun-factor was definitely Rainbows by alice nine. with all of it's flashiness and energy, fitting for such a loud and energetic song.
And one of the most entertaining and hot PV's around was Gather Roses by SCREW which have almost literally screwed the chicks in the PV. I have never seen so many sex-allusion and subtle sex scenes in any Visual kei PV as in this one. Sex, boob-grabbing, masturbation, lap-dancing as well as cxxk-suxxxing, all is presenting a very subtle and TV friendly way, but enough to drive rabid fangirls wild. SCREW you are my personal heroes because of this.
BEST NEW BAND
1. DELUHI
2. Lucy
3. Vistlip
Label with the most failing new bands: UNDERCODE
You've got to admit that no one has expected such a great band to emerge this year and to have so many excellent releases it's almost not natural. Well DELUHI have proven us wrong, thanks to their unique power-metal flaired songs and uprising lyrics. Though present with only one yet very valuable release, Lucy also gave us hopes for the dark Visual kei with their single Discord. Vistlip had the excellent debut release and a few weaker others but it was still a band that is better than the other new rest.
Oh and a label who hasn't really contributed to the Visual kei scene was UNDERCODE with their heavy mediocre-to-bad oldschool Visual kei bands that all sound the same. But like Kisaki cares, as long as he is making money.
BEST BAND
1. the GazettE
2. D'espairsRay
3. Sugar
Greatest sound change: 12012
Man, deciding on which band deserves to get the prestige title best band was really, really heavy and I had to think very good about it to make a good decision. After some thinking I have decided that the GazettE deserves the Best band title. Why? Because not only have they released (only) two excellent singles (and as such repented for the last years Stacked Rubbish), but the band also had a full scale of various live performances that peaked in performances such as the two-day final in Yoyogi, the midsummer Gazerock Festival and the secret live in Shinjuku that was halted after two songs because the police had to stop (due to 7000 people coming, instead of laughably 250).
Among the other bands that marked this year were also the veterans from D'espairsRay that released three excellent singles and toured a lot, as well as announced a new album for the 2009. It's great to see them active, though not so dark as they used to be. And not to forget a band I discovered this year and that turned into one of my favorites: Sugar! You just have to have wrong ears if you can't get into their elegant and refined jazzy-rock tunes that sound incredibly sophisticated and good.
The band that has experienced the most greatest sound change this year (unfortunately on the worse) was 12012 that went from dark hard-rock to carefree sugary pop-rock, becoming more and more ligther with every single. Such a sad waste of talent and reputation unfortunately.
1. the GazettE -虚無の終わり、箱詰めの黙示 (Kyomu no owari, hakodzume no mokushi)
2. Deluhi - Vivid place
3. D'espairsRay - Scissors
Auditory Nirvana: Dir en grey - 蜷局 (Toguro)
And what has certainly made this year special was the amount of excellent songs from which some took the breath away, while others provided nirvana and chatarsis. Therefore, it was very hard to decide which songs were exceptional. The best song of the year , for me, was the GazettE's Kyomu no owari, hakodzume no mokushi, an apocalyptic piece with a mesmerizing mood, soaring, intense chorus and a aloof, yet present feel, accepting the end of the world with no regrets.
While Kyomu was quite pessimistic, the wast and positive song Vivid Place by Deluhi was an undeniable proof of their brilliance and ability to make songs that literally shine! While I was pretty displeased with the positive-less-dark style D'espairsRay has had on the song KAMIKAZE I was literally blown away by the sharpness and tension of Scissors. If anything else Tsukasa should write more D'espairsRay songs!
And reaching a mantric nirvana through music was never so near and so vivid as in Toguro by Dir en grey, a vunerable and calm song on their overall slightly dehumanized album. A wonderful, mesmerizing song with floating riffs and a lot of chanting.
And that would be it for my Best of 2008. I hope you liked it. You might have agreed on some spots with me, on some not, oh well everybody has got their own taste and favorites. So now I'm wondering what are your best of the best in this year! Which songs, releases and artists marked this year for you?
I hope the next year will be either as good as this one or preferably better!
Date released: 10.12.2008.
Track list
1. CROSS GAME [PV]
2. atmosphere
3. 夢幻-electric eden- (Mugen -electric eden-)
CROSS GAME is alice nine.'s third single this year and a appetizer before the new third album VANDALIZE will be served.
So CROSS GAME starts off with some awesome, almost metallesque guitars and that rapture lasts about as long until Shou opens his sushi hole up and throws up an alice nine. chorus they have used in the recent dozen of songs. Sad. It's sad to se how these guys are technique wise developing but the song quality is standing still on a dead spot and has no ambition to move away from it what so ever. And Cross Game would have been really amazing if it was my first alice nine. song. But it's my X0th and by that reheating in microwave time the it has already turned cancerous (don't reheat your food many times it may turn cancerous). Oh and did I mention that CROSS GAME is the ending to the 5th Yu-gi-oh! season in Japan?
The B-side atmosphere does the single no good being a clone of the song ERASER from the album Alpha. And atmosphere doesn't even have the charming chorus as ERASER had. ERASER was charming and transparent, but this is transparent and forgettable. And why do the songs on this single have excellent endings and are not excellent as whole?
The only song actually saving this single's ass from being an uninspired, recycled piece of a CD is Mugen -electric eden-. The song reminds a lot on Kagrra,'s slow ones from the San and Miyako period, but less moody though with a nice atmosphere and a bit insecure chorus, but the song turns better in the second half when the ehru (is it called like that?) solo goes and the ominous ending is perfect. A nice CHANGE for an instance.
Unfortunately this single is without a power-track which the two previous single's had but it does have the interesting Mugen-electric eden- which does come as a nice change in the overall overused style they have. So Cross Game wasn't exactly a win single for me but I wouldn't give up my hopes yet, when it comes to albums these guys release really good stuff, so I hope Vandalize will follow the same tradition as Zekkeishoku and Alpha.
I hope you can forgive me the big delay of August's issue. My computer had technical problems so I was way unable to release Baku at time. I hope you don't mind it too much.
Since I'm currently pretty busy I'll just post the pages so you can download.
I'll edit this post once I find time.
Please participate in VOX populi.
Date released: 6.8.2008.
Track list
1. RAINBOWS [PV]
2. ストロベリー ファズ (Strawberry Fuzz)
3. 胡蝶蘭 (Kochou ran)
I know that the title of the single is soo much gay and the album artwork reminds on some 70's disco album, but damn' RAINBOWS is more than just a colorful single.
RAINBOWS could be counted as one of the most explosive alice nine. tracks to date. It blows, it burns and it's hot! The danceable rhythm combined with roaring, thick, rock riffs and a hymn-like chorus is a certain hit whether for rock or just fans of danceable stuff. A great song, resembling the cool and fierce Kowloon! Great job guys!
Yet we come to another faggy titled track Strawberry Fuzz which is the 1st B-side cracker track like "13" or Stray cat, meaning it's fast, energetic and jumpy. Just as if you had taken the parts of those two songs and altered them a bit enough to sound a bit different. So yeah it's unoriginal, though a bit refreshed with a reggae insert somewhere on 3/4 of the song.
Kouchou ran has got this What the fuck moment at the begging (won't tell what, listen and find out yourself) . It's alice nine. borrowing the GazettE's XXXX! Heck it was just a matter of time before the PS Company staff say: Hey guys why don't you add a bit of this in your ballad? GazettE has done it before and the fans dig it and the masses dig it, so you should do that to! The ballad is ok, nothing special, rather forgettable but with good instrumental parts but the song seems to go and go and go... Well better that this is an alice nine. song when I think about it it could easily be one of the commercial GazettE ballads. I just hope the GazettE won't follow their pattern in the next single.
So what do we get here: a great A-side and rather forgettable and average B-sides just like the last couple of their singles. The last single that had great B-sides was WHITE PRAYER but all after were just... weak. So it's more than crystal clear that these guys are facing a serious inspiration problem when it comes to B-sides: instead of making good songs (even if only few) their discography is being filled with average, repetitve filler songs. These guys had their better moments as indies.
So overall a ok single worth because of it's great title song and interesting for the rather unusual B-side Kochou ran. But still only fans will be on their knees because of this single.
Tomorrow I'm going to go on the seaside for a few days. Every summer I go on the sea (and for the past few years always at the same place, gets kinda tiring after a while), so I know that this couldn't be avoided even this year.
I'm going to stay about a week, even though I think I'll stay only about 4 days because I have kittens at home and we don't really relax there, it's always a run from one place to another. So four days will be more than enough, I suppose.
As much as going on the seaside is a bore, yet there are always some things I look forward to, like...
- Just the trip there is always nice and exciting and if it's raining just a bit it's perfect then
- The sea! The beautiful blue watery wonder that is always a beautiful sight. And bathing there is fun, if the sea isn't too cold of course (And since I'm skinny (read: no fat tissue to warm you up) I can stay in the water up to 15min and then I get out because it's COLD!).
- Cocktails! Isn't there anything more tempting than a brightly colored alcohol goodness. My moment favorite is the legendary Sex on the Beach, but I'm open to other kinds too (maybe I'll kill myself with a Zombie).
- Long walks. iPod in ears, random album and walks for miles and miles. Last year I was listening to Girugämesh's Reason of Crying (which killed my earphones), Nightmare's Ultimate Circus and D'espairsRay's Mirror while I was walking around.
- Buying teen magazines you usually don't read. Cause you have to read something there.
And others....
But I think there is always a song or several songs that somehow mark the summer, that have got this summer feel to it. There are a lot of songs I could count but if there was a song I'd chose for my summer feel song, a song that most closely describes how I feel at summer days, either on the sea or in my town, I would probably choose 本日ハ晴天ナリ (Honjitsu wa seiten nari, Today the weather will be fine) by alice nine. Even though there are a lot of songs that have even a stronger summer feel, somehow this song would always come. I think I have forgotten the meaning it probably had for me last summer or similar, but it still rings within me.
So I'm going to share this song with you.
Oh and since I'm going on the sea the new issue of Baku will be delayed as well as some reviews. But I'll make up for them soon. July surely was awfully tight.
Fact #1: RAINBOWS is the most gay title for a rock song ever.
Fact #2: alice nine. (アリス九號. jap. arisu nain) are a Visual kei band who's sanity is a relative term.
Fact #9: Rainbows is a cool song and alice nine. is love. No argue here.
Something's not quite right with this PV...
Can you guess what it is?
Can't wait to see this PV in full.
Track list
1. MIRROR BALL [PV] [Listen]
2. 奇跡 (Kiseki) [Listen]
3. イレイザー -Memoire d’une fleur (Eraser - Memoire d’une fleur) [PV] [Listen]
Just a few months after releasing their second album Alpha, alice nine. kicked in again with their first (and knowing them probably not the last) release this year, the single MIRROR BALL.
MIRROR BALL is one of those powerful, passionate, intense songs that are simply made to have their own single. MIRROR BALL is quite impressive, even though it has got an familiar sound, but I really had hard time thinking with which song to compare it. It has got this lightness and passion of TSUBASA although not sounding so upbeat.
Kiseki begins with a very twisted and devastating riff, but unfortunately develops into this happy-go-lucky, guitar squealing piece that you're likely to skip when listening. Has got a moment or two that are good (including Saga's pulsing bass part) but apart from that it is just uninspired. Shame for such an excellent riff at the beginning to be wasted on such a song.
Eraser sounding familiar? Yes! Eraser was the charming but very forgettable song from the album Alpha and it surprised me when I saw that this forgettable piece made it not just on the single but also got it's very own PV as well. I am not a fan of recycling songs because I think that is a certain sign of bands being uninspired or wanting to squeez more money out of fans or both. But the Eraser - Memoire d’une fleur (Memory of a flower on the beautiful language French) turned out pretty well, the original space-like beginning was replaced with the gentle piano intro and the whole song sound as light as summer morning, charming on every note being a really charming alice nine. song (although very pop, my friend thought alice nine. was a J-pop band when I showed her the PV).
In a recent interview for the German rock magazine Rockoon! Hiroto (gt.) said: I want to make music that strengthens one's back, music, that reminds one on his own childhood. And recently alice nine. has really been making music up to this philosophy: charming, catchy, light and passionate tunes, almost freed from any aggression. I think alice nine. were never so popular as they were now, making successful singles, releasing visually impressive PV's (even two per release!) and preforming on various events in and outer Japan. But they have really made a big leap from their older stuff which was, I admit, in a way always upbeat and energetic, but also strong and sometimes aggressive.
What I wanted to say, the realities which they offered in their previous songs were saying Even though not everything is perfect now, it will be better later and they were more real than the almost idyllical image their song are offering now. Going to a more idillycal world view I think that alice nine. are simply making a big distance not just with their old music and fans, but also to themselves.
First of all I am having terrible problems with Vox being down for me all the time and that's why I am having troubles posting posts and content. This post is posted from my school's computer and will be updated with pitcures and PV's when I get home, if by the time VOX decides to work for me.
Track list
1. ZERO
2. cosmic world [PV]
3. 蒼い鳥 (Aoi tori)
4. JEWELS [PV]
5. 9th Revolver
6. -Dice-
7. NUMBER SIX. [PV]
8. 虹彩 (Kousai)
9. WHITE PRAYER [PV]
10. イレイザー (Eraser)
11. ブループラネット (Blue Planet) [PV]
12. Cradle to [Alpha]
Judging by the solid, but still under-average alice nine. 2007. releases and some not so positive reviews and comment I was a bit afraid to listen to Alpha. Or as the Murphy rule would say:"If you think something will go wrong, it'll go wrong". But after I listened to the album I realized that things are not really bad, they're actually good.
Starting off with an explosive opener ZERO (which is actually a copy of a song from Saga's favorite band) which will blow your jaw away and reminds a lot on Velvet, then going on to the glimmering pop-rockish, but a bit uninspired cosmic world, the first songs give off a great and energetic start. Aoi tori gives off an interesting refrain and melody, followed by the instrumentally impressive formerly released track JEWELS.
9th Revolvers great emotional charge and width make it one of the better alice nine. songs and Shous voice simply shines in this song. But my personal favorite track of the album and maybe overall from alice nine. is definitely -Dice-. This Kowloon styled song will shock you with the moshing-orgy parts ala Dir en Grey and blow you away with the best refrain in alice nine. EVER! The melody, the energy, the expression, everything makes the -Dice- refrain to one of the best I've ever heard.
NUMBER SIX. is next, one of the songs that combine elements of old and new alice nine. Although it isn't the best song on the album, it still charms with its nice melody and atmosphere. Kousai is one of the obligatory alice nine. 7 minutes and more long ballad, but it sounds fresh and not so boring as ARMOR RING from Zekkeishoku did. WHITE PRAYER that follows has already proved it's quality on the single release. Eraser is also a pretty solid song, but it's darn uncatchy so by the moment you finish listening to it you'll forget the song completely.
Blue planet is rerecorded and sounds a bit better than the download-only original, but is still a pretty irritating song. The disco influenced outro Cradle to [Alpha] closes this great album.
So all of you who were wondering if Alpha is worser than Zekkeishoku, the answer is no. And if you were wondering if it is better than Zekkeishoku, the answer is also no. Alpha is somewhere in the same level as Zekkeishoku, but the style is a bit different. If you are an alice nine. fan this album is a must buy and listen. But overall this album is worth listening basically because of the great new songs such as ZERO, 9th Revolver, -Dice- and some older songs.
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