Golden Bomber Appreciation Post

No Music No Life look for Golden Bomber

Wow, it's really been a year since I wrote about Golden Bomber. How should I say this, they did change my view on some things. Even though sometimes their jokes are too mo lei tau for me,  they somehow manage to keep me interested. Their stuff cheers me up during my worst times and more recently I think they gave me a bit more confidence. They rose to fame as the air band that performed Memeshikute which topped the Oricon ranking as number 1. How did such a comedic act of the visual kei industry manage to get the number one spot? Let's be honest, visual kei has always been underground and independent and it feels like for the first time, something underground became mainstream. For those of you who have listened/watched Memeshikute, you know how catchy and addicting it can be.

ゴールデンボンバーLIVE『金爆ねんごろツアーファイナル初ワンマン「愛は地球を巣喰う」～美輪さん100kmマラソン～』

On my to watch on my Nico account, I had totally forgot that I had timeshifted a broadcast of a Golden Bomber One Man Live from 2008. I had it reserved for spring break, but if you read my previous posts my spring break wasn't that exciting. So right before I went off to school, I watched it. That show was so hilarious! Even though there were no English subtitles at all, I felt like I understood a good part of it and enough really to enjoy the show. I find it pretty amazing that I am able to learn a fourth language, Japanese, when I have completely forgotten the third language, Spanish. Watching all that anime and jdrama really paid off. After long time exposure and I mean constantly for more than five years, you start to pick up things along the way.

Versailles Self Titled Album Review Plus Kamijo

I have never properly reviewed albums before and I think I'll give it a try.  The best way to review anything is to do research and interact with the item as much as possible.  For music, I think it's important to record first impressions and then listen to the same song/album a multiple of times.  It just makes the review more credible and more thorough.  Today's I will be reviewing Versailles' self-titled album, Versailles.  It was released on September 25, 2012 so it's been out for more than a year.  I've obtained it in late 2013 and have been listening to it since. 

My first impression overall was that it didn't live up to my expectations.  It did not have that same fervor in previous albums like Jubilee.  Maybe it was a good idea to halt activities and let Versailles recharge themselves.  As of now, they're still on hiatus and went separate ways.  Kamijo is pursuing his solo activities and the rest of the band have formed another band called Jupiter.  Versailles didn't leave a memorable impression and nothing stood out too much.  It was very safe.

Is the GazettE Really the Decay of Visual Kei?

I don't know about you but every time I flip open SHOXX magazine there is some crazy shit going on.  I'm like "Do you even have a concept?"  A lot of it is merely fanservice or pure shock value.  I blame it on the fact that this is the music industry today.  We're very into the glam factor and the extreme in-your-face type of things.  I may not be very into it but a lot of people are buying into it.  It's very frustrating to see that people younger than me are buying into the culture and worshiping it on a pedestal.  There's so much crap on the radio and on TV.  The ideas are very short-lived and are usually detrimental in one way or another.  One example is music and lyrics about partying being broadcasted constantly and occupying most of the airtime.  It's ok to have party songs every now and then, but it looks like everyone is making party songs nowadays.  You can't party everyday.

So what does the shock value in visual kei, the party songs, and the GazettE have to do with each other?  These three are a product of the music industry trying to make lots of money within a short period of time and hoping to continue this cycle.  The GazettE was the first band that officially introduced me and enticed me into the world of visual kei.  Through the different GazettE eras, you can see the various trends in visual kei and a reflection of what could be considered mainstream j-rock.  The GazettE is a mainstream rock band that continued to dominate listeners with not so mainstream music.  Isn't that kind of contradicting in itself?  Many have applauded the GazettE's unique sound and effort that fueled the band's popularity over the years.  In comparison to what would be considered mainstream rock, the GazettE really stand out.  They had a very consistent style and were very experimental on each of their albums.  It is fairly easy to distinguish the GazettE from other bands singing about decay, filth, and uncomfortableness. 

Their latest album, Beautiful Deformity, made me feel disappointed.  I sampled the whole album and I didn't like it too much.  The songs "Fadeless" and "Inside Beast" were the two that were used to promote the sale of the album and probably the only two songs that was reminiscent of the GazettE's previous albums.  They were very experimental in their album Toxic which started adding in electronic influence.  Beautiful Deformity also sprinkled bits of electronica in some songs like Inside Beast while still preserving the hard rock.  Some songs like "Redo"and "Last Heaven" are ballads like the popular "Cassis".  I think this album is easy to listen to for new listeners of the GazettE and overall was very safe.  They didn't do anything out of the box or was radically different than before.  Some parts of the ballad-like songs drifted into a bit more pop sounding.  It's not the worst thing ever made, but I don't think this was their best work.  Nothing really stood out to me and it felt like the producers just told the band to spit out repetitive themes done before. 

Lot's of people use or see the GazettE as a model for today's visual kei and it is wrong to do so.  They may be an influential  group, but they are not the only ones doing it.  This supposed decay that everyone is talking about is a decline in creativity.  Has the "genre" of visual kei really decayed?  I don't think so.  It is a quickly evolving movement and it's safe to say that it's grown to be more of a fashion trend.  Visual kei pioneers, X Japan, had the idea in mind to walk on stage as if anime characters walked out a TV.  It can't survive today with the same mentality and it needs to find a reason to live if it is to continue in the music industry. 

Dir en grey Macros For Everyday Use

There's plenty of macros, memes, whatever floating on the Internet about every subject possible.  I just happen to have a lot Dir en grey/Kyo related macros on my computer I like to share.  They come from a variety of sources from Batsu forums to livejournal to photobucket.  I can't even credit them anymore because they get reblogged on tumblr and get shared everywhere.

Behold an image heavy post.  I picked out these macros that can be used in just about any conversation.  A couple of them are a bit more specific to certain fandoms..  Here we go.  3...2...1...Go!

Cuz it's all dark and shiz.

For the annoying friend.

Feminine Masculine: All-Female Groups in Japanese Rock and Metal

It is well noted that the visual kei industry is predominantly male.  In Japanese metal, it is the same as well.  Or maybe metal all around the world.  Occasionally I see a female bassist or vocals, but that's about it.  Where did they go?  I cannot answer the question without being too biased so I'll refrain from giving my opinion.  For the women that have decided to emerge in the music industry, I'll congratulate you all.  It wasn't easy and I'm sure there was a lot of prejudice at first.  Rock and metal being a masculine type of music doesn't have to be limited to just males.  A lot of young girls and women love extreme music just as much as the next guy.  I think it's important to start accepting that girls want to be part of the band culture as musicians and not as a sex symbol.  One of my pet peeves is that women are just there for looks whether they choose to be or not. 

Right now there is a social conflict happening all over the world, the definition of masculinity and femininity.  We are constantly trying to define what makes someone or something masculine or feminine.  To be more accurate, this problem has occurred before in the past.  Roles of women throughout history have constantly changed.  Roles of men have remained relatively static, but different ideologies what defines a man have changed immensely in the 21st century.  Issues about sex and gender are becoming more significant as we are being told that the world is not just composed of men and women.  Some people accept the third gender and some are strongly against it.  Never mind the third gender, dealing with the existing two sexes is a pain in the neck.

One of the things that people like to associate Japan with is their overly cutesy girl pop groups.  There are loads of them and there doesn't see to be an end to them.  It doesn't seem like rebel girls are part of the mainstream and it's generally not too well accepted over there.  I'm not too sure about how, but I have been noticing lately that at least through Internet and social media, girls are picking up the guitar and drumsticks and doing cover videos.  And these are electric guitars, headbanging included.  They can dress like lolis, but they're headbaging lolis and are springing up in Japan.  Let's take a look at the all-female bands of Japan and see what we can learn.
*I will not be including bands that have a female frontman.  All members will be girls.*

Wagaku at Its Finest

Wagaku 和楽 means Japanese music, but it refers specifically to music using traditional Japanese instrument and/or sung in traditional Japanese vocals.  Oddly enough, I listen and know more wagaku songs than I do for Chinese themed songs.  Sadly, I think it's due the fact I'm not exposed to C-pop.  I've always loved the sounds of ethnic instruments.  They have a unique identity representing their respective culture.  I was first introduced to wagaku through the music of Rin' and Kagrra.  To be honest, I don't even know how I came across these two now defunct groups.  It's really sad now that I think about it.  Rin' disbanded in 2009 and I haven't heard anything from their members whether they quit music entirely or doing solo work.  Kagrra had announced their "demise" in 2011 and during that summer when I had no access to Internet, news of Isshi's death arrived.  I was deeply saddened because Isshi had a unique voice.  I was hoping to hear that voice of his mature through years of singing and he had passed away at the age of 32.  Because of that, I decided to commemorate him through art and I did an oil painting.  Looking back at it, I wasn't really a good painter to begin with.  If I ever want to, I'll repaint this one.  It's been two years already, coming close to three since Isshi's death.

Below are artists I came across that relate to wagaku.  Roughly in the order of my own timeline.

Flame Wars Are Rooted in Ignorance

A good rule of thumb for being a fan of anything is to support your favorite artist/company/group by spreading the love and not the hate.  Ten years ago when internet and social media was not as prominently used, I don't think the term "flame war" was coined yet for feuds between groups of fans or individuals.  I would say flaming and flamers have gotten worse over the years and many people have fallen victim to it.  If you go on to any youtube page and look at the comments, chances are you'll come across a lot of crap.  College humor accurately portrays this in the following video.

Bias is within every individual and we tend to take sides.  In schools of America, we are taught to embrace diversity and unconsciously we tend to berate those that conform to a standard.  Occasionally we take a neutral stance if stakes get too high.  It is not wrong to have your own opinion and nor is it wrong to align yourself with a mainstream idea.  Some fans have a tendency to take it too far to express themselves and end up hurting other fans either through the Internet or physically.

Here are some things I've been seeing on Youtube when I browse through visual kei rock PVs that get on my nerves.

Influential Jrockers

There are lots of people to look up to.  I look up to a variety of people from different professions, but for me specifically, musicians have the most impact.  I have been a hardcore fan of Japanese rock and metal for quite some time.  My family knows that very well and they don't really comprehend my interest in jrockers.  First of all, they don't even like rock music or any forms of extreme music.  Secondly, my tastes in art are very different from my family so I'm considered a weird individual.  Even though our opinions may clash, I still respect them.  Here's a select list of Japanese rock and metal musicians that I find very influential to me and reasons why I respect them.