January '10 VK Reviews

Phew. Made it right on time by nicking a few hours on 1st February! Yikes O_O TWELVE REVIEWS?! *shakes head*

Title: IN PHYSICAL *AWEFUCKINGSOME* Band: Ken (of L'Arc~en~Ciel) Verdict: 5 stars. I vote he should leave Laruku and continue as a solo artist then produce more bands. What an absolute kickass album. Unhampered by his band's emo-punk style, these self-produced songs are stylish and classy. One of the best releases from 2009 (and last decade). Go for: 'ETERNAL REST', 'IN PHYSICAL', 'SAVE ME' and practically everything in this album! xD

Title: Metamorphosis *AWEFUCKINGSOME* Band: DEAD END Verdict: 4.5 stars. Morrie is by far the most sturdy vocalist with hardly any break in prowess after what... almost 30 years? Here's some info on them just to prove my point. If you think veteran bands should stay away from making a comeback and further embarrass themselves like X Japan, spend some time to listen to this and be pleasantly amazed. It's bound to make you swear off all those teeth-gnashing new metal-slash-hiphop stuff that younger bands have been spewing -- if only for awhile. Because they totally bring back metal in Japanese rock. And it's been a few months for me to actually hear something worth repeating beside Ken's album thus I'm also awarding this with a Best of 2009 trophy. Go for: 'Guillotine', 'Shinen', 'Dress Burning', 'Kill Me Baby', 'Devil Sleep', 'Meigou'.

Title: 羅針盤 (Rashinban) Band: Shinkou Shuukyou Gakudan NoGoD Verdict: 3.5 stars. Spunky and fresh. Yeah, a tad weird to describe it this way but their expert songwriting is really unique as opposed to other rising indie bands. After a year plus, I've familiarised with Danchou's high pitch as something he's good at *unplugs earbuds*. Handling ballads and metal riffs like nobody's business, these talented boys are progressing really fast and looks like they'll be debuting under a major label this year probably after March. So I'm looking forward to that. Go for: 'Ring-a Ring-o', 'Mr.HEAVEN', 'Hakoniwa'.

	Title: Gain Band: Sadie Verdict: 1.5 stars. Nothing spectacular from this new mini. I can't even think up something nice to say. Ick... Just listen to 'Regret' and skip the others. Go for: 'Regret'.

Title: Canticum Band: forbidden days of rhapsody Verdict: 3 stars. Mika has returned to the foray as the frontman, bassist and programmer of this electronica-metal project. And omaigawd he got fellow ex-Rentrer bandmate Shun to join him *dies happy*. Cough. Beautiful songs, by the way. Another plus point would be featuring vocalist, Rui, who suddenly came into everyone's radar with his powerful voice. The mixing is beyond exquisite and should be listened to using superior headphones because 2 weeks ago I put this on speaker and thought it sucked. Oops. Go for: 'REFILL' (inst), 'HANDCUFF', 'IN DELIRIUM' (inst).

	Title: 神羅万象 -摂理- (Shinrabansho -Setsuri-) Band: XodiacK Verdict: 1.5 stars. Guh. What happened to them? And what kind of production is this? Choppy songwriting and horrible quality -- It's as if they recorded in a garage all in one day. Go for: 'Kimi ni Furu Zetsubou no Ame'.

Title: JUBILEE -Method of Inheritance- *HOT* Band: Versailles Verdict: 4 stars. In memory of Jasmine You, I couldn't help sighing and remembering their first album which practically bled your ears with high speed guitar riffs. I'm not entirely fond of the gay Waltz-like strings in 'Reminisce' and tame 'Amorphous'. Granted this is their first major album so it's possible they turned down their intensity a notch somewhat? Nevertheless, this is a good album that benefits a HOT tag because they have their production down to pat. Excellent work! And pay attention to 'Serenade' for the underlying meaning. [Random note: Silly me, I only found out last month that Teru was from Aikaryuu. SLOW, Arfah!] Go for: 'PRINCESS -Revival of Church-', 'Serenade', 'gekkakou', 'Catharsis'.

Title: us. *HOT* Band: the Underneath Verdict: 4 stars. Another 2009 album I overlooked. A little bit of everything can be found here: some old-Laruku, some AliceNine, some Inoran, some Pierrot. And I LOVE it. To death. So now when I'm completely digging it, they announce that they're disbanding! What a shame. Technically, this is their last album but not their final goodbye since they'll release a maxi single in March. One more good band bites the dust. Go for: 'Chou no Koe -The scream of the butterfly-', 'Insomnia', 'Aria', 'Ghost in the Mirror'.

Title: ABINGDON ROAD *AWEFUCKINGSOME* Band: abingdon boys school Verdict: 5 stars. They deliver us the goods on a gold platter (again). Yet they still cheat us by releasing too many good singles. I counted only 5 new songs. Hey but nothing and nobody can deny the greatness of this album. No huge cult hit as of yet although I'm pitting my money on the severely angsty 'Siren' against the snazzy 'PINEAPPLE ARMY'. Check out the Valkyrie remix, man. Go for: 'PINEAPPLE ARMY', 'Siren', 'Kimi no Uta', 'From Dusk Til Dawn', 'STRENGTH.' and yeaaah anything and everything.

Title: LASTICA Band: Karasu Verdict: 2.5 stars. I kinda have an image of them riding Harleys while cruising down Vegas in all-black leather outfits. Well, they've got the clothes right. Yet the song lacks the punch in the gut feel I normally get from Tats. And the repeating melody is tiresome after 4-5 runs. Not betting anything on karasu for now although they are pretty compatible with each other. Go for: Obviously 'Lastica' because they only have 1 song.

	Title: Monad Band: Vidoll Verdict: 2 stars. Hm. Not really for me. *yawn* Decent, but definitely isn't what I thought I could expect. Vidoll is quite an old band so why are they making platonic half-fluff like DuelJewel? I think I'll just stick to fluff from SID or Ayabie. Go for: 'Darwinism', 'hot cage remix'.

Title: 彩-irodori- Band: Ayabie Verdict: 3 stars. Ooh. This new change gets an approving nod from me. They've shrugged off their bubblegum poprock musical style to a mature blend of their signature oshare-kei with something I can't quite put a finger on. 'GAME' is highly addictive! Go for: 'GAME', 'Aitakute', 'Canary'.