Oh yeah, I've seen the name Aural Vampire, but I didnt checked them out, I have too many other things to get now these days xD But its cool they are coming to the Netherlands

@K7, the other bands arent that metal, so you won't find them on MA.

Its cool Diru is coming to Wacken but I think I rather see them in a club. I saw a live video of them at Rock Am Ring, it was a bit dead ^^' And in a club only fans will come, so that seems much more exciting If they come here to the Netherlands I'd be quite glad haha I'm not sure if Im going to Wacken, just dont really have the money for it

Linak I guess I'm a litte bit sensible but that sound roude to me... (nah, i know i'm sensible right now)...anyway, i'ts like a dream (or a nightmare since I don't have a chance to be there) come true to see a lot of bands I love and a band that I probably i'm never gonna be able to see in live, but you are right, i can't compair a band like... I don't know, Therion (the first one I remember...) with Diru, that's true.

Blackgir you are totaly right! i can't imagine how that will be, i just hope people be tolerant...

Eddie Yeah, I also think that is better for them to make their own shows, for their fans, I'm pretty sure that a lot of metalheads are thinking WTF?... just see how their react when they won the Headbangers Ball: #1 with SAKU...

@Alouqua: Honey!! Never! Ohhh I'm so sorry if I sounded rude or someting, I never meant it that way, pff I get passionate that's all, waahh I'm sorry sorry sorry lo siento lo siento lo siento u_u *hugs*

And and... WHAT?? Omg if I expected people to go to Wacken it's YOU TWO!! Hmph, I am seriously disappointed if BOTH of you, Fangirl and Pumpkin don't go!!! Grrr... FINE! Don't go, Feathers and me will if we have to sell Norma or someting! hmph

haha, I'm being passionate here! Passionate!

Hahaha "Fangirl and Pumpkin" xD Yes, well, I cant go most probably because of money and exams, I have to see how that falls, the same for Graspop, which is likelier that I wil go to Its just a bit easier to go there, because me and my friends pretty much go there each year, but we have to see how the line-up works out, its looking pretty good now though.

Oh hey, seems like you are quite liking the 54 Nude Honeys

@Alouqua, oh yeah, I heard that they won with Saku, but I didnt heard anything else from it, just some screaming fangirls. How was the response???

I don't know if the metalheads would be tolerant towards Dir en Grey. Since Dir En Grey's sound is kinda nu-metallish. Plus most metalheads are kinda unknown towards the J-rock scene, and the way they perform their acts. Oh well, we will see.

Wacken is overrated And I wouldn't go for just Dir en Grey, you know I am not that fond of them. and the rest..well, there are better concerts or festivals. so..nah. I might go to Dir en Grey just for fun if they perform in the Netherlands for a cheap price. And I mean..a very cheap price below the 20 euro or something.

I have tried Aural Vampire yesterday. They are quite good..but a lot of electronica in the music. I also had to get used to the female vocalist, but she has a nice vocal..I guess. I do think their album "Vampire Ecstacy" will get boring quite soon, the songs heavily suffer the symptom of similarity. Oh well, I don't think I am going to see them. The other two bands who are performing don't interest me at all. Also the fact it is a goth concert and not a Jrock concert kinda.. made me feel less optimistic about it. Plus I rather spend those euros in something different.

Now listening to Hizaki Grace Project. I was surprised, but Juka from Moi Dix Mois is singing for this band now. And omg, this stuff is metal, and it definitely has a bit of this Moi Dix Mois feel in it, but more Jrockish(probably the Hizaki influence). I have only 4 songs now, but I am definitely going to try a full album. Both Juka and Hizaki are awesome, and these 4 songs sound awesome, so.. you will probably hear me talk about this band later oh, and Juka looks weird with shorter white hair

@Belouackgouir: I found the Hizaki Grace Project album last night and... IT'S FUCKING AWESOME! It does have some moi dix mois references in it and it's truly inspired and expressive! Juka sounds marvellous and the whole work is well-done! Woo! What a band! I've been listening to the album a whole lot since last night and i can't stop listening to it! And it does sound metallic a lot, definitely! I'm glad i read your post last night, i'm so happy with this new band i discovered

I am glad to hear you like them I couldn't find their full album yet, but I have a good set of mp3s now. Juka's vocals are truly amazing again(this guy is slowly developing into becoming my favourite Jrock vocalist), but I also really like Hizaki's guitar playing on this album. It suits the music so well, it is just a pure pleasure for the ears Have you also watched their PV? It is interesting to see Juka with short white hair haha.

It definitely sounds metallic, the vocals obviously, but also the guitar riffs are clearly metal influenced. I also have been listening a lot to them this week. I just hope Hizaki can manage this band, he is kinda notorious for splitting up quickly. I wouldn't really like it, because this line-up just works so well

just got re-interested in that 'Art Of Life' song and learning the second piano solo on guitar and piano. simple, but fun

damn that freaken cd and it being imported to canada!

Theres actually a J-Rock band out there called MUCC they're really damn Hard. I saw them live, and the pits are insane (because me and my friend started every pit for them)

X-Japan is the best Metal band from the country...For me, I'd call them J-METAL. They had a style to them like Iron Maiden. Its too bad Hide died so young though.

L'arc en Ciel just suck!

Miyavi has a raw sound to him, and I like it.

Dir en Grey change style every album, I like that that are in constant metamorphosis, I'm waiting for them to sound more Death/Black Metal. But my favorite albums from them are 'MACABRE' and 'Withering To Death'

The others I've heard of, but not my favs. Now about the picture posted, that is so true, I remember when a lady friend asked me what I thought of Kyo and Shinya from Diru, honestly, I told her, I'd do them, then she goes "Actually those are guys", I surprised her and went, "I'd do them anyway!"

News on the supergroup that has the members Gackt, Yoshiki and Sugizo so far! A 4th member has been added ^^



Yep, Miyavi it is!! The thingie has name now too, SKIN, and whats left now is the announcement of the 5th member, the bassist. The group will debut at Anime Expo in 2007 on the 29th of June. So I suppose we can expect some music to be released around then too. Here is a video of Miyavi announcing the ordeal: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hydqax1EOZ8

I'm pretty excited about it and really wonder what they will do, and how they will be seen by the world. I hope they will make a big impact and that they will tour lots of places, including the Netherlands ofcourse haha. Just who will the bassist be... Guess time will tell, lots of time I suspect as they are taking quite long with announcing news of their band xD I'm expecting a lot from these guys, they better not dissapoint me

I knew it was gonna be Miyavi.But...i won't comment on it since i have no interest in the band whatsoever

So,in any case
.I was gonna vote in this thread finally but i found it to be impossible,cause out of these choices i can't really decide whether to go with The Gazette or Dir en grey.
When i first started seeing how good J-Rock actually is,i was drawn to The Gazette first.Not that the looks are most important but they DO look amazing so it's hard to ignore them.Ruki's voice always sounds amazing,whether he's singing clearly or growling.My favorite song currently is Cassis but that changes almost daily
As for Dir en grey.It took me a while to get into them.I never really gave them much attention though i knew they were popular,haha don't know why.But the music drew me in.And also the fact Kyo writes the most disgusting lyrics with such sick imagery that it sometimes makes me wonder what the hell goes on in his head.On the other hand,he easily turns it all around and writes a sweet,sad,gentle song that could make you cry if you're overly emotional or whatever.Good example among many others is "Ain't afraid to die".Also i always wonder about his self mutilation on stage.I would really want to know how much is fake and how much is real,and if it's just well thought performance.If it is..well then i hope he knows they're too good and don't really need that sort of thing to draw attention.If it's not...well..ehm..Kyo what's wrong?

Also my list of j-rock that i enjoy goes on.Nightmare make really enjoyable music.And not only that,they seem really cool offstage.Also their alter ego band Sendai Kamotsu is the weirdest damn thing i ever saw
Now that's a fun band.But Chiba is 'effin scary
I also really like MUCC.Music is too awesome.And another good thing for me is watching Tatsurou constantly hit and abuse Yukke.I take a secret,sick pleasure in that If Yukke hitting was a sport i'd be a cheerleader.ahem..ignore that.
Also Alice Nine are a cool band.And Shou's voice keeps getting better
I'm also waiting for AnCafe's new stuff,now that Bou left the band (goddamnit) and the have 2 new members (goddamnit)
What else...LM.C - A band with Miyavi's ex.guitarist Maya and Aiji (ex.Pierrot) I love this band cause the music is upbeat,fun and interesting.Thank God Maya realized he doesn't have to be in Miyavi's shadow.Cause his ego crushes everything And i can't get enough of the weird way Maya pronunces "Keep it real".Well he pronounces everything weird but whatever..ehm XD
Then comes Viored.They're not that known yet,i guess.I downloaded their CHAOS album and i really dig it so far...so i'm waiting to see what big things they'll do next.

So this was a long rant...there's probably more stuff that'd be worth mentioning but my brain came to a halt

EDIT- And when talking about japanese music.I also kind of like some J-pop.Ahem...liiike..News and Kat-tun.
And i loved that single Kamenashi Kazuya and Yamashita Tomohisa(Yamapi) released as Shuuji to Akira.The single was called "Seishun Amigo" and it was only used as the ending credit of the series "Nobuta wo produce".Too bad it's only a one time thing.Yeah..Yamapi...Yamapi is fiiine.I mean...he sings really well.
Yeah...Yamapi FTW

I was surprised that Miyavi was one of the secret members. I expected Yoshiki would like..pick someone with musical talent. Oh well, The fact that Yoshiki, Gackt and Miyavi(oh and that other guy, Sugizo) will team up makes it something interesting. Even when I can only enjoy a few Gackt songs now and then and I simply can't stand Miyavi. Oh well, oh, and how Miyavi looks like on the announcement, that is just disgusting.

By the way, it wouldn't surprise me if the band will tour Europe, since they are searching for international fame. Even here in the European countries some Japanese musicians are becoming popular by the day. Gackt especially is one of them.

@Deus Ex Machina, The first time I saw your post I first quickly browsed in the hope to see some Schwarz Stein, Velvet Eden, Blam Honey or anything more of the electronic side of visual kei, too bad there isn't. Did you try that type of music, and if you did, what is your opinion about it?

and I guess I should try something of Viored.

@Blackgir - J-Rock is still something i'm exploring.I've been into it for maybe 3 months.If even that long.But i'm glad you pointed out these lesser known bands because there's a big chance i'll like it.Considering it's more on the electronic side.I will gladly give them a listen.And yes,i'd like it if you checked out Viored and say if you liked them at all.
Also,while we're on the subject of Viored.There's one thing i wanted to mention but forgot earlier.It's their image.I personally can ignore the image if it isn't something blatantly horrible.But at times they look so much like Gazette it's overdone.So...weird.They should give that a rest.They even have similar logos.And one of their songs is called "Taion" just like Gazette's "Taion".
It's overwhelming.I forgive the ripping off only cause i like the music.

@Deus Ex Machina, well, those bands aren't really lesser known. Some of them are quite well known. Especially Schwarz Stein, since they are on the same label as Moi Dix Mois. Mana signed them(which already boosted their popularity a lot). I was just curious if there was someone on this forum who also like them. Just try to find something of Schwarz Stein or Velvet Eden, both bands are really fantastic(and IMO, better than most of the so-called Jrock bands).

I will give Viored a try, if I can find any music of them, they aren't that populair yet. I did google their image quickly, and well..you are right. Their image is a complete Gazette ripoff. The music is different? Personally I am not really into Gazette, and I am very picky when it comes to Jrock. I will still give them a try though

Miyavi does look indeed like he was puked out by someone before the pic was shot

Perhaps some other bands you could look into Deus: The Back Horn, Phantasmagoria, Alice Nine, Ayabie, Blood, D'espairsRay, Galneryus, Girugamesh, Hyde, Kaggra, Merry, Penicillin, Sex Machineguns, Sadie (pretty much Dir en grey clone), Vidoll, Acid, Bluebeard, Deathgaze.

I expressed what i wanted to say,wrongly i guess.I was gonna say smth like i'm glad you mentioned these bands that are unknown to me,lesser known to me..or whatever hehe doesn't matter.
Anyway.Viored..eh yes.The music doesn't suffer from Gazette overload..at least i think so.
But they just don't let go with the image.And as i saw it.In the upcoming PV...it's still Gazette'ish.And to add to the story.I was watching their live...and they even move like The Gazette on stage.At times i could swear that was Kai on the drums.It's a really strange thing.If i were Gazette i'd sue.

Furthermore,as i'm really interested in learning about J-rock.I found some Schwarz Stein.Well i previewed them first on Youtube and i liked the sound right from the beginning.So this band will probably be what i'll be listening to a bit these days to get to know them a bit.
And while i was at this i found an all girl band called exist?trace.And i don't know if people know much about them.They are quite unknown to me.I heard the song Judea and taken quite a liking to it.So i'll get on searching for more stuff on that too.

@Eddie..yes i know Alice Nine,Despa,Hyde,Phantasmagoria <3,Ayabie,Vidoll and all that but glad you reminded me of Sex Machineguns.I've always loved that name and never looked what was hidden under it.Also Deathgaze..i'll look into that XD yay

OMG OMG OMG *dies*

I need to say NO more... you all must know what is going through my mind, although I would also love to illustrate my reaction to this AMAZING news *cough* victory dance *cough* Miyavi desuuu!

AND on that pic he does NOT look like he just puked or had someone puke on him... because he has TEH smile of a winner : DDDDDDDD

U_U Ah... so close and yet so far away

Yeaah great news!! Though I am a bit afraid the world might implote having those guys with such talent working together.
I agree with Linak on these, as you already know of course, Miyavi looks like a winner! and he is... I can't wait to listen to some of their music... OMG, we might even be able to jump to Japan and see them live.... *joins linak in the underworld* I am so excited! Those three together...

Haha stoopidz, so far they are four, not three! Oh anyway, so so.. so, we're building a raft and going over there on the date right? because.. because if I don't go I'm afraid my head will explode!!

Oh they better tour China... or else, nah, they will, they love chinese food haha xiao long bao ^^ (that's like little dumplings I KNOW they like ) waaah they better tour over here Feathers! We can just wait... like a panther ready to attack... haha, ahh so talented, ALL of them, ahh and just, I can't get over the Miyavi desu news!

OMG Can you actually imagine their LIVES? Do you remember the Vanilla live performance? Now add to that Yoshiki and Miyavi (sorry Sugizo but you don't appear on my top 50 haha), seriously, the world will implode!!

I know they're four, but hehe, I must confess I don't really know Sugizo either so I cann't talk about him...
buuut going back to the important stuff... yeaah I remember the Vanilla live performance, of course! I still see it over and over everynight in my dreams, sometimes my head even plays it backwards, you know?
And of course I have also imagined Yoshiki and my love Miyavi included in a live performance like that. I am really looking forward to see the interaction between Gackt and Miyavi on stage, and I am not only talking about That-What-Must-Not-Be-Named, but the whole show. Will be really interesting to be there.

Linak... we need to learn how to cook the best xiao long bao in this country, open a big chain of stores, make ourselves famous, (all that before the next July) and and then... maybe we will have a juicy story to add to our collection.

So.. who do you reckon will be the fifth member?? I would so love it to be Toshiya, or maybe Reita... but I don't think it's humanly posible to survive that combination

Reita or Toshiya, either of them would be quite nice, and certainly too much for a human to bare xD Also with the new album of Gazette coming I think they will be too busy with touring for the album to miss a member for that time, and for Diru, I don't know, but well, Toshiya would be just too much haha

So you 2 better start building that raft

I know... both Reita and Toshiya will be touring with their own bands all this year but aaah... dreams don't cost a penny.
Lately, I've been meeting a lot of japanese people around our age, 20 to 25 years old and I've been quite surprise to find that most of them don't know any of the bands that are normally mentioned in this topic. At first I thought maybe only in the big cities like Tokio these bands were known, but no. They all know Gackt, Hyde, XJapan, and that's pretty much it. (Miyavi doesn't ring any bells for them!!)
I've been talking to some japanese guys that are into jrock, one of them even plays in a band here and he didn't even recognize most of the bands I talked to him about, it happened the same the other way around of course. Anyway, just a funny fact... I thought they were much more famous among the japanese youth than they actually are.

@Deus Ex Machina, well, I assume you have tried some more Schwarz Stein by now, you like it? I have tried Viored. At least, I could find their latest single on the internet, but to be honest. I wasn't that impressed. The single starts quite heavy, but it slows down into the typical J-rock sound quite quickly. There are just too many of those visual kei indies band that have a similar sound to this band. I do recommend Eddie or Feathers to try this band, because I do think there is even some similarities with Gazette in the music.

@Linak/Feathers, I knew you two would be very excited about the news..and well about the raft, build it while I am there so I can see them too I still need to do a certain thing with rocks related to Miyavi. oh, and I really want to go to Japan.

About the last member..honestly I don't expect a big name for the bassist. There aren't really any popular bassists in the Jrock scene, simply because bassists always are well..not the favourite member of a band in a lot of cases I am curious who it will be, but it wouldn't surprise if it becomes some musician we aren't that familar with.

Hm yeah, I think I listened to Viored a while back, the name is quite familiar, but I don't have any music of them atm so I may be wrong ^^' I will give them a go anyway. I quite like the typical jrock sound hehe, but there are a lot of bands out there that do just about the same with it like you say Blackgir, it just needs a touch of originality. I'm picking up their latest single, Kusabi, at the moment now too.

I really have no idea either about the bassist, it could be anyone for as far as I can see xD but I'm sure they make a good choice, somehow tetsu from L'arc~en~Ciel keeps up popping in my mind, but its just a guessing game. He's a pretty good bassist and he has a nice feel to him. Has anybody heard his solo work? Whats it like?

Death to Visual Kei:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMaF54qYhss

If you like Hizaki grace project, you may want to check D:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WUGLPyrWlY

Hmm, while I'm not the hugest fan of J-Rock, I do enjoy a lot of X-Japan's work, and some Moi Dix Mois and Malice Mizer as well. Do you guys know any other Visual Kei bands similar to these three that I should be checking out?

Incidentally, a local Metal Club has organised a 'Glam Night' for the 6th of July, and I've decided to go in Visual Kei costume, although slightly toned down so that I don't get beaten up. Might post some pics after the event!

DIIIE of envy everyone! I'm gonna go see Miyavi TWO days from now, and today doesn't count! Bwahaha, I get to see Miyavii, I get to see the mighty sex god number 5~! I am so cool, lalalaa, now... I have been secretly considering all possible ways to get closer to the stage without being kicked out, and I have reached the conclusion that it's physically impossible to do, so I have no choice but to kick and scream and yell and punch until Miyavi turns his beautiful god-like head towards me and I can happily faint and go mental on myspace and post all about that, hah! Like I said, DIE of envy everyone!

I totally left this thread behinddd..bad me

Anyway

Hmm..yeah..
I saw Miyavi in Germany just for the hell of it

He dresses like a hobo now.

And you... didn't try to jump him? I- I don't understand.

There were fangirls there...supersized fangirls.
I thought they'd snap me in half if i tried.

He was even stalked while he was staying in Germany. I didn't try reading up on the internet but that is what i heard.