Diru and babies and dating

Random title, I know. *pats self on back*

Dir en grey’s new single ‘Hageshisa to, Kono Mune no Naka de Karamitsuita Shakunetsu no Yami’ is out today! I’m not warming up to the death metal-ish title song yet but the remade/remastered ‘Zan‘ and ‘Shokubeni‘ versions are awe-fucking-some. ‘Zan’ was one of the two Diru songs that first got me into listening to J-metal back in 1999 while ‘Shokubeni’ also happens to be a fave from their Vulgar album (2003). Although I’m no big fan of Kyo’s growling ever since Withering to Death but these two oldies have made an exception. This move to revolutionise their classic hits deserves two thumbs up!
Anyway, I was googling for updates on Inocchi and Asaka Seto’s upcoming baby when I read the below and facepalmed myself for not knowing any sooner. Guh.

Aya Ueto? Eew. But yay for Aoi Yuu! I like her.

Seto Asaka is Expecting; Reporters Swarm Inohara Yoshihiko in Taiwan (Posted 19 September 2009)
Source: Mingpao
Translated by: sparkles_n15 @ asianfanatics.net

Japanese idol group V6 were in Taiwan yesterday to promote their upcoming concerts in November. However, all the attention was on Inohara Yoshihiko as he had announced earlier that his wife, actress Seto Asaka, is pregnant. Reporters were keen on asking Inohara his impressions on becoming a father, but Inohara decided to play dumb, only quietly thanking the reporters before changing the topic and asking them back in Taiwanese whether they’ve eaten yet. When asked whether his luck in love has transmitted to other members, specifically hinting at Morita Go, who’s been in a long term relationship with ‘Abarenbo Mama’ actress Ueto Aya, and Okada Junichi, who is dating ‘Hana and Alice’ actress Aoi Yuu, Inohara only laughed as his glanced at his bandmates. Everyone else avoided the question and did not answer.

August VK Reviews

Title: Ain Soph Aur *AWEFUCKINGSOME* Band: RENTRER EN SOI Verdict: 4.5 stars. 3 years ago, having a weakness for strong vocalists, Satsuki’s lyrical prose and emotive voice inspired me to follow them. Their guitar play and compositions changed drastically throughout their 6 year stint. Highlighted in this compilation are hits from the effeminate (pre-) Sphire Croid era with songs like the wondrous “Shinwa”, “Full Moon” and “Eyes of Forest” which I have only begun to familiarize with. Their later major albums started the expansion to Europe based tours and at that time RES’ music swerved to angura-kei territory with “THE ABYSS OF DESPAIR”, “I HATE MYSELF AND WANT TO…” and “PROTOPLASM”. The crown definitely goes to their 2008 works especially “STIGMATA” and “Last Scene” which in their final year happens to be their finest products. 32 of their best hits will not revive them, no matter how many times I replay this. They held so much promise that it’s a shame for Visual Kei to lose one of its better bands. RES’ powerful combination could’ve outdone so many bands of recent times that lack the quality they had. But they were ill fated to break during their prime. Sigh. Go for: ‘Shinwa’, ‘STIGMATA’, ‘LAST WORD [ ]‘, ‘Last Scene’, ‘JUST MAD PAIN’, ‘wither’, ‘JUDE’, ‘Eyes of Forest’, ‘I HATE MYSELF AND WANT TO…’, ‘Full Moon’. New songs: ‘STAY GOLD’ & ‘Tsuki ga Maioriru Koto no Nai Daichi’.

Title: UROBOROS Delux Unplugged Disk (First Press Limited Edition) Band: Dir en grey Verdict: 4 stars. Honestly there ain’t much to review about this disk except that the four unpolished songs are definitely out of character. What you have here is Kyo’s crisp voice bleeding your ears off (in a good way). The amount of changes he’s screwed his voice over has culminated into this ingenious and mature style which I can’t help but be grateful for. The packaging is a beauty in brooding black and red. And weighing at almost 2 kg, I lugged this back home on the LRT with a crick in my left shoulder for 2 days! But it and the bargain price are so worth it. I only need to figure out what to do with the LP records… *sweatdrops* Go for: -

Title: under-world Band: Merry Verdict: 1.5 stars. I downloaded this in February right before my old PC went kaput and after I recently successfully got to save all that data, I thought “Yay! Something to review in early August” but uhm I remember now why I don’t like Merry. There are a few acceptable songs only because the rest is poorly written and leaves you wishing they’d pick up a few copycat abilities. They used to be monotonous and boring. But now this album is just unbelievably lazy. Go for: ‘Piranha’, ‘Canary’, ‘[human farm]‘.

+ Bonus review: I’ve been unable to download Luna Sea’s GOD BLESS YOU concert for a year so when I found this cough pirated version at Amcorp Mall… (Insert squealing fangirl). Had I not felt the inexplicable pull to enter the pirated DVD shop I always ignore, I guess until forever oso I wouldn’t be able to watch the full concert. Since it’s expensive and it’s in sucky Region 1! Sigh. Anyway, since I’d already spazzed about the performances here, I’ll only spazz review on the DVD aspect and features.

Title: GOD BLESS YOU ~One Night Déjàvu~ DVD*AWEFUCKINGSOME* Band: LUNA SEA Verdict: 5 stars. The lighting, the passionate crowd, the unseen moments and sheer brilliance of the production captured in this DVD is the best way to experience a Luna Sea concert. There are almost no areas left untended by cameramen and seeing how vast the minimalist stage is, pretty amazing shots of the band and pans of the whole stage are abundant. I just love the swift camera work: plenty of close-ups on those legendary twirls and spins by J and Ino and oooh the beautiful shots with one or two members (especially when Sugizo and Ino are at the wings) aligned in the background of the same frame while Ryu gets emo in the foreground. I also really love the amount of screen time Inoran is given here *pinches his cheeks*. The ‘Miracle at Holy Night’ TV broadcast of the concert has a couple of missing content here and there. So now I finally get to see the Shinya drum solo get rescued by J’s rowdy bass solo and then the performances for “Fate” and “Mother”. I’ve seen the cut-down version of this concert for the nth time and this DVD twice, but it hasn’t become stale and I doubt it ever will be. So if anyone wants to try listening to Luna Sea, I’d suggest them to watch this first rather than downloading their full discography (I can pinjamkan too). The perfection of this concert will bowl you over, I promise. Go for: ‘Rosier’, ‘Déjàvu’, ‘Desire’, ‘TONIGHT’, ‘Fate’, ‘Breathe’.

Title: Kimi no Uta PV *HOT* Band: abingdon boys school Verdict: 5 stars. YES! A hot new song to go with an equally hot PV. 10 seconds into the intro and you instinctively know these folks won’t be disappointing you this time. I love the burnished tint and the Babylon-esque ruins as if abs dropped into a Lost-slash-Transformers movie set. Even the whole wind whipping works wonders with their cool hoodies. Can’t wait for the new single AND album. Go for: -

Bad, Bad, Sale!

I must be crazy.

Uroboros 1st Press LE after 54% Off = RM250

!!!!!!!!!!!

Burnt Beyond Recognition

I hate cyclic errors. I do. Especially when I lose something very very precious that I’m too lazy to go and download again. Sigh.

So many Jrock... huhuhu

Clever of me, I should have immediately checked the dvd after burning. The two red dots are the albums I really must download again. Luckily the striked outs are still in my storage. But still…

My MUCC discography, OMG!

Life’s not so fun these days, no?

November VK Reviews

Oops. I haven’t listened to Wheesung’s album yet. A certain album below totally made me forget.

Title: MUSIC Band: girugamesh Verdict: 3 stars. It was great on its first couple of runs. But heavy repeating mashes the metal-loveliness into a pile of same-nothings cos the usage of techno-jumble in almost all the friggin tracks is overshadowing the drums and riffs. My advice? Pick a few favourites and just stick to that. Go for: ‘puzzle’, ‘ISHTAR’, ‘enishi’. Er yeah, basically the last 3 songs are the most worthy ones.

Title: モノクロのキス (Monokuro no Kiss) Band: SID Verdict: 3.5 stars. SID’s pretty consistent with their brand of ballads. Tho I’m too much of an RES fan to be enamoured with this for too long. I like SID’s heavier self compared to this ‘going nowhere’ kind of pace. Anyhow, I can still accept them for what they are. Go for: ’season’. a soft ’sway in the breeze’ summer song to lift your mood.

Title: 逢いたいから…. (Aitai Kara…) Band: 12012 Verdict: 3.5 stars. EH? A ballad?! So I didn’t guess correctly from the name. I didn’t know they can do this genre. Surprise, surprise: It’s nice! A little bit of GLAY that I cannot for the love of God remember any title to name of. Yuuwake? Be.. er, Be… Oh forget about it. All joking aside, they may be experimenting around considering how young they are. Go for: ‘HERO’. Seriously. Why am I again reminded of GLAY??

Title: UROBOROS *AWEFUCKINGSOME* Band: Dir en grey Verdict: 5 stars. THIS is what I’ve been waiting for them to do. Not making shitty albums like ‘Withering to Death’ and ‘Marrow of a Bone’. It’s a new brand of desolate mellowness so diverse and righteous that you’d just fall down to your knees and weep. And please don’t tell me ‘Ware, Yami Tote’ and ‘Inconvenient Ideal’ wasn’t reminiscent of Luna Sea to you too. Go for: ‘Gaika, Chinmoku ga Nemuru Koro’, ‘Toguro’, ‘GLASS SKIN’ Japanese version, ‘DOZING GREEN’.

+ Bonus review:

Title: 碧の大地-アヲノダイチ- (Ao no Daichi) *HOT* Band: Shinkou Shuukyou Gakudan NoGoD Verdict: 4 stars. Finally, kohais that I would love to see making it big. Very late 80’s influenced. They’re really good on the heavies and the mellows. Go for: Haten daishishi and Kijin Fukanshou just for the sing-songy guitars.

November VK Heavyweights

I’m on a rrrroll. 4 new releases from my favourite bands (well, except Diru lah). Mwahahah.

My house is packed with relatives, can’t listen to ‘em right now. So expect these reviews, sorted by listening order, up by next week:

1. girugamesh - MUSIC [Album 2008.11.05]
2. SID - Monokuro no Kiss [Maxi-single 2008.10.29]
3. 12012 - Aitai kara… [Maxi-single 2008.10.29]
4. Dir en grey - UROBOROS [Album 2008.11.12]

Aaaand let’s not forget Nwar’s hubby:

Wheesung - With All My Heart and Soul [Mini Album 2008.10.29]

Damn I hope Wheesung’s new album is good. I’m still miffed over Jong Gook’s - which was bland like stale bread.

Memoirs of a male geisha II

The WOWOW released vids of both summit days were harshly cut up. At least the ones I got off torrent. But so far:

1. Luna Sea; whom besides X managed to own Ajinomoto Stadium on Day 2. Damn, they were really in their game. Watching “In Silence” (my most favouritest song) live made me want to cry since they rarely play it during concerts.
2. X Japan and Muteki Band; I skipped all the Drama King sessions, but performance-wise.. I think they (pft, Yoshiki) ought to seriously end the reunion before their hearts legacy burns out. It was awesome when nearing the end, where all the bands except Diru came on stage for a raucous show of “X”.
3. D’espairs Ray; Only “Brilliant” was uploaded?! Mind you, they were brilliant so I hope someone will put up their whole session (if any).
4. MUCC; Again, only ONE song. But I looooooved “Fuzz” live cos Tatsurou is just so infectious.
5. Dir en grey; Still downloading. Not looking too forward to them (you know how I feel about the ‘new’ Diru) since they went absent during Muteki Band performance. Hmm.
6. Spread Beaver; Yes, now I’m looking forward to something good. Bring on the best of hide’s music, baby.

A couple more bands available to download are Versailles, heidi and the Underneath. Dare I ask if
T.M.Revolution,
Phantasmagoria and
OBLIVION DUST gets uploaded? I wanna see Takenori-san!

On a more general issue, Hyung’s now back from Tokyo (Okaeri!). And guess which ultra famous blonde Jrocker she saw jaywalking at Shibuya wearing-shades-at-night, talking-oh-so-loud and ignoring-all-the-pointings-and-mutterings-and-fan-worshippings?

Holy pffffft. Yep. Yoshiki-sama. *cries* How come I only realise she was there during the festival weekend?!

Playa?

In last week’s Korean class, our teacher made up mad funny examples for our vocab by using our names. When it was my turn, she said something that sounded like this: “Arfah has many gorgeous Korean boyfriends.” Context may have been altered hohoho. Unbeknownst to her, I actually have a loooong history with gorgeous boyfriends and husbands. I omitted the minor characters. kkk. Here are my main influencers:-

1st (ex) Husband; Kimura Takuya [Married in 1998. Divorced in 1998]

&& It was the year my good friend Sook Haan introduced me to SMAP. My first foray into Jpop was their Dynamite! song. then Long Vacation did me in. She lent me the first episode and I succumbed. He cooks, his hair is great, he can act and he’s Best Jeanist for how many years already?

1st Affair; Sorimachi Takashi [Started in 1998. Broke up in 1998]

&& His ass is so hot in speedos. Remember Beach Boys? plus, GTO is crack (the manga and the drama).

2nd (ex) Husband; Hyde (L’Arc~en~Ciel) [1998-2000]

&& THE reason I fell in love with Jrock. Rurouni Kenshin movie opening theme is Niji - my first and utmost favourite Laruku song. His voice. His deep lyrics. His beautiful songs. What’s not to love about him? Then he married Megumi Ooishi. DENIAL. Divorce. Now? Just friends.

2nd Affair and 3rd (ex) Husband; SUGIZO (ex-Luna Sea) [1999-2001]

&& The sexiest Jrocker alive. This was the Walking Porn who raped my innocent mind Despite that, he’s got a daughter whom he’d sacrifice his fame for. A sexy father-figure *licks*. Broke up because of no Internet connection. Still love him very much.

Boyfriends [1998-2004];

&& Yoshiki — This man is GOD. He’s the power behind all the great Jrock bands of age (X Japan, Luna Sea, Dir en grey, GLAY, etc) Love him for his awesome skills.

&& Kaoru (Dir en grey) — HOT. ’nuff said.

&& Yutaka Takenouchi — Just because.

&& Hisashi and Jiro (GLAY) — Very short relationship. Sugizo and Hyde demands a lot.

Boyfriends [2004-2006];

&& Danny and Jinhwan (1TYM) — A short period of time when I started digging rap & hiphop.

&& Eeteuk (Super Junior) — Because he looks my type.. the pretty guy type.

4th and current Husband; Kim Dongwan (Shinhwa) [2004-... ]

&& The one person in my life who doesn’t try to look pretty. Look at the above names! He’s the most manliest of em all. LOL. He’s a dork, a clown and is a very down-to-earth man. That’s what eventually pulled me in He is Love… Shinhwa is LOVE.

3rd Affair, 5th and current Husband; Park Hyoshin [2005-... ]

&& His voiiiiiiice… *sigh* Believe it or not. My first ever Ballad-ist. And once I’m stuck to him, no one else (other ballad singers) can sway me as much as him. Oh and, this time I’m back to pretty-ness!

aaaand now I’m back to Jrock! what a tedious cycle

My walk down the old path

a recent spew of new Jrock singles and albums (the GazettE, Kagrra, & Rentrer en Soi for instance), has revived a flame of passion in me which almost died in March/April last year. one downloaded album led to another and now i’m tracking down full discographies. that is if i can find working torrents who did i start listening to in the first place? well it’s a looong story.. to cut the history lecture short i’ll just shortlist my favorites:

[1998] L’Arc~en~Ciel; Rurouni Kenshin movie. Glay and Dir en grey; from Jrock Channel. Malice Mizer and Gackt, too. X Japan!

[1999] Luna Sea -Hyde (i want the old Hyde back!!). basically i just fell out because Kpop demanded so much from me.

suddenly, now that i’m older (and hopefully, maturer) i’m hopelessly lost amidst the whole download-every-show-follow-every-video mentality of Kpop fans. it’s scary how the scale might tip at any time and unseat my Kpop-fan identity. i love Kpop, i really do. but i realise i don’t like to collect every single thing (DVD, photobook schmuck) because i’m content just by listening to music. and break me or waive me, i am still a hardcore Jrock-fan at heart. before anyone counters and calls me an undignified fan, let me assure ya that i still keep Shinhwa and Hyoshin foremost in my heart. but anything/anyone other than them… i’d only manage to get bored with rather fast. ah, it’s just me.. i fall in and out of love too easily.