Thursday, May 9, 2002

VOCALIST COMPARISON: PART TWO I messed up and forgot Kyo and Kirito on the last one, so here they are ^^;; If you missed part one, it's in the archives here. Also a note if you were wondering about Gackt's score in the vibrato area...Gackt has a wonderful vibrato, don't get me wrong, but he doesn't really vary it to suit the music style. And operatic style vibrato and Another World don't really mix... KIRITO [Pierrot] tone: 7 range: 5 support: 5 vibrato: 7 accuracy: 6 musicality: 6 Kirito's voice sounds quite similar to Kiyoharu's overall, but slightly more rounded and a little more prone to hitting the notes accurately. He also has the Hakuei vibrato disease to a lesser degree, especially in harder songs. In softer songs, he performs quite well, though in many cases, he falls short of hitting whatever note he's aiming for. KYO [Dir en grey] tone: 3 range: 3 support: 6 vibrato: 4 accuracy: 3 musicality: 5 Kyo's voice is usually the factor that most budding DEG fans have to overcome. Some people don't have a problem with it. Some can't stand it. Whatever the case, Kyo's voice is great for screeching, screaming, vomiting, rasping, crying, and wailing, but when it comes to actual singing, he falls a bit short. During faster songs, it's all right, but in slower songs such as Jealous ~reverse~ or Ain't Afraid to Die, it's almost painful to listen to him try to strain up to those notes. RYUTAROU [Plastic Tree] tone: 3 range: 3 support: 2 vibrato: 4 accuracy: 4 musicality: 5 I reviewed PuraTuri a few entries down, so just look down below to see what I think of their vocalist. Wonderful lyrics writer...not such a good vocalist. But for some reason, his voice fits the Plastic Tree song style, and that's what counts. RYUICHI [Luna Sea] tone: 5 range: 9 support: 7 vibrato: 10 accuracy: 10 musicality: 8 Before he went to vocal training, Ryuichi's voice sounded like most any other indies vocalist around. However, it's undergone a change and become increasingly thin in sound, and what some people like to call "screechy." I don't find it that unpleasant, but it does sometimes have the tendency to give you a headache if you're not in the mood. Aside from that, there are no complaints...he has an excellent ear and always hits his notes. TAKA [Transtic Nerve] tone: 9 range: 8 support: 10 vibrato: 9 accuracy: 9 musicality: 7 One of the overlooked talents of the jrock world. Taka's voice is a very nice, rich tenor that's quite versatile between styles and definitely carries the band. He also has excellent pitch and is one of those vocalists who knows his range and stays nicely within it. TAKA [La'cryma Christi] tone: 6 range: 8 support: 7 vibrato: 9 accuracy: 9 musicality: 9 Taka'a voice is a bit on the thin side, though not as much as Ryuichi's, and sometimes his vibrato (which is very nice usually) gets just a little out of hand and starts bending the pitch, especially on longer sustained notes. He also has a tendency to go just a tiny bit flat on the higher notes and he seems to have a problem keeping the pitch up when doing a run or any faster section of a song. Some people find his voice annoying, but if you like Ryuichi, you won't have a problem with Taka. TAKUI [solo] tone: 9 range: 9 support: 9 vibrato: 9 accuracy: 10 musicality: 7 Takui was reviewed a little earlier, but I'll reiterate here that there is almost nothing I can find fault with in his voice. The only complaint that might come up now and then is that he can't control the volume of his voice very well as he gets into the higher register. He seems to be getting better at it, though, and as he doesn't smoke, doesn't believe in alcohol, runs marathons, and enjoys vegetable juice, I can't think of anything that would prevent him from getting even better in the future. TERU [Glay] tone: 5 range: 9 support: 6 vibrato: 4 accuracy: 5 musicality: 6 Unfortunately, Teru loses a point for the "drummers turned vocalists" category. Teru's voice is what most people would call "hoarse," either naturally or from smoking too much I don't know. However, he's one of those vocalists that perplexes music fans, because on almost every single note he sings, he's a tiny bit flat. Usually it's not even enough to complain about, but it's there. The good thing about that is that by the time he gets into the higher register and it's noticeable, you're used to it (or is that a bad thing? ^^;) What most people don't notice about Teru, however, is that he has an amazingly wide range. I believe I've heard him sing up to a high D without falsetto...or at least, what would be a high D...if he wasn't so flat...^^;; TETSU [Zigzo/ex Malice Mizer] tone: 6 range: 9 support: 8 vibrato: 7 accuracy: 3 musicality: 4 The first thing I'd like to say about Tetsu is that he has great diaphragm support and a clear tone: two things that most vocalists would kill to possess. However, there's something about him that makes it near almost impossible for him to hit a note. Maybe he's tone deaf. I have no idea. Whatever the case, he usually gets pretty close to the note, but it makes him sound like he's guessing on the pitch. TOMMY [The Brilliant Green] tone: 5 range: 6 support: 4 vibrato: 5 accuracy: 5 musicality: 5 Tommy's scores were originally lower, but since I heard Forever to Me, I've adjusted them as she seems to have gotten better while the band was on break and she was doing her solo project. Tommy's voice is a bit breathy and lower than you'd usually expect for a female singer. It used to be that the band would write songs that were just a little too high for her (up to a middle B, which sounded just out of her range), but as I said earlier, she sounds like she's been working hard and can now hit that B without much problem. TOSHI [X Japan] tone: 6 range: 9 support: 8 vibrato: 7 accuracy: 10 musicality: 8 Having the voice of a classic metal vocalist, Toshi has yet been surprisingly versatile at adapting to Yoshiki's ballad flu in the band's later years. Nevertheless, just like Ryuichi, his voice can sometimes cause a headache if you're not prepared. Toshi's range is naturally almost an octave higher than most jrock vocalists, giving him almost soprano range, and he really uses that to advantage in X Japan's metal songs. Even in lives, he hits all his notes dead-on (I'm guessing he has perfect pitch). His voice had a "scratchy" quality to it up until about 1994-1995 and the Dahlia period, when it transformed and became much clearer. YASU [Janne da Arc] tone: 9 range: 10 support: 9 vibrato: 9 accuracy:10 musicality: 9 Moonsong said once that Yasu was one of those vocalists who annoys you until you stop and realize how damned good he is. And he is good. He's been reviewed in the Janne da Arc artist review in the archives, but what anyone should listen for is the effortless way he soars up and down the scale and also his driving falsetto. YUKARI [Baiser] tone: 7 range: 5 support: 5 vibrato: 4 accuracy: 5 musicality: 5 Yukari's voice is probably a classic example of most visual kei vocalists and reminds me a lot of Kamijo: weaker in body, without much range, and overall, not memorable. His tone sounds promising and he would have probably matured into a pretty good vocalist if Baiser hadn't dropped off the face of the earth... That's the end! Did I miss anyone? Forgot someone that you like? Drop me a line in the BBS and if I get enough nominations, I'll do a third installment. ^_^ - Gerald - - Comment - It's 06:31 p.m., and Teru's still hugging his plant

Wednesday, May 8, 2002

[Note from MS: Sometimes there are exceptional songs buried on an album that for whatever reason, aren't selected for single release and are otherwise ignored unless one buys the entire release. This section is dedicated to highlighting those gems and hopefully generating more interest in these bands' lesser known work. So here is our first "random review." Enjoy.] RANDOM REVIEW: MELODY FLAG [BUMP OF CHICKEN] This song begins very prettily with the two guitars plucking a sweet melody in a soothing duet. Motoo enters softly, crooning above the notes. There is a short guitar phrase between the verses joined by the bass, and the drums slip in for the second verse. The tone picks up a bit and Motoo rasps onto the refrain. Mostly bass now, one guitar still repeating the previous acoustic part, the other strumming chords while a voice effect adds another layer to the song. A harder guitar section leads into the third verse, bass active underneath. By the time the refrain repeats again, both guitars come to the fore, anchoring Motoo with a much meatier sound. The beginning of the bridge sounds a little awkward, the shift to minor sudden as Motoo tries to find his notes. All semblance of "acoustic" leaves the guitars at this point leading into a slower section with mostly chords, answering vocals, and bass. The requisite instrumental solo follows, the guitars shadowed by the bass but never actually allowing it to come to the foreground for a full solo. It almost sounds like there was supposed to be a guitar solo there but it just wasn't loud or prominent enough. Much more of the same as the refrain is repeated in various forms and the song ends with a slightly drawn out acoustic chord. What drew me into this song was its sweet, simple style. There's nothing particularly spectacular about it, no strange experimental noises, no professional keyboard effects, no odd distortions. It's raw in some parts but that actually adds to the appeal, giving it a more "honest" feel rather than something fabricated in a studio. The acoustic parts in the beginning set the mood nicely, the music building up until the bridge then reinforcing the message and melody at the end. Highly recommended for the guitar work and generally uplifting tone. All in all, it's just a really nice song, an exceptional find in a sea of increasingly angry, angsty, and aggressive rock. [Album: Jupiter | Track 07] - MS - - Comment - It's 10:24 p.m., and Teru's still hugging his plant

Tuesday, May 7, 2002

FAKE? SECOND SINGLE Ken and Inoran are at it again. Their second single, Someday, comes out on May 22 and has three tracks. Go to CD Japan for more information, and while you're at it, check out the official site to see new pictures. Inoran looks like J...o.o;; - Gerald - - Comment - It's 03:20 p.m., and Teru's still hugging his plant

Tuesday, May 7, 2002

ARTIST: PLASTIC TREE If I had to pick one word to describe Plastic Tree, it would be "invisible." This band is one of the "invisible" greats of the jrock world, not because they are a band that is underappreciated or because they purposely hide themselves away, but because Plastic Tree is one of those bands that appeal to a certain kind of fanbase and are proud of it. And the odd name is just the beginning. As with Buck-Tick, most jrock fans have heard of Plastic Tree, and PuraTuri fanfiction abounds, but few have actually heard any of their songs and know anything about the band. Plastic Tree was formed in 1994 in Chiba with Ryutarou on vocals, Akira on guitar, Tadashi on bass, and Shou on drums. They went major in 1996, changing drummers twice before finally settling on Takashi, the most recent drummer and probably the most well known and liked. Tadashi, the leader of the band and Ryutarou have a long history together and are both fans of British rock. However, Plastic Tree is far from just another clone of British rock bands. All influences aside, PuraTuri is Japanese through and through. Although this is not reflected directly in their music, which has a lot of electronic influence and little metal/thrash as well as the Brit-rock bent, many of their lyrics have a very traditional Japanese feel to them (or maybe this is just me, but that's what I think). Ryutarou, the primary lyrics writer, writes some of the darkly beautiful and poetic lyrics I have seen from any band, no matter in what language, and it is that which is the driving force for Plastic Tree. In his songs, Ryutarou captures a world which seems like a darker, bizarre mirror of our own, with lyrics like those of Wareta Mado [Broken Window]: "yesterday I had a dream / and although it should not have been, / true to life there you were / under the dim light of a narrow corridor / dancing with a kitten..." or those of Suisou [Burial at Sea]: "I merely gazed out / Someone spins in the moonlight / concealed in shadow, / their face cannot be seen." Lyrics writing, however, not singing, is Ryutarou's strong point. If there's anything that will turn people off to PuraTuri's sound, it's probably Ryutarou's voice, which is quite high and also quite weak and breathy. He also has a tendency to not hit his notes. All in all, his voice reminds me of a higher and softer version of Dir en grey's Kyo, whose voice is also a major turning factor in most people's image of his own band. Ryutarou projects a very odd and sometimes sinister image and up till recently would refer to himself as "atashi" (the female form of "I") in songs and interviews. He seems to have mellowed out a bit in recent years as the band has slowly changed its image to become more mainstream. "Mainstream," however, is another relative term. While many long time Plastic Tree fans feel like the band is "selling out" since they got onto a major record, their music is still quite far-out and not anything that would appeal to just any casual listener. Akira has kept the distorted, overdriven, thin guitar line through all the incarnations of Plastic Tree, Tadashi's bassline remains sinister and mysterious, giving the band their trademark "indies" sound long after they have gone major, and Ryutarou's voice is as strange as ever. Anyone listening to Plastic Tree should probably be prepared to pay not as much attention to each individual part but as to how the parts fit together as a whole to create each song, because Plastic Tree works on a level that most bands do not. PuraTuri's music seeks to create a mood, an immersive experience that can only be achieved if the usual "this guitar line is so cool!" thought process is abandoned, or at least toned down. Not to say that Akira's guitar lines aren't cool or that Tadashi's bass lines are not solid. Even Ryutarou occasionally has his moments. After going major in 1996, however, they seem to have toned down their "bizarre" image quite a bit and have since gained a good sized mainstream fanbase (and Ryutarou now usually refers to himself as "boku"). Still, their music even now is anything but an imitation of whatever is out there in popular culture. Plastic Tree is one of those gems of a band that the more you listen to them, the more you like them. [You may wonder why I haven't mentioned drummer Takashi in the rest of this article. Takashi left the band in December 2001 and has since joined another band. Plastic Tree is now with a support drummer.] Visit Plastic Tree's official site, or to find out more information about them, visit Monophobia, an amazing English PuraTuri website with all you ever want to know about this band (and from where I've taken the English lyrics translations found above). Recommended PuraTuri songs: Planetarium - probably the best known Plastic Tree song. A medium tempo song with more of a melody than most of their songs have Reset - a disturbingly discordant song with lots of bass and chilling lyrics Suisou - another disturbing song with chilling lyrics and a great "mood" piece. My personal favorite Plastic Tree song. Rira no Ki - an indies song that really shows off Plastic Tree's "usual" sound Monophobia - this song really reminds me of Dir en grey's stuff. Ryutarou does some very Kyo-like yelling here. - Gerald - - Comment - It's 12:34 a.m., and Teru's still hugging his plant

Saturday, May 4, 2002

YOSHIKI AND EOGH 2005 Apparently Yoshiki is a pretty environmentally conscious guy, because the people at Exposition of Global Harmony 2005 have asked him to compose the Expo's theme song. The announcement is on the front page of the Expo site. Yoshiki says "I aspire to make a wonderful piece of music through which we can show the significance of our love for the earth and nature to the entire world." And is it just me or do the Mori no Ojiisan and the Mori no Kodomo scare you too? ^^;;; - Gerald - - Comment - It's 01:22 p.m., and Teru's still hugging his plant

Friday, May 3, 2002

ZIGZO'S BACK I hope all of you enjoyed our small tribute to hide yesterday. I archived, and Zigzo has returned, so if you missed Moonsong's "Hurry-Go-Round" article and review of Psychocommunity which she posted last night, go to the archives at the bottom of the page to read. - Gerald - - Comment - It's 10:06 a.m., and Teru's still hugging his plant