Sorry this rotation got backtracked so much. Hopefully it’s worth the wait, I’ve tried to upload as many runners-up as possible. This theme does not include any pop-rock, alternative rock, soft rock, etc. - but it does include rock ballads. Like with all the top ten/twenty themes, these are only the top songs in my opinion. Unfortunately, ruling out alt rock, soft rock, and “rock-influenced” groups/songs also ruled out many Korean or Chinese/Taiwanese groups. This rotation is extremely Japanese-dominated, but since pop songs were mainly Korean/Chinese and ballads were mostly Korean, I think overall it’s pretty fair. I haven’t been following rock music as much lately, so most of these songs will be a little older.
This rotation took a tiring amount of time to prepare, especially my comments (which get progressively worse), so please take the time to comment/leave a rating. Anyways, on to the music. =)
- Haruhi
#10. DOLLS - Janne da Arc
I really like Janne da Arc. Dolls is a mid-tempo track - the opening verses are a bit of a bore featuring a sweet if somewhat repetitive melody, but the chorus is great. It’s a slightly formulaic track, which kept it from moving up on the chart.
#9. Black Cherry - acid black cherry
I just realized I’d uploaded this before, way back in my tenth rotation, so there’s two links for you. A seamless blend of rock and jazz - Black Cherry starts out slow and ambient with light guitar and percussion, putting Yasu’s unique voice into the spotlight. Wailing electric guitars kick in and the percussion steps it up into a fast-paced fusion track, complete with trumpet riffs. A fantastic song from a great group.
#8. Orange Dream - Antic Cafe
This song was uploaded in rotation 19. Since most of their songs are upbeat and happy (after all, they are an oshare kei group), I was surprised at the richness and maturity of this ballad. I love the piano part - I think it adds a lot of colour to the song. The opening is heartbreakingly sad, but as the song builds it grows more and more hopeful and optimistic. A beautiful rock ballad.
#7. Et cetera - ONE OK ROCK
An angsty rock song, leaning more towards the style of American rock than Japanese. I absolutely love the chorus and the contrast in volume between the chorus and other verses. The arrangement might not be the most original or innovative, but it all fits together perfectly to make a unique and memorable song.
#6. yozora ni saku hana - Clavier
Returning to ballads, yozora ni saku hana opens with a sad piano intro. The whole song just has a certain flavor that’s unique to Japanese music, I can’t explain it - you’ll know it when you hear it. Toshi, their lead singer, has an expressively vulnerable but steady voice that suits the song perfectly. This group is technically oshare kei, but even in their other songs they don’t have a really sugary, sweet sound - their material is just generally brighter than visual kei stuff.
#5. Kimi ni Negai wo - Miyavi
Being the first Japanese artist I listened to, Miyavi had to show up somewhere on this rotation. This was also one of the first songs I heard by him. It’s a fairly bright, midtempo track driven by piano and guitars - and later, strings. Miyavi’s voice is soft and crooning pretty much everywhere but the chorus, but can still be heard over the relatively light accompaniment.
#4. Close - Mot
The sole Korean band to make the list (actually the only non-Japanese band), Close definitely deserves its position. Some people call them alt rock, but whatever. It’s such a unique song, filled with dazed, dreamy synths. Overall the song has a very sad, longing atmosphere, but its emotional value is what makes it good. It can get a little repetitive, which actually kind of adds to the atmosphere of the song - definitely try them out.
#3. Isshunfuran - B'z
A polar opposite of the sad, longing atmosphere in Close, Isshunfuran is upbeat, bright, and irresistably catchy. You can’t help but move along to it - it’s confident and assured. Not convinced? This duo has been around since 1988, and are considered the most popular rock group in Japan. They were also the first artists from Asia to have their handprints and signatures put in in Hollywood’s Rock Walk, placing them right alongside American rock legends like Black Sabbath, AC/DC, Iron Maiden, Les Paul, and Jimi Hendrix.
#2. Libra - MUCC
MUCC is one of my favourite j-rock groups. I still follow their releases despite losing interest in heavier rock (I posted a recent single of theirs not long ago). Libra is definitely my favourite song by them - it’s dark and gritty, but then it leads into the chorus, which is just stunningly beautiful and pure. I absolutely love the PV and lyrics, too.
#1. over - 12012
I knew this song would be in the top two when I started this rotation. 12012 is one of the first j-rock bands I listened to, and one of the first Japanese bands in general. “Over” is a simple but gorgeous ballad. The haunting melody always gets stuck in my head and I never forget it, even if I haven’t listened to the song in a long time.
Runners-up:
Carnation - Janne da Arc
A simple but beautiful relaxing acoustic ballad. If it was a little more of a rock song, it definitely would have made the list.
ブランコ - kannivalism
I love these guys, but unfortunately I think they’ve disbanded. A fairly slow, relaxing song with refreshing clear vocals and a dreamy arrangement. I prefer their upbeat songs, but couldn’t find any on my computer.
Lost Reason - abingdon boys school
I love this song. It was definitely close to making the list. It transitions from gritty and aggressive to softer, melodic portions. I absolutely love the chorus. A great song.
風の鳥 - Matenrou Opera
I really like this band in general; I wasn’t sure what song to upload by them. In the end, I chose a piano-based ballad, which shows their impressive vocalist. The piano is just gorgeous.
My Heart Draws a Dream - L’arc~en~Ciel
I’m sure most of you know this song, I’ve followed Laruku for a while but have never really picked out any real “favourites” by them. My Heart Draws a Dream would definitely come close - a fresh, mid-tempo track with a great melody. Of course, Hyde’s voice is wonderful.
JEALOUS -Reverse- - Dir en grey
There’s quite a few ballads in this rotation, huh? JEALOUS -Reverse- is another one, also piano-based, but Kyo’s unique voice sets it apart. I’ve kind of grown apart from their harder material where he screams more than he sings, but he has quite a nice voice when he’s actually singing, although he sounds a bit strained at times. It’s sad but hopeful, and very emotional.
Aribai - SID
A light-hearted, jazzy track that doesn’t take itself too seriously. It’s a breath of fresh air after listening to all these heavier rock songs or emotional ballads.
The Love From A Dead Orchestra - Versailles
This band’s whole image reflects splendor, royalty, etc. Their music, too, is extravagent - deep, thick vocals, a densely packed arrangement, many transitions. I love the slower, melodic verses of the song (eg. the one starting at 1:22), but unfortunately found the song to be on a whole too overdone. The slower portions where the different parts can actually be separated and viewed individually are the best. The transition about halfway through between the piano solo and the next, heavier portion of the song is roughly done - I would have thought it was going into a whole other track. A lot of great ideas and themes that got cramped together into one big song - personally, I think they could have been better and more fully explored, which kept this song from ranking higher.
Snow Flower - Plastic Tree
Ghost - Plastic Tree
Two great songs from another j-rock band that’s been around for a while: since 1993, to be exact. One of the first j-rock bands I really got into and one of few that I still loosely follow.
Night - Kazoku
I absolutely love the intro of this song. The transition into the actual song is brilliant and seamless. Faint jazz influences, a dark-ish, mysterious feel.
너 없인 행복할 수 없잖아 - Mary Story (I Can't Be Happy Without You)
I had to stick another Korean band in here somewhere. These guys are awesome, they were very close to making the list. A pretty light rock song that might even be considered soft-rock or pop-rock or whatever, but I love it. The melody is just extremely memorable to me, and even when I haven’t listened to this song for ages I can still recall it without any difficulty. Try them out if you haven’t, k-rock needs more attention - and these guys definitely deserve it.
Note: I ran out of tag characters, so I took the tag for Kazoku off because the song "Night" is already uploaded in a previous rotation, and they're tagged in that post.
I likely messed up at least one link, so if there's any mistakes with the links or anything else, please let me know!
Labels: 12012, abingdon boys school, acid black cherry, Antic Cafe, B'z, Clavier, Dir en grey, Janne da Arc, kannivalism, L'arc~en~Ciel, Mary Story, Matenrou Opera, miyavi, Mot, MUCC, ONE OK ROCK, Plastic Tree, SID, Versailles
Please remember to comment or leave a rating. I was considering halting these smaller in-between updates because they usually generate very little or no response. Since the polls indicate that you guys would like these updates to continue, I've decided to keep doing them for now.
MUCC - Sora to ito
Japanese | Rock
1. Sora to ito
2. Kanariya
3. Kikanetsu
Latest single from MUCC, one of my favourite j-rock bands. It's been a long time since I really listened to any j-rock, and MUCC doesn't disappoint. Sora to ito is a great song - I've heard a lot of mixed opinions about it, but personally I really liked it. The melody is hopeful, but still maintains a dark, edgy feel. Although it's fairly predictable in form and arrangement, it's very well executed and supported by a strong melody. Kanariya is in swing-time, jazzy and confident. I love the bass. This song definitely caught my attention. Kikanetsu was considered by some to be a "filler", but is still an enjoyable song. What can I say, Tatsurou's voice is just awesome. I love how the last guitar note rings out past everything else before finally cutting off.
Kim Jong Kook - Happiness Disease
Korean | Pop
1. 행복병/Happiness Disease (Feat. Shorry J (MM))
2. 행복병/Happiness Disease (Instrumental)
I love Kim Jong Kook, but this single wasn't anything amazing. I actually liked it more than I thought I would (I thought it would be more dance-influenced), but ... still. It's fairly bland - a cute, poppy song with a predictable accompaniment and style. Also, why do all the rap verses/rappers in k-pop songs sound exactly the same? Kim Jong Kook's voice is good, but lacks depth. This song feels like it was quickly stamped out of a worn-out, overused template. Hopefully he's only using this to hold fans over until his next release.
Labels: Kim Jong Kook, MUCC
9mm Parabellum Bullet - Psychopolis
Alt-rock. They have a very aggressive, in-your-face sound and you can't help but stop and listen - I absolutely love their style, especially their drummer. Definitely recommended. There's an absolutely crazy guitar solo in this song a bit over halfway (trust me, you'll know it when you hear it) that is just awesome. Overall rating: 4.5/5
ayabie - Day Dream
Very oshare kei, but without as much of a punk influence. I wish you could hear the bass more, though. The vocals are good but not outstanding, it's pretty typical ayabie. But I love ayabie, so that's not really a bad thing. XD For some reason this reminds me more of an anCafe song than an ayabie one although they have somewhat similar styles in the first place. Overall rating: 3/5
∀NTIFEMINISM Å~ Grid - Abura Sumashi
I'm not a huge fan of pure punk. It's just so busy yet not heavy and it mostly just seems like noise to me. Luckily, this song is only one and half minutes long so, even I can stand it. It's got growly vocals that sound like they're coming in through a radio. Personally, I don't find this song really offers much. It is very energetic though. Overall rating: 2.5/5
Chemistry (supported by Monkey Majik) - Kagayaku Yoru
Here's your not-rock song. XD Although Chemistry's last single (Saigo no Kawa) kind of disappointed me, I loved this song as soon as I heard it. I should have known I would as soon as I saw that Monkey Majik had something to do with this. It's catchy and blends Monkey Majik's unique style with Chemistry's. One of the best collabs I have heard. I love the chorus and the melodies in this song, it's awesome. Probably my favourite song from this rotation, and it's not even a rock one. XD Overall rating: 5/5
Girugamesh - jarring fly
Some heavier rock for you. I don't listen to Girugamesh that much but I've just recently realized how much I like them. XP Jarring fly has an awesome bass accompaniment and I love how some parts of the vocals are growling and incomprehensible yet others are very melodic. There's also some impressive changes in tempo where things suddenly speed up then return to their normal pace, yet the band always stays together. Overall rating: 4/5
jealkb - Chikai
This band is actually lead by former comedian Atsushi Tamura. When I first heard about this band I thought it would be sort of a parody of VK, yet ... they don't seem to be. I actually really like their vocalist. Chikai is growing into one of my favourite songs by them, it's not too heavy but not that soft either and has a strong melody while the accompaniment is very busy, setting a nice contrast. Overall rating: 4/5
Kazoku - Night
This song starts out with an interesting blend of sounds ... I don't even know how to describe it. XD But the way it transitions into the song itself is just awesome. I was like OMG how did they think of doing that. O_o Just because of that I love this song. It has this sort of waltz-ish sound because of how the beats are arranged and I love everything in this song - the vocals, the guitar, the drums, the bass. I love how in some parts it seems like the vocals are going too slow for the accompaniment yet it all fits, and then everything speeds up again. I don't think I'm making any sense. XD AND THEN THE DRUM SOLO!!!! you must listen to this song. Overall rating: 5/5
L'arc~en~Ciel - Hurry Xmas
Yay, Christmas rock. And Laruku, too! Awesome jazzy sound, definitely worth a listen. I love how it starts out and sounds familiar yet is a very unique Laruku-take on a Christmas song. Overall rating: 4/5
Luna Sea - Rain
Yeah, it's LUNA SEA! Starting out with a steady beat on the bass drum, this song has a lot of syncopated stuff and it sounds cool. XD This song is surprisingly calm at the chorus because of the vocals. Ryuichi's voice is such gold. Not my absolute favourite Luna Sea song but it's a good one. Overall rating: 4/5
MUCC - FUZZ
MUCC = awesome. When I first heard FUZZ I was disappointed. It's very ... not eroguro kei. But it's such an awesome song ... it's sooo catchy. I love this song but not because of MUCC. As in, the reason I like it is for the song not because it sounds anything like MUCC. So awesome song but MUCC fans probably won't be too impressed. Overall rating: 4/5
STRAIGHTENER - TODAY
I guess this is alt-rock? Nothing that special, but worth a listen. I like the vocals and the chorus. Overall rating: 3/5
v(NEU) - ROCAT PUNKS
Almost forgot to include this. v(NEU) is the new H e a R t and this song is the most hyperly annoyingly awesome thing you could imagine. It's catchy and very energetic, definitely recommended you check out this band if you're into oshare kei. Overall rating: 4/5
Labels: 9mm Parabellum Bullet, ANTIFEMINISM, ayabie, Chemistry, Girugamesh, jealkb, Kazoku, L'arc~en~Ciel, Luna Sea, Monkey Majik, MUCC, STRAIGHTENER, v(NEU)
