The J-Rock Thread - Opinions

[lucasreis]

Yesterday, and saturday, I worked on an Anime Convention here in São Paulo. I have this little store with funny nerdy t-shirt stamps called Geek Star.

The thing is, I spent literally, all day listening to J-Rock, J-Pop and the likes. And at the end of the day I was pissed cause I couldn´t stand it anymore.

The thing is, I like some J-Rock bands, some metal bands from Japan and etc. But there is some major crappy bands like Maximum the Hormone and any of the Naruto opening and endings (thngs I can´t stand)

I do like Dir En Grey, X-Japan, The GazettE, High and Mighty Color and some other bands. But I´ve noticed that while technically a lot of japanese bands are really good, they make me sick to have too much fast paced songs and happy sounding ones.

Also, most of the female whiny vocals annoy me a lot as well.
I´ve come to the conclusion that Japanese Rock is a love/hate thing for me. I just can´t get pass to the fact that everyone there liked everything that was on the DVD store just because it was japanese.

There is a weird fanboyism at these conventions that I just can´t understand, they swallow everything, as long as it comes from ´Nihon it´s all good

 

[beepx22]

i admit i used to listen to Malice Miser a bit, they remind me a little of a japanese mushroomhead. most J-music annoys me though

 

[Desecrated]

http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/general-music-discussion/44617-weirder-side-japan.html

 

[Ze Kink]

The thing is, I like some J-Rock bands, some metal bands from Japan and etc. But there is some major crappy bands like Maximum the Hormone and any of the Naruto opening and endings (thngs I can´t stand)

I do like Dir En Grey, X-Japan, The GazettE, High and Mighty Color and some other bands. But I´ve noticed that while technically a lot of japanese bands are really good, they make me sick to have too much fast paced songs and happy sounding ones.

Also, most of the female whiny vocals annoy me a lot as well.
I´ve come to the conclusion that Japanese Rock is a love/hate thing for me. I just can´t get pass to the fact that everyone there liked everything that was on the DVD store just because it was japanese.

There is a weird fanboyism at these conventions that I just can´t understand, they swallow everything, as long as it comes from ´Nihon it´s all good

It's the same with me. Finland's got this Japan-daze going on (and it's only got bigger and bigger) and it's pretty much like you explained there. Anything from Japan is interesting, cool and kawaii. The weird part is, it's most popular amongst about 10-14 year old girls. At J-rock gigs, there's a line on the tickets that says "children under 12 years allowed only with their guardian" which you can't find on any other tickets. Many will also go to any gig that features a Japanese artist; I think even artists like Masonna or Gerogerigegege would get a big audience of young (probably horrified ) girls. I do admit that most "J-rock" bands look and sound fresh, we don't really have stuff like that in Finland. We didn't see people like this on the streets of Helsinki earlier: HEL LOOKS | Rosa (16) and now you'll see that every day. I even saw a girl dressed as a giant mouse or bunny today .

The fact that all this stuff is most popular among (often annoying) children and teens has made some people think of the stuff that comes from Japan is either crap or hilarious, or possibly both. The music is of course crappy pop which is played by gay guys with lots of make-up and dresses. And sure, that's not true, but it makes it awkward for the more mature people (I won't say older, that wouldn't be quite true) who like anime/j-rock/manga and so on.

I myself am trying to learn the language, and I like some bands and stuff. I'll also move to Japan next year for a month or so with my girlfriend (just for a vacation though). I've never done cosplay or any of that stuff that's gotten popular here, and I'm quite sure I won't.

Me lieks e.g. these bands: Dir en grey, Mono, Te', Toe, Luna Sea, Plastic Tree (old stuff isn't very good though), Envy, Boredoms, Merzbow, Boris, The Pillows and Malice Mizer.

 

[Metal Ken]

Cant stand japanese pop music, but they do produce some fine metal bands, like X, Sex Machineguns, Boris, Sigh and Sabbat.

 

[Lucky Seven]

X, Sex Machineguns, Galneryus (if you like powermetal) are all good metal bands IMO.


Best band to come from Japan is Uehara Hiromi's band, but that's only if you like Jazz.

 

[lucasreis]

Ze Kink, thanx for the info on some other bands, I´ll check them out, because, as I said before, I´m into some japanese stuff and I really don´t have any preconceptions and stuff.

But I admit it was fun to see some guys singing and dancing japanese stuff in front of the dvd store, it could be metal, pop, reggae (I swear, there was japanese reggae) and they would know the words and stuff. They´re so fetishist it´s not even funny!

 

[MatthewK]

I dig some X Japan, Dir en Grey and a guitarist named Tak Matsumoto. I'm not into anime or any of that at all, but I do think Japanese culture is really interesting.

 

[Lucky Seven]

I dig some X Japan, Dir en Grey and a guitarist named Tak Matsumoto. I'm not into anime or any of that at all, but I do think Japanese culture is really interesting.

AH, OH MY GOD! How could I forget about Tak Matsumoto?!?!?!?! He was the guy that got me into Japanese music! Great Great GREAT guitar player. (Not a fan of B'z though).

 

[Naren]

I HAAAAAATE 95% of J-pop and I hate 90% of J-rock. I just can't stand that popular singing style they got now. It annoys the FUCK out of me.

My drummer went into a tirade 2 days ago about how J-Rock is a scourge on the face of this planet and I joked about the steretypical J-Rock music video.

And I absolutely hate female-fronted "rock" or "metal" bands. They don't even strikes me as bands, but as pop stars (or pop star wannabes) that stick a band behind them to make them appear more authentic and musical. One annoying thing about the Japanese metal underground is that you get a bunch of female-fronted black metal, death metal, and so on bands. Now, you might be imagining something like Angela from Arch Enemy, but it's nothing like that. For the most part, they try to be all heavy and it comes out more like something like Flyleaf. I'm like "Hey, the most important aspect of metal is violence. If your guitar-playing style, riffs, solos, drums, bass, and vocals don't have any violence to them, then your music is stale." and that's what these bands are.

And worst of all, I hate Japanese rap. They act all hardcore and like they're from the streets, while rapping about going to the beach and having a party with their friends and getting along and hitting on hot chicks. There's "gangsta rap" in the US and then there's "modern happy party rap" in Japan. And the worst in that genre is the pop singer mixed with the rappers. I love parodying it though. I wrote a song that made fun of Orange Range (who I can't stand. The guitarist in my band says that this is the worst style of music Japan has to offer) complete with overly optimistic lyrics and inane rhyming schemes.

And what about Visual-kei? That stuff is HORRIBLE. My band always makes fun of the Visual-kei bands that play in the studios we go to. Sometimes the other guitarist can't help but crack up laughing at them. And he has quite a bit of disdain for the power metal and classic metal guys and their fucked up fashion.

There are some cool underground Japanese hardcore punk, thrash, death metal, black metal, electronica, and such out there. But that type of stuff never makes it beyond Japan's borders.

Some of the famous Japanese bands and artists I really like are: X Japan, Spread Beaver (as well as Hide's solo stuff), Blue Hearts, UNITED, Metal Safari, Ua, Utada Hikaru, Love Psychedelico, Reach, Yamaarashi, a lot of stuff by Mr. Children, and then a ton of underground bands.

I really can't describe my hatred for a lot of the pure shit out there. Of course, most American and British pop music is shit too.

Cant stand japanese pop music, but they do produce some fine metal bands, like X, Sex Machineguns, Boris, Sigh and Sabbat.

I can mostly agree with that, but I hate Sex Machineguns.

AH, OH MY GOD! How could I forget about Tak Matsumoto?!?!?!?! He was the guy that got me into Japanese music! Great Great GREAT guitar player. (Not a fan of B'z though).

I can't stand that dude. Totally the most overrated player ever. And his "band" (just him and a singer) consistently rips off classic rock. My girlfriend wanted to see my Led Zeppelin DVD so I threw it in and when it came to "Trampled Underfoot," she was like, "Hey. I've heard this before." After a few seconds, she realized that B'z had totally ripped off the song and just put different vocals and lyrics on top of it.

Whoever thinks that dude is creative is... . I seriously don't understand the hype for a mediocre guitarist who mostly rips of 60s and 70s bands. I believe he has a custom Gibson now.

 

[sakeido]

I like X Japan and Dir en Grey, but that's it

 

[Lucky Seven]

I can't stand that dude. Totally the most overrated player ever. And his "band" (just him and a singer) consistently rips off classic rock. My girlfriend wanted to see my Led Zeppelin DVD so I threw it in and when it came to "Trampled Underfoot," she was like, "Hey. I've heard this before." After a few seconds, she realized that B'z had totally ripped off the song and just put different vocals and lyrics on top of it.

Whoever thinks that dude is creative is... . I seriously don't understand the hype for a mediocre guitarist who mostly rips of 60s and 70s bands. I believe he has a custom Gibson now.

Hmmm, really? The only thing I've heard him do is that Favored Nations CD, but that's gay if most the stuff he does is rip off classic rock.

 

[Naren]

Hmmm, really? The only thing I've heard him do is that Favored Nations CD, but that's gay if most the stuff he does is rip off classic rock.

His whole style is basically a rip-off of classic rock and he's copied riffs from a few Led Zeppelin and Beatles songs. There are a few others. I think he claims that he's doing a "tribute" to them. But he's basically making money off of using their riffs and then putting different vocals and lyrics on top. So it's not even a cover. Japan can't get in trouble for this kind of stuff, because they aren't in the US or UK. In fact, some pop artists just redo Western songs with Japanese lyrics such as "Livin' La Vida Loca" (which was a HUGE hit. Not the original, but the Japanese remake). And, of course, Ricky Martin didn't get any royalties off of that. In the same way, Zeppelin and the Beatles don't get any royalties off what B'z is doing.

I have no respect for that dude. And I can't stand the vocals of the singer for B'z. When I was in college, I knew a left-handed guitarist who was B'z's biggest fan and that was the first time that I really heard a lot of their stuff and I have to say I didn't like it then and I don't like it now.

 

[ZXIIIT]

no love for Concerto Moon?

 

[Lucky Seven]

I've always hated B'z. But Hana is a cool CD.

 

[Azyiu]

Some of my all-time fav bands are actually J-pop / J-rock bands or artists... the list include but not limited to X-Japan, The Alfee (limited to their 80's stuff), Luna Sea, Boowy, Hotei Tomoyasu (布袋寅&#27888

 

[HamBungler]

I like The Pillows, COIL (did Gitaroo Man music, favorite game ever haha) and Lapis Lazuli (the guys that recorded the Guilty Gear music on Guilty Gear X and XX too I believe), and I'll say most of the vocal J-Rock is hit or miss for me, its either very very good or shit. I love instrumental rock and metal they put out though, insanely good IMO.

 

[lucasreis]

I HAAAAAATE 95% of J-pop and I hate 90% of J-rock. I just can't stand that popular singing style they got now. It annoys the FUCK out of me.

My drummer went into a tirade 2 days ago about how J-Rock is a scourge on the face of this planet and I joked about the steretypical J-Rock music video.

And I absolutely hate female-fronted "rock" or "metal" bands. They don't even strikes me as bands, but as pop stars (or pop star wannabes) that stick a band behind them to make them appear more authentic and musical. One annoying thing about the Japanese metal underground is that you get a bunch of female-fronted black metal, death metal, and so on bands. Now, you might be imagining something like Angela from Arch Enemy, but it's nothing like that. For the most part, they try to be all heavy and it comes out more like something like Flyleaf. I'm like "Hey, the most important aspect of metal is violence. If your guitar-playing style, riffs, solos, drums, bass, and vocals don't have any violence to them, then your music is stale." and that's what these bands are.

And worst of all, I hate Japanese rap. They act all hardcore and like they're from the streets, while rapping about going to the beach and having a party with their friends and getting along and hitting on hot chicks. There's "gangsta rap" in the US and then there's "modern happy party rap" in Japan. And the worst in that genre is the pop singer mixed with the rappers. I love parodying it though. I wrote a song that made fun of Orange Range (who I can't stand. The guitarist in my band says that this is the worst style of music Japan has to offer) complete with overly optimistic lyrics and inane rhyming schemes.

And what about Visual-kei? That stuff is HORRIBLE. My band always makes fun of the Visual-kei bands that play in the studios we go to. Sometimes the other guitarist can't help but crack up laughing at them. And he has quite a bit of disdain for the power metal and classic metal guys and their fucked up fashion.

There are some cool underground Japanese hardcore punk, thrash, death metal, black metal, electronica, and such out there. But that type of stuff never makes it beyond Japan's borders.

Some of the famous Japanese bands and artists I really like are: X Japan, Spread Beaver (as well as Hide's solo stuff), Blue Hearts, UNITED, Metal Safari, Ua, Utada Hikaru, Love Psychedelico, Reach, Yamaarashi, a lot of stuff by Mr. Children, and then a ton of underground bands.

I really can't describe my hatred for a lot of the pure shit out there. Of course, most American and British pop music is shit too.



I can mostly agree with that, but I hate Sex Machineguns.



I can't stand that dude. Totally the most overrated player ever. And his "band" (just him and a singer) consistently rips off classic rock. My girlfriend wanted to see my Led Zeppelin DVD so I threw it in and when it came to "Trampled Underfoot," she was like, "Hey. I've heard this before." After a few seconds, she realized that B'z had totally ripped off the song and just put different vocals and lyrics on top of it.

Whoever thinks that dude is creative is... . I seriously don't understand the hype for a mediocre guitarist who mostly rips of 60s and 70s bands. I believe he has a custom Gibson now.

Hey Naren, very interesting info you just posted here. It´s cool to have an insight to what it´s like living in actual japan and near visual-kei bands in the studio. Geez, I never thought these visual kei guys would go to a hehearsal with make up and stuff! This is priceless, it must be really pathetic, but also really funny to see.

But I really agree on something, the songs that made really irritated on the anime convention thing were the ones where female singers were doing their buble-gum thing on top of heavy guitars, it was even more pathetic than a lot of the Nightwish impersonators I see everyday.

Also, this video, below, is the worst song pretending to be metal I´ve ever heard in my entire life.

It´s a song played by Maximum the Hormone, called Zetsubou Billy, made for the Death Note anime. I wanted to see Death Note because everybody says it´s good, but after hearing this song I don´t want to see it anymore.

It´s the most fucked up song ever, it has rap, emo, death metal, nu-metal breakdowns, system of a down stuff, limp bizkit stuff, japanese bubble gum pop, all throw in with so much bad taste.

Enjoy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97gbsWsqhjI]YouTube - Zetsubou billy-ending 2 death note

ps: one of the guys has a Tool t-shirt, if I was in Tool I would be offended by seeing that.

 

[Kagami]

tool sucks sorry to say it but they do

Maximum the Hormone is awesome, we had a love thread a while ago They are specifically awesome because of how they meld stuff together and don't take themselves too seriously.

 

[lucasreis]

:

tool sucks sorry to say it but they do

Maximum the Hormone is awesome, we had a love thread a while ago They are specifically awesome because of how they meld stuff together and don't take themselves too seriously.

Tool sucks? That´s new to me...

To me MTH mix of styles just sound like plain uninspired garbage or, in the grown-up language, advanced identity crisis.