TL;DR: Dir en Grey is Japans greatest contribution to metal, and you should totally check them out. Also, Im extremely giddy for this new album. A lot of people would argue validly that Japans greatest contribution to metal was X-Japan. I disagree, and would have to say Dir en Grey is the greatest contribution. Youd say that X-Japan Influenced Dir en Grey and they did. But X-Japan rose to prominence as a glam metal band in the early 80s where most of the bands belonged to that genre; but they did usher in the visual kei movement of which Dir en Grey benefited from. However, Dir en Grey debuted with a style far too ahead of its time. And while super successful in Japan, the band was always destined for greatness. If this band is anything, it is adaptable. Theyre an imposing group that evolved organically, and can be seen through their journey away from the visual kei scene both musically and by looks. Their albums contained smartly written lyrics that only someone with a full grasp of Japanese can ever write; explore taboo topics, and asked for an introspective movement from the Japanese. Though they never got it. Musically, as they began shedding the visual kei make up so too did they shed the sound. In where the Western influences, the utilization of vocals as an instrument that not only sang, but added to the overall sound of the band; even if the end result was a cacophony (Saku, Im talking about Saku). But while their content slowly matured, most fans probably knew the potential of the band. Many western listeners would agree on their single Obscure as their best song. While it certainty a favorite of mine and a great song, it wasnt a defining moment in their development (the video helped it a lot). There were four important moments in the bands history: Mazohyst of Decadence and Myaku from Macabre: it became clear that Kyo is by the far the best contemporary lyricist in Japan. The bands work itself is not bad, but their sound had yet to be defined. How skilled is he? Mazohyst of Decadence is from the point of view of an aborted fetus thrown away like garbage. Seriously, the storytelling is insane. Withering to Death: with their visual kei roots virtually gone in both style and sound, this is the heaviest album from their catalog. But the sound wasnt just heavy, this their first concept albums. Withering to Death was unapologetic heavy and depressing. Focusing on the inevitable end of a human, it forces listeners to think of birth as the beginning of dying. This is exemplified in two ways. The album is a solipsistic concept album bordering on nihilism, with two particular narrative songs connected through the video EP Average Psycho in Saku and Kodou. In it, a nihilistic teenager sick of the society in which he lives, commits murder on his family, and several schoolmates. But, the one song that encapsulates this philosophy is The Final, a song about a man unable to live within a world of falsity and vanity and ultimately commits suicide. However, from another point of view, and one provided to me by Che, is the idea of dying slowly as one by one, a bodys organs begin to fail, crippling them and taking away their humanity. To hear the theme, one must read Tuesdays with Morrie. A phenomenal classic that deals with the same topic. Next is Uroboros, arguably their best work. The album focuses on the human condition, specifically within the context of Asian values and cultures. Look no further than Vinushka for proof; written as a reaction and critique of Japans WWII campaign, and the dropping of the atomic bombs by the US. The sentiment was so strong within the song that its video was censored due to the subject matter. And finally, the Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami. The album was released as an introspective work of the band within Japanese culture. It was super critical of the countrys response to the disaster, and how politicians and other officials, behaved after the nuclear plant incident. It spurred the Scream for Truth campaign, in which the band asked the Japanese government for the truth in regards to the nuclear plant. Holy shit I wrote an essay.
Posted on: Fri, 14 Nov 2014 01:30:49 +0000
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