[REQUEST]recommendations on some Jpop/Jrock male artists/bands?

[Bad Wolf]

I don't have much patience for male Jpop, so I can only go with some Jrock here... (surprise surprise) I'd recommend Dir en grey.

They've been around for about 10 years, have out 6 full albums, 1 remix album, 1 mini-album and three compilations ones (just released last year) and have gone through some really interesting musical changes on each album. Each record, IMHO, is just as good as the last, though I generally favor one or two over another, they're still not bad and haven't disappointed me yet. Some of these musical changes range from Kyo, the vocalist, actually singing to Kyo peppering the songs with interesting.. screams. He still sings, but he does what I like to call "vocal gymnastics" in some songs, in that he goes from a falsetto to a regular male singing range and then to something crazy all together that sounds like a puma. o_o; Honestly, it's good music, though.

Kyo writes all the lyrics and the band does the music (individual members sometimes or the band as a whole), and honestly? Kyo is one of my favorite lyricists in music today. He's probably up there / surpasses Ayumi and Hikaru and I LOVE how those two write. He tells such fascinating, albeit a little disturbing, stories with each song, and then the WAY he sings them just rips your heart in half. ;~; particularly on tracks like "zakuro" and "-mushi-", which I think have a LOT more oomph if you can manage to track down their "Blitz 5 Days" versions - if not, I can send them to you if you're curious.

Since I'm a writer and not a musician, I tend to focus on the person responsible for the lyrics (in this case, Kyo) so while I know about the other lovely men in the band I feel a little silly commenting on them besides to say that they're all very talented and a vital, necessary component to the band. Everything they do just fits.

Recommended songs~

from their first record, GAUZE:
- Tsumi to Batsu
- -Zan-
- Akuro no Oka
- Cage

from their second record, MACABRE:
- Deity
- Hydra
- Hotarubi
- MACABRE - Sanagi no Yume Wa Ageha no Hane -
- zakuro

from their third record, Kisou:
- ZOMBOID
- undecided
- -mushi-
- Karasu

from their fourth record, VULGAR:
- audience KILLER LOOP
- KASUMI
- CHILD PREY
- OBSCURE

from their fifth record, Withering to death.:
- Merciless Cult
- -saku-
- dead tree
- THE FINAL
- Beautiful Dirt
- Kodou
- Higeki ha Mabuta wo Oroshita Yasashiki Utsu

from their sixth record, The Marrow of a Bone:
- CONCEIVED SORROW
- Ryoujoku no Ame
- THE PLEDGE
- GRIEF


I'm pretty sure someone posted their discog on this site, too, so... enjoy if you go through them?

(I was thinking of recommending the Gazette but from what I've heard of their music, it's really just like a watered down version of Dir en grey, with very few exceptions :\)

[CHE.R.RY]

Originally Posted by InoriNoUta

I don't have much patience for male Jpop, so I can only go with some Jrock here... (surprise surprise) I'd recommend Dir en grey.

I looked them up for the first time today and I really liked 'Koudo' and 'Dozing Green', but I watched the Pvs of Zan, Obscure, and Clever Sleazoid and they fightened me lol. I don't mind metal, but I don't really think they're for me. Man, I was really excited too when I read that they had toured with Korn :O.

[KarenPang]

I totally forget to mention Kobukuro and the duo of Tackey & Tsubasa !

Kobukuro :

recommended singles - listen from their 11th Single - Kokoni Shika Sakanai Hana which's their breakthough hit

they have some great melodies going on in their songs like Sakura , the soaring uplifting Kimi to Iu Nano Tsubasa (Wings that are named you) & of course their 1st no.1 single Tsubomi

Tackey & Tsubasa :

recommended singles :

their 6th single Venus was the very 1st song I heard from them & it's so catchy it hurts !

Go for their 2nd single Yume Monogatari which's incidentally their 1st no.1 single

others worth to try are 7th single Ho ! Summer , 3rd single Serenade , their 8th single 8th Single - x ~Dame~ + Crazy Rainbow , 5th Single - Kamen + Mirai Koukai

their latest 10th Single - Koi Uta + PROGRESS is not bad although I prefer Koi Uta more

You also can try the duo Tegomass too who comprises of NEWS's Tegoshi & Masuda .

They only put out 3 singles so far but recommended one has gotta be their latest single Aiaigasa

[Bad Wolf]

Originally Posted by CHE.R.RY

I looked them up for the first time today and I really liked 'Koudo' and 'Dozing Green', but I watched the Pvs of Zan, Obscure, and Clever Sleazoid and they fightened me lol. I don't mind metal, but I don't really think they're for me. Man, I was really excited too when I read that they had toured with Korn :O.

Aww, don't let them scare you off ... And I'm sorry you had to see the PV for OBSCURE. That video really creeped me out, too, but just know that there's a reason behind it and it's not just them being disgusting and horrible without a point lolol.


prussian_blue: I second the miyavi nomination! He's a fantastic musician and I was completely blown away by his songs, especially from his earlier/indie days. ... He's really cute, too

[CHE.R.RY]

Originally Posted by InoriNoUta

Aww, don't let them scare you off ... And I'm sorry you had to see the PV for OBSCURE. That video really creeped me out, too, but just know that there's a reason behind it and it's not just them being disgusting and horrible without a point lolol.


prussian_blue: I second the miyavi nomination! He's a fantastic musician and I was completely blown away by his songs, especially from his earlier/indie days. ... He's really cute, too

LOL well I did like a few songs from them, so I don't think I'll give up on them yet. And there's always a reason when someone makes a PV like that .