Music review: Gackt - Mirror

Artist: Gackt Album: Mars Release date: 4/26/00 Video link: On YouTube

English translation by Mina-P: You're never around during the crucial times You're not sure what's important to you Someone's sick of you

You only chase after novelties "Where did those good old days go!!" You have no right to lament things like that

Reflected in your eyes, my face doesn't return anything From the beginning you must have known...

Rush down underneath these heavens By yourself... I wonder if your arms can catch my fostered body

"I'll save the things I believe in" you say The angels are good at excuses with their nonsense, but god's also good at lying

Reflected in my eyes, your tears are all phony In the end I knew you must be smiling...

Embrace each other underneath these heavens The two of us... Your voice shouts, like it's reaching out to my broken heart... And then Hold me tighter

In order to get something, you have to lose something and someone will be hurt

Fall in love underneath these heavens Just a little bit... Because your voice lit a fire in my shyness

Because if these great emotions don't reach out Courageously... Your finger will strike the last blow to my shattered heart About the song: I love this song. It's extremely upbeat and it tells people to GO for what you want. Stop whining about things that happened in the past, look forward and find what it is that you want in life. It's a little annoying when Gackt performs this song because he always stops in the middle to yell with the audience. He runs and jumps around for the beginning of the song so I guess he gets tired and that is the closest he gets to a break. At least he looks like he's having fun performing it. I recommend this song to everyone. It's great to listen to when you're feeling a little down about life or even when you're happy and just want to listen to an awesome song.

Music review: L'arc~en~Ciel - Flower

Artist: L'arc~en~Ciel Members: Hyde (vocals, guitar), Tetsu (background vocals, bass), Ken (guitar), Yukihiro (drums) Album: True Release date: 12/12/96 Video link: On Veoh

English translation: Yes, you'd noticed that in the afternoon sun I was still sleeping The scenario that won't go as I plan Just causes me confusion

Because I can't meet you today I'll just stay in bed and close my eyes Until the morning after the next I'll be fascinated by the you I see in my dreams

Always shaken up by your smiling face I want to blossom strongly, like the sun Because my heart hurts, hurts so bad it's about to break If it's an unreachable dream, at least let me wither!

I can't smile any longer Even in my dreams, you tell me the same thing Beyond my window I wonder what the real you is doing now

In that far away day called yesterday Holding an empty bird cage As I walked on I was probably searching for you

Even though I'm tempted by the vivid wind I'm still chasing you in a daze The sky, even now a blue that looks ready to rain down Embraces me as I gaze up at it

Carrying countless seeds to that hill I'll lay down a bed of beautiful flowers Hurry and find me, find me 'cause I'll be right here I'll wait to be awakened by you

Always shaken up by your smiling face I want to blossom strongly, like the sun Because my heart hurts, hurts so bad it's about to break If it's an unreachable dream, at least let me wither! About the song: Flower is a sweet little song about waiting for the one you love to return to you. I like the harmonica solos peppered throughout the song. While L'arc is usually a rock band, they manage to kick out these almost-ballads with touching lyrics and a catchy tune. Whenever I make a mix album for myself, this song is almost always on it.

Music review: Gackt - Dybbuk

Artist: Gackt Album: Crescent Release date: 12/3/03 Video link: On Veoh (video also has White Eyes on it)

English translation by Mina-P: A silver dream, the sweetly spun sound of the rain Who's that standing behind you? Once more, close your eyes so we can meet

My burned out heart is bound in chains My torn wounds are embraced by the sun The light and shadows piercing my body, watching...

"Still, you can't change... so, close your eyes"

I can't wait until you find your way here Don't stop, the rain will tell you when it's over Don't cry, until the wishes you've drawn out have been granted

"Still, I can't let go... so, hold me tight"

"That wish won't be granted... so, raise your hands"

Burned by the sun break my body Pain and separation kill time Yearning for the sun entrust my body Embraced by loneliness kill me About the song: I didn't like this song until I watched Gackt perform it as the opening song for his Diabolos concert. Something about that performance left a powerful impression on me. The song is fierce, yet it has a soft side as well. A dybbuk is a piece of Jewish folklore. It is basically a soul that can't fulfill its duty while alive. It will attach itself to a living body in an attempt to accomplish its goal. Once the goal has been completed, it will leave the body and move on. These are not considered good souls and are often known as tricksters. Taking that knowledge and applying it to the song, we come up with a person that died but their soul could not move on. The soul probably could not let go of the person they loved while mortal. So now they beg for release yet they are stuck until their love has been fulfilled. This is a marvelous song that shows how much thought Gackt puts into his music, his lyrics and his performances. (Seriously, how many of you knew what a dybbuk was before I told you? ;) )

JConcert review: Gackt - Jougen no Tsuki

Artist: Gackt Tour: Jougen no Tsuki Year: 2003 Location: Yokohama Arena GacktJOB members: ChaChamaru, You, Ren, Ryuichi Song list: Noah (plays in the background during the introduction) Speed Master Lu:na Fragrance Rain Solitude -Regret- Kimi ga Matteiru kara Doomsday Tsuki no Uta Mirror Another World Soleil wa.su.re.na.i.ka.ra Kimi ga Oikaketa Yume memories Birdcage Orange no Taiyou

Tell me about the concert: As a few of you may know, Gackt is an amazing performer. If you muted the sound while watching this, you could still be very entertained by what you see. The DVD starts out with an introduction about the Moon Saga - a collection of projects that included CDs, concerts (with their DVDs) and a movie. From there, you slam into Speed Master, a high energy, fast paced, erotic song. As a warning, if you have epilepsy, you probably shouldn't watch a Gackt concert. Speed Master starts off with the lights flashing and twirling, making it somewhat difficult to distinguish the individual members of GacktJOB.

Immediately, Gackt slams into Lu:na. Most of his dancers come out wearing black clothes with white masks. Two of the dancers match Gackt’s white outfit, though they have a black hood and a white mask on. While Gackt holds his microphone, all of the dancers hold swords. The dance that follows is a mixture of sword fighting, martial arts and gymnastics.

Fragrance slows things down a little. Smoke surrounds Gackt’s feet as his dancers move around him. It’s a good break from the frantic opening songs.

In my opinion, the performance of Rain is really what makes this particular concert amazing. About halfway through the song, water falls from above and surrounds the stage. I don’t mean that there is one gush of water and that’s it. Rain falls steadily around the stage for a good ten minutes without any apparent splashing onto the stage. I still have no idea how he managed to pull this off without getting a speck of water on the stage. (The video for this can be found here.)

After a short guitar duet between ChaCha and You, a video of flashing lightning and moving clouds is shown. Gackt appears back on stage wearing his black baggy costume and performs a piano piece titled Solitude – Regret-.

Following the instrumental is the one-two punch of Kimi ga Matteiru Kara and Doomsday. Both are powerful songs but Gackt’s performance of Doomsday is exceptional. For those that don’t know, the song is about obsession ending in madness. Gackt uses his entire body to look quite insane as the song bounces back and forth between softness and almost yelling. At the end of the song, a blast of fire shoots upward from the stage as Gackt screams. It is definitely an appropriate ending to the song.

There is a short blackout before we find ourselves looking at a child. Anyone who has seen the movie ‘Moon Child’ would recognize the boy as the child version of Gackt’s character, Sho. The boy and Gackt, who has changed costumes again, stand a couple of feet apart from each other. As Gackt sings, he moves toward the boy. Once they are standing together, the boy begins to lip-synch showing that they are, indeed, the same person in child and adult form. Chalk this up to another beautiful performance for this concert.

Usually this is where Gackt moves into the ‘fun’ side of the concert. We are still treated to the high-energy, GAKUTO-screaming, jumping off the stage fun of Mirror and it is followed up by another high-energy song, Another World. However, this concert leaves out the U+K cat costume dance. Instead, the cats come out to Soleil. It’s not a bad song and I’m sure many people have tried to wash the men in tutus from their brains but it’s not U+K.

Wa.su.re.na.i.ka.ra and Kimi ga Oikaketa Yume round out the last of the fast songs. Gackt finishes the concert with the slower songs, memories and Birdcage. Finally, the cast from ‘Moon Child,’ minus Hyde, come out and perform a small skit. Wang Leehom performs the duet of no Taiyou with Gackt as clips from the movie are shown. Toward the end of the song, the rest of the cast leave the stage and Hyde’s voice comes over the speakers. Gackt finishes off the duet with the recording of Hyde while standing next to an empty spotlight. He motions toward the spotlight and the concert ends.

What are your feelings? This isn’t the best Gackt concert by far but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth watching. If you enjoy watching plays or highly theatrical performances, chances are you will like this concert. Of course, you can watch it just for the Gackt factor too. It’s hard to not like a Gackt concert.

Music review: W - Robokiss

Artist: W Members: Ai Kago (Aibon), Nozomi Tsuji (Nono) Album: 2nd W Release date: 3/2/05 Video link: on Veoh

English translation: That amazing girl is a go girl That risky guy is a yes man Is everyone ordinary? No, no!

Where are you throwing it?! No control I got asked out on a date, love control A hole is opening, a lotus root takes seed Etcetera, etcetera

Of course I know about love, at the very least

I love you, I Iove you, give me a kiss I love you, I love you, kiss me infinitely I love you, I love you, I know about kisses I love you, I love you, even if I'm a robot

Shabala lan lan lan lan la-la Shabala lan lan lan lan la-la Shabala lan lan lan lan la-la Robo robo

Now I'm friends with that girl Then it's fade-out with my boyfriend Why consecutive holidays after this! No, no!

With quick calculations, a ferocious attack! Consenting to your faults in a headlock Accept the whereabouts of love with thanks!

I'm not always gonna be a kid

I love you, I Iove you, give me a kiss I love you, I Iove you, take caution in your kiss I love you, I Iove you, no one can I love you, I Iove you, kiss by themselves

I love you, I Iove you, give me a kiss I love you, I Iove you, take caution in your kiss I love you, I Iove you, no one can I love you, I Iove you, kiss by themselves

Shabala lan lan lan lan la-la Shabala lan lan lan lan la-la Shabala lan lan lan lan la-la Robo robo Shabala lan lan lan lan la-la Shabala lan lan lan lan la-la Shabala lan lan lan lan la-la Robo robo About the song: Robokiss is just a silly song. It's about a girl in love with a robot. Both Aibon and Nono are so cute that it's difficult to not like their songs, even though a majority of them are covers of older songs. The "Suki suki ssu kissu" part is the best since it basically just sounds like like suki suki suki (pronounced sue-key). Sadly, W is no more. Last year, Aibon was caught smoking underage and was suspended. This year, just as Aibon was coming back into the fold, she was caught not only smoking again but dating a 37-year old man. (For the record, Aibon is 19.) As a result, Up Front Agency cancelled Aibon's contract. Nono was going to be in a new group but shortly after the group was announced, Nono announced her pregnancy and upcoming marriage. She has decided to take a hiatus from show business. There was a third W album that was supposed to have been released but it was cancelled due to Aibon's controversy.

Music review: Arashi - Right Back To You

Artist: Arashi Members: Ninomiya Kazunari (Nino), Ohno Satoshi (Leader), Matsumoto Jun (MatsuJun), Aiba Masaki, Sakurai Sho Album: Iza, Now! Release date: 7/21/04 Video link: http://www.veoh.com/videos/e131869t4WaDnxG

English translation: At this wall that forbids time to flow back A lightning flashed through my heart Those days I’m used to, they’re still engrossed in my body Un~ frozen An amazing balance that gradually leaves A mask that shows Cannot hide my actions No no no~

Unable to tell anyone A secretive past The both of us in a tight embrace

Coming right back to you (those words are repeating, hiding the scars on the wings) Right back to you If only I were an angel Right back to you (chasing after love, to survive the cold nights) Right back to you Only one person, you, shall I believe in

Drowning badly in this prove of my non-existence Enjoying this easy game of one-man-show Don’t mind it (right about time) In the letter

Unsure of where it landed The key to the memory belonging to us (I will recall)

Coming right back to you (those words are repeating, hiding the scars on the wings) Right back to you If only I were an angel Right back to you (chasing after love, to survive the cold nights) Right back to you Only one person, you, shall I believe in

The four seasons starts to bounce again, baby Freaky, freaky, freaky night, dance baby When we touch, the temperature of our palms rise, mayday From the lightened oceans, thanks baby

Tomorrow night shall still be clutched But understand that we must run when there’s a chance Leading the crowd, unbolt the galaxy I’m coming right back to you

Coming right back to you (those words are repeating, hiding the scars on the wings) Right back to you If only I were an angel Right back to you (chasing after love, to survive the cold nights) Right back to you Only one person, you, shall I believe in Right back to you (chasing after love, to survive the cold nights) Right back to you Only one person, you, shall I believe in About the song: I, like many other fans, found Arashi through MatsuJun's jdorama work. He played Domyouji Tsukasa in Hana Yori Dango, which is one of my favorite shows. The band calls this 'Jun-bait' ^_^ When I first started listening to the group, I looked for videos of them. This was one of the first videos I found and I got hooked instantly. Even now, I don't even bother to read the translation for it. I simply let myself get taken away with the feeling of the song. Though I will admit that I immediately associate the song with the dance they did in the Iza, Now! concert. (This is the video that is linked above.) In my opinion, this is the type of song that really defines Arashi as a group. It's 'pop' enough to keep their fanbase happy, still has their typical rap in the middle and is very danceable. I could listen to it on repeat for hours without getting tired of it.

Music review: L'arc~en~Ciel - Perfect Blue

Artist: L'arc~en~Ciel Members: Hyde (vocals, guitar), Tetsu (background vocals, bass), Ken (guitar), Yukihiro (drums) Album: Ark Release date: 7/1/99 Video link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lacjaWbhi-U

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Music review: Gackt - U+K

Artist: Gackt Song title: U+K Album: Mars Release date: 4/26/00 Video link:http://www.veoh.com/videos/e174563pQx9jj27

English translation by Mina-P: So... Don't say anything You're just a little bit frightened now so Don't say anything You're just a little bit in grief so

In the last act, offer your prayers

The magic of the moon is... shalle a le rilla Because we whisper in sugary voices If just one more wish comes true I want to join hands with you and laugh

Inside of the dream... Inside of the memory, we'll definitely meet again...

If you can regain your smile If your laughing self returns Sadness will turn into kindness

"As that far off memory was..." with all your desires

The magic of the moon is... shalle a le rilla If you can forget your tears If you can touch your kindness I want to sleep near you

If the magic of the moon vanishes Because good-byes are visited again If we can follow our feelings right now I want to join hands with you and dance

Inside of the light, the place we should return to, Because I'll meet you again somewhere

About the song: As you can see in the video, this is the "dancing cats" song. It is weird that this song is so upbeat and cheery. Rumor has it that this song is about the death of Kami, the drummer for Gackt's former band, Malice Mizer. While Gackt himself hasn't come out and said this song IS about Kami, he has expressed sadness and guilt over the sudden death of his friend. In his autobiography (translation: http://www.midnightrevolution.org/asrundream/trans/book/jihaku/), he talks about how he felt like he could have done more to 'save' Kami and how he knew something bad was going to happen but didn't do anything about it. (Kami died of a subarachnoid hemorrhage, I don't know that there was anything Gackt could have done to stop that.) Since this was Gackt's first album after Kami's death, it wouldn't surprise me if this song really is about him.

I love this song because it is so cheery. Gackt doesn't see death as The End. As the lyrics show, he believes that he will see his loved ones again either in an afterlife or a rebirth. That's why this song touches me. I believe in rebirth so even when a loved one dies, I believe that I will see them again in another life. Death isn't something to fear. It's just another turn in the wheel of life.

Music Review: Gackt - Speed Master

Artist: GacktSong title: Speed Master Album: Moon Release date: 6/19/02 Video link: http://www.veoh.com/videos/v257966P6JN4CK4

English translation by Mina-P:

"love..." I love you Cause you give me everything So much that it destroys me, everything

I love you You let me coil around your wet body So much that is drives me mad again, everything

I can't get it again Pleasure from you

I love you Even your insane face is beautiful So much that I lose consciousness, everything

It won't go back again Even pain from you

But you're not here... I can't endure, all alone

But you're not here... Just once more I hold you

I won't let go again Even your rotten body

But you're not here... I can't endure, all alone

But you're not here... Just once more I hold you

But you... I can't fix it again

About the song: The music to this song, to me, is very erotic. It starts out with a fast pace then slows slightly to rev back up to a frantically fast pace again. The chorus has a sort of 'thrusting' sound to it. As for the lyrics, I interpret them as someone very deeply in love but they have lost their loved one...most likely to death. They just about go insane from missing the love they held so dear.

While I love this song by itself, it really comes to life when Gackt performs it live. He really knows how to bring the lust out of it. I know that Gackt isn't for everyone but it's difficult to turn away from someone thrusting their hips on stage ^_^