Dir en grey's Gauze, a fine mix of pop, rock, and elaborate costumes.
Written: Aug 10 '06
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Excellent debut.
Cons: It costs too damn much due to it being an import.
The Bottom Line: The bottom line loves GAUZE... Lots of it.
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| noddy1's Full Review: Gauze by Dir En Grey |
In 1999, Japanese rock band Dir en grey released their major debut album, GAUZE, to almost immediate acclaim. The band's sound at this point was thanks to former X-JAPAN drummer Yoshiki who produced the effort. The mix of electric and acoustic guitar, loud and thumping bass, hard-pounding drums and seering vocals were just what the band needed to make it big. Well... that, and their elaborate costumes, used as part of Japan's visual kei movement. It involved lots of cross-dressing, giving the band a huge fanbase of teenage girls, along with a few male fans.
AND NOW, LET'S MEET THE BAND
Kyo - vocals
Kaoru - guitar
Die - guitar
Toshiya - bass
Shinya - drums
Each member gets the spotlight.
One of Dir en grey's biggest fan favorites is track 5, "Cage". It tells a sad story of an abusive mother, and one can hear Kyo sing as if he were crying. The absolute best part of this song in addition to the vocals, is Toshiya's bass solo. It sounds simple as it doesn't really change chords except for once, but is hard to replicate unless you use a pick to play it. "Cage" is so sad, yet so upbeat at the same time.
Another surprisingly upbeat song is "Yokan". This time it's Shinya's turn in the spotlight, with the drums set slightly higher in the mix than usual. This song seems to be about a breakup or something, though it's hard to tell due to cryptic lyrics. "Mask" is directly after "Yokan" on the track list, and they were almost always performed live together. This one is harder than it's predecessor, and seems to be about war (the piece of propaganda footage at the beginning tipped me off), and this time, it's Kaoru's turn to shine. He and Die meld their distinct sounds together to form a sound a little bit reminiscent of early ska, mixed in with hard rock. "Mask" is also a highlight on Dir en grey's DVD recorded in 1999 at Osaka, with Kyo singing his heart out and doing a (really bad) funny dance at the end.
The next band member to be highlighted by a great performance is Die, whose signature acoustic sound dominates "304 Goushitsu, Hakushi no Sakura". His playing is more technical than that of leader Kaoru's, but is always underrated in terms of popularity. The song title here roughly translates to "White Cherry Blossoms of Death in Room 304", and evidentally has a special meaning to Kyo(a similar titled song appears in his hard-to-find first poem book).
Speaking of Kyo-san, you thought I'd forget to highlight him, now did you? Actually, he's strong in every track, but the real highlight is his 9-minute opus "mazohyst of decadence", written from the standpoint of a fetus that will be aborted soon. Kyo goes from a soft whisper-like singing, to screaming his lungs out, until he finally gasps for air as if he was about to die. This might just be the saddest song ever written, and watching the accompanying promotional video takes someone with a strong stomach.
Overall thoughts
For a band still trying to hone its skills, Dir en grey hit the mark with GAUZE. The music's great here, though it's not for everyone. If you're the type who wants to understand the lyrics, this is not what you're looking for. However, if you're one who is open to trying anything, you might want to take a chance here.
Track list (x) = recommended listen.
GAUZE ~mode of ADAM~
Schwein no Isu
Yurameki (x)
raison detre (x)
304 Goushitsu, Hakushi no Sakura (x)
Cage (x)
Tsumi to Batsu
mazohyst of decadence (x)
Yokan (x)
Mask (x)
-ZAN-
Akuro no Oka (x)
GAUZE ~mode of EVE~
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
noddy1
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Member: Beau McClelland
Location: Phoenix, AZ USA
Reviews written: 63
Trusted by: 5 members
About Me:
I'm the second-biggest fan of Blindside as well as P.O.D.'s biggest fan here.
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