I was a little hesitant to do a full on review of this movie, but I feel it deserves more detail than just an opinion filled paragraph. I downloaded this movie months ago and ended up watching the end online since it cut off.
The story starts off with Nagisa Sugiura and her friends at a diner or something. They have a discussion on reincarnation and we get the first glimpse of a potential ghost in the reflection of her friend's cell phone. Later, we learn that Nagisa has an agent and is working on getting a role in a movie based on a series of murders in a hotel. She starts seeing bits and pieces of the crime, during her work through the eyes of a little girl she portrays in the movie. Gradually, we see the murders in more and more detail.
The reason I wanted to watch this was the interesting storyline. Even though the director used a cliche element of angry ghost, I still wanted to check it out since it had to deal with reincarnation, whether you believe in that sort of thing or not. I enjoyed the way the director went back and forth between Nagisa's visions of ghost from the actual events that happened in the hotel they're shooting in and the scene being filmed by the director in the movie. There were a lot of great visual moments like the doll being a key element of the plot and also the lack of sound toward the climax of the movie.
I thought the acting was pretty decent, especially Yuka as Nagisa, since it was her first time being in a movie. She reacted to every situation thrown at her with skill and she should continue building on her resume. In the middle of it all, I became a little disconnected with the movie and a tad bored with some of the dialogue, but in a way I couldn't keep my eyes off the screen. There was a lot of good moments where anticipation built up inside me, but somewhere toward the end I became a little confused and I had to read some viewer comments to piece together everything.
In the end, if you're the type to watch angry ghost movies like The Grudge and The Ring, you should probably check this one out. It isn't mind blowingly fatastic, but it isn't a complete boring disaster either. The movie is worth watching and the ending to it guarantees some satisfaction.
The latest Disney Pixar movie to hit the big screen and it has been doing great in the box office. It's another great movie to watch with the family. Like many Disney masterpieces, it is a bit of a sad film, but it brings joy by bringing two opposite characters together on a wild adventure and giving us a great message at the end of it all.
Dance Flick (2009, USA) | Rating: 3.5/5
Another crazy Wayans family parody to add to their list of Scary Movie series and other people's recent parody films of typical teen flicks, super heroes, disasters, and wandering in an alternate world of your own closet. I know a couple critics complained about the movie being dated, but all parody movies are. I thought it was hilarious and entertaining. It was also worth seeing the movie a second time. The acting was good, especially the new generation of Wayans and the jokes kept me laughing (as well as my family).
The Proposal (2009, USA) | Rating: 3/5
I'm really picky about seeing movies in this genre...the whole romantic comedy. I already knew things would become predictable, but I still managed to be entertained and laugh at the jokes. It had a nice storyline and the chemistry was good, kinda gave me a Meet the Parents vibe at times.
Orphan (2009, USA) | Rating: 4.5/5
This movie came out a couple weekends ago and it seems to have mixed reviews. Some believe it targets orphanages in a negative light. I guess in a way it could, but for me and the people I watch the movie with (my mom and a couple friends), we didn't read into it that deeply. We all really enjoyed the movie to the point we discussed it the next day. For me (and mi madre), we want to watch it again and I think I want to add it to my movie collection when it comes out on DVD. If I get a chance, I would like to rewatch 1993's The Good Son and compare the two, since a lot of people including my mother thought about this movie.
Recommended by a good friend (and co-host), I was a little skeptical on whether I'd like it or not, but the story seemed interesting and dark enough to my liking. I checked it out from work and ended up thoroughly enjoying it enough to consider buying the whole series. I thought of a darker, slightly more serious Chobits. Although, there was one little thing that made me question the series that I'm sure is probably explained a little more in the manga series.
Papa to Kiss in the Dark (2005) | Rating: 3/5
A cute little yaoi OVA with a father/son pairing. I'm not sure if I mentioned this before, but I'm a little picky about incest pairings. Sometimes I find them disturbing and other times intriguing. This...was moreso cute and weird. I liked the storyline and I thought things would turn predictable with the younger main character attracting his best friend and an older student at his school, but things went a different direction
Fruits Basket (2001) | Rating: 3/5
Probably one of the most overrated anime along with Naruto and InuYasha, I couldn't resist checking out the anime series last year. I ended up getting my siblings and cousins into the series. It's very enjoyable and follows the manga pretty decently. My only complaint about the series is that it was way too short, which might make Furuba fans disappointed if they haven't seen it yet.
Nerima Daikon Brothers (2006) | Rating: 4.5/5
I started this series this year and checked it out from work. I watched it with an online friend, who watched it in English while I watched it in Japanese with subtitles. She got hooked and I got hooked. This is very comedic and perverted little musical series that I would love to do a more in-depth review some time, but it's worth seeing if you enjoy comedies with random musical numbers in it.
I normally don't watch a lot of Asian movies that are not Japanese or Korean, but I do find a couple interesting works that catch my interest by just the summary. If you hadn't noticed, I'm a pretty open-minded person and I can usually find some things very artistic as oppose to others who don't analyze movies as deeply as myself. One example could be Strange Circus which raises many controversial topics that most would think is for pure shock factor and not delving into the artistic symbolism of the film. This movie isn't for everyone, because the subject deals with homosexuality and touches a bit on HIV/AIDS as well. So, if you don't have an open-mind, you might want to skip this review or even attempt to try something new.
Mhek (Cloud) is a lone gunman who assassinates people as a living. He's very good at what he does and never misses his target. He uses his income to support his mother who is suffering from AIDS and his younger brother who has HIV and plans on taking them to the mountains of Mae Hong Son Province. The movie starts off showing us Mhek doing his job and soon spots his latest target...a police officer by the name of It (Brick), who is enjoying the evening out with his fiancée. After following his target for a good amount of time, Mhek captures It and brings him to his boss, but his boss orders Mhek to kill him and he refuses, saying he only kills the targets that are criminals. This response upsets his boss and the scene breaks out into a gun battle. It helps defend Mhek during the fight and helps him escape once he is hit by a bullet. They hop onto Mhek's motorcycle and head out to the streets. They make a little stop to Mhek's family and It informs them about the situation and passes Mhek's message along to Mhok (Fog), Mhek's brother.
Settling in Mhek's hideout on a rooftop it seems, It consistently takes care of Mhek's bullet wound and nurses him by staying by his side and cleaning him up. As he continues to care for the gunman, It gradually develops feelings for him and soon acts on them. Feeling conflicted with what was going on (and possibly an influence from his past), Mhek later threatens It to leave his home and to never come back.
I must admit, I normally get bored with the majority of romance stories. They become predictable and unrealistic, but this film had more than just romance. It added action, crime, and drama. Bangkok Love Story has a bit of unrealistic emotion, but in a way, you don't mind it, because you're so drawn into the story. The movie doesn't completely depend on mushy moments or graphic sexual scenes to keep your attention nor does it have senseless violence. It goes at a slow easy pace so you can get a good grasp of the characters and gather your opinions on how you feel about them and the situation that's going on around them. This movie allows you to study the characters' body language, the environment, and the emotion translated onto the screen with or without dialogue.
Bangkok Love Story has so many commendable elements that must be recognized in this review. Starting with Rattaballung Tohssawat and Chaiwat Tongsang who play the main male roles as Mhek and It, they both did an amazing job interacting with each other as well as the other characters who have a strong bond with them. Both men have stated that they are straight, I have read that Chaiwat took on the role to challenge himself and Rattaballung said it was an honor to take on a possible homosexual character. The article also stated that Rattaballung's girlfriend was a little paranoid about the kissing scenes, although both men thought they could fake it, but the director didn't want that. Being both heterosexual, it must've been a challenge to be something you're not and they did a great job of having this strong loving bond that you can't help but support. Rattaballung brought masculinity and a sense of wanting to be emotionless to his character. It's difficult to portray a character who believes he is strong and independent, but deep down inside he wants to grab ahold of his true emotions instead of shunning them away. Chaiwat also did just as good of a job being a little more sensitive and also masculine in certain ways. He portrayed the difficult task of wanting to be there for the woman he was planning to spend his life with, but also wanting to be a little selfish and lose himself with his feelings for Mhek. Weeradit Srimalai as Mhok, Mhek's younger brother, had a hard character of being frustrated with the world for judging him and his disease as well as his mother. He had a somewhat weak character that had a lot of pent up frustration building inside him, until he decided to take control of the situation in a way that isn't right. Although she had a minor role like the mother, Chatcha Rujinanon as Sai, It's fiancée, had an important task of moving the story along as well. Like Mhok to Mhek, Sai (Sand) has a close bond to It and the whole subtle emotional shift affected her, which created even more conflict in the movie. She was very quiet, emoted her emotions through her body language, and wasn't oblivious to the distance in her relationship with It like some characters in other movies. She reacted to the situation in a very realistic way, even though it could've been viewed as extreme.
What I've noticed by looking at other people's reviews on the movie is that they mention the beautiful soundtrack and the amazing cinematography used throughout the film, which I can definitely agree with. There are a few moments in the movie where there is absolutely no dialogue just music and great shots of the character(s) in this lavish environment. Not only does the acting pull you into the emotion of character(s), but the music plays a big part of prodding your mind and heart into feeling that same emotion. The scenery completes the rest of the emotional translation on the screen to the viewer's eyes. If you notice, the colors and lighting aren't that cheerful which emphasizes that this is a serious movie and there's a possibility that emotions will be flowing out uncontrollably.
In the end, the love making scenes could've been executed a little better, but they do their job of telling the viewer that there is a lot of emotion built up and the feeling between the two main characters are true. Sometimes the chemistry between them became a little frustrating and you're ready for them to hook up already, but the pace is tolerable. There's a lot of drama that goes on throughout the movie. When you think things are going to be "happily ever after", things tend to go downhill and drag the viewers along with it to the possibility of being in tears by the time the credits roll. If you can handle gunfights, discrimination against people who are diagnosed with HIV/AIDS, homosexuality, and suicide, then you can get through this Thailand masterpiece. Bangkok Love Story is a great movie to watch to get in touch with your inner most feelings about romance and just embracing what true love and sacrifice looks like. I highly recommend this movie and if you're going to watch it, be sure to have the tissue box on stand by, because I nearly cried...which is a very, very hard thing to do.
Title: Anna-san no Omame [The Best Friend of Beautiful Anna] Starring: Becky, Sayuri Anzu, Shuji Kashiwabara Language: Japanese Genre: Romantic comedy Episodes: 10
Before crunchyroll.com took a vast majority of the videos down to become a more legitimate place as well as avoid possibly lawsuits, I came across this interesting little Japanese drama. I was a little skeptical that it'd keep my attention, but I made it through the whole series and I even managed to buy it.
Anna Saionji is one of the most beautiful and intelligent women in town that every man dreams of, but...the story isn't about her at all. We follow the series with probably the most misunderstanding and overconfident woman named Lily Momoyama, who is Anna's best friend. In Lily's mind, she believes that she is the most beautiful woman in all of Japan (maybe the world) and every man she comes by wants to be with her. In reality, they're either promoting some charity group, trying to talk to Anna, or, in Kyotaro's case, just trying to be friendly to her. Kyotaro is Anna's boyfriend who's just seeking Lily's approval. Somehow she misinterprets his friendly gestures as a form of flirtation which carries the series through many entertaining and ridiculous antics between the two characters.
Anna-san no Omame is a very entertaining comedic drama. As ridiculous as the situations that occur during Kyotaro's struggle to fix things in Lily's mind, you get attached to the characters in some way. The atmosphere and characters are both equally colorful and it becomes difficult to stop watching. You can tell that the creator had a specific design thought out for each characters' appearances as well as the details of where they work and hang out. It also coordinates with the mood that they want to portray to emphasize the character's emotion.
Although I found her voice and character's personality to be annoying the first three episodes, Becky did an amazing job committing herself to the lovable Lily. Being conflicted with being loyal to her best friend, but also tempted to give into Kyotaro's "affectionate" ways can be a difficult task. Deep down inside, she is a loyal friend and just wants to have a love of her own, if the reality of someone liking her truly hits her. Shuji Kashiwabara as Kyotaro kept his focus of trying to please Anna by taking care of Lily, trying to be loyal to Anna, and also attempting to keep everyone happy while trying not to lose his sanity by fixing Lily's misunderstandings. He doesn't come off as a jerk, but just a kind and frustrated character that you wish you could help during his little crisis. Even though Sayuri Anzu's character Anna doesn't have a huge part, she manages to keep her character memorable by being this loyal, sweet, and understanding friend to Lily. She reflects a true bond in their friendship, despite their first meeting and starting of their lasting relationship. Aside from the three main characters of the series, the other characters were also very delightful and interesting seeing how they interact with Kyotaro and Lily's relationship.
Overall, the drama is a bit of a hit or miss for the general public that enjoys Asian dramas. Some may find the drama to be a bit tedious and annoying with Lily's personality and immediately give up on the series all together. For me, it is definitely worth seeing. I found the storyline to be unique and entertaining and Kyotaro was nice eye candy for 10 episodes. Even though Lily's character is a bit annoying and you kinda pick up her catch phrase after a few episodes, you learn to love her and embrace her misinterpretations.
Takashi Miike joined the "Masters of Horror" series with this unique movie, which was surprisingly in English. The storyline and twists throughout the movie were cleverly executed. I also found the contrast of colors from scene to scene well balanced, although a few could've been better lit. This isn't Takashi's best work, but it's worth looking at. Be warned of the controversial torture scene though.
Red Shoes [Bunhongsin] (2005, South Korea) | Rating: 3.5/5
Who would've thought that a pair of shoes could cause so much trouble. This movie makes you question your trust between your friends and even your own family. This movie displays extreme situations of selfishness and jealousy like "Strange Circus". With such a simple storyline, the director played it out well for viewers to become sucked into this unbelievable, crazy predicament, but keeps you wanting more to come to some sort of reason why everyone's fighting over these shoes.
Prom Night (2008, USA) | Rating: 1/5
I remember a friend wanted to drag me out to this movie in theaters, but I quickly declined, since it's too cliché of a movie for my liking. I watched it a few days ago on TV, out of boredom, and most of my predictions were correct. You take your typical slasher movie formula and apply it to this movie minus the hormonally challenged teen couple. The only two things I was looking forward to in the movie was the purpose of the killings and the ending with the credits. If you want a predictable movie or just some movie to talk at the screen with friends, then this is your movie.
Obsessed (2009, USA) | Rating: 3/5
Even though the storyline isn't anything special, I still wanted to see it and it was kinda worth it. The pace of the movie jumped right into the conflict, letting it build and build and build, until things became uncontrollable for the main characters. The movie did manage to keep my attention and there was minimal scenes with Beyoncé's character's involvement.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009, USA) | Rating: 3/5
Not being a huge comic book fan or a big fan of any X-Men series, I did enjoy this little prequel going into Wolverine's back story. Whether it was accurate or not, I couldn't tell you, but I like the direction it was going. Although, I would have to disagree with some comments made in the preview. It's not as amazing as they make it out to be, but if you saw the other two X-Men movies, then it's worth seeing.
[from left to right] Kiro (bass), Yu (guitar), Strify (vocal), Rom3o (keyboard), & Shin (drums)
I'm not sure which online buddy sent ma link to "Lovesongs (They Kill Me)" video, but I immediately thought they failed despite their inspiration from jrock bands and artists. Looking at their work now, they have gone more the glam rock route than Tokio Hotel.
Band Chemistry Unlike Tokio Hotel, the spotlight seems to be immediately set on the pretty boy blondes, Strify and Kiro. The others seem to sit back and just be cool, laid back background items. Sometimes it seems like they're in their own little world while Strify and Kiro pass the microphone between them and Strify is definitely the camerawhore of the group, always wanting to be in the spotlight. It's kinda sickening.
Appearance Cinema Bizarre depend on appearance a lot. Taking advantage of their glam pop/rock label and having fun with their jrock influences in costumes and make-up, makes me believe that making amazing music is a second priority, like a gorgeous jrock indies band with mediocre musical abilities.
Music Cinema Bizarre is more like 90's keyboard pop/rock bands like Orgy or Deadsy, just less mind blowing. Their music definitely sticks to you whether you like it or not. Balancing memorable guitar riffs, consistent bass lines, and mystic keyboard sounds give the band musical potential. Strify's vocals aren't that bad either especially combined with ex-keyboardist Luminor's hauntingly deep voice luring you in.
Music Videos From what I've seen, the band bases their videos on beauty shots and sometimes dramatic special effects a lot. At times, their visuals do not relate to the lyrics or mood of the music at all. It seems they pick things that look cool and put half an effort into performing emotionally. "Forever or Never" and "Lovesongs (They Kill Me)" are the only partially decent videos that I somewhat enjoyed.
Live As mentioned before, I believe Cinema Bizarre cares more about appearance than their music. They tend to use their fans to make up for their lack of energy and still kinda obivously half-ass their performance by worrying about their hair and doing a poor job of fanservice, if you can even call it that. Sometimes it appears that Kiro is lazily plucking away at his bass while Strify tries to imitate Miyavi's sexy hip movements while distancing themselves from their fans on an emotional or at least more intimate level.
[from left to right] Gustav (bass), Bill (vocal), Tom (guitar), & Georg (drums)
I don't remember exactly how I got into this German pop/rock band, but I think my curiousity peaked from a former LiveJournal friend and many Bill and Tom icons prodding me mentally. I checked out their music and videos and fortunately caught them before their growing popularity in the U.S.
Band Chemistry Reviewing a few clips they made for U.S. fans and some making of's for their music videos, the members get along very well like old high school buddies. Lately, with their growing popularity overseas, the balance has been thrown off by putting the Kaulitz twins in the spotlight and forcing Gustav and Georg to plaster a smile on their face and go along for the ride in the backseat.
Appearance Opposite of Cinema Bizarre, Tokio Hotel don't waste time with coerdinated outfits or entricate costumes. They just wear whatever suits them and stay comfortable with themselves. They do keep themselves together like putting time into accessories, hair, and minimal make-up.
Music Even though their music wasn't uber hardcore, headbanging rock, but it's simple, catchy rock songs that shouldn't challenge many aspiring musicians to learn. Tokio Hotel's music vary from catchy, group participation songs like "Schrei"/"Scream" and slow songs that make you sway to the acoustics like "Durch den Monsum"/"Monsoon". No matter what the song is, their music will stick to you even if you don't enjoy them.
Music Videos Once you've gain major reign of your country's tweens and teens, bands usually go all out with cinematography and special effects. Tokio Hotel have kept their videos simple, yet creative to keep viewers', old and new, attention. "Der Letzte Tag" took the band on a rooftop to perform for their fans below. "Rette Mich"/"Rescue Me" has a few effects, but fits the mood of the music and lyrics to pull you in.
Live Fortunately (or unfortunately), I've had the chance to see these guys live, during their first U.S. tour. Basing off of what I've seen on my computer and what I've seen in person, I believe they depend on their fans too much to make up for their lack of energy like Cinema Bizarre. They are on the edge of making a great stage performance, but they hold back with their upbeat songs and don't add enough passion to their slower songs to truly connect with their fans on an emotional level.
Overall Evaluation Both bands have great musical potential, especially if they plan on taking over other countries outside of Germany. They also have the potential to put on an amazing live if they both take a couple months vacation to Japan and observe their jrock idols on stage to improve their band chemistry on and off stage, their interaction and connection with their insane, rabid fans, and their energy level with every song they perform. If they both improve on those points, then there would be some major competition between them like Backstreet Boys and *N'SYNC. But for now, I think Tokio Hotel is a step ahead of the game compared to Cinema Bizarre.
I was a little hesitant on buying the movie, because I never watched it, but a reliable friend enjoyed it and it was directed by the great Sion Sono. Comparing this to his previous works of "Suicide Club" and "Strange Circus", this movie seems a little lighter in plot line and almost comical. The characters are interesting and definitely make you have an opinion of them and the story moves smoothly with the hair admirer and aspiring hair stylist's agendas colliding into a bizarre climax and a satisfying conclusion.
Tokyo Tower (2005, Japan) | Rating: 2.5/5
I must admit the only reason I watched this movie was for Jun Matsumoto, but the storyline gave me more of an initiative to watch it. Junichi Okada did a very good job with Matsumoto of portraying young men interested in older women as well as best friends. The story is very sweet and has all the right twists and turns for Asian romance lovers, and possibly Jun fans, but for me, it was definitely not my cup of tea. For a movie that doesn't appeal to a genre I normally don't watch, it was pretty decent.
Arang (2006, South Korea) | Rating: 1.5/5
Recommended by a couple online friends, I decided to watch it with one of my friends last year. Honestly, I think I've become a little picky about ghost movies, especially Asian ones. The storyline didn't interest me that much, but it was executed in a somewhat interesting set up that raised questions in the viewer's mind. Unfortunately, the characters didn't draw me in and I became bored toward the middle. Once the climax point hit, my interest peaked, as well as my friend's, and I ended up enjoying the ending moreso than the rest of the movie leading up to it.
Tale of Two Sisters [Janghwa, Hongryeon] (2003, South Korea) | Rating: 4.5/5
My friend (and co-host, if you watch our online show) brought this movie to me one day and let me borrow it for a few days afterward. I think I watched it at least three times to get a full grasp of everything that happened and yet curiosity still lingered. This is a movie you definitely have to keep your focus on at all times or you'll miss some important pieces to figuring out the madness between these two girls and the house they're living in. The story is pure genius and it was treated like a true masterpiece by the director. It's a shame the U.S. wanted to recreate something simply untouchable.
Adding to the consistent stream of bad horror movies in America, this film is borderline bad. The storyline caught my attention and I dragged my friends to see it. I normally don't get scared and the friends I went with normally don't either, but we clung to each other a lot and one of them wanted to leave the theater a few times like a few movie goers. The movie used suspense to their advantage and most times when you suspect something to happen, it doesn't, then catches you off guard with the killers' attacks. The dialogue was lacking a lot, the character development was limited, and the conclusion left questions open in the air.
Speed Racer (2008, USA) | Rating: 3.5/5
I'll admit that I wasn't expecting for this to be a box office hit due to its highly anticipated competitors "The Hulk", "Iron Man", and "Dark Knight" and I mostly rushed to see it because of Rain. I used to be a fan of the old "Speed Racer" cartoon when they aired it on Nickelodeon. The storyline pretty much followed the classic TV show and the actors did a very good job performing each memorable character. The visuals were beyond stunning, balancing computer graphics and real life products then pumping the film with extra vivid color to add intensity to the pace of the movie. Although the ending is pretty cliché, "Speed Racer" fans can be proud of the movie.
I was curious to watch this film because (1) it was directed by the great Takashi Miike and I'm a fan of his work and (2) the storyline sounded very interesting. Plus, controversy intrigues me. The movie was executed well and the format was different from other movies he's done that I've previously viewed. There is a lot of stomach churning moments such as prostitution, drugs, incest, lactating, bullying, and necrophilia. Not many movies disgust me, but this is one of them. The movie is very strange and so far it's my least favorite from Takashi. Take caution before watching this film.
I rented this movie a while ago when we used to have a Hasting's and I vaguely remember all the details of the movie. The storyline is what convinced me to rent the movie and it was pretty interesting. It kept my attention, even though a certain song got overused throughout the whole movie and the main female character was a bit annoying. The movie is good if you're easily pleased by predictable endings in this crazy little love triangle. Somewhere toward the end of the movie, I got kinda bored and the ending kinda upset me with the main characters not completely telling each other everything. So, if you want a cheesy homosexual movie with a mediocre happy ending, then this is your movie.
It was nice to hear that aicle. finally made it up in status to produce their first album. It made me very excited to listen to it and I was definitely not disappointed with the results. The album displays tons of potential of even more improvement as well as the band's growth in their unique oshare abilities. They still maintain to stand out from other oshare kei bands by using voice effects, hints of sound effect touches in certain areas, and catchy melodies. So, if you haven't had a chance to listen to this band or didn't like their previous material that much, I would give their album a listen.
Dali - mind stripper (2009, Japan) | Rating: 4/5
Dali keeps their everlasting strong guitar lines and odd sounds to lure their fans into the strange ride called "fictional dive". Ren takes advantage of his vocal range from a hush tone to something that pops out just a little more with the band's unique sound. "喜劇に傘" brings Dali fans to remember their signature sound and shows off their growth of creativity by mixing up their heavy hitting sound with softness and sorrow. Wild heavy guitars and ridiculously quick drumming bring in the next track, "ごっこ". Ren decides to take advantage of his wild side and go just as crazy as the song suggests he should do. "a habit" brings a little calmer sound of Ren's voice with a nice, soft piano to compliment it. This track displays Dali's more tamer and normal side of their music with skillful softness of guitars and drums and the right amount of bass to give the song a little something special. "glad09" closes out the CD with dance beats and a catchy guitar.
Kagrra, - Shu (2009, Japan) | Rating: 3.5/5
Never failing to keep the original genre of "Neo Japanesque" rock, Kagrra, manages to keep that alive in their newest album. Listening to the album, I noticed that not only did the band stick to their original sound of mixing traditional Japanese elements to rock ones, but that they decided to experiment with other musical elements such as jazz-like sounds and getting a little deeper into standard rock roots. Honestly, the first time I heard the album I felt a little iffy about it and that Kagrra, was beginning to go into a cliche jrock sound, but hearing it again, I can appreciate the creative effort put into the finish product.
Lolita23q have grown up a lot over the years. Starting with typical elements of oshare kei and moving forward to add their own creative twist to the genre, this album defines the band's transformation from their previous works. In their newest album, they take us on a journey through various areas of their musical abilities by using oshare elements, electronic dance sounds, soft, calming tones, and pure Lolita23 rock! Even though they have changed from their old sound, I think they have been going in the right direction and this album proves it.
machine - PHASE ONE "SPEED" (2009, Japan) | Rating: 4.5/5
Kiyoshi immediately reels in the audience with powerful guitar sounds in "BOOSTER" and Hakuei sets the tone for this speedy little track with a great bass like that tags along perfectly with the tempo set by the duo. Distorted sounds soon follow for the next track and a catchy guitar melody starts up "FASHION". This track keeps the mini-album's energy high from the previous track and keeps listeners moving around in their seats. Slowing the tempo just a little bit and adding deep bass tones with consistent catchy guitar riffs, Hakuei's voice lures us into the intrancing sounds of "SHERRY". I must admit, I believe this is my favorite track off the whole mini-album and it's worth listening to it a couple more times before moving onto the next track. Speeding up the tempo to a super quick pace of drums and vocals, "new human gate" wakes up the remaining senses that are still on snooze. I believe this song has the most energy than any other track on the CD. Quick drumming patterns and a rushing guitar riff introduce the last track of the mini-album, "SHAKE". Even though the song is very fast pace like the whole CD, they give you a little break and slow down things smoothly, but bring things back to speed to leave a lasting musical rush in your head.
