Monthly Archives: September 2010

The Announcement You’ve All Been Waiting For

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Di$tress + C0mA: Infected by Japanese Visual Kei

 

 

I know a few of you have been around for a while now (and I’m still happy to have you, rest assured), and some of the really good ‘uns will probably remember my mentioning a particular anime con that has been honored by my attendance several years in a row. Although I keep saying I won’t go back, and have little to no active interest in anime, I keep going back, utterly unable to resist the gravitational pull of the organized culmination of Japanese pop culture and its cult following.

This year will also mark my first step outside the blogsphere representing Secret Garden. You guessed it (or, I don’t know, maybe you haven’t), I have been granted the honor of appearing at the con as the first Visual Kei/Jrock panelist since circa ’07.

I’m pretty psyched to have this opportunity, and I’m looking forward to working with the con as a presenter, thus being able to expand the world’s awareness of Visual Kei, one step at a time.

Di$tress + C0mA: Infected by Japanese Visual Kei
Presented by gacktpause

Friday, Oct. 22, 5:00 PM EST
Panel Room 2

BakuretsuCon 2010 Oct. 21-24
Colchester, VT

Say you saw it on Secret Garden.

A Ray of Despair

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Despite the tough title of their latest tour (currently tearing up Europe), Human-clad Monsters, as of this morning, most of the Jrock community is probably ready to agree that a more fitting description for the band would be Monster-clad Humans, as an announcement on the D’espairsRay official website today shows the band is more human than perhaps we thought.

From the D’espairsRay official website, Tuesday Sept. 21:

D’espairsRay Announces Hiatus

To all our fans who have followed us and supported us throughout the years;

After much consideration and discussion, all 4 members of D’espairsRay have decided to take an indefinite hiatus following the conclusion of the ‘D’espairsRay World Tour 2010 “Human-clad Monsters”‘. During this time the band will be taking a break from all concerts and recording.

The reason for this hiatus is to allow HIZUMI (vo.) to fully recover from a past illness that has affected his throat and made it difficult to sing. HIZUMI has dealt with this rare throat condition for over a year, but the band’s busy touring and recording schedule hasn’t allowed him the time to fully undergo treatment. He currently plans to spend the early part of next year in recovery, and return to the band as soon as possible.

Although HIZUMI has undergone treatment to temporarily allow him to continue the current tour, it is not a permanent fix and there is no guarantee as to how long it will last. All 4 members of D’espairsRay plan to give their all for the remaining shows on this tour, both in Japan and overseas, and thank you for your continuing support in these difficult times.

D’espairsRay

HIZUMI

Karyu

ZERO

TSUKASA

Even after the band goes on hiatus, we will continue to update all websites and media outlets with the latest information.

While consulting with various voice and throat specialists around Japan we have tried many treatments, but have not yet found one that has a high chance of success.

If anyone has any information regarding promising treatment options, including those done overseas, please contact us. Thank you.

email：info@despairsray.jp

Sword Records Inc.

Everyone who saw their shows during their US tour remembered to buy the limited-edition D’espairsRay hankies, right? Not to try and make the fan-girls cry into them or anything, but it’s that final message that really struck me as the most melancholy. The call for assistance, that seeming plea for help, hit me like woah. I suppose I appreciate their raw honesty, though, rather than some syrupy, vague message we usually get such as “But everything will be ok. HIZUMI is seeing the best doctor in Japan and should be good to go in a couple of months.”

What really shocked me the most was really not the news itself, but more my reaction to it. I realized that in my eyes at least, D’espairsRay was one of those bands that always seemed so invincible. Like the only bad thing that could ever happen would be ZERO’s makeup during their Love is Dead era.

Strangely, HIZUMI is one of a few vocalists who have had to cut out for some R&R time this year. A few months ago fellow Visual Kei veterans Vidoll suspended activities for the same reason – needing time for Jui to overcome his throat condition which went so far as to necessitate surgery. Somewhat recently, as well, The GazettE had to postpone tour dates due to Ruki contracting an infection of the vocal chords. Slightly different in the alignment of physical woe, yet relevant all the same, megastars guitar-genius Hotei Tomoyasu and everybody’s idol GACKT also had medical misfortunes this year, requiring hospital visits for both when Hotei had serious wrist problems, and GACKT ran high fevers, finally resulting in his collapse in Munich.

It’s a tough time to be delivering, and receiving, this message. The band just stirred up a ton of hype in the overseas Jrock communities with the release of their brand new summer album MONSTERS, and their world-tour. I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m still on my D’espa-live high, which is amplifying this rancid sense of disappointment by a healthy margin.

I think that the important thing is for Visualists and fans alike to be able to discern between ‘disbandment’ and ‘hiatus’. Even so, in this moment, I am extremely grateful that I had the chance to see them live this summer, and didn’t pass it off with the thought ‘they’ll be back next year’. Although I have absolutely no doubt that D’espa will pull together and HIZUMI will fully recover, he will need some time and space to let his throat heal. Let’s all continue to support and rally around D’espairsRay and HIZUMI, causing such a universal uproar that his condition has no choice but to completely and permanently heal, bringing the band and their epicness back to us.

www.despairsray.jp

This is Sparta

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I’m really not so talented at remembering to acknowledge milestones. I never celebrated 1 complete year of blogging back in April. I never said something really wise, witty, and RT-worthy for my 1,000th Twit on Twitter. When I saw that I was at 297 posts on here, though, I became absolutely determined to make the 300th post a real milestone marker, acknowledged and everything with some overblown, self-congratulatory post.

Well, 298 came. 299 just blew right by me. Come 300, I had completely spaced on the entire thing. “301,” I thought, “301 will be it.” That didn’t happen, either, but what’s being 1 or 2 posts off the count matter, right?

That is to say, on September 11th, I reached a milestone of 300 posts here on Secret Garden.

In many ways, it almost seems like 300 posts isn’t all that much for 17 months of working on this blog.

Looking back at those 300, and not necessarily needing to delve that deep, I can see a lot of imperfections. Not to say at all that anything I do now is perfect– not even close. But I can see a steady improvement, at least a little, throughout the timeline, along with a deepening commitment to blogging. Each of those 300 posts has taken a lot of work to create, compose, and get out there, and although none of them are perfect, I at least feel proud that I believe I was able to give each one my all.

Due to my stubborn addiction to Jrock, these 302 posts probably would have existed even if this blog never saw the light of day. But I have to say, it is the input, discussions, conversations, and overall presence of my truly epic readers that (shed a tear, yo) make blogging on SG extremely interesting and challenging. It is something I don’t do just for myself, or just for Jrock, but also for you.

I will continue to strive to constantly improve the quality of the information I present and how it is expressed here. Feedback is always greatly appreciated, complaints are usually deleted and ignored, and compliments go straight to my head. So keep it all coming. May the next 300 blow everything up to this point straight out of the water. Keep reading Secret Garden.

gacktpause.

Hyperventilation- and Other Responses to the BUNRAKU Premier

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TIFF’s “Midnight Madness” has, it would seem, some serious carry-over into Mid-day — at least for GACKT fans. “Flail”, “spazz” and “hyperventilating” have been predominant keywords on Twitter during the steady influx of press, pics, and reviews for this morning’s 12:00 premier of BUNRAKU. Other Tweets, from more self-possessed sources, have also been flooding in, and those that have, of course, caught We the Fandom’s attention, have mostly been expressing appreciation (mingled with surprise) of the incredibly good reception GACKT apparently received on the Red Carpet (tremble in awe).
Although the elitist in me cringes haughtily whenever it hears GACKT described as “the Japanese pop sensation”, I have agreed to dismiss my criticism of the West’s painful ignorance concerning such matters, and focus on more interesting people saying more interesting things, such as:

mmadnesstiff Dare I say GACKT got more applause than Josh Hartnett, Ron Perlman & Woody Harleson combined at BUNRAKU tonight?

Video footage of GACKT answering a few questions has also hit the web. He blows away all the gawking whities in sense of presence and charisma, even though he does seem slightly nervous. Pressure must have been incredible.

[For a transcript of the video, click here.]

Several reviews of the film have also been released, most of which complain gratuitously about lack of plot and how confused Josh Hartnett seems through the entire thing, barely even brushing over the contribution of GACKT, all while typesetting his name in lowercase (the noobs), making it nearly impossible to tell if they even saw the movie at all, actually did any research, or are simply trolling for the sake of being a troll critic.

Also check out some screen-shots (full of whities doing whitie things).

This is gacktpause, over and out.

Images: Getty Images

Video: TIFF Midnight Madness blog

Yoshi’s Island

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It is currently 12:03 AM, EST, on September 11th, 2010. Assuming the TIFF folks are as punctual as the Japanese, which they likely aren’t, 12:00 saw the onset of the screening of the official premier of the long-hungered-for film that has been hinted at hither and thither, along with horrible teases such as “2011″ and “pushed back”.

That’s right, yo. 10 minutes ago (as I am writing this) at the Toronto International Film Festival, they began screening BUNRAKU.

I’m not sure what it is. But I feel somehow uncomfortable knowing GACKT is on the same continent. We haven’t quite reached that point of same country or same city or, ideally, same building, but I figure same continent is progress. Still not sure why I feel like I’m being watched, though. I guess it’s ‘his’ overwhelming aura stretching itself across the Canadian border. Well, that’s more or less how I articulate “I wish I was there”.

I still haven’t figured out yet whether it’s going to get rough around here when YOSHIKI realizes the American continent isn’t this trembling, vulnerable, innocent creature waiting to be violated by (1980′s) Jrock. There is already a “One” that we have been waiting for, a “One” that will mobilize fans across nations. A “One” that set out to conquer Asia, and having done that, is making his way steadily West.

Sorry to interrupt the mood, but, is it just me or does that sword look *very* long?

This summer, GACKT left Asia to hit up Europe with a limited international debut tour. And now he is encroaching on the Americas with a (rather brilliant) new step into internationalization. Premiering as I type, before a sold-out audience in Toronto consisting of at least a few Canadian and devoted Various Other GACKT fans, TIFF’s Midnight Madness likely has no idea what it is unleashing on the West. And no, I do not mean Josh Hartnett with his banker’s ‘stache.

Hartnett is standing on a (thick) phonebook for the photo

Films, particularly should they be really excellent ones are a superior form of forcing people to expand their horizons. Unlike music, which, even if you can handcuff someone to a post, stick headphones on them, crank it and hit play, often will go in one ear and out the other, especially if it’s in Japanese (a “foreign language”, god forbid). However, many more people are likely to see a film, especially if it gets decent hype, and awareness of certain persons in the film is much more likely to spread than if we attempted to hijack a shopping center’s sound-system and jack our iPods through it (not that I’m discouraging any attempts).

So the question I think we’re all wanting answered is, is his appearance in BUNRAKU, an American film starring big-name American actors, presumably primarily without subtitles for the benefit of our extremely cultured populace, a bold step toward the globalization and mobilizing of the GACKT fandom? As far as GACKT’s interview with “Darryl” of TIFF is concerned, the answer is yes.

Did I just read the words “US, South America, Canada” and “next year” used in the same sentence by GACKT?

The answer is yes.