The wait is now truly over! Versailles' first offering, The Revenant Choir, was only available at lives in Japan, and with "Lyrical Sympathy", Versailles' music is available in Japan, Europe and the world via the internet. I should start by telling you, that I was a huge Kamijo fan from LAREINE. I only got into Hizaki last year, but I am a huge fan. You may call me biased if you wish, I'll be OK."Lyrical Sympathy" is everything I hoped for and more. The music is luscious and epic. The visuals are opulent and represent what Visual Kei is truly meant to be.
INTRO is very well titled. It is a perfect, yet always unnecessary, Visual Kei introduction. I feel like there is some Zelda influence in it. Can't go wrong with some Zelda-ishness. BAM! The Love from A Dead Orchestra is on! It starts out with roaringly epic guitars and then rolls into Kamijo's new buttery deep vocal style. The Love had everything... yes, everything. That doesn't always bode well for a song, but it works here. There middle of the track is rather choppy with its different parts which I at first listen thought to be a different song. However, on the second play through, I got a sense of what Versailles was trying to emote. The chorus is stunning, and I get goose-pimples listening to The Love. Shout & Bites is up next and it rocks with a very "The Vampire Lestat" feeling. Can't you see the sultry Kamijo (Lestat) on stage with his vampire movements, beckoning you to him? I actually get that feeling from the whole album.
Jasmine you (B), TERU (G), KAMIJO (V), YUKI (D), HIZAKI (G)
Beast of Desire, the first Hizaki composed track (the previous two where Kamijo's doing), has a much more metal feeling in the guitars. You can definately hear the Hizaki in it and the following track, Forbidden gate. This song as a romantic touch to it. The guitars come in strong, but Kamijo's vocals swoon and croon. It is quite nice. What I think may be my favorite track was written by TERU and comes up next. The Red Carpet Day is a guitar heavy rocker that begs to be listened to over and over. This is song I want to be front row for. This is the song I want to loose control in the crowd to. This is the song I want to scream and shout with the band and audience. This is the song that Lestat sings for his final song with full intention to upset the Vampire status quo infront of the murderous vampires in the crowd... at least in my mind's eye. It is that awesome. If you can see Versailles live, go just for the sake of this song in it live glory. I haven't yet seen the band live, but this song makes Versailles trump any other band that may be playing that day (OK... maybe not D). The final song is the sweet and beautiful rock-ballad, Sympathia. It is a song that I thought I would hear from the moment I first heard Kamijo's announcement of Versailles. A LAREINE-style ballad over top of Hizaki's crying guitar chords. It is the song that makes me see Kamijo as Louis or a newly dead Lestat. You may be tired of my Anne Rice references, but it is how I see Versailles. Vampires. When I read her vampire chronicles, I see Kamijo as Lestat. I don't think Kamijo would mind either.
Versailles has created a world of beauty. Lyrical Sympathy is the gateway to the decadence within. Versailles has just begun, and I waiting on the edge of my seat for the next chapter in the saga that is Versailles, the Visual Kei Rejuvenators.
KAMIJO ~ I had to add this picture. His powers of persuasion are far-reaching and all-powerful.Versailles
Lyrical Sympathy
SASCD-027 ~ ￥2,625
TRACKLIST: INTRO
The Love from A Dead Orchestra
Shout & Bites
Beast of Desire
Forbidden gate
The Red Carpet Day
Sympathia
CD Japan
minagoroshi //37564。
Yu~ki (Bass)
"ma chérie ～愛しい君へ～" (ma chérie ～itoshii kimi e～) is MALICE MIZER's flagship song to me. It is not only performed by all three vocalists, it became of the name of their fan club as well. It is sweet and romantic and it has Gackt singing Tetsu's original lyrics. The English version is good for a down home engrish giggle ^^
The next two songs are from MALICE MIZER's most commercially successful and widely popular album. "ヴェル・エール～空白の瞬間の中で～" (Bel Air ~kuuhaku no toki no naka de~) is a stunning piece of guitar driven, romantically tragic, and visual emotive music. The mini-movie that is Bel Air's PV showcases the decadent visual style and expression that is MALICE MIZER. ILLUMINATI, on the other hand, is a sexually perverted, fetish drenched, blood orgy. It's dark sexuality, taboo subject matter, shocking PV, thumping bass and club-like playability make this probably my favorite MALICE MIZER song. It was also the third song by them that I heard.
I knew I had to choose a song or two from "薔薇の聖堂" (bara no seidou) but when it came down to it, I only had room for one. This was a tough one: for the sake of diversity I choose the operatic "真夜中に交わした約束" (mayonaka ni kawashita yakusoku). This song was released as a maxi-single and was the theme of their silent movie "薔薇の婚礼" (bara no konrei). To me, "真夜中に交わした約束", shows a new side to MALICE MIZER. It is the epicenter of "薔薇の聖堂", best representing the story and central theme of the album. Klaha's vocal talents also shine throughout the piece.
Beast of Blood was the easiest choice for me. This song, with is 5 simple chords, blew me away the first time I heard it. It is the song that sucked me into MALICE MIZER. It was first song that I heard (a week before they announced their hiatus). The well-mixed English and Japanese lyrics perfectly portray the image of a vampire in London. The visual style (*see top photo) is by far my favorite. Simple. Dark. Elegant. Yu~ki as never looked better. It is the first song in the MALICE MIZER section of my iTunes and deservedly so. Beast of Blood is my favorite MALICE MIZER song, and I will not be surprised if it is yours as well.
