minagoroshi's MALICE MIZER in 5

Yu~ki (Bass)
Mana (Guitar & Synth)
Klaha (Vocal)
Közi (Guitar & Synth)
Kami (Eternal Blood Relative)
Gackt (ex-Vocal)
Tetsu (ex-Vocal)
Gaz (ex-Drum) [HA!]

I've always tried doing this with friends and it has always been difficult. Only last week, I did my final presentation on MALICE MIZER (I not only Aced it, I blew every else out of the water), and I have had the urge ever since to make a list of songs that best represent MALICE MIZER to me. This is extremely difficult and is most likely to change every five minutes. I'm going to list them in chronological order as well, to save painful thinking.

"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.

Recap:
ma chérie ～愛しい君へ～
ヴェル・エール～空白の瞬間の中で～
ILLUMINATI
真夜中に交わした約束
Beast of Blood

That is my list and I'm sticking to it (until I change my mind).

*Close Calls in Chronological Order
記憶と空 (kioku to sora)
Transylvania
premier amour
虚無の中での遊戯 (kyomu no naka de no yuugi)
白い肌に狂う愛と哀しみの輪舞 (shiroi hada ni kuruu ai to kanashimi no rondo)
Gardenia
Garnet～禁断の園へ～ (Garnet ~kindan no sono e~)
幻想楽園 (gensou rakuen)

minagoroshi //37564。