Tafel Anatomie Arrived!

After much hassle, my copy of D's Tafel Anatomie limited edition album (pre-order-only release) finally arrived. I had feared that I didn't pre-order it early enough.

The album itself is really, a beautifully packaged thing. It's made to look like a hard-cover novel, the disc and the photo booklet are revealed when opened. The paper used for the booklet is thick and parchment-like. In addition to the photos of the band, the booklet includes a 100-question interview. Asagi and Tsunehito played basketball in high school? What the heck?! :D

Take note of the new costumes in the booklet (shown above). I'm relieved that Asagi finally shed that ugly white coat thing he wore for the Taiyou wo Okuru Hi PV. He looks so much better in this. Princess (Tsunehito), of course, is showing lots of skin. Supposedly, he never smiles, not even at lives. Oddly, he reminds me of Mana, with similar type of eye makeup and facial expression. And look at Asagi! Man, he's showing off so much thigh for a man who really isn't young anymore. It's amazing how he can pull it off so well.

I'm also pleased with the songs from this album. I especially adore 抉る衝動 (Eguru Shoudou), Glow in the sun, and Leukocyte. I hope that D'll make the PVs for those 3 songs.

By the way, now there is a LJ journal that's devoted to translating D (and Asagi solo) diary entries and lyrics. Check it out here.

Where Are They Now? / ギブス (GIVUSS)

GIVUSS was formed by Shou and Tora back in 2003 and disbanded in March of 2004. Its members by the time of their last maxi single release 能音楽、無生命。 (no music, no life.) consisted of Shou on vocals, Tora on guitar, Tsunehito on bass, and Yuu on drums. I wouldn't be surprised if you recognize the names. After the breakup, the band members' music career continued and now, they're...

Shou is now in alice nine., with much improved vocals and appearance.

Tora is also part of alice nine.. God, what the hell was he thinking with that awful makeup in the GIVUSS photo?

Tsunehito actually joined SCISSOR after GIVUSS. Upon SCISSOR'S breakup, he became the new bassist of D in 2006. I think he looked much cooler in GIVUSS. Now, I get the impulse to stab him in the eyes because he always look so startled in photoshoots.

Yuu's not-really-current band 華族 (Kazoku) broke up just last month. I know nothing about them.

Tafel Anatomie Shipped!

Yes, YesAsia came through for me!

I found out about D's new limited album release "Tafel Anatomie" about a month ago (yes, I was behind on news) and immediately requested YesAsia to make it available for pre-order. I was happy that they fulfilled my request even though they didn't originally plan on offering this item. I placed my pre-order around 3 weeks ago, or about 2 weeks before the release.

So, the release date October 18 came around and being impatient, I checked the YesAsia site on October 20 to see my order status. To my utter shock, YesAsia listed the album as out of print and nothing on my order information indicated that my copy was ready to be shipped, the order was still listed as "pre-order". Concerned, I checked the other major online vendors like CDJapan and HMV; all of them told me the same thing, Tafel Anatomie was out of print, only 2 days after release. Even more puzzled, I zipped over to D's official site and realized that, damn, Tafel Anatomie was actually a pre-order only release! So by "limited edition", they didn't just mean pressing, but order period as well.

I was really really worried. Even though I pre-ordered 2 weeks in advance, was it early enough to guarantee me a copy of the album? I e-mailed YesAsia and asked them upfront whether they can ensure that I'll receive the album. All I got as an answer was something along the lines of "we still haven't received the stock from our suppliers and therefore cannot tell you for sure yet". That had me writhing in pain. Now that the album's out of print, the only other way I can obtain it is through Yahoo! Auctions Japan, but that method will be expensive as hell (double the price of what I pay YesAsia). I was seriously going to be majorly pissed off if YesAsia couldn't ship the album to me.

But now, I breathe a sigh of relief. YesAsia just e-mailed to inform me that they've shipped Tafel Anatomie to me. I'll have it in my hands in about 10 days, and so ends my most recent personal music drama.

Hurray for luck.

News: D / Tafel Anatomie [2006.10.18]

Artist: D
Release: Tafel Anatomie (limited edition)
Label: GOD CHILD RECORDS
Date: 2006.10.18
Catalog Number: DAKGCR-3
Price: 3,800 yen (tax in)

1. Phantom pain
2. Fanfare
3. 太陽を葬る日 (Taiyou wo Okuru Hi)
4. Leukocyte
5. Calling me
6. Card
7. 青い果実 (Aoi Kajitsu)
8. Humanoid
9. Glow in the sun
10. 抉る衝動 (Eguru Shoudou)

Now, just watch D release a normal edition of this album 3 months later, with 3 extra tracks. I'll cry. I swear KISAKI (of Phantasmagoria, ex Syndrome) still rubs off on them too much. Stop releasing remastering/remix CDs with bonus tracks! I'm too broke to buy them all.

Track list credit to currypanman of D LJ community. A preliminary review of the album can be found here.

D-ilemma!

I'm in the market for D's "The name of the ROSE" album. But, but... the story is not so simple.

Not surprising for a visual kei band, D has released 3 versions of this album (kicks record label). The two limited editions came out in 2005. They've got 10 tracks, and a different PV on each. The situation is complicated by the fact that D's original bassist left and a new one joined. So in early 2006, a regular edition of "The name of the ROSE" was released. This time, the songs were re-recorded with the new bassist, and 3 new tracks were added.

So, the problem is obvious here. Which edition should I get? For choosing between the limited editions, it comes down to the PV's (the audio tracks are identical). The PV's even out in the end, because one has a great song but okay PV, the other has an okay song but great PV. Only 5,000 copies were released for each limited edition, and now are out of print. But if I look hard enough, I can still find one or two on auction for a pretty reasonable price. However, I can't ignore the fact that the regular edition contains 3 extra tracks. They're good tracks, too. And I want them.

God freaking dammit, should I get one of the limited editions or the regular edition?! I can't decide! And I really really can't afford to get all of them.

Life sucks.

"Mayatsuki no Hitsugi", the PV that came with the Type-A limited edition. Okay song, great PV.


"Sleeper", the PV that came with the Type-B limited edition. Great song, okay PV.