Aliene Ma'riage's "21st Century"

Artist: Aliene Ma'riage (Japan)
Album: 21st Century (2001)

If I'm not mistaken, this band is a late 90s visual-kei band? Ouch. I'm not one to like Visual-Kei past 1993 (that year it took a turn for the worst with bands such as Color and By-Sexual). It progressively got worse, in my opinion. Late 90s V-Kei always sounds so... "cookie cutter". Like the genre at the time was so specific it didn't allow for much individuality, with the exception of bands like Blam Honey, Malice Mizer and... shit, I can't think of another example at the moment..
I'm sure that that's not entirely the case because God knows I don't know much about Visual-Kei anymore. I once was a fan, but luckily, I grew out of it.

Anyhoo. Maybe Aliene Ma'riage can change my perception.

Of course the album starts with an instrumental. Of course.
Ohh, I'm making that seem like a bad thing. Perhaps I'm letting my bias rule this review already.
Well, I'm pleasently surprised to hear a sort of industrial goth sound.

Balmy Illegal Society is... heavy. For some reason, I like the electronic-sounding drums, and the guitar riff is pretty cool. I'm a bit undecided on the vocals, though. I'm usually not one for screaming or howling or anything like that (yes, I hate death and black metal) other than thrash metal (yes, I love Rosenfeld). I kind of like this, though.

BLACK JACK AGE sounds interesting, maybe... And I have to say, I prefer the screeching... His voice is so typical of 90s Visual-Kei.. hell, Visual-Kei in general. Yawn.
Are you starting to discover I don't like Visual-Kei? Let's see how many more times I'll say that in this entry.
I suppose I like this better than most, but I'm just not too impressed.

The fourth track is Kourin, and again I admit to liking the electronic drum sound.
In this song, the vocals have some similarities to Due le Quartz's singer. I don't think that was a compliment, Aliene Ma'riage.
What? It just suddenly cuts off. I think my mp3 file is corrupted. Oops.

Well, at least Native Devil brings back the heavy vocals. I was tired of hearing Sakito's-- oh, I mean "Kyoka's"-- tired ass vocals. It was numbing my brain a little. This song sounds a bit like white noise. I suppose it's not bad, maybe just not my "thing".

"Devine the future from......." Christ, is there enough periods in the title?
....... The vocals....... sound....... rather................. interesting............
Now I'm just being mean. But really, it catches my attention, I rather like the vocals in this song. Probably because he's on the border of just speaking, but nevertheless, the singing is interesting. My God, is that my foot tapping? I do not understand this.

We're on the seventh track, aren't we? Well, it's Deadly Sin (Nanatsu no Daizai). At this point, it all sort of blends together as one big, angry mass of noise. Although I do like the backing vocals.
Maybe I'm just picking out all the bad, because all the songs so far haven't been bad, and they haven't been difficult to listen to or anything.

The eighth out of ten tracks, Under the Rose Leaf, really does just blend into the others. I'm not remembering the other tracks all too well by now.

(sigh) Let's just press onward.
Cyber Patrol wo Uchiotose doesn't bring much variety to this album, despite how much I hoped it would. Based on the title, I was really wanting a cyber punk, techno sound to break up the repitition. Alas, no.

Okay, the last track, Chou... You know, I really wish it were some bubblegum pop song about being friends, I think that would make me instantly adore this album. But, it isn't. So the album gets a

2 out of 5.
For just not sticking out among all the others.
Give it a listen if you're, you know, into this kind of thing. Hell, compared to the V-Kei I listened to "in the day" (two years ago, I mean), it's pretty good.
I don't like Visual-Kei.
Ha, I said it again. I counted, I referenced to my dislike of the genre about ten times.
I strive to break my record one day.

And hey, look at that! Looks like my next review will be of Amadeus's "Mikan no Gosennfu to Kurayami no Meikyuu", a Visual-Kei band formed in 1996!! Hooray!

Make the record eleven times, then.