3 posts tagged “morrie”
So, this is what you get when the most legendary of Jrock bands decides to reunite something like 20 years after their breakup. No one-shot reunion live and promises of a possible new release, no failed concert tours and bogus promises of some kind of reunion. Nope, instead you get immediate action and an actual release date of an album, that being Nov.11th, and they even went to the trouble to make a PV.
But let's talk about the actual song. Well, besides awesome, I'm not sure what to say. It was a good mix of old and new. I was perhaps a tiny bit afraid they'd just play their old style of hairy hair metal, which, don't get me wrong, was also awesome. But it's also played in this particular decade and century. However, other than You's ripping solo, this is not old DEAD END, this is new DEAD END. And I like the name of the album, Metamorphosis. It suggests a transition, and ergo, more albums.
This song is six minutes of good stuff, but I'd be lying if I didn't say that it's Morrie's voice leading this song from start to finish. I like the haunting echo-y effect and though I wasn't sure if I liked all the vibrato, after several listens, I've come to the conclusion that it fits the song and would not have it any other way.
So yeah, other old bands that keep trying to stay relevant? THIS is how you do it.
This album is nearly two years old now, and I’d have to say I didn’t really realize how epic it was then. On one hand you have Morrie reappearing on the scene after a nearly ten year absence. Then you have the amazing list of contributing musicians. Tetsu from L’arc en Ciel, Minoru from Mad Capsule Markets, Die in Cries and others, Crazy Cool Joe, You and Minato from DEAD END, Shinya from Luna Sea, and several others I have not heard of, but no doubt they’re known by someone. It’s just too bad all the DEAD END members don’t play on one song to make it a true reunion.
Creature Creature
Light&Lust
Genre: rock, metal
Release Date: 08-30-06
Price: 3,059 ¥
Released By: Danger Crue
Tracks: 11
01 MABOROSHI
02 Red
03 Hoshizuki 星憑き
04 Paradise パラダイス
05 Zone ゾーン
06 Tenshu ranman 天醜爛漫
07 Sen no yamiyo ni 千の闇夜に
08 Kaze no tou 風の塔
09 COSMOS BLACKNESS
10 LIGHTS
11 Haru no kikai
Maboroshi starts out with just some guitar, then the bass line. Drumming is very solid, a few cymbals, but not bad. Also strings. It’s got a pretty heavy overall sound though. Each part proceeding the chorus is a little different, but the chorus is what sells it for me. It’s catchy and has great progression. Also, Morrie’s voice sounds the best there. It reminds me very much of his work with DEAD END, soaring and powerful.
Red is another heavy one, and I have to say I like where they put this one on the album, it makes me appreciate it more. But, Tetsu’s bass line is just a little higher and easy to pick out. The guitar is mostly noisy, drumming is quick and driving. Morrie’s voice always seems a little shaky to me in this one, but only in the chorus. He’s pretty strong during the verses.
Hoshizuki is up next. I love the way this one starts with a little chord progression on the guitar, then Morrie singing. Very heavy bassline, which is easy to hear behind the drums because of a lot of cymbal, in this case, not a bad thing. Also, as it nears the chorus, the guitars fade out giving the bassline center stage. This song has a really mystical feel to me, without having given the lyrics any thought. At the tempo changes also, the bass takes charge. That weirdly dissonant, distorted solo about halfway through is awesome, and once again, gives this a ghostly feel.
Paradise starts out right away with a drum beat and that very distinctive guitar riff. Tetsu has a nice mid-range line that nevertheless stands out, despite its inherent subtlety. Morrie sings very clearly, which I always like. Oh, and it’s easy to hear Tetsu doing the backing vocals. I like the contrast between the poppy chorus and the more rocking verses. This almost feels like the lost link or fusion between L’arc and DEAD END.
A couple of guitar lines start Zone and then a rather thick bassline follows them. Really awesome drumming though, which takes center stage as the other instruments stop, and it’s just them and Morrie. Very rhythmic. Morrie gets that deep growly vocal going further in, which is pretty cool and the guitar solo is just death. It’s You, also from DEAD END, by the way. It ends, almost, no very, unresolved with a last line from Morrie.
That is some manner of traditional Japanese instrument starting Tenshu ranman, but the name is escaping me. But I definitely love the drums when they come in. Morrie starts singing in a whisper, which lends to the instantly creepy vibe. The bass hangs out in the background for awhile, before coming up and being right behind Morrie’s voice. The guitar is out in left field, playing something that doesn’t relate to anything else. Little bridge halfway through yields some muffled drums and then the guitar and bass trade parts briefly before going back to the original formation. Some strings come in near the end, not quite in place of the guitar, but augmenting them. A very compositionally strong song. (oh, and it’s worth mentioning that Tetsu does NOT play the bass on this song, it’s Crazy Cool Joe, also from DEAD END.)
Sen no yamiyo ni is my vote for the best title. It fakes you out initially, with some almost piano, but then the guitars roar in and Morrie follows. Ok, the guitars have a rather repetitive riff for a little too long, as does the drumming, but it does change up at around 2 minutes. Nice solo, a little unusual to have Morrie continue singing over it, but not a bad effect and it helps mask a somewhat weak solo. This is your typical metal shred stuff here. Nothing like the one in Zone. I like the overall structure of the song, but the individual instruments are a bit weak, especially the drumming, which has been standout until now.
Kaze no tou begins with bass, just one nice low note, and some super high guitar and then Morrie softly singing. Wow, brief tempo change right away, and that low bass note again, then back into the main song. I love the driving chords. Drumming is back to what I was getting used to. Guitars are out in the background again, or playing quick chords. That guitar solo still reminds me a lot of Ken from L’arc. It’s short, then Morrie comes in with his gorgeous falsetto, accompanied by that awesome low bass note again. The drums and a muted, squealing guitar get it back going again. The end has some faded out guitar and Tetsu’s throbbing bass note, and Morrie whispers the last few lines. Nice reuse of themes in a way that’s never boring. Taken with the rest of the album, it is still a very strong song.
Cosmos Blackness is one of the few truly hard rock songs on here. Grungy power chords, not much discernible bass, some almost machine-gun drums, and I love how Morrie says the title, with his near-perfect English pronunciation. The bridge has a nice bass solo and some toms with a squealing guitar in the background. Maybe I’m absurd, but I immediately got an image of the blackness of deep space. Good stuff, and even better is the sensibility of the next song…
…Lights. There’s no real pause, which helps the sequel idea. This song is instantly a little “brighter”, some very funky bass and totally distorted, possibly overdriven guitar. The drums are all over the place, never really holding one repetitive rhythm. Morrie is also using a distorter, which is not the most flattering thing for him. The guitar solo is also pretty distorted, and afterwards comes a very devilish bass solo. The song ends on a chaotic note.
Haru no kikai starts out with some guitar strumming and Morrie singing, but settle in, it’s over 7 minutes. Also one of my favorites on the album. You need a strong structure to make a good song at this length. The guitar riff at the start is the building block and it continues to repeat, though changing every so slightly at various intervals. Then, there’s Morrie’s line. He also moves in a similar way to the guitar, building, building, and then back to the start. Now at over three minutes in, it should be getting boring, so another theme has to come in. As the first repetition of the theme begins, it ends in a guitar solo. But listen, the drums and bass are keeping the initial theme that the guitar was using! All that cymbal? Not just noise. As before, it builds and builds and then, bridge, working back to the original theme, but in a backwards way. And, here it comes again, the same, yet slightly different. Instead of progressively going up, Morrie goes up, then down. It’s almost a counter to the initial theme.
I think there’s two ways you can take this album. If you’re coming into it off of Tetsu, you might be a bit puzzled and feel like the album is odd and disjointed, swaying between dark and light, poppy choruses and hefty metal riffs. But, if you’re coming into it off of Morrie or as a DEAD END fan, you’re probably rejoicing in the similarities, and that Morrie sounds nearly as fantastic as he did ten and nearly twenty years ago. It’s interesting to me that he let so many other people work on these songs with him, seeing as he composed, arranged and produced nearly all of his solo work. Three albums worth. Whereas here he had help on about half this album. Also, not many people may know this, but he plays guitar on most of the tracks as well.
Final Word: All in all though, I’d have to say it was pretty brilliant. There isn’t a single track I dislike. ★★★★★
Key:
★★★★★ = Excellent, flawless, perfecto
★★★★☆ = Very good, has some minor flaws
★★★☆☆ = Good, maybe a few boring moments, but overall enjoyable
★★☆☆☆ = Fair, bad outweighs the good
★☆☆☆☆ = Poor, possibly offensive to your ears
Motoyuki "Morrie" Otsuka. Former vocalist of DEAD END, solo artist and possibly current vocalist of Creature Creature, though that band, or project seems to be defunct now. I hope it's not though. This thing is going to be epic, because I do believe I have fallen in love with Morrie. His voice is...beyond amazing, his stage presence was spectacular, he was and is gorgeous, in a strictly handsome sort of way. But most of all, his voice. With DEAD END, he was half channeling Dave Mustaine with those sneery growls, but on the other hand, he had a unique way of singing that was more than half-copied by another famous vocalist. Hyde, of L'arc en Ciel. Though, I doubt a lot of the latter's fans even realize this. But truthfully, Hyde copied Morrie right down to his facial expressions. If you ever manage to see some DEAD END lives, you'll see it right away.
Solo, he did something completely different. It crossed all sorts of genres musically, but vocally, those were his best years. Some of the things he did were just really amazing. I can't even begin to describe them, tbh. Then, after ten years of absence, he came back with the project band, Creature Creature. His voice was rusty in spots, I'll admit. But in other parts, it was just as good as ever. Perhaps even moreso. The fact is, he is just an amazing vocalist period. Not just from a technical standpoint, but from an expressive standpoint as well. I've heard him do several different styles now, and he's awesome at all of them.
Very simply, he embodies all the best characteristics of every vocalist I've ever loved. Tatsurou, Hyde, Yuta, Gara, Dave Mustaine. Starting with the dark, deep, soulful voice, and soaring notes, then add the gorgeous falsetto and expressive enunciation, add Yuta's silky smoothness in mid-high registers, add Gara's raspyness and speed and finally Dave Mustaine's trademark sneery growling, and then you have Morrie. No wonder I can't help but be blown away by him.
Which brings me to the DEAD END live I was able to see. By the time it was halfway in, I was sort of just bowled over. I'm not sure I can think of a vocalist with more stage presence than him. Especially since he wasn't terribly active. I mean, he was simply INTENSE. Of course, this had the added effect that whenever he smiled, however briefly, I died just a little. If he didn't have some insane fangirls back then, it's a dire shame.
Right now I can't think of what songs to share, but I shall probably make a second post later. I know which CC song I'll pick, but it might take me a bit to think of which solo and DEAD END song to share.
