First of all, I’d like to apologize for the inactivity of myself and co-blogger Henkka for the last several weeks. We’ve been busy with life and work (goddamn it I hate my job!!).
Now down to business…
After a long wait, Makoto’s only band other than Λucifer, † яi ¢ к is finally releasing their first single. It will be called Phenomena, with the release date is set at March 17th 2012. You can pre-order it over here, and watch the short version of the PV right here. Gotta say, it’s a pretty cool song. The long wait sure paid off. Here’s the tracklisting:
1. Phenomena
2. Artra
3. ADAM
4. Phenomena (Instrumental)
5. Artra (Instrumental)
6. ADAM (Instrumental)
They are set for their first one-man live tour with (only) two shows in Osaka (03/17) and Meguro (03/20) to promote the single.
They have also changed their line-up with drummer Kei Kashiyama decided to leave after failing to recover from his illness and replaced with TERO (left), the former drummer of VIDOLL. Another new member is guitarist Shintaro Mizuno, or SIN, a young musician (24) who joined them after being rapidly involved in live shows.
Λucifer are doing another two live shows in February! Here’s the announcement from Towa:
The frozen Λucifer has decided to momentarily defrost to play live!
2012.2.28 and 29, two days at Shibuya O-EAST!
A special website will be set up on December 8th.
The advance ticket reservations will begin there from the 10th.
Details on the website will be announced here shortly!
We’re hoping for your support!
Also, here’s a tweet from Atsuro:
To respond to the many comments we received from people saying “I want to hear Time Machine wa Iranai played live!“, we’ve decided to do a 2-night comeback. Since it’s kind of sudden, we’ll have to work hard to make this two-night run happen, but it’s really a miracle we were able to book EAST for two days in a row. We’re looking forward to seeing everyone!
We’re another step closer to that new album… </wishful thinking>
Edit 12/8: Updated the post with a badass picture (above). Here’s the link to the special site: lucifer-timemachine.com
I just posted this on our twitter (which is where I post little bits of Aucifer-news that often never make it to the site, so you might like to check that out) but I might as well post it here to mark the occasion.
Λucifer’s new song, entitled “Time Machine wa Iranai” (“don’t need a time machine”) is finally released today on November 23rd! According to some reports I’ve seen on twitter from people who got to listen to it early, the 6½ minute epic, full of grade Λ goodness, is described as being “pretty fucking awesome” — to translate loosely.
The date only just changed to the 23rd in Japan, so now begins the excruciating wait…
Makoto and Atsuro went down to the studio for the vocal recordings of Aucifer’s new song today. Here are their translated tweets from in-studio.
Makoto: We’re recording vocals for Λucifer’s new song today.
M: Preparations done. I’m heading out now!
M: I’ll go and have something to eat before recording starts ( ´ ▽ ` )ﾉ
M: Tekkadonburi injection.
M: I left a little bit ahead of time so I’m just slowly walking towards the studio through my hometown of Shibuya ＼(^-^)／
M: I’ve arrived at the studio!
Atsuro: The weather’s too nice☆ I’ll be at the studio before long～!
A: The studio’s so spacious considering we’re just here to record vocals!
M: By the way, it’s the same studio we used back in the days with Λucifer (^_−)−☆
A: Getting excited by the spaciousness of the studio ♪
M: Time to sing!
A: Two-shot! We’re so deep into our discussion, we can’t seem to get started with recording. (lol)
M: ＼(^o^)／
Yuki: Do your best～(*^_^*) Sorry I couldn’t come～(*_*)
M: (^_−)−☆
A: We’ve started～☆
A: Making good progress ☆
A: Makoto’s Gackt-impression kind of resembles him…
M: Doing good!
M: Getting started on chorus vocals soon…
A: Checking～☆
M: The main vocals are done! Now for the chorus (^_−)−☆
A: Started recording the chorus vocals!
A: I’m in charge of vocal direction while we’re recording. This willingness on Makoto’s part sure makes him seem like a completely different person from before…
M: The vocal recordings are done *･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:*･'(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*)’･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*
M: All parts for Λucifer’s songs are now done! Only the TD check left (^_−)−☆
Fan: Good work～. Your vocals are getting better, too, right! That’s great (^3^)/
M: Atsuro praised my vocals! I was happy with them myself, too.
M: (To Yuki:) We’re done with the vocals!
A: We’re done～! That was fast ＼(^o^)／ Good work～!
M: (^_−)−☆
M: Just listened to Λucifer’s new song with loud volume and it’s great! Look forward to it (^_−)−☆
A: Good job to engineer Kataoka as well! Looking forward to the TD ☆
Makoto: We’re done!
A: With Λucifer, it’s gotta be ramen, so we’re celebrating by having just that with Makoto!
M: Was delicious!
A: I’m home～! We recorded some good vocals today (^ ^) Definitely do look forward to the first new song from Λucifer in 9 years, please. I have to get up early tomorrow for other work, so good night everyone～☆
M: To be honest, I came close to tears during the final check at today’s recording. (lol) I was able to resist though… I was really happy ( ´ ▽ ` )ﾉ
M: I want to share this memory with everyone soon… please wait just a little more, yeah? (^_−)−☆
Fan: Datenshi BLUE or the new song, which is better?
In case you didn’t realize, it’s been exactly 12 years today since Λucifer’s debut and their first release, “Datenshi BLUE.” Here’s Makoto’s post on it from his blog:
Λucifer’s 12th anniversary.
It’s been 12 years since Λucifer’s debut. It feels like all that time went by in a flash… Last year, we had our revival shows. This year, we have our new song to look forward to. We’re going to have the vocal recordings for that soon, so look forward to more pictures of that on Twitter and so! And to all the fans who have kept supporting Λucifer for these 12 years, I say this from the heart: thank you. (v^-ﾟ) We’re hoping for your continued support!!
In celebration of this festive day for all Λucifer fans alike, here’s something I promised I’d do ages ago: my top 5 favorite Λucifer guitar solos! Without further ado, let’s get started!
5. LUCY
Though it’s admittedly quite a basic guitar solo, it does sound delicious. A solo doesn’t always have to be flashy to be awesome, as this Atsuro-penned tune demonstrates.
4. Heavy Style
I’d actually forgotten how cool this solo was until I went listening through Aucifer’s discography, searching for their most badass solos. It’s weirdness combined with coolness. A lot of coolness.
3. See You
Aucifer’s one and only (?) acoustic guitar solo. And what a sweet one it is! Atsuro’s fingers are lovely.
2. Midnight Crow (Be-Trip Tour 2001 version)
While the recorded version of this song has an okay solo, Aucifer gave it a whole new look when playing it live. There’s a version of this song included on all three Aucifer live DVD’s, but my favorite is by far the one found on Be-Trip Tour 2001. The one on Last Tour 2002-2003 Energy, though more technically proficient, loses to the Be-Trip Tour 2001 one in… how should I put it… let’s call it the youthful energy. As for the one on the 10th Anniversary DVD, that one is of course again technically superior but to be completely honest with you, while the actual performance itself was great, I was disappointed in both the picture quality as well as the sound mix of this DVD. Thus, I think the best version of the song — and indeed, my favorite Aucifer DVD — is the Be-Trip Tour 2001 one.
Here’s a video of it to remind you:
1. Sekai de Ichiban Kirei na Mono
I know, I know, you probably think I’m crazy ranking this higher than that version of Midnight Crow. But I can’t lie to myself: I’ve always loved this solo the most. It’s really just perfection. Short and sweet perfection. Pure f’ing ear candy. That’s all I really have to say about it.
Edit: While we’re at it, here are the top 10 guitar solo picks from my trustworthy co-blogger here on Silent Melody, the good sir GN-0015:
10. DUMMY – A bit pain for ears at first to me, but it grew well inside me, and now I find the solo is quite cool.
9. HURRY – It is Towa’s bass that gave me multiple orgasms throughout the song, but the solo is awesome too!
8. CARNATION CRIME – Typical crazy Λucifer solo, but really really a perfect fit for the song.
7. Realize – The solo keeps the song’s upbeat tune, I like it so much.
6. TSUBASA – Double solo from two guitar gods is always cool!
5. Graduation – Really cool, can’t really explain but it’s just awesome.
4. C no Binetsu – Quick yet very relaxing to me. It’s my first Λucifer song, so it’s really nostalgic.
3. Desire – This one is just crazy in the most awesome way. The best song for me on the way to work.
2. LABYRINTH – Probably their quickest song, my blood always runs faster especially during the damn awesome solo. Perfect for listening while having sex.
1. Regret – My favourite solo from Yuki throughout his entire career. Perfect fit for the song, though having the thoughts of Yuki shaking his guitar in that manner in the PV quite ruins the mood XD
So what are your favorite Λucifer guitar solos? And again, happy 12th birthday to Λucifer!
Λucifer have now begun the recording work for their new song. Also, the title of their new song revealed…?! Here’s some translated studio reports from twitter and blogs, collected here in (approximately) the order they were posted.
Makoto:
Today’s our long-awaited day of recording!
Λucifer are recording their new song for that project today!! About to begin recording NOW (^O^)
The members, busy playing.
Cool!
Atsuro-sensei of Λucifer.
First self-shot in a while.
I have a feeling it’s going to be a well-liked song…
Towa (^O^)
Santa (^O^)
Atsuro (^O^)
YUKI (^O^)
(To Mayu Shinjo:) I think it’s going to be a good one～! (^O^)
Mayu: Ooooohh!!! I’m looking forward to it so much～～～!!
Please do. (^O^)
We’re just about to do the first take of Λucifer’s new song. Here’s to hoping it’ll be a good one (^_-)-☆ You guys wanna give it a go after a while? Datenshi～?!
Polishing it up some more.
Recording as Λucifer is a strange feeling… it’s like we got on a time machine or something…
Yuki: Λucifer’s recording today! The song’s going to be included on the “Kaikan Phrase” DVD! (sic) It’s been way too long since the 5 of us recorded together. (^o^) I’m lost for words (*^_^*) It’s fun!
Mayu: Thanks so much for everything! Mom’s in tears here! (ノ◇≦。)
Santa: We’re in studio with Λucifer, recording a new song that’s to be included on the first press limited edition “Kaikan Phrase” CD going on sale 10/26!
Makoto:
Our work continues…
We’re steadily nearing the end… Time for lunch in a minute…
Having katsudon with all of Λucifer.
Look delicious?
Towa’s blog entry:
Recording!
We’re recording Λucifer’s new song today!
This time around, we’re just recording one song for Mayu Shinjo’s first press limited edition “Kaikan Phrase” CD, going on sale 10/26. Everyone’s gathered here just to do that. It’s been a long time, but we’re proceeding nicely.
Mayu: ￣ｍ￣ Fufu. Me, I’m a fast typer so it’s fine… I am doing my work properly!!
Santa: Well that’s good to hear (￣∀￣) (lol) Fight!
Makoto:
Towa, keeping record.
So it’s been 9 years since Λucifer last recorded, huh…
YUKI’s doing his best with his guitar solo!
The title of Λucifer’s new song: “Uni” (Sea urchin) (lol)
Santa: Absolutely 1000% not (;_;) (lol)
The title of Λucifer’s new song: “Datenshi CRIME no Binetsu“
The title of Λucifer’s new song: “Midnight Illusion no Hoka ni Nani ga Dekirun darou?“
Next up, Atsuro’s doing his best!
Towa, Santa and YUKI are all done with their parts. Atsuro’s recording acoustic guitar next. Me? I’m just in charge of demo vocals and twitter today. (lol)
Good evening! This is Makoto of Λucifer (for a short while) (^_-)-☆
Yuki: Finished recording my guitar solo without incident. (*^_^*) Ah man～ I went and played a pretty cool one again. (lol) With this, my parts are all done. (^-^)v
Makoto: Good work (^O^)
Makoto: The Λucifer song is 90 percent done! Once we’ve laid down the acoustic guitar parts, it’s 99% done. Finally, once I’ve recorded my vocals, it’s 120% done!!
Atsuro: Today’s Makocchan! Going to record the acoustic guitar parts now～☆
Makoto:
Atsuro’s acoustic guitar recordings have started!
It seems Towa’s gonna start up twitter as well… (lol) Oh, this is off-topic, but we were talking about suntans just now and Towa showed me his ass to demonstrate how white it is.
We’ll be done with the instrumental parts shortly! Thanks for the tweets of encouragement (o^-‘)b
Atsuro: I’m done. We’re now waiting for the rough mix. Here’s a precious picture of Yuki-chan playing my acoustic☆
Yuki: Thanks for letting me try it out! It has a good sound! Now I want one for myself (^-^)v
Makoto:
Λucifer instrumental parts now done!
And that’s it for today! On my way home now (^O^) Tomorrow it’s photography time for Λucifer!!
Now here’s something interesting I saw on 2ch just now. Before you read, please realize that this could very well be just baseless gossip — 2ch is hardly the most trustworthy news site out there. This could turn out to be just a reference to Aucifer’s new song, or this could turn out to be nothing at all. Please don’t get your hopes up. Consider this just a rumor!
>174:
Today on Makoto’s twitter, he tweeted something about “Λucifer’s comeback decision.”
The tweet was deleted afterwards. Did anyone else see it?
To me it felt like he tweeted about it before he should have and then hurriedly erased it.
>175:
You sure it’s not just about the new song?
>176:
I saw it, too.
His tweet said Aucifer are making a comeback!!
He deleted it afterwards?
Again, please don’t get your hopes up until there’s real confirmation.
Announcing the best news on the site yet. Without further ado…
＜Information＞
Mayu Shinjo 「Kaikan♥Phrase Reincarnation」
The shoujo manga “Kaikan Phrase”, having sold over 10 million copies worldwide, is back with an all-new production for Koeman (who do mobile phone comics with added voice contents)!
There’s also going to be a drama CD!
For the super special limited first edition, the drama CD also comes with a new song by Λucifer and a gorgeous memorial book containing the entire comic distributed on the mobile site.
＜Summary＞
【Main story】
Ever since that night, Aine has been saddened about not being embraced by Sakuya.
Now as that sadness is gradually turning into anxiety, the hearts of the two are slowly drifting apart.
Aine and Sakuya — just what course is their love going to take from here!?
【Bonus story】
It’s Aine’s birthday soon.
Thinking about what to give Aine for her birthday, Sakuya consults the members of Λucifer…!?
The comic will start publication on the mobile comic site Comic Cmoa in September 2011.
■ Drama CD 「Kaikan♥Phrase ～Reincarnation～」 (super special limited pressing)
☆ Super special contents:
Unreleased, brand new song by Λucifer
Special memorial book (72 pages in total), including:
The whole comic released released on the mobile phone site (42 pages)
Λucifer photographs, taken at the request of the publisher
Shinjo Mayu & Λucifer round-table discussion
Interviews with the voice actors
Release date: 2011/10/26 (EDIT: new release date) 2011/11/23
Stock number: FCCC-0199
Price: 7,350 yen (includes tax)
■ Drama CD 「Kaikan♥Phrase ～Reincarnation～」 (regular edition)
