Ho boy, have these guys gone far. From fighting in the clubs in Tokyo’s scene to Europe, Australia, and now the U.S…. and now with a record deal with Metropolis – awesome. Now you can experience one of Japan’s hottest industrial rock outfits at your computer!
An hour of glorious Japanese underground music recorded in high-quality video. Watch and SCREAM boys and girls!
Baal :: Religion 616
One of the hard-hitting electro-industrial rock groups in Tokyo’s underground scene, Baal represents the future of heavy industrial music. Featuring uber-femme U-tarou on hellastic vocals, Mikito orchestrating the guitar and digital sounds and Chihiro on drums, Baal ignites any event it appears in. With multiple tours of Europe, and one tour in Australia with Angel Spit, Baal is coming up from beneath the radar to infect ordinary society.
Religion 616 represents the latest evolution of the band with songs pumping out an infectious grimy industrial sounds with power vocals and more.
Baal :: Religion 616 track list
1. Dead Rock Enemy – 3:03
2. Religion 616 – 4:04
3. Judgement Night – 3.14
4. The Hardliner – 3.11
5. Survive – 3.23
Total time: 16:57
You can find the band site at http://www.baaljapan.net/ and their online shop at http://www.baalstore.com/
Osaka’s main event will be making a one-night stop over on Sunday November 2nd (Monday’s a holiday) delivering DJ’s abound and a live performance of one of my favorite bands, BAAL! This Gothic festival of the night includes DJ Taiki, Non and Lucien from the Black Veil plus the live set from BAAL, Necro Girls and a CD shop booth. As the flyer says Osaka’s Absolute Gothic-Industrial-Electro-EBM Party. The event will take place in Marz Shinjuku from 23:30 Sunday evening. As this is an overnight event you must have a photo ID to enter.
Where: Marz Shinjuku
Address: Dai-Ichi Tokiwa Building B1F, 2-45-1 Kabuki-cho, Shinjuku, Tokyo :: 新宿区歌舞伎町2-45-1 第一トキワビルB1F
Tel: 03-3202-8298
Open: 23:30
Price: 2,500 yen adv. :: 3,000 @ door
Booking: mail@baaljapan.net
Location: Tokyo, Japan – Genre: Industrial, Metal, Electro
Baal has an infectious, indeed virulent industrial sound. This review covers the first EP (CD-R alas) from the band, Territory of B.A.A.L. that has been built up by reworking earlier singles and new material. Their blend of industrial programming and guitar from Mikito, percussion from Chihiro and voice from U-Tarou has resulted in a kind of cybernetic industrial rock that plays hard, fast and is very, very addictive to see on stage. This CD manages to capture the live sound very closely, giving you a glimpse into the heady world of Japanese underground rock.
The CD contains six songs, all running at a frenetic pace. The first song, Bloody Logic Communication (re-mastered), speedballs along with the heavily warped digital sounds and powerful percussion giving a sense of urgency. U-tarou’s powerful voice plays over the instruments.
Wreckage (re-mastered) plays like an industrial anthem for the underclass with U-tarou exploding through the chorus and carries it through the verses.
Vermin (new track) is hard and powerful from the start with vocals exploding seconds into the track and driving through the violent beat of the track.
Myrrha (new track) is more a smashed-up rhythm created by real industrial sounds with samples steam hammers and chains. It is a slower track by this album’s standards.
On the Surface (2006 neo brutal version) starts slow, but builds up to very heavy (and yes it is brutal) sound, with a fast tempo and stacks of power.
The final track, Collapse of Rusty Kingdom (New) would be a moonlit ballad by Baal’s standards, with a slower tempo with steam hammers and the like forming the sound. It is a slow(er) instrumental track which makes a perfect finish to this adrenalin-pumping EP.
The only downside to this is the price – 2,000 yen – 12 Euros – $16 – which seems a bit expensive for an EP. Of course, for a fan, or appreciator of good hard industrial sounds, the price would not be an issue.
Overall, while I have enjoyed Baal’s previous work, I see this as a much more mature piece of work. The re-mastered tracks and the new additions have helped deliver a balanced EP from a band that has risen quickly in the ranks of the Japanese Goth scene.
Territory of “B.A.A.L.” :: Track List
1. Blood_Logic_Communication (re-mastered) – 4:40
2. Wreckage (re-mastered) – 5:40
3. Vermin (new) – 4:06 – Sample
4. Myrrha (new) – 2:15
5. On the Surface (2006 neo brutal version) – 6:24 – Sample
6. Collapse of Rusty Kingdom (New) – 3:22
Total: 27:21
Note, there are more samples throughout their regular site and via their MySpace site.
You can buy the CD through PayPal. To get there, just click the link marked “Sound” on the left-hand side of the page and you should see the EP in the resulting page.
[Industrial and more!] This event it is definitely worth going to. The previous two Junk Baptisms even inspired Igor’s poetic side, which is a very rare thing indeed – perhaps this is a good thing. The truth is that Junk Baptism represents the alignment of hard electro-industrial units with past events including performances from Baal, Despair, Demonoid 13 (DJ Doomspider’s band) and Scorpian’s Death Rock. Get gothed up or industrialized and prepare for an exciting night.
This time the lords of hard-techno-industrial, Despair, will be playing wih Utero Zzz Aaa, referred to as an industrial noise terrorists by one of Igor’s cohorts. So the live acts will be crashing waves of non-stop industrial sounds! They will be supported by DJ’s Kenzo A (Gadget., Stigmata), Raveman (Aural Vampire) and guest DJ Hecate from Switzerland.
Remember this is an all night event so you will need a photo ID to get in (people under 18 and/or high school students will not be permitted entry.
When: December 8, 2007 :: Junk Baptism #3
Where: Motion Shinjuku
Address: 5F Just Bldg. 2-45-2 Kabuki-Cho, Shinjuku, Tokyo :: 新宿区歌舞伎町2-45-2ジャストビル5F :: Map :: Google Map
Tel: 03-6825-5858
Live: Despair, UTERO ZZZ AAA (Osaka extreme noise)
DJ’s: Kenzo-A (from Stigmata) and Raveman (from Aural Vampire)
Guest DJ: Hecate (from Switzerland)
Open: 24:00
Price: 2,000 yen adv. :: 2,500 yen @ door
[Taken from the original JGoth archives dated May 6, 2007]
My first overnight stay at Tokyo Dark Castle for over a year was damned exciting. The crowd was a bit different from what I remember with only a few familiar faces, but they were pumped up and ready to scream. Japan’s Golden Week is usually a pretty light time in terms of people turnout (because everybody runs away to their hometowns), but this event was pumping with a comfortably crowded Marz club and more cool fashion than you can point a sparkler at. Gothic, lolita, cyber, leather, fetish, dreg (uh me), and more.
Auto-Mod
The band was fiery hot. Auto-Mod were in fine form with a fantastic set featuring ye olde metal grinder (a real one flashing out sparks and shit), fireplay, and a meatier sound that showed these local underground legends that they can continue to deliver to today’s audience. The band has come a long way in the past 14 months when I last saw the start of the change with the new line-up/arrangement.
Lloy
Lloy smashed my pre-conceptions of thinking of them as a moody alt-rock band. These guys are hard rock with strong femme vocals making them a very hot item on stage. A number of people inside the scene told me they were damned good – I just didn’t know how good until I saw them for myself!
Baal
I was primed for insanity by this time, but I was not prepared for the next act – my dear friends Baal. They just ripped shit up on stage and had the audience screaming and jumping to their hard-punching cybernetic industrial rock. I have loved Baal’s live performances since I first saw the band, when it was known as Chronotrigger, in 2005. A t that time I knew they were a fresh, harsh industrial group who’ll electrify any crowd, but even now Baal has kept on ratcheting up the intensity, power and its appeal to the point where it truly is one sexy dominating beast on the scene! While they are my friends, I am being completely honest in my comments – they are that damned good! Check the video at the bottom!
Destruct System
Finally I scoped Destruct System who I have seen at a number of events. These guys are harsh hard rock that is just plain hot. Where Baal left off, DS took over turning the lower level of the two-tiered Marz venue into a grinding pit of Gothic flesh. They know how to connect with any crowd and their sets are varied to suit the tastes of the night (metal, Gothic, electronic, etc.) , so you will get something a bit different every time you see them. These guys are damned good and can ignite any crowd with their intensity.
So that wraps that up. Tokyo Dark Castle is bigger and flasher than ever. All the bands are stepping up the intensity to deliver an array of hard-hitting sounds that will soon be able to shed the “J” moniker and be considered as part of the global Goth scene. And the crowd is growing all the time.
As for me personally, turning up after a long hiaitus as a cybernetic entity, it was kind of strange. There were some familiar faces, but I am a stranger again. It was good to catch up with a few good friends and see just how far the scene has progressed in the past 12 months.
Baal @ Tokyo Dark Castle
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZkGVfrB9VU[/youtube]
TOKYO DARK CASTLE EXTRA — While at Tokyo’s largest Gothic event (Report here), I managed to take a little video of Baal performing Wreckage on stage! This is still my favorite song from the band and just pumps the crowd as you will see. Unlike previous JGoth home videos this one is quiet enough that you won’t have to rip your headphones off screaming “Igor! You C-Nut!” Yes, I discovered the volume control! Do you fancy a couple of minutes of the live Baal experience from the pit at TDC?
A special thanks to the band for giving me the okay to show this little viddy!
Want more? Check out Baal’s official site or Baal on MySpace for the real Baal experience!
There are a few other videos on my YouTube space, but beware… I didn’t know about the volume control for those.
My first overnight stay at Tokyo Dark Castle for over a year was damned exciting. The crowd set was a bit different from what I remember with only a few familiar faces, but they were pumped up and ready to scream. Golden Week is usually a pretty light time in terms of people turnout (because everybody runs away to their hometowns), but this event was pumping with a comfortably crowded Marz club and more cool fashion than you can point a sparkler at. Gothic, lolita, cyber, leather, fetish, dreg (uh me), and more.
Auto-Mod :: info
The bands were fiery hot. Auto-Mod were in fine form with a fantastic set featuring ye olde metal grinder (a real one flashing out sparks and shit), fireplay, and a meatier sound that showed these legends of the local scene can continue to deliver to today’s audience. The band has come a long way in the past 14 months, when I last saw the start of the change with the new line-up/arrangement.
Lloy :: info
Lloy smashed my pre-conceptions of thinking of them as a moody alt-rock band. These guys are hard rock with strong femme vocals making them a very hot item on stage. A number of people inside the scene told me they were damned good – I just didn’t know how good.
Baal :: info
I was primed by this time, but I was not prepared for the next act, my dear friends Baal. They just ripped shit up on stage and had the audience screaming and jumping. I have loved Baal’s live performances since I first saw the band as Chronotrigger in 2005 (A fresh, harsh industrial group who’ll blow you away), but Baal has kept on ratcheting up the intensity, power and its appeal to the point where it truly is one sexy beast! While they are my friends, I am being completely honest in my comments – they are that damned good!
Destruct System :: info
Finally I scoped Destruct System who I have seen quite often at a number of events. These guys are harsh hard rock that is just plain hot. Where Baal left off, DS took over turning the lower level into a grinding pit of Gothic flesh. They know how to connect and their sets are varied to suit the tastes of the night (metal, Gothic, electronic, etc.) so you will get something a bit different every time you see them. These guys are damned good and can ignite any crowd with their intensity.
So that wraps that up. Tokyo Dark Castle is bigger and flasher than ever. All the bands are stepping up the intensity to deliver an array of hard-hitting sounds that will soon be able to shed the “J” moniker and be considered as part of the global Goth scene. And the crowd is growing all the time.
As for me personally, turning up after a long hiatus as a cybernetic entity, it was kind of strange. There were some familiar faces, but I am a stranger again. It was good to catch up with a few good friends and see just how far the scene has progressed in the past 12 months.
There is also some great stuff afoot with a some fuck yeah! news, a couple of viddies but more on that stuff later…
Blood-stained gloves, gas masks and cattle prods greet the new slaves. Raw fear at the knowledge of their fate seeps into damaged brains. Re-animating the dead to serve the overlords of the final industrial revolution. Serving beyond the grave.
Death certificates already signed; the rights of the living are denied. Screams of the half-destroyed minds of society’s victims. Destinies sealed to exist in squalor, to serve the corrupted elite, to fight wars they did not understand, to test the latest nanites, to suffer until their bodies are ruined beyond repair.
The scientists rejoiced. The powerful nodded approval. Those on the edges applauded, simply glad to avoid the fate. The slaves hung their heads in the hazed knowledge that they were already born into hell. Even in final body death they served. Like the farms of the 20th century the bodies were reprocessed and served to the slave populace.
Some slaves escaped their fate. First-lifers and those who survived the re-animation with minds relatively intact. And there was always the madmen. All who escaped had only one place to go, wastelands.
In the wastelands surrounding the cities, the toxic landscape, cultivated from decades of man-made catastrophes, kept the elites in their urban cradle. In these areas where no-one else would dare venture, small communities of slaves developed. Death and pain are abundant, but one word keeps the slaves coming, Freedom.
Near the massive labor camps of what was once called Tokyo, a new escapee community has risen. Stealing decades-old technology from the ruins of the old city, the community has built a rogue lab to remove bio-circuit tags from the bodies of new arrivals and treat what can be cured. Known among the warlords controlling the area as Brain Scan Laboratory, it is viewed with fear as a challenge to the slaver system in the local region. The first riots ignited in the city three months ago.
Already named by historians as the Slave’s Midnight Riot, it is seen as the first direct attack on the elite since they took control decades earlier. Melting into the landscape after inciting the first of the Slave Riots, the guerrilla leaders have waged skirmishes at times and locations of their choosing.
The guerrilla leaders have already been marked for collection and reprocessing. The ex-slave units in charge of the first riots have been named in official and unofficial media: , Baal, Demonoid and Scorpions Death Rock. Individuals, including 666Fox, Undermine and Doom Spider have also been implicated.
Official reports within the warlord councils point to a new uprising likely to occur in late January. There appears to be a movement towards the new action in the URGA district no later than January 21, 2006. Unconfirmed reports suggest the rebels will be led by the unit known as Baal, with tactical support from 666Fox, Undermine and Margath Orgia from another underground unit known amongst sympathizers as Golgotha.
While the warlords are seeking to secure the zone surrounding URGA, matters have been complicated by continued unrest in this and other areas.
The night closed with DJ Violet speeding away on a scooter in full Victorian dress. With blue ringlets spilling from under his helmet and a smile of pure delight, Violet shot down the deserted street into the heart of Shibuya. Just eight hours ago the Goths of Tokyo, and beyond, had poured into Deseo for an underground event like none other. Welcome to Tokyo Dark Castle.
Tokyo Dark Castle 101
Tokyo Dark Castle, for those who just dropped in, is Japan’s leading Gothic event. The creme de la creme of Japan’s darker side come here to perform everything from the hardest industrial overdrive to the sweetest neo-opera sounds. For six hours guests are treated to the total Goth package. The night is filled with the best-dressed Goths, Gothic-Lolitas, metallers, glam-lovers and more. Imagine a night where Marilyn Manson would sweep through unnoticed in the crowd.
TDC’s Halloween
The October 29 event was doubly special as it celebrated Halloween and the 25th Anniversary of Auto-Mod, who have been at the helm of Japan’s dark underground scene for a generation and whose lead singer, Genet, is responsible for bringing Tokyo Dark Castle to the people. The pure creativity of Auto-Mod cannot be underestimated in Japan’s narrow mass market. In an environment where institutions like Johnnies and the Morning Musume industrial complex have produced bands and music that hold to a very thin template of J-Pop, Auto-Mod is one of the standouts who have led Goth and underground rock sounds since the 1980s.
Let’s have a party
Deseo’s not a small place and previous forays have left me with enough space to scope things or bounce with abandon, but tonight the dark lords and ladies arrived en masse filling the entire space with glorious visions of phantsy wherever you looked. There were also many new faces in the crowd so it was full of surprises. Igor felt pretty normal in his loafers, but thankfully people overlook the underdressings of foreigners here and we could all have a good time. The shops had all kinds of displays, but it was hard to concentrate on the pretty things on the tables, when you’re surrounded by it! I did manage to pick up a new Auto-Mod CD though – thanks to my audacious dancing skills (or lack thereof) the Auto-Mod crew member remembered me and gave me a nice discount (you see, it pays to lose yourself from time to time). Everyone was so friendly (as always) and once you find one new person to speak to, you’ll discover three more and so on. This is one aspect of all the Goth events that I have found – people really are open. It’s something that I have never found at any regular night spot in Tokyo – the bridge is so much easier to cross.
But let’s get onto the sounds.
DJ’s Voilet & Chihiro & VJ Kihito
The DJ’s were cooking some great stuff tonight. Often overlooked when they do there job right (and Chihiro and Voilet are good) I would just like to give a quick w00t! to them for keeping the night on pace! As always, Kihitio kept the visuals rolling smoothly with all kinds of great footage mixed in.
Calmando Qual
Because the line outside Deseo was long (and I grabbed another chu-hi beforehand) I missed the first act, Calmando Qual. Technically, I think they are in the visual kei crowd, but as I have come to learn not all visual kei is popsy-cute Shazna wannabes – actually there are a couple of pretty hard mutherfuckers around in the visual scene. One thing about Calmando Qual is that they know how to get it on! Definitely a band worth catching and seem to be doing a lot of places that would not usually get Goth bands (like Fukuoka). So keep tabs on them.
Auto-Mod
Genet and his boys went fell knell for over an hour! Slamming out some great classics that us recent visitors may have missed this year and drilling them into our skulls. It was the full deal tonight with theatrics reminiscent from earlier years’ events intersticing the songs and guest appearances abounding. Tonight was one special show and if you missed it – shame on you! With dark dance and performances in the mosh area, and Selia’s haunting support vocals and the vampire visuals from Genet and co. it was a very special performance.
BAAL
Oh, god. These guys were hot when I first saw them and they just get better with each performance. Solid new generation industrial-rock, this stuff is heart-beltingly good. Between Mikito’s all-too-cool demeanor grinding his axe and managing the mix, U-Tarou’s total vocal attack and Chihiro’s manic drumming, these guys are one tight unit. If you like rock, industrial, or just plain dark stuff, these guys should not be missed! Capping off tonight’s performance was an invasion by Destruct System’s Kohki who just took things up one more peg. Ripping stuff.
Despair
You want audio assault? These guys are it! Industrial sounds mainline straight to your brain with the vocals driving their voices into the mix. Every time they are on it’s a crazy, mad, sexed-up sound that takes your breath away. All three players have their stage craft working full tilt for an exhausting set of hot industrial sounds.
I’m spent baby!
After that madness it was time to relax. I should feel bad for not checking out the performance sets of the night, but the triple hit with the bands just took me out of action. Auto-mod got me going hard, Baal took me to overdrive, Despair hit me like a train on Chou line!
So, for a couple of hours we could enjoy the slow approach of dawn, catching up with friends and discovering what was going on from people coming out. It was chill time at the end of a great night. And as I wound down with friends – punters like me, musicians, DJs and more – I realized just how many friends I have found here at TDC and beyond. In all my 8+ years in Tokyo this was the first time I felt “at home.” Thank you.
It was a night of magic in many ways, but there’s still one more to go!!
Tokyo Dark Castle Xmas!
The final Tokyo Dark Castle for the year (and the last one at Deseo) is set to be explosive. With 12 bands prepping take you to nirvana and back on Xmas eve. And what great freaking bands!! Auto-Mod (the lords of underground), Destruct System (hell yeah!), Jubilee (legendary Osakans), Agent Murder (psychotically great), Phantasmagoria (darkly sweet sounds), BAAL (industro-complex attack), Vexation (Sisters Grimm), Seirenes (siren Selia & Violet), Gadget (great retro harsh rock), Euthanasie (hard elektro), Aural Vampire (sexy & dark elektro) and Cut the Crap (hard rocking mofos with “the bassist”)! Man, book with one of them bands and support the cause (and save one drink on the entrance fee!). December 24 :: 23:30~ @ Shibuya Deseo (3,000/3,500 yen).
