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Written by Krystal
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Monday, 14 December 2009 11:06 |
Common Misconceptions of Visual Kei
Something that all jrock fans can agree on is that most jrock fans are usually fans of visual kei artists, and because the visual kei artists seem to have the larger fandom (or at least the most active and/or vocal fandom), jrock is usually assumed to be one and the same as visual kei, which naturally is not the case.
Of the fans who enjoy artists of the visual kind, many, if not most, want to emulate said artists' style, whether it be by cosplay or by wearing clothing similar to their costumes. It seems that most forget the simple fact that what visual kei artists usually wear on stage are costumes, not a fashion, and the costumes themselves are always influenced by at least one genre of fashion.
Let us look at an example: Versailles is one of the most popular visual kei bands currently active. If a fan were to wear, say, HIZAKI's costume, unless they are a follower of Baroque fashion and dressed like that everyday, they would be cosplaying.
That is an obvious, over-the-top case. Let us take a look at a band with a style that has daily wear worth: An Cafe. An Cafe is probably the most well-known oshare kei band in visual kei history. If one were to wear something that Miku wears onstage, they would not be wearing visual kei, they would be wearing clothes in the Japanese punk genre with some kawaii thrown in there.
How about something a little darker? If one were to mimic ZERO or Karyu from D'espairsRay, they would be wearing regular everyday trend clothes with a taste of neo-goth, grunge, and punk.
The same thing goes for hair and makeup. Many jrock artists have common haircuts, or at least common in East Asian countries, that can lean on the rock/punk side but nonetheless are seen by the general public as just another stylish 'do. An example for this would be Alice Nine. No crazy mile high teased hair, no wild colors, just simple cuts with a bit of styling.
Other artists are on the glamorous side and can trace their roots (no pun intended) to glam and/or punk rock. Mana is a very good example of this. A lot of his fans affectionately call his Moi dix Mois hairstyle "palm tree hair".
As for makeup, many of the more well-known artists have let go of their traditional detailed, full-face masks and have come to adopt a simpler look that consists of the basics: foundation, eyeliner, and eyeshadow. Nothing particularly unique about that.
Visual kei means different things to different people, but no one can argue that at its core it involves incorporating a multitude of visual mediums into rock. The mediums range from clothes, makeup, and hair, to stage sets, lighting, and pyrotechnics. Thus the statement "I want to dress visual kei" really makes no sense. If a fan wants to wear what their favorite artists wear, they should dabble in the different fashions the artists themselves dress in, whether it be goth, lolita, hip-hop, prep, etc.
It is difficult to explain any further without going into a detailed history of visual kei, but unless we want to publish an encyclopedia we'll have to simply state here that visual kei is not a fashion. When was the last time a visual kei artist walked around on the street in a PVC corset, short-shorts, and thigh high platform boots? Unless, of course, they were a follower of fetish fashion.
If one must call visual kei something, call it a style. Hime gyaru is a fashion. Cyber is a fashion Visual kei? Not so much. |
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Written by Krystal
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Saturday, 12 September 2009 11:17 |
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The latest volume of Gothic & Lolita Bible came out recently, so here I am to share some of it with you! As we can see, the theme of this volume is dolls.
Ryuutarou (Plastic Tree) modeling in a BLACK PEACE NOW ad
The usual poem from Arika Takarano (ALI Project)
A feature on Victorian Maiden items as presents for the readers
Models Misako Aoki and Midori sharing their trip to Paris
The usual catalogue of the new season's items from the various brands
Dolls by Koi Tsuki Hime and their fashion by gothic brand alice auaa
Doll making with Kokushoku Sumire
Japan meets Spain!
Recipes for horror themed treats
Mana in Fall 2009 Moi-même-Moitié
Harajuku street snap
And we also have the latest issue of KERA!
This issue's main feature is items that can be worn both in the summer and the fall
Must-haves from brand ALGONQUINS
Miku (An Cafe) showing off his galaxxxy t-shirt in the summer and fall
Gou (Megamasso) in his GLAD NEWS pants
Takeru (SuG) coordinating with his G2? tank top
Do-it-yourself crazy accessories
More of Miku, this time shootin' some hoops
Hair tutorials
Harajuku street snap with Sachi (Kokushoku Sumire) on the left
KERA models sharing scary stories
Special interview with the GazettE
Ryuji (ZORO) decked out in yukata
Sapporo people are fashionable too!
People in various styles in Harajuku, including SiSeN outside of the Takuya Angel shop
A MUCC live report, a short interview with ViViD, and a conversation with model Midori and Kanon Wakeshima
A walkthrough of An Cafe's '夏恋★夏GAME' (Natsu Koi★Natsu GAME) PV
Share your thoughts on these magazines!
All pictures by Krystal
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Written by Krystal
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Sunday, 26 July 2009 16:40 |
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People in the San Francisco area can look forward to a new addition to Japantown this August 15th! NEW PEOPLE is a building dedicated to Japanese pop culture including movies, food, art, and namely fashion! Well known gothic, lolita, and punk brands BABY, THE STARS SHINE BRIGHT, ALICE AND THE PIRATES, BLACK PEACE NOW, and PEACE NOW will be opening their first U.S. flagship shops in NEW PEOPLE as well as 6%DOKIDOKI for those who want the cute and colorful fashions you can find in Harajuku and SOU・SOU will be providing traditional Japanese style shoes with a modern twist.
The J-Pop Summit Festival will be happening the same day so check it out if you can and share the experience with us!
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Written by Krystal
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Friday, 12 June 2009 06:17 |
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Sorry for the lack of updates on this blog! I'll be trying to post little things here and there when I can until I have more time and such. :)
I recently got my copy of the latest volume of the Gothic & Lolita Bible! Alice in Wonderland is the theme for this volume, if you can't tell by the cover, and it has the usual features you would expect from this mook, some of which I will share here now:
We've got the regular writings of Takarano Arika from ALI PROJECT
A four page spread of Angelic Pretty's latest items, all of which will be given away as presents to lucky readers who send in their enquete
Emily the Strange meets Gothic & Lolita Bible
A feature look at the latest items from classic lolita brands like Victorian Maiden and Mary Magdalene
A feature on the 3 keys for the lolita and gothic styles. For lolita it's stuffed animals, frills and lace, and ribbons...
...and for gothic it's crosses, black lace, and corsets
Black Peace Now and Peace Now from the regular new season's collections section
Mana modeling the latest from his brand as usual
And as always, the snaps section (you can see Angelic Pretty designers maki and asuka on the top left!)
Also included are Emily the Strange stickers, a section on stying wigs, an article on Courtney Love, and more.
Share your thoughts on this volume on the forum!
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Written by Krystal
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Sunday, 19 April 2009 15:40 |
Classic lolita brand Innocent World has announced the other day that they'll be selling to overseas customers starting this May! And that means no more having to use shopping services! You can read the announcement itself at their website. |
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