Okay guys time for a band I know almost everyone here knows. D’espairsray another stellar band who had an impact on both the vkei and non-vkei scene. This band formed in the 90’s under the name +D’espairsRay+. They gained a lot of popularity and traction around that time with their “Genwaku” and “Kumo” singles. Later on at some point their changed their name just simply D’espairays without the + signs. Afterwards they released a lot of hit albums and singles that we know and love today. In 2011 the band eventually disbanded due to the vocalist Hazumi damaging his own voice. Eventually Hazumi would go into retirement for a little while. Eventually he came out of retirement to form NUL. which is currently active. The other members would go on to be in other projects or bands. What are some of your favorite releases. They have a lot of stuff so I’ll just link some popular songs below.
Coll:set is their best album for me, Infection and Forbidden are my favourite songs of us. I love Redeemer so much too (Paradox 5, my favorite ballad of D’espairsRay).
Dears was like the second VK song I ever heard and I love it and Coll:set sooo much. One of my fave bands ever, was so happy to see them live in Helsinki in 2008. I really hope they would do a comeback now since Hizumi is out of retirement (and designed a logo or sth to the other members’ session band Luv PARADE??), it would be so awesome
Coll:set is an undisputed masterpiece but I have so much nostalgia for Redeemer. It still holds up when I revisit it too, even though I feel like it’s one of those “you had to be there” albums. I’m less harsh on MIRROR these days but Redeemer really was a return to form.
Also their earliest stuff is really cool and somewhat unique for the scene. Every D’espairsRaymond fan ought to listen to Sexual Beast if they haven’t heard it before.
D’spairsray is one of my favorite jrock acts of all time. They had such a unique sound. Some of their songs are industrial, some goth, some heavy rock and metal sounds. Obviously influenced by Korn’s vocal and bass styles.
My favorite tracks are kamikaze, squall, kaleidoscope, infection, Mary of the blood, paradox 5, and horizon.
I wish I got to see them live. I enjoy NUL., but it’s just not the same…
Ah, D’espairsRay, my all-time favorite band met many wonderful people thanks to them and I was lucky enough to see them live twice.
I really enjoy NUL. too but of course, my heart yearns for a D’espairsRay reunion with all the original members.
They were one of a kind, that’s for sure. They were my favorite band for so long. Their skills and looks were unmatched, and truly captured lightning in a bottle with their first two albums.
Does anyone else listen to them like they’re still active and with us today? Man, some of their stuff sounds so fresh and forward thinking it still bangs today.
Ahhh, I have a lot of their stuff in my fav playlist so they come up quite regularely but it still feels diffrent from when they were active.
Back then they were my favorites but it feels a bit pointless to have disbanded favorite. Hizumi is still kinda one of my favorite bandomen and I feel incredible lucky that I had the chance to talk to him but there is still some kind of hole where their new stuff should be.
But I absolutely agree that their music is still so great. They really did something special amd timeless. I hope they know.
However I don’t think they’ll ever really return.
From how I understood Hizumi won’t be capable of singing the way he’s been doing. He can sing but that style he’s been going by is out of his physical options. If that’s the case new music would never be what it had been in the past and what is what most people so desperately wished to get back. Maybe their latest music even did change for that reason (at least in parts, I’m pretty certain that it ain’t just a single reason behind it).
Aside from songs changing (and it’s been 13 years since they announced their disbandment) because people change, call it evolvement, if you like (which I don’t mean just growth in regards to gaining more skills but simple evolvement everyone one in life goes through), and with remembering how people more and more complained about the later albums I don’t even see why they should get back together (and sometimes wonder whether they are aware of opinions from people from abroad; just those because I don’t know how Japanese fans reacted to these changes). All I do expect is pretty similar stuff to what Luv PARADE is doing and by the reactions by fans to this I only expect at first being overly hyped about an announced comeback, followed by a huge disappointment that this great band doesn’t come up with something as great as what they created in the past.
That might be a pretty negative view but it’s what I feel from everything I’ve seen in comments on MH and here throughout all these years. People already complained a lot when it was about REDEEMER not even mentioning anything after. And while I prefer MIRROR over it myself (and yeah, I’m as rebellious and prefer it over Coll:Set as well) I do love quite some songs from REDEEMER still and listened to it a lot when it got out. It’s been 15 years since then with them getting 15 years older, going through different bands and experiences and all that.
Aside from them seeming to be happy.
If they are aware of these opinions it’s the best they can do to not get back together, putting in tons of effort just to face that huge disappointment.
Might not be what everyone wants to hear and I wished for them to never have disbanded in the first place, but as long as people still wait for another Coll:Set to be the outcome of new music by them I don’t think they should get back together ever. Because that is very very unlikely to happen.
Oh I just meant it in a sense of I hope they are proud of what they created.
I know we can’t exspect them getting back together and put out a new master piece.
Funnliy, I like all of their albums btw and I never understood the complaining. My favorite song is from their last album: Devil’s Parade
I really was a bit disappointed by the mini album from Luv Parade. It’s strange because most stuff was written by Karyu and one song by Tsukasa. Which is pretty similar to the D’espairsRay writing ratio. But I personally feel like the NUL. stuff is closer to Despa. Which surprised me… I didn’t think Hizumi’s vocals would have that much of an influence. Maybe they didn’t and Karyu’s writing just evoled in another direction. What do you think? I am not so knowledgeable about music in general so I might be totally wrong
I’m certain of this as well.
And I wasn’t implying you were complaining, I actually wasn’t referring to anyone in particular.
Mine are Human-clad Monster and Abyss.
What about your favorite song(s) by them at all?
I truly enjoy Luv PARADE’s album more than I expected. Especially Into the Flames but that might be because it’s the song written by Tsukasa and the huge amount of drums in it being so prominent. Maybe reading that one interview before also helped appreciating the mini album as much.
However I agree on your sentiment about NUL. but that also might be because it’s Hizumi’s voice. To me that’s a huge part of the Despa vibe in general because it’s outstanding and while I got some vibes from few other bands in the past there’s no voice that ever sounded like his. That combined with how some of NUL.'s songs are written and arranged that gets closer to Despa.
Regarding Karyu’s writing has changed, yeah, that’s one of the other factors I was referring to before. I guess it’s just where he wants to head to especially with what he said in that interview about Tonight, Tonight, Tonight. At least that gave me this impression.
Somewhere Devil’s Parade was called a dark party hymn and I think that describes it and reddish pretty well.
If I had to list all the songs I love I probably would need to list more than half of their discography. They are the kind of band where I don’t really skip songs.
Was that Interview posted in the forum? Did I miss it? I only remember reading one with Tsukasa regarding his Enka projects. Love that he’s doing that btw.
Let me add a funny/stupid story at the end:
Despa was one of the first vk bands I knew and I think I saw the videos for Born and Reddish for the first time relativly shortly before their first europe tour. I did like the music and one of their concerts was close by, I also could have afforded a ticket… but I did not go … because they looked so evil! Little teenager me thought they were rough bad guys … of course I regret not going but I saw them many times afterwards so I made my peace with stupid past me.
I actually do I don’t listen to their early stuff much if at all I’d say.
No, I don’t think so. I came across it on Twitter, I think, when the members shared it.
It’s this one.
Funny to me is that I was pretty new to the scene when VIVA+ did that one special with VK bands and I’m not sure about Reddish but that for sure included the videos for Born and Garnet. That was in 2006.
So at least you didn’t miss out on chances just because of this one time.
met many wonderful people thanks to them and I was lucky enough to see them live twice.
but there is still some kind of hole where their new stuff should be.
… of course I regret not going but I saw them many times afterwards so I made my peace with stupid past me.