Album out now on all platforms !
Faster, shorter and stronger… This new album is like a Fireball. No ballads and just a bunch of energy, heavy fast tracks. Like it because is the opposite to REBORN which was melancholic and just 4 heavy songs.
I still consider myself as new fan because just a few years listen them but i my opinion the Tetralogy XIII-ULTIMA-REBORN-CLIMAX are their best works ever along with the 20 Anniversary Remakes Albums. Shadows and The Avoided Sun for me are the best lynch. Albums ever.
I love their long song too so i hope for the next one they consider do more 4-5-6 minutes song.
PS: Ryo Trackmaker is a Wizard because these guys sound amazing with him on the production.
3 Likes
Parasitic EDEN might be the most interesting thing they released in the last 10 years. Prism ray - feels inspired by the late Despairs Ray.
2 Likes
Can’t say they’re late because they’re back! But that just gets me excited to listen even more.
2 Likes
A very good, effective album. It does exactly what it’s meant to do: it’s straight to the point, a shot of pure energy. It focuses on what matters and, while it doesn’t reinvent the band’s usual formula, it delivers plenty of standout moments along with some occasionally fresh—or at least unexpected—sounds.
That’s where it succeeds for me, whereas REBORN (despite having some excellent songs in my opinion—“CRIME,” “BLUE,” “PRAGMA,” “SINK,” etc.) felt just a little too dull overall.
For me, it’s a successful gamble. Choosing not to include any ballads or slower, down-tempo tracks was clearly a deliberate decision, and I think it pays off.
Just as the previews suggested, “PARASITIC,” “PRISM RAY,” and “ZEALOT” are the highlights. (I say this every time, but please, let Yusuke write a full album!)
Special mention also goes to “ICE” (a real grower and a very strong lead track), “SILENCE” and “ACHE” (pretty good songs from Hazuki, which isn’t always the case), and the re-recorded version of “BRINGER,” which is better than the original.
That said, it still leaves you wanting more. Hopefully the next album (if there is one?!) will bring back some more atmospheric tracks.
For a while now, they’ve seemed to confuse being “dark” with simply writing fast, aggressive songs. They’re perfectly capable of creating a deeper, darker sound through atmosphere, even if that means slowing the pace down a bit.
10 Likes
Boy, they are consistent. The longest sequence ever of 7/10 albuns.
Prism Ray is fun
1 Like
Honestly?
This album should’ve been called FIERCE just by how fierce and energetic whole mood is. Pure rollercoaster from start to finish. A lot of fat got trimmed and, by the sound of it, boys managed to use the last year’s self-reflection phase to write stuff that is so perfect for the lives.
INTRODUCTION, I guess, doesn’t reach the catchiness of AVANT GARDE/SIN, but as a walk-in theme it works alright.
CLIMAX is a nice opener, gives me early 2000s videogame OST vibes with the overall rolling sound. So yeah, papa Reo knows his stuff.
ICE is definitely heads above the rest of their usual MV stuff just because of the energy & still making it more varied despite being typical Hazuki song (sudden blastbeat by Asanao is a nice touch + Yusuke’s clean effect during choruses does give the icy mood).
PARASITIC E.D.E.N. sounds like a love child of CULTIC MY EXECUTION (mostly due to Hazuki’s vocals) and Waltz (similar mood & rhythm + lack of harsh vocals). Still lol at Hazuki pronouncing EDEN as EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEden tho. But yeah, another fun banger. And that solo is very funky. Also lol’d a bit at the solo tho, sounds like someone stole Kaoru’s shitty effect pedal and decided to use it here.
GERO - again, another banger that would be awesome to witness live. Seems like Hazuki trained his skill at short banger department (at least, compared to his previous endeavors). If I’m not mistaken, those digitized vocals during the bridge are Yusuke’s? They give a slight cyberpunky feeling that they were trying to do in Ultima.
PRISM RAY left me a bit confused at the end due to the tone shift. At first it felt very repetitive, but there’s plenty to enjoy (deep wintery chorus, random drum solo, juicy breakdown, the aforementioned tone shift). Again, it’s interesting to hear Yusuke’s stuff that isn’t a ballad.
SILENCE - not the most memorable song (could work as an album opener or an MV piece), but it’s inoffensive fun to say the least. Still, Hazuki could work on his songwriting skill.
A.C.H.E. - ESPECIALLY SINCE HE WROTE THIS BANGER. Intro gave me strong SoaD - B.Y.O.B. vibes, overall punky mood is right up my alley, the universe reference in the middle is a nice choice and DAMN I DIDN’T KNEW I NEEDED SUCH AN OPTIMISTIC CHORUS FROM THEM, BUT I LOVE IT. So refreshing and so summery, just inject this in my veins and I can be happy 24/7.
I didn’t initially like BRINGER since I try to exclude macaroni from my diet habits, but this arrangement did a good justice to the song (also feels fitting on this album). Maaaaybe there’s a bit too much “Hazuki single material” on this album (ICE, SILENCE and BRINGER), but I don’t have that many complains here.
ZEALOT - again, Yusuke writes nice non-ballad songs. Despite that, ZEALOT works as an ender pretty well (especially since whole song sounds like an urgent wrap-up). Asanao steamrolls through and through while Yusuke employs his typical clean guitar effect for some nice farewell mood. Maybe the ending is a bit abrupt (at least end this on a single note breakdown for the CLIMAX, but sure, this also works).
Did I want smth more from this album? Probably not. It works as it is and more songs or more ballads instead of short speedy numbers would ruin the mood for me. So yeah, bois did nice.
3 Likes
Its only me that have kind of NIN dejavu from sec 38 on, when the keyboard enters?
Still waiting on my slow-ass airmail copy to arrive before listening… but based on these reviews, I am hyped.
1 Like