Ugh another Yoshiki hate-boner post...
All aboard the Yoshiki-hate Train. The driver has arrived.
I hope you understand sarcasmWith all due respect to you because I know you're feeling disheartened but I'm just going to be as blunt as possible in responding to you. I don't mean this as a personal attack to you because you have every right to feel how you do. But for the sake of anyone else feeling the same way, I'm just going to respond honestly.
So do we all. I find your text wrong in so many levels but I really don't want you to take it personally.
Let me start off by saying that Yoshiki is the one getting the majority of attention now because he is the only one committed to living in the United States, where a band HAS TO BE to be global.
He is not getting the majority of attention. He is getting all the attention. And this isn't because he wants to live in US. Is just because he wanted to. Nobody ever forced him to do it. He is the one who wanted to manage everything alone, he is the one who wants to be credited as genius, as the mastermind behind the successful band.
He is the only one who consistently interviews and posts in English. He is the only one who has opened a channel for international fans. Toshi and Sugizo both speak English. Pata might be able to understand it. Idk about Heath but if he knows it or understands it, we don't really know and they both have made zero effort to willingly engage with us as free agents of X Japan.
I agree that the other members could post in English as well. Sugizo knows english pretty well. AFAIK, even his daughter is american.
Yoshiki is WORKING on an international presence daily.
For himself. Not for X.
He works everyday to appear as the greatest motherfucker of japanese rock, as the articles (he paid to) say.
Sugizo does it as a courtesy and thank you to his international fans occasionally and during special occasions (New Years), and Toshi does it when the circumstance calls for it (tour interviews like NYC interview for MSG, We Are X documentary). Toshi did not wish his international fans Happy New Year or even tell them about his album on his twitter.
Because is what they live. They receive a gazillion messages in japanese and half a dozen in english. They will surely prioritize the japanese. We on X Freaks are exceptions. Most of people who listen to X casually outside of Japan know "that metal band of the crazy drummer and the pink haired guitarist".
EVERY X Japan member has their own agent and own label. They could easily be doing exactly what Yoshiki's doing and sign-on to do what he's doing WITH him if THEY CHOOSE TO. THEY DO NOT CHOOSE TO DO SO. THEY WILL NOT RELOCATE TO MAKE DOING SO MORE ACCESSIBLE AND PRACTICAL TO EACH INDIVIDUAL'S SCHEDULE.
There was a company who held all the rights of X. Each member has shares of this company. In about 2008 or 2009 this company was disintegrated and everything related to X belongs to Yoshiki. The members are now just hired musicians. Surely they will have their own management and if they agreed to sell their shares of the X JAPAN brand, is because they were quite well paid for it. And as Yoshiki is now the owner and likes to be known as "the one who does everything", he deserves to be blamed for what is wrong, as he is the one who decides.
If anything be fucking pissed off AT THE FUCKING OTHER MEMBERS for not giving 100 percent to the fucking band for fuck's sake. You're right, Yoshiki can't carry it alone. But for the last 10 years he's been forced to promote it that way almost 90 percent of the time.
Again, Yoshiki carries everything alone because he wanted to. Yoshiki is the one who wants to make all decisions, says he can't sleep or do anything because he "is working on the new album" and is always hanging out with his american buddies, recording with Marilyn Manson, Sarah Brightman, Hyde and whoever the fuck he wants to.
He is the boss. He can ask the members to do stuff if he wants to. But he doesn't want. He said a bajillino times he doesn't want. He wants to do everything alone. As Yoshiki himself said, "I wrote everything and give the papers to them. Take your guitar part, take your bass part".
The concert which could be the 10th anniversary of the reunion, was the "Yoshiki Ressurection Night", on which he shoved Wes Borland and Richard Fortus (I won't even say anything about Marilyn Manson at Coachella or I'll lose my shit here).
2019 is well underway and here we are over 10 years since X Japan reunited. Let's see what we have going for us...
- No album release in sight.
Who cares if we have the album.
I care.
We have new songs. The ones that have been officially released: IV, Jade, BTBF (not typical for X fans to like but it is GREAT live and you Love it in concert, La Venus ((loooove this song))) and unofficially released/played live: Beneath the Skin, Angel, Hero, Without You and a teaser of Kiss the Sky. Did I miss any?
You missed the point that releasing songs that can't be officialy listened anywhere is pointless. We know those songs because we watch pirated videos of their concerts. Jade and BTBF were released on streaming YEARS after being played exhaustively in concerts. And the other songs we only know by the bootlegs.
How can you want new fans, or to people to like your new songs, if you don't release them anywhere? "Kiss the Sky" is announced since 2014, we never heard it fully and Yoshiki still had the guts to ask people who didn't even knew the band to sing "wowowo" for a song that not even the hardcore fans know yet.
The reason I bring up unofficially released/teased songs is because bands do not typically play "not ready" tracks. That is something pretty specific and unique to X and is fucking wonderful and really kind and sweet to fans. We take that for granted. But a lot of fans from a lot of other fandoms who also have musicians who don't release music for years and years don't get to hear what their band is working on during lives. We do.
We search for torrents or cellphone recorded videos on Instagram because nothing is released anywhere. Even when something is posted on Youtube is removed within minutes because of copyright complaints issued by... "Japan Music Agency Ltd" or "X Project LLC", also known as Yoshiki and Yoshiki. I saw so many people complaining about it on other boards, or reddit, or whatever...
Speaking of which, we're obviously all still here which means there's more important to us than just the new album (like all their past music). This isn't a an issue unique to X Japan or even disbanded and then re-united artists. Robyn (Swedish pop artist) goes 5-8 years ON AVERAGE before releasing each album. Personally, I believe it's gotten to the point that X fans exist too much in the microcosm of this album's creation and yes, Yoshiki lied and that has a lot to do with our broken expectations. But let me remind everyone, too, that the original album intended to be released (english remake of songs with a few originals) was completely scrapped. That's at least 2-3 years worth of work gone because X was touring at that time. I refuse to believe that the bitching similar to what's found on here had nothing to do with that decision.
It was scrapped because Yoshiki wanted to. X reunited in 2007, we are going to 12 years of reunion with an album promised since day one.
Remember when in 2010 Toshi did his "last solo concert" to focus on X? And now he releases albums and DVDs all the time, and play concerts with songs that X fans asked for years and were never played since the reunion. Because if he didn't, he would be like Heath, hidden for years until Yoshiki decides to do something with X.
Sugizo has released albums, Ra:IN is always touring, Toshi released a crapload of singles, albums and DVDs. Meanwhile Yoshiki released Hello Kitty dolls, wines, kimonos, pachinko machines and curry spices. How he thinks he'll be recognized as an amazing musician when he releases everything but music? Paid articles saying how awesome he is won't make it.
Also, since I brought up the lying (which EVERYONE does so be careful about persecuting him!), try to understand being barraged by the same question for yearrrrs by fans and media alike. I'm sure he had every intention of the album being released earlier but things changed. What do you tell a kid on a road trip? "We'll be there soon... we'll be there soon... 5 more minutes," cue to 12 hours later after restroom stops, gas fill ups, stopping for lunch, and fixing the flat tire.
We are not talking about being late for an appointment. We are talking about promising something and make people lose actual money with it. The Wembley Concert was OK, but it wasn't annouced as an usual concert, but as "the X day", "the day when the album will be released". Some people lost money because booked hotels and flights for 2016, which was suddenly cancelled. Some people paid a shitload of money for the tickets which weren't cheap and no album was released.
And he didn't make it once.
- No promise of more tours/shows outside of Japan.
It's already been mentioned that X releases concert dates last minute so this means nothing for 2019.
"X day" was announced more than an year in advance.
- Rumors of difficulties between Yoshiki and Toshi.
Purely tabloid bullshit and fans wanting to make drama out of inactivity. I also can't help but notice that some fans (bc lbr this is not an issue even being imagined in general X fandom) are really only letting this be a thing after Red Swan, which both Toshi and Yoshiki have both publicly address and put behind them (can we get a shout out for Poor Sugizo's guitar writing getting lost and buried?)
These rumours didn't appeared from nowhere. The awful management of this whole situation led to it.
Toshi sued that tabloid for false reports on a band rift btw.
I heard something about it.
- Yoshiki increasingly more interested in anything other than X Japan (Hyde, Sarah Brightman, his wine label...)
Everyone tells Yoshiki to rest his wrists but whenever he does something "other" to fill his time they hate him for it. I've been guilty of this before too but, now, we do have to look at who we're talking about too. If you stay up for 3 days straight like him and write scores on the airplane and edit in the studio between midnight and 8am, why can't you do a meeting on wine between 12noon and 2pm? It's not like he's the one uploading the articles and twitter updates on new wines being released. He has staff to do that.
TWELVE
FUCKING
YEARS
Toshi has a cooking channel but you all don't hate him for his cupcakes 
How is this remotely related to the topic?
Also, Sugizo did write and record for Red Swan and it was intended for that to be labeled X sooo....
Which was an awful idea and I'm tired of explaining why. So awful that even Yoshiki changed it later.
- Neutered songs by lowering key (Rusty Nail, Kurenai, Silent Jealousy) in their most recent show at Makuhari Messe. Sounds flat and dreadful. I can't believe they've done that to such masterpieces.
This is quite bad but expected. Toshi isn't on his 20s anymore. I kinda liked how Rusty Nail and X sounded. Beneath the Skin was disastrous.
That's really unfair of you, man. C'monnnn. I'm not going to even acknowledge this one further.
It happens.
- Increasingly more obvious that Yoshiki cannot write good rock songs anymore without hide.
I COMPLETELY disagree.
I don't and if you think about how X was before Taiji and hide, then after Taiji left, then after hide and even think about Yoshiki's own statements, maybe you'll agree.
He is still an amazing composer. But hide and Taiji collaborating with the arrangements were a important part on X sound.
X is and always has been a fabulous band. I love, love, looooove their older music but something I noticed the other day, is that the older you get into their discography the more they sound like other bands; especially songs by Taiji and Pata and even hide early on. Now, you can tell it's X Japan. It is not the same X Japan even though it is. But they have SUCH a dynamic sound now... calling something lighter than it used to be does not mean it's worse than it used to be or not as good.
Their "new sound" is just Yoshiki's ideas who didn't went well and were recycled. Hero, Angel, Rockstar/Mary Mona Lisa, were just songs that he wrote for Violet UK but he wasn't able to release anything for a project which is basically himself alone for 19 years. So he just put in an X album which also will be never released.
You did specify "rock" songs in your post. Do you feel that way because the songs aren't as heavy? I did share this on the discord app some time ago, that I was listening to IV with a friend in the car and he said, "wow, you like some heavy shit!"
X is still plenty heavy but very, very few people listen to or even MAKE thrash heavy metal anymore. And why should they? That's a bygone era. You can listen to X's lyrics and guitar riffs and tell exactly how heavy it still is. Hero is a pop rock song but would still be hard to get on the radio because the general public will recoil from mentions of suicide.
No. The ballads aren't heavy and are also great songs. Isn't about being heavy, it's about not being the same gallop drums+guitar riff from a teenage which just learnt how to play+rain/rose/the end/pain of the world. BTBF it's so poorly composed that sounds childish.
Melodically, lyrically, diversely, X is at the top of their game. There is so much variation in their songs now. Toshi is proving himself as a vocalist every day. His job is more demanding that it ever was before. Sugizo's guitar solo in Red Swan is BRILLIANT. Everyone wants that sweeping, complex guitar solo and we got it! The guitar in Jade is crunchy and heavy and full of attitude.... like... I don't know why.... this is so hard to hear for so many X fans.... please, grab my hand and step out of 1988 with me 
Red Swan solo isn't "sweeping, complex". It's just a good guitar solo, which fits with a popish song like is Red Swan. I liked it, but it's quite far from a "complex guitar solo".
And a "complex" song doesn't mean a song is good. Hero is a simple song and it's good. Drain is a simple song and it's good. Desperate Angel is a complex song and I think is one of the weakest X songs ever.
I'll always remember this band for what they were and what they gave to me through their music
We all do. That's why we still spend our time discussing here.
but the future in my opinion is pretty grim for them. Label this post dramatic, silly, unfounded, or whatever pleases you. I'll always consider giving a listen to whatever they put out but I've removed all hopes and expectations. It will be what it will be.[/i]
I think the band is already dead again. They're just delaying the funeral.
I feel like each and every X fan has hit this point where they're just like... 'I'm waiting and waiting and waiting and I'm only disappointed and hurt by the outcome so I give up. Nice knowing you, loved what it was, but I hate you now-- see you when you're around. Peace.'
After years of lies, postponements, cancellations (which for some people mean a huge amount of money spent), it makes sense.
But... you'll feel differently. I really think even if you're frustration wants you to take a break for a few months or a year or however long it is until things go the way you want them to, you'll be back in full adoration fan mode when it finally comes.
I hope so.
They were in a pretty bad shape in 2009, with concerts full of playbacks and huge Yoshikitties on Tokyo Dome. Then they have improved A LOT and seeing them live in 2011 was really special for me and brought back all the hope.
X nowadays is something like:
- Concert will start. All the spotlights on the amazing drummer.
- A movie about this amazing japanese musician.
- Did I already say that this japanese guy is the most motherfucking awesome musician in Japan? He just came alone to receive an award for his band.
- OH GOD HOW AMAZING IS THIS DRUM GUY. Looks like there is a band anywhere on the stage.
And some stuff like:
- Summer Sonic 2011: A japanese music festival, which happen in two different cities in Japan, was broadcasted in a japanese TV Channel. And Yoshiki gaves an interview alone, speaking for the band. In english.
- Makuhari 2018: Before the drum solo, videos from BBC talking about his health condition. Was this intended to show how popular he is outside of Japan? Because he isn't.
The "Bio" section of the band's site has six mentions to Yoshiki, including
In January 2017, band leader Yoshiki held 2 sold-out concerts at Carnegie Hall, performing original classical compositions and orchestral versions of X Japan’s songs with the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra.
And the cringy
Yoshiki is finalizing X Japan's first new studio album in over 22 years, which the acclaimed musician promised Billboard Magazine "will bring rock back to the mainstream again".
So as previously said, nobody here "hates" Yoshiki. We're all fans of his work. But he isn't perfect and deserves some criticism.
He just need to focus. He wants his band to be famous worldwide? He need to do music. Not self advertising of himself. A band grows when everyone works together to make it grow.
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