Disco de L'Arc~en~Ciel: “Awake [US Bonus Track]”

I have heard many people say about L'Arc~en~Ciel's comeback album "Smile" (it was the album before this one) that it wasn't the Laruku they remembered or that they missed the "good ol' days." To those who think that rejoice for "Awake" is here!

On this album Laruku's going back to some of their roots while still moving forward. Also this album is more Rock then "Smile", thank you Hyde and Yukihiro for that! If Ken and Tetsu had had their way with this album it'd be Popidy-Pop-Pop (examples: "TRUST" by Tetsu, and "twinkle, twinkle" by Ken). Hyde wrote the music for a whopping 5 songs on this album and he and Yukihiro co-wrote one song together. Effectively giving this album a much harder feel after the darned near Poppy-ness of "Smile" it's like a breath of fresh air. Thank you Hyde and Yukihiro!

Laruku also goes a bit political on this album which is nice, they don't let it rule the album like some artists (System of a Down, I'm looking at you) but it's definitely there. It seems even J-Rockers are ticked about the current "situation" in the Middle East. You go guys!

TRACK BREAK DOWN:

New World 10/10 - words: Yukihiro music: Yukihiro and Hyde. A very strong opener for an album. Wonderful "break free" type song.

LOST HEAVEN: 10/10 - words: Hyde music: Ken. This songs takes it down a bit from the pulsating opening of New World. Good bridge song.

Poem~JOJOUSHI 9/10 - words: Hyde music: Ken. This song is just beautiful. The orchestra adds some emotional oomph and Hyde's voice is spot on as always.

TRUST 8/10 - words: Hyde music: Tetsu. Eek! Popsville! This is probably one of my least favorite songs on the album. Although it is a wonderful thing to see Live I'm just not that found of it's Pop-ness. And I don't mean Bubble-Gum-Western-esque Pop so don't think Backstreet Boys when I say "Pop." Anyway, don't like the song but the lyrics are touching.

Killing Me 10/10 - words & music: Hyde. Thank you, Hyde, for getting us out of Popsville!!! Although this song does have a few lingering Pop tendencies for the most part it's not. I love the chorus to this song, it'll get stuck in your head for days and days.

AS ONE 11/10 - Words & music: Hyde. Toto, we're definitely not in Popsville anymore. This song is the hardest Rock song on the album and also the most political. Ooops, did I say "most political"? I meant it's ALL political. Honestly, how many artists are going to have to make songs like this before the world finally takes the hint?

My Dear 11/10 - words & music: Hyde. In stark contrast with AS ONE this song is a beautiful ballad. And Hyde manages to make it a ballad without going off into Popsville. This is probably one of my favorite ballads by Laruku. And the English lines in it are just beautiful, "Real love, my dear, is not for sale"

EXISTENCE 9/10 - words: Hyde music: Ken. My mom says this song reminds her of Nirvana and I can see her point, Hyde sounds very Kirk Cobane on this one. Although this song is a bit softer Rock it's still Rock not Pop, thank you God. This song also scares the crap out of me! A creepy woman saying, "You will not be able to sleep, so why don't you...just...stay awake" will do that to you. O.O

Invitation to Freedom~Jiyuu eno Shoutai 9/10 - words: Hyde music: Tetsu. This song is much better Live but that said it is still a very good song on the album. It has an infectious melody that you can't get out of your head and Hyde's amazing vocal range comes into play on this one.

Ophelia 10/10 - words & music: Hyde. This song is brilliant not just for it's subject ("Hamlet" by William Shakespeare) but for the fact that it blends all kinds of music. Jazz piano, Blues flugelhorn, and some Spanish air guitar all mixed into one song. It's simply brilliant.

Stars~Hoshizora 11/10 - words & music: Hyde. The most emotionally devastating song no the album...or maybe even in the whole world. It's too moving for tears. This song hits you right in the gut, rips out your heart and eats it.

twinkle, twinkle 7/10 - words & music: Ken. AGH, NO, WE'RE BACK IN POPSVILLE!!! Why, Ken, why? *sobs* This song is really out of place on this album too. It belongs on "Smile" but somehow it snuck its way onto "Awake." It's not a BAD song, it's just way, way, WAY too Pop for my taste and is so unbelievably out of place that it's almost funny. You can't go from heartbreaking Hoshizora to a bouncy song. Even if said bouncy song has somewhat sad lyrics that still doesn't work. This song also sounds a whole lot like "Girl" by Beck almost to the point that you're thinking, "hmmmmm"

(AMERICAN RELEASE ONLY CD BONUS TRACK) HEAVEN'S DRIVE Live - 9/10 - words & music: Hyde. Frankly, I'm just the tiniest bit sick of this song (and I bet the band is too). They play it way too much. But it's a good song and it's cool that it was recorded Live.

All and all this is a great album and much better then "Smile" (no disrespect "Smile" you are without doubt a very good album ^-^). If you're a die hard Laruku fan buy it and even if you're not you should still buy it. It'd be a good start for new fans of Laruku or complete new comers to J-Rock in gen. I love this album to death and it's been living in my stereo ever since I got it several months ago. So yeah, buy it. You won't regret it, I promise.

I was at a recent Anime Expo in Anaheim, California this past summer. I saw a few bands there. Even Tofu Records had a booth there. I saw this one band that was like a mix of Anime characters and glam rock. That is what this band reminds me of. L'Arc en Ciel is the most popular band to emerge from Japan. They have sold over 34 million records. They are popular with Anime fans. Much of their music is included in Anime films. Their music is a little bit like Britpop and especially like Manic Street Preachers and Suede. It also has some new romantic vibes of some songs. It is very emotional music. At SF Burning we try to cover all the cool music coming out of Japan. This band may have the most wide appeal.

L'Arc~en~Ciel has always been a classic in my book. They seem to maintain this strong presence in their music, ever since the early 90s. Their style, even though it may remain similar, has always been unique and openly inviting. Though Hyde still needs to work on his English a bit, this album was astonishing. "As One", in more ways than one so different from "Jojoushi," still has Ken's style of guitar playing that most fans could recognize almost instantly. But the song that caught me and wouldn't let go was "Ophelia." Their soft rock was played down more, adding some contemporary jazz elements. "Jojoushi" was another song that stood out as well. I believe it was one of the first singles off the album to become played more often. It gives this bittersweet feeling of nostalgia. Magnifying Tetsu's outstanding bass skills, and giving once more another outstanding guitar bridge to Ken, Jojoushi shows how much L'Arcu has come about artistically over the course of more than ten years. Overall, you would not be wasting a single penny for this album. So buy it and be complete.

First of all I am not a child! I am a TEENAGER. Huge difference! And second of all I wish I got this CD sooner.

The first time listening to the entire album, I only enjoyed a few of the songs, and found the rest a bit blah. However, second aand third time around was when I really started to appretiate the songs and its genre. I am a huge fan of Gackt and am used to Jpop more than Jrock, and it was my friend who recommended this album to me. I was disapointed at first but grew to love it. I'm listening to it right now.

It starts off with 'New World', which has become my second favorite. It has a very nice, fast sound to it and the sceaming factor is just right. Very fun to dance and listen to. It's the song I most listen to.

'Lost Heaven' has a retro feel to it in the beginning but neither the less, is a pretty decent song saved by Hyde's attempts of singing in english.

'Poem' is slightly balladish, and has a soft rock sound to it. What bugs me is the slightly forced and constant transition from soft to harsh.

'Trust' is my fourth favorite one, because Hyde's deep voice does a fantastic job and gives a very romantic, soft sound to it. It's one of those songs that makes people sway there arms in enjoyment.

'Killing Me' has a nice sound to it but lacks a lovable rythm in the beginning. Hyde's voice transforms from high to low in a matter of seconds. 1/3 into it is where it gets interesting when it is sung fast and high but is quite an enjoyable song.

'As One' is probably my least favorite, because it's mostly in english and Hyde's english is BARELY understandable in this song. It's one of those songs for a human turning into a mutant.

'My Dear' is a very nice, slow, soft song and nicely switches moods and emotions throughout the song and keeps it very romantic.

'Existence' is a very interesting song. It's opening beat is very cool and only gets better as it goes on (up until one point which I will tell you). It's slightly difficult to understand what this song is supossed to be about. half way in, is the very wierd part. It is sung in english by some scary sounding lady and is slightly frightening if you understand what she's saying.

'Jiyuu eno shoutai' is my 3rd favorite song. It is fast, has a very lovable rythm and is very fun to listen to many times.

'Ophelia' is definately my favorite song out of the 12. It has a VERY different sound to it though. It in no way fits the genre. One reason to why I love this song so much is Hyde's amazing voice when he sings in english. The song is so romantic and well paced, and it transitions very well. As I said Hyde's voice is so amazing, deep and so romantic, and this was the song that made me fall in love with it.

'Hoshizora' is a softer rock song, and one really good thing about it is the audible esixtence of building up emotions more and more until it breaks out to a soft scream.

'Twinkle, Twinkle' is also pretty soft but pretty much stays that way throughout the whole thing.

-'Ame Shizuka'

I'm very new to the L'Arc~en~Ciel phenomenon and this is the first album of theirs that I've purchased. I wasn't disappointed.

1) New World - L'Arc is "awakening in the new world" Nice upbeat song to start the album.

2) Lost Heaven - Classic L'Arc - just a great song and possibly my favorite from Laruku. I love how Hyde sings "Time goes so fast - Heaven is lost"

3) Poem~JOJOUSHI - Slower song. Tends to crawl inside my head and just stay there...

4) TRUST - I didn't like this song at first but it's definitely growing on me. In fact, it's rating right up there with some of my favorites.

5) Killing Me - One of the songs that got me into L'Arc. Does a nice little auditory mind warp towards the end. I just love this song. A great track all around.

6) AS ONE - The only track on this album I don't really like. The metal backbeat isn't really to my taste, but still a pretty good song.

7) My Dear - Another slower song, haunting and irresistible - interesting use of a harpsichord. Sounds similar to some of Hyde's solo stuff.

8) EXISTENCE - Good song, nothing extraordinary. The end, though - "So why don't you just stay awake...?" - is deliciously creepy.

9) Invitation to Freedom~Jiyuu eno shoutai - This song makes me want to sing along. Wish I knew Japanese...

10) Ophelia - L'Arc tries out some jazz elements. Not their greatest song in my opinion, but interesting nonetheless.

11) Stars~Hoshizora - Acoustic guitar at the beginning becomes more classic L'Arc when Hyde's vocals start to soar and ken lays in with the electric guitar. Still pretty mellow song, though

12) twinkle, twinkle - Both words and lyrics were written by Ken and I think it shows. Something about the harmony... Great song.

Actually, I'm entirely new to J-rock too. And this CD has added fuel on the fire. I'm hooked.