[quote="Marekenshin"][quote="Son Goshin"]i really don't see any reason why they wouldn't with the success of the previous two tours[/quote]

ross bastard anybody?[/quote]

damn, forgot about that. but still, that was just one person and they should know the entire american fanbase isn't like that. i still think they'll come over here to at least promote the album since all future releases are going to be released in america. i'm still thinking maybe the end of august, possibly september or october wouldn't be out of the question

[quote="Thinliine"]The thing is, as they've discovered, the fast, upbeat stuff sells.[/quote]

They discovered this after PML, afaik. Notice how it was pretty much a stream of power pop after that album? Sure Little Busters was good, but then their tendency to avoid having one sound on any given album started slipping away with little or no deviation at all. Happy Bivouac pretty much cemented this preference to upbeat tunes. Thank You, My Twilight had them experimenting briefly with synth, but beyond that its been really, really boring. When was the last time Sawao even used an acoustic guitar on an album? Why not get some real people to play auxiliary instruments instead of using a midi keyboard to emulate strings or brass? I mean the pillows have been around for 15 years, surely they know musicians who know musicians that can lend their services as a favor. Hey Sawao, what happened to all those augmented and suspended chords other than Dsus4?

I mean the whole grunge thing is still giving Sawao a boner, right? Even Kurt Cobain appreciated the advantages that instruments other than electric guitar, bass, and drums added to a song. So did Frank Black, for that matter. I really can't get attached to much of the pillows' last few albums because they don't feel as labored over as the past ones did. They feel rushed and sound really straightforward. I expect better from The Pillows, given their past work. I expect better than making nods to their old work too, whether done on purpose or otherwise. They should really take more than a year to release an album, even if they record it in the span of a day. At least then I can believe they really care about the quality of their music and their craft instead of a check from their record label every single year.

tl;dr version: The Pillows last few albums sound stale and uninspired.

[quote="Son Goshin"]damn, forgot about that. but still, that was just one person and they should know the entire american fanbase isn't like that. i still think they'll come over here to at least promote the album since all future releases are going to be released in america. i'm still thinking maybe the end of august, possibly september or october wouldn't be out of the question[/quote]

Hiring tour drivers, guides, translators, airfare, and booking shows (pay to play is gay) is expensive these days. Especially if you're a foreigner. Maybe their new label isn't as interested in the American market? Maybe they're aiming to really push The Pillows in Japan's mainstream instead of satisfying cult followings in other countries. Their song as an ending to an anime is a good example of this. Sure worked for Sambomaster and AKG.

[quote="FZ-3 Fuzz"][quote="Son Goshin"]damn, forgot about that. but still, that was just one person and they should know the entire american fanbase isn't like that. i still think they'll come over here to at least promote the album since all future releases are going to be released in america. i'm still thinking maybe the end of august, possibly september or october wouldn't be out of the question[/quote]

Hiring tour drivers, guides, translators, airfare, and booking shows (pay to play is gay) is expensive these days. Especially if you're a foreigner. Maybe their new label isn't as interested in the American market? Maybe they're aiming to really push The Pillows in Japan's mainstream instead of satisfying cult followings in other countries. Their song as an ending to an anime is a good example of this. Sure worked for Sambomaster and AKG.[/quote]

yea, you do got a point there with the new label possibly not being as interested. of course i'm going to hope they can get around the expenses and keep branching out to other markets though. if they don't, well there's nothing we can really do about it except traveling to japan

[quote="Marekenshin"]The tour for this will be spanning June and July. Looks like no American tour this time around.[/quote]

Considering their last tour started a couple months later in the year than their first one did, I wouldn't jump to that conclusion just yet.

[quote="sheerheartattack"][quote="FZ-3 Fuzz"][quote="Jomei"]I laughed, but it still fails for spellng Auschwitz wrong. Back to the 101. gg guys ^_____^[/quote]

Hello Jomei, I'm irony.[/quote]

Irony is spelling "spelling" incorrectly when trying to correct someone's speling.

Dammit.[/quote]

I could argue that an incidental typo is completely different from a thought-out paint job, but I think I'll just ask you to disregard me as I sucked cocks.

[quote="FZ-3 Fuzz"][quote="Thinliine"]The thing is, as they've discovered, the fast, upbeat stuff sells.[/quote]

They discovered this after PML, afaik. Notice how it was pretty much a stream of power pop after that album?[/quote]

Okay, way off there. I can easily point out mellow songs and songs that aren't just "power pop" on every album they've made since Moon Gold.

[quote]Hey Sawao, what happened to all those augmented and suspended chords other than Dsus4?[/quote]

Obviously you don't have a band score, Culen. He still uses the same sort of chords that he's done all along. Try either getting better ears for hearing chords (I don't think you focus on guitar very much) or buy the band scores. Or better yet, don't make claims you can't back up.

I can understand how you don't find the recent albums as appealing, as they aren't as good as work done in the past, but this doesn't mean that the pillows have run out of steam or that their recent work is "stale and uninspired." Each new album still stands out as being different from the ones that came before it in style and flow, and that's one of the things I treasure about the pillows.

I wouldn't say that each album lately has been that unique, but I like the pillows' sound, so I'll check out their new stuff even if only have of it is worth listening to more than once.

Mare is my hero

[quote="BabylonTenshiNoUta"]Mare is my hero [/quote]

Mare for mod!

(He sure is online enough.)

[quote="Blank"][quote="BabylonTenshiNoUta"]Mare is my hero [/quote]

Mare for mod!

(He sure is online enough.)[/quote]
Seconded

[quote="BabylonTenshiNoUta"][quote="Blank"][quote="BabylonTenshiNoUta"]Mare is my hero [/quote]

Mare for mod!

(He sure is online enough.)[/quote]
Seconded[/quote]

We sure know he'd be on it when Culen shows up again (which is inevitiable, I fear).

he sure is online enough

heh. I think they've develloped a pretty consistent formula. Intro upbeat, catchy, and generally in engrish. upbeat songs follow, somewhere around 4-6 there is a ballad, and then some other upbeat songs and stuff about stuff and maybe one mor eballad close ot the end. Also engrish catchphrases galore. I think that's true all the way back to little busters. And no one's saying the pillows have run out of steam. If anything they've never lost it, whether it's touring or putting out an album every year. Of course, that doesn't mean the train is delivering the right goods...

[quote="clouds"]heh. I think they've develloped a pretty consistent formula. Intro upbeat, catchy, and generally in engrish. upbeat songs follow, somewhere around 4-6 there is a ballad, and then some other upbeat songs and [b]stuff about stuff[/b] and maybe one mor eballad close ot the end.[/quote]

Wow, that sounds very interesting. Would you care to pull the cock out of your mouth and restate that as more than just vague bullshit?

I would if the songs were less generic.