^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

THIS. VERY MUCH THIS.

If you don't like the latest stuff, cool, but to say an entire PILLOWS album is shit, well, that's just fucking silly. When have they NOT included a few great songs on an album?

In before OOPARTS, you fucking trolls. Even you, Jolmes. If you're only going to post in here to troll about how they're a dead band, it's kind of disappointing. Moar Pokemon posts and lulzy things, but trolling this forum makes me frown out loud.

I'm not about to review fucking OOPARTS again. But here's another way of thinking about it.

Compare OOPARTS (and the Rodeo Star Mate single) to music you could otherwise be listening to.

Any song off of any Tokyo Jihen album is better than any song off of OOPARTS or RSM.
Nearly any song off of any Sambomaster album (except the first) is better than any song off of OOPARTS or RSM.
Any song off of any Toddle, 9mm Parabellum Bullet, Sparta Locals is better than any song off of OOPARTS or RSM.
Type "Asian Kung Fu Generation" into iTunes on shuffle and press play. The first three songs are going to be better than the best three songs from OOPARTS and RSM. Unless you get a total dud vs. Lemon Drops.
Nino Trinca is worth far more to me than the last two pillows albums and singles.
Forcing myself to listen to some of Polysics more abrasive shit like XCT (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzoSfUIds9M#t=1m45s) is a better use of time than remembering how anemic and powerless Sad Fad Love is. If you want to compare Sad Fad Love to Sparta Locals, then do so. WOW DOUBLE GUITAR LINES. Too bad you're missing out on the fact that Sparta Locals is one of the best bands to ever be discussed on Instant Music. The instruments were tight - the band had teeth. If I could have the pillows' next album or revive Sparta Locals and get another album out of them, I would choose the latter.

[b]Keeping in mind that the pillows are my favorite band. After all these years. The strength of songs like Over Amp or Blues Drive Monster is just so tremendous that I can't just "move on." That's what makes the new releases all the more disappointing.[/b]

Nobody has ever tried to claim that Sad Fad Love is just like a Sparta Locals song, just that it has a Sparta Locals sort of FEEL to it. I enjoy the song. Cool beans. You don't enjoy OOPARTS. THAT'S COOL TOO. What's not cool is just saying ALL NEW PILLOWS STUFF IS SHIT, SHIT SHIT SHIT AND OOPARTS SUCKS A THOUSAND DICKS.

Cut the unnecessary hyperbole, state your piece, and move the fuck on. We know those of you that don't like OOPARTS don't like it. Don't post a billion comments reaffirming it (clearly, this is not directed at you, GR, just at the forum trend in general that seems to be a rehashing of Culen/Jedi bandwagons of hate).

[quote="Marekenshin"]rehashing of Culen/Jedi bandwagons of hate[/quote]

But Culen/Jedi were two people out of like, four total on IM that didn't like the pillows post-Runners High. Everyone else was in love with Happy Bivouac, TYMT and Smile. Penalty Life and Good Dreams shook things up a little bit, but I think everyone's made peace and come around to see them as solid albums for the most part.

The thing is, now, the dissent is much more widespread. OOPARTS hate doesn't classify as trollin' if half of the forum agrees.

Well yeah, but can we agree that the amount and way in which people express their dislike can get really annoying? It's just fucking hard to enjoy this section of the forum when half the posts I read from regulars are THE SAME POST YOU MADE TWO PAGES AGO, just reiterated with (often) MORE extreme statements. WE GET IT. YOU HATE OOPARTS. OKAY. That sucks, and I'm sorry. Look at how ALL of these threads are nowadays: just the same tired discussion of "I hate this, I like that, I dislike that, I thought this one sucked," and then others are like NO WEI BUT and others are yet again NAH BRAH SRSLY. Finally, somebody says "YO IT'S OKAY WE ALL HAVE OUR OWN TASTES," to which others agree, only for the conversation to jump right back into what it just was. This is one of the points of the forum that really bothers me as of late, and while that's clearly directly attributable to the most recent releases and how they fit into members' individual tastes, but it'd be nice to see a little more constructive posting, in arguments that people care about, rather than BRAH PILLOWS SUCK NOW, MAKES ME SAD.

I dunno. End rant.

[quote="Marekenshin"]If you don't like the latest stuff, cool, but to say an entire PILLOWS album is shit, well, that's just fucking silly. When have they NOT included a few great songs on an album?

In before OOPARTS, you fucking trolls. Even you, Jolmes. If you're only going to post in here to troll about how they're a dead band, it's kind of disappointing. Moar Pokemon posts and lulzy things, but trolling this forum makes me frown out loud. [/quote]

It's disappointing that you'd blow off my honest opinion as if it were mere trolling. Many of the other veterans no longer share your wide-eyed enthusiasm for everything Yamanaka puts out. You seem to take this personally, telling anyone who can't see what you see in an album to "give it a real fucking listen," as if we haven't already heard enough for our own ears.

But it's not personal, and I'm not trolling. Some of the old critics used to say, "the pillows put out good singles and mediocre albums, kind of like Weezer," etc. I'm sadly realizing that even this no longer applies after the massive disappointment of Rodeo Star Mate.

I'll still give the new stuff a listen because I still love the pillows for what they used to be. But I won't get my hopes up.

[quote="Jomei"]It's disappointing that you'd blow off my honest opinion as if it were mere trolling.[/quote]

I think his point is that the overwhelming negativity twords everything is growing old. I want to respect that it's your opinion and we just have different tastes, but i'm really tired of coming to my favourite 'PILLOWS FANSITE' to read pissing about new albums. Obviously if you don't like it then you just don't like it. There's no real convincing to be done, that's just the way it is. And it's your right to share it too, i'm just sick of reading it over and over. (When I say you I mean in general, not singleing you out)

I mean c'mon, we've got 2 pages of bitching for a single that hasen't even come out yet.

Sorry, Jolmes. I didn't mean to suggest that you were trolling, just that as a mod, when you post a lot of (frequently somewhat humorous) posts about how MUCH you dislike the newer stuff, some kids think it's cool to do the same, except they aren't funny and just put the same thing ten billion times. I think that you generally DO contribute to the conversation, and that most members do. It's just the constant negativity, like Spike said.

I only liked five tracks on Pied Piper. New Animal, Tokyo Zombie, Across the Metropolis, Ladybird Girl, and That's a Wonderful World. The rest of the tracks, to me, are forgettable. But OOPARTs impressed me. I just didn't like LIFE SIZE LIFE. I still regularly listen to everything else. 9 out of 10 decent tracks is good enough for me. As for anyone who didn't enjoy Wake Up 3x, Boat House, Scarecrow, Skinny Blues and Propose would like to have a word with you.

[quote="Utsuseru"]
[b]Keeping in mind that the pillows are my favorite band. After all these years. The strength of songs like Strange Chameleon or Fool on the Planet is just so tremendous that I just can't "move on." That's what makes the new releases all the more disappointing.[/b][/quote]


Don't get me wrong Mare, but I think you've got it wrong. Most of us come here because we still love the Pillows no matter what, the old songs we love can't be forgotten, and we're all holding onto the hope that the Pillows will once again make something spectacular. They have made some really fantastic songs lately, namely 1989 and Ameagari, which prove that they've still got the potential to return to their golden days- and make it even more disappointing when they decide to make a 180 with singles like Rodeo Star Mate.

OOPARTS and Rodeo Star Mate may have made me a little pessimistic, but I know I'll give MOVEMENT a listen, in hopes that I'll hear something that will give me the same feeling of elation I have when I listen to something from 1992-2002.

Edit: I don't understand why we can't compare their new stuff to their old stuff, and why that's such a bad thing here. They are the same band, and their old sounds [jazz/alt/rock] suited them much better than their new generic pop sound. They don't have to make the same music, but honestly, as much as I try to like listening to the new stuff, I just can't.

so i don't usually post much more than a sentence on here at a time (mostly because i don't want to get involved in all of this [i]serious business[/i]), but i feel pretty strongly about most of the stuff that's being said. usually i just close out the window and think to myself "i don't have to deal with this, i like what i like" which is fine. but...

things that i think are obvious:
1. declining quality of releases (yet disagreement on the rate of decline)
2. people in this forum widely disagreeing on what's "good" even in older, highly esteemed albums (but especially in newer releases)...
FOR EXAMPLE: the first page of this thread. somebody that doesn't like Across the Metropolis...well that just shocks me. but it's
[i]their opinion[/i].
and now here's a ground-shaker: i'm pretty sure i like OOPARTS better than PIED PIPER (which is my least-favorite album). and i really don't like Ladybird Girl (i think the backstory of Sawao having written it while he was lost in the US is pretty cool, and that makes me want to like the song but....nope)
and i don't HATE OOPARTS... (there are quite a few songs i really really enjoy: primer beat, dance with god, beyond the moon, i don't care what you say i FUCKING loved YOUR ORDER when the PV came out and i FUCKING love YOUR ORDER still. and there are parts of songs i dislike that i think are pretty cool... like manabe's guitar at the very end of jonny strobo--it's got a tone that i don't think we've really heard much of in other songs) so i can see where Mare is coming from when he tries to persuade people to [i]try it again[/i], but i think both sides are merely growing tired of
A: "IT SUCKS"
B: "NO TRY IT"
A: "NO I DID"
B: "NO YOU DELETED IT ALL".

things i agree with:
this
[quote="Spike"]...overwhelming negativity towards everything is growing old. I want to respect that it's your opinion and we just have different tastes, but i'm really tired of coming to my favourite 'PILLOWS FANSITE' to read pissing about new albums. Obviously if you don't like it then you just don't like it. There's no real convincing to be done, that's just the way it is. And it's your right to share it too, i'm just sick of reading it over and over. (When I say you I mean in general, not singleing you out)

I mean c'mon, we've got 2 pages of bitching for a single that hasen't even come out yet.[/quote]

this
[quote="AlucardX24"]As for anyone who didn't enjoy Wake Up 3x, Boat House, Scarecrow, Skinny Blues and Propose would like to have a word with you. [/quote]

and this
[quote="GoldenRhino"][b]Keeping in mind that the pillows are my favorite band. After all these years. The strength of songs like Over Amp or Blues Drive Monster is just so tremendous that I can't just "move on." That's what makes the new releases all the more disappointing.[/b][/quote]
see, this struck a very strong chord with me but none of the rest of what GR wrote...
(tangent:) maybe that's because i feel like a bunch of IM members listen to a small, select group of japanese bands, some of which he mentioned-- Tokyo Jihen, Sambo.. i honestly get bored of those two pretty fast... OH NO! DIFFERENCE OF OPINION.
maybe you guys have listened to bands like toe or susquatch, metro-ongen, SuiseiNoboAz (i [i]know[/i] GR is a pretty big MASSDRE fan, props)
but from what i've observed there's mostly been reference to bands with typical structures and a strong-moderate rock basis, or bands that are loosely associated with the pillows (STRAIGHTENER, ART-SCHOOL, maybe lostage here and there, PENPALS, GING-NANG BOYZ --don't get me wrong i love all of these bands, and i'm by no means trying to belittle your tastes or brag about listening to more/different music or anything dumb like that.)
so maybe i feel that some views are a bit skewed by what one may think "rock" should be, or are comparing these types of bands to the pillows (much less-so for long-time IM'ers)

...that aside, growing up with the pillows [i]your favorite band[/i]- there's something close to home when you hear their distinct, if not perpetually changing / arguably degrading, sound... it's comfortable in a way i guess. nostalgic... (like sawao is a close friend singing)

the more i lurk on this forum, the more i find myself constantly comparing newer works to older works...
and the more i go on this forum, i feel there are a lot of members who are trying to (not necessarily) [i]fit in[/i] with the "big-wigs" (moderators, high post-count peeps, strong critics, etc), emulating them but blowing it out of proportion (sometimes even mistaking what that strong critic has said... it's embarrassing to read), creating that definite bandwagon many of you have mentioned. it makes for an awfully unwelcoming environment, especially for opinions which might be a bit "irregular"...

so not to beat a dead horse or anything... but i just had to get this off my chest. i want to feel better about listening to OOPARTS when i do in fact feel like listening to it, regardless of what any critic has to say.


SORRY I WROTE A NOVEL (tl;dr right...?)

[quote="Jomei"]Some of the old critics used to say, "the pillows put out good singles and mediocre albums, kind of like Weezer," etc. I'm sadly realizing that even this no longer applies after the massive disappointment of Rodeo Star Mate.[/quote]

You know, I find this to be more and more true every day. These are my two favorite bands, and after spending alot of time in both online communities, I can see the parallels in the fans' mindsets. You have those that hate most everything in recent memory, and those that are tired of hearing the negativity. I disagree with your and GR's posts for the most part, but you got a right to complain. We all do for all the time and money we've put into this band. I want more than anything to see the pillows put out consistently good music. I don't hate a single one of their albums, I just think the last few have been OK/mediocre.

Nor do I think the back end of their discography is truly garbage, I just don't want to see it happen. I don't want to keep seeing a decline, that IMO has been happening since the release of My Foot. It's just when we compare the music to the Golden Years... well there's an obvious disparity. It makes us get disappointed. I'm not asking for Little Busters 2, I just want songs with real emotion, something that isn't just a catchy riff. See Boat House, Ameagari, No Surrender, etc. Sawao can still do it, so I'm not giving up hope. But I'll voice my displeasure if and when the occasion arises.

[quote="GoldenRhino"]The thing is, now, the dissent is much more widespread. OOPARTS hate doesn't classify as trollin' if half of the forum agrees.[/quote]

To go further, I think if you look back at those threads you'd likely see quite a bit of honest detailing of what people thought were the high and low points. I'm certain everyone who listened to the album found things they liked about it, and I'm sure they posted their thoughts too. I think at the end of the day Ooparts just ended up with a particularly jumbled cross-section of opinions.

[quote] IM [/quote]

ok.













so what?

Alright everyone, break it up. We get it, people have their opinions, some don't like them, so what? Lets all just take it down a notch and wait for this single to come out. I think we can all agree to just let this thread wander off for a bit, until we get a leak or release or whatever kind of news that comes up.