| Japanese
Rock Phenomenon DIR EN GREY Breaking U.S.
Ground
With WARCON ENTERPRISES Debut WITHERING
TO DEATH
Since
1997, Dir en grey has been a powerful force
in the Japanese rock scene. However, such
a band cannot be content with domination
of their home country alone. At last, Dir
en grey has ventured to bring their sorrowful
musical message to North America. Their
fifth album, Withering to death. will hit
store shelves on March 7th, 2006 and is
being released by WARCON Enterprises LLC..
Dir
en grey is made up of vocalist Kyo, guitarists
Kaoru and Die, bassist Toshiya and drummer
Shinya. Having previously performed in bands
together, the members formed a strong musical
bond. Quickly catapulting themselves from
a local phenomenon to an international presence,
Dir en grey toured constantly to achieve
further recognition. A recent performance
at the European Rock Am Ring event alongside
such notable artists as Green Day, Motley
Crue, Iron Maiden and Marilyn Manson is
a good indication of Dir en grey’s
widespread international success. Now they
will attempt to spread this success to uncharted
territory: the United States.
Dir
en grey has always been known as a band
with an impressive live presence, along
with their unique appearance, but there
is much more to their dynamic. In regard
to the current Japanese music scene, visual
elements are very important. A type of performance
known as “visual-kei” focuses
on the aesthetic aspect of the artists.
Drawing influences from classic Japanese
rock music, Dir en grey have long surpassed
the visual-kei scene of which they were
once a key facet. “The concept of
those who are in the ‘visual kei’
scene today is totally different from what
Dir en grey is. We can’t really say
we know what ‘visual kei’ is
today.” Dir en grey have matured their
sound and added a heavy edge to their music
on Withering to death.. “This album
is definitely one with a depth so boundless
that it only goes deeper and deeper. Musically,
we made these songs while searching for
aggression and freedom.”
Although
sung entirely in Japanese, the lyrical content
of Withering to death. will be printed in
English for the U.S. release. With titles
like “Jesus Christ R'n R,” “Merciless
Cult,” “Machiavellism,”
and “Spilled Milk,” coupled
with the obvious gamut of emotions conveyed
by Kyo’s alternating screams, wails
and crooning, it is obvious that Dir en
grey have an intense personal investment
in their songs. The U.S. release will also
feature a bonus DVD containing four videos
as well as live concert footage.
In
regard to their U.S. debut, Dir en grey
seems optimistic: ‘We have no idea
how we will be accepted in the U.S., but
we are very excited and very much looking
forward to this release. We are also very
thankful for this chance. No Japanese artist
has actually succeeded in penetrating the
U.S. market, so we can’t even begin
to imagine how it will be for us. However,
with faith in ourselves as artists, we will
do our best, and hopefully we will achieve
things far better than just success.”
A
track listing for Withering to death. includes:
1. Merciless Cult
2. C
3. SAKU
4. KODOKU NI SHISU, YUENI KODOKU.
5. ITOSHISA HA FUHAI NI TSUKI
6. Jesus Christ R'n R
7. GARBAGE
8. Machiavellism
9. dead tree
10. THE FINAL
11. Beautiful Dirt
12. Spilled Milk
13. HIGEKI HA MABUTA WO OROSHITA YASASHIKI
UTSU
14. KODOU
The
bonus DVD will contain the following:
Music
Videos
1)
Merciless Cult
2) THE FINAL
3)
Machiavellism
4)
SAKU
Additionally,
the DVD will contain the live performance
footage from LIVE DVD, TOUR04 THE CODE OF
VULGAR[ism].
For
more information, please visit:
www.direngrey.co.jp
www.warconent.com
www.chipsterpr.com
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