Notes on the GazettE documentary...
So, I watched the GazettE documentary on Youtube, along with every other Gaze fan, it would seem. :)
It wasn't quite what I expected. I thought it would be more like a chronological biography with intervening talking heads commentary from members and staff and other relevant people. Instead we got something more like an extended ad, really. A dramatic rags to riches tale with focus on the riches part. Not that I minded it much, though. I suppose I was just sort of hoping for some kind of deeper analysis and background. Sure, there were some thoughtful sound bites, but... Well, no matter. The live footage from the DECADE is much appreciated.
Here's a rundown of the incredibly random little things I noticed in chronological order:
PART 1
1) Ruki looks so adult & professional but still sounds so nerdy & awkward when he speaks! I love his raspy voice and the way he clutters words in rabid little sequences.
2) When Reita & Kai were practicing Ride with the Rockers (while the camera was on Ruki), did you hear Reita do those unenthusiastic "...hey" sounds he usually roars at lives? That made me laugh for some reason.
3) Why are you people so f*cking skinny?! Ruki's legs in particular make my head ache.
4) And why are Japanese girls so pretty and dolled up? I need a serious make-over if I'm ever to set foot in Japan...
5) Did you see how at around 10.30 Ruki was playing Uruha's guitar and Aoi immediately needed to go to his guitar too? In fact, they always seemed to have difficulty removing their fingers from their instruments before lives. Poor Kai has to settle for his skinny skinny thighs.
6) And right after that the camera zoomed to Reita doing these.... dancing moves or something in the corner. I have no words. After this and what he did at Inazuma, I have lost faith in his dancing skills. Also, the way he got all awkward when he realized the camera was on him! XD
7) Venomous Spider is such an awesome live song! I can't even stand it! Give me my dvd nooooow!
8) There's a star of David on the background screen during Sludgy Cult.... Seriously, guys?
9) You know that lulzy line "Too tragic to stay with you" in Vortex just before the chorus that actually sounds like Tuesday Wednesday something something? Why does Ruki pretend he's singing it live? Surely he isn't? Doesn't sound like it. I guess it could be an effector, but... Hmph.
10) Aoi's red encore skirt kicked Uruha's encore skirt's arse in my humble opinion.
11) How creepy is that male narrator that starts speaking after the live...!
12) Aww, the guys talking about olden times. Not that they're saying anything I haven't read in interviews, though.
13) Omfg, that picture of Kai they chose for the part when Kai got in the band! If you didn't know what is being said, you'd think it's the childhood picture of some serial killer. And then cut to the current smiley, darling Kai! Ahahaha!
14) How convenient that the earliest live footage shown is from the MRD live. Convenient as in the earliest recording, which Ruki the members aren't embarrassed of. Haha. (I would pay a lot of money to see the footage of that very first live at least Uruha is reportedly in possession of.)
PART 2
1) Of course they picked the skipping encore "episode" and the epic hug from the NSLG tour for the documentary! And then make Kai explain it. (I wish I understood better what he says here. I only get about 1/3 of it. He says they don't regret it, right? I sure don't think they should.)
2) So much footage we've already seen 8 gazillion times before.... Blah.
3) And then there's tiny little look into the history of visual kei! X Japan, Kuroyume, Glay... And then we have Marty Friedman, ex-guitarist of Megadeath, commenting on the appeal of the GazettE. He speaks good Japanese.... But then, he's lived in Tokyo since 2003 (the year Gazetto was signed by PSC, incidentally), so. He appears on Japanese telly quite a lot, actually. Even in shows about learning English! Anyway, it's quite amusing that they interviewed a foreigner for the doc. Very Japanese thing to do. Not that Friedman is a bad choice, at all. He knows both the Japanese and the western music industries very well.
4) And then jealkb! o_O Talk about the essence of visual kei. ....One can't help but remember that time Ruki and Aoi visited their talk show. Oh, the awkwardness.
5) The guys rehearsing Wakaremichi! And lamenting over their old songs XD
6) Foreign fans & their spectacular English skills! I kinda wish they'd have interviewed some guys too... Their viewpoint must be very interesting.
7) That red & black jacket Ruki's wearing is gorgeous. Absolutely divine. The more I see of it, the more I want it. I also want that GazettE The Decade book. Pimping success, I guess. Reita and Kai don't seem to remember much of the past.
PART 3
1) The guys seem a lot less nervous here before the Decade live than they did before the tour final.
2) Ah that collective scream when Kai's pics appeared on the screen! I felt it in the bottom of my heart.
3) I don't really like Kai's skirt or Reita's pants. Aoi's outfit is pretty nice.
4) Did you see how Ruki took his time climbing to the stage? Like a legit rockstar.
5) As weird as it feels to have Miseinen as the opening song, I kind of like hearing played in a fresh, energetic way for once! Usually they're kind of tired and emotional when they do it at the very end. Kai and Aoi in particular were in fine form.
6) Why is it that I don't remember Aoi making those loud noises on his guitar during the bass solo/interlude in Ganges before?
7) I know any peeps have gushed over Uruha's encore outfit, but to me he just looks skinny! And cold! :/ Well, he seemed to be having, though.
8) Everyone looked and sounded so f*cking happy at the end! No tears this time. Only smiles! And then "EN-CO-RE, EN-CO-RE, EN-CO-RE!" Perfect way to end the doc. (Lol at the "SCEAN" though.)