Monday, September 12, 2022

One Ok Rock(ワンオクロック)- Luxury Disease Album Thoughts (J- Pop Rock)

 




Tracklist:
1. Save Yourself
2. Neon
3. Vandalize
4. When They Turn the Lights On
5. Let Me Let You Go
6. So Far Gone
7. Prove
8. Mad World
9. Free Them (feat. Teddy Swims)
10. Renegades
11. Outta Sight
12. Your Tears Are Mine
13. Wonder


Side note**** The Japanese version of this album has a track on it that's not on the American release. 









   One Ok Rock is still out there kicking. They've worked their asses off at this point to become the most popular Japanese rock band worldwide. The men announced Luxury Disease months ago where the stated that they would be going back to their old sound from when they were younger. My head space was a bit skeptical because Fueled By Ramon isn't exactly a push over when it comes to the sounds they want their artists to have. The label's sounds has infected One Ok Rock's sound since their last few albums and I don't think we will ever get old 2008 One Ok Rock back. Now, The infection has been for better and worse. Save Yourself is the new lead single that's an electro pop rock track where you get more hard hitting band instrumentation around the chorus and dark pop sync sending everything off. If we talk about all the singles for Luxury Disease, All of the tracks have a hard rock core with a bit of mainstream pop idea on the outer interior. What I think that brings the who album together however, is the dramatic traits of all the different instruments producers use to upgrade the band's sound from other Japanese bands. Such as, Orchestras, piano solos, quiet raw guitar sequences, etc. Neon sounds like a Panic at the Disco songs but Taka sings it well. Let Me Let You Go sounds too much like a sell out mainstream track for my tastes. Free Them was an excellent intro to Renegades because they both have the same musical vibe sonically. Mad World is the killer track on the who album as it's the baby birth by the band's older sound and Ramon's influence mixed together. I could tell that Taka was more opinionated in the studio this time around than he probably was when they first got signed(Language barrier problems too). He reverts to Japanese during the last lyrics of So Far Gone which I loved so much. He said fuck an international version.  Your Tears are Mine and Wonder sighs off the album. I'm not mad at it at all, Both tracks have this modern day 80s rock style. Especially Wonder. 




  Taka will always be one of the best frontman in the world. He's an actual vocalist unlike many of your favorite frontmen who can't actually sing live and need their band to back them up to stop them from sounding like shit. This album showcases Taka's vocal versatility once more. 





   Luxury Disease is nowhere near One Ok Rock's top ten best albums list. There's aspects of the album that I appreciate. Some songs will be replayed while others will be forgotten.  




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