[blast from the past] review: dir en grey | "missa" (1997)

Thursday, May 1, 2003
A Brief History of Deg
Part One: Missa

Still playing:
dir en grey
missa

Seemed like, having already discussed Kisou and Gauze and Macabre (which is pronounced ma-ka-bu-ra over here by the by), I should now work my way backwards and mine Deg's indies roots for more jems to praise.

So, Missa:

Dir en grey

Missa

Released 7.25.97

AMCM-4315

Missa is not Dir en grey's strongest disc by any stretch of the imagination. (And anyone who says it is is one of those nutcase "indies only!" snobs.)

Garden is beautiful (though the live version on the Osaka-jo Live DVD [AMBM-8002] is more emotive and cleaner production-wise). It's got a nice dynamic too it, going from sad to angry.


And Byou Shin is good (though again, the new Byou Shin, available on Six Ugly [SFCD-0015] is a significant improvement). It's one of those VK-required rush-the-stage kind of songs that gets everyone pumped up and bruised, and everyone yelling that famous chorus "to slay!" at the sky whenever Deg does it live. If you don't find yourself headbanging to it -- at least a little bit -- you suck!!!

Kiri to Mayu *is* Sangeki no Yoru (which appears on the ~If Trans~ VHS). Another great Deg riffer. (Kinda cool video too, low budget though it may be.) And interestingly, "Kirito mayu" is slang for being a prissy stuck-up jerk, named in honor of the lead singer of Pierrot, who is, in fact, a prissy, stuck-up jerk. Haha, just kidding. (Kiri to mayu actually means "pork and beans.") ;)

The other three tracks are just your typical average visual kei romps -- acceptable but not fantastic. Aoi Tsuki is vaguely cool but more because i got used to it from listening incessantly to the Osaka-jo live than anything else. [S] isn't horrible. Erode isn't horrible. But i wouldn't call either one "good" either. Just "nice try but not quite, guys."

So there's a few catchy riffs, a few notable vocal lines, but mostly Missa is only worth purchasing once you've already bought everything else Dir en grey has done. I listen to it once or twice a year, and that's more than enough for me.

Missa was re-released and is a cinch to find at any VK shop worth its salt. The packaging is relatively attractive for an indies release, with a few not-really-noteworthy photos of Kyo, Kaoru, Die, Toshiya, and Shinya scattered throughout the booklet and back panel. Plus lyrics for all the songs, very handy.

So in summary, this mini-album captures Deg at a young, formative stage, back when visual kei was a more straightforward affair. And as long as you don't expect too much from Missa, you won't be disappointed.

~
rating: :)