D+SECT (Discussion/Reviews)

Lemon

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Mikal wrote:
It's a good album... it's not the most original album ever made, but then again it was never going to be.

Mana has given his fans what they wanted, plus a few interesting ideas here and there to keep it fresh.

Lemon wrote:
He experimented with many new sounds that he has never used before (more homage to less-melodic metal styles, punk, industrial, and so on) but still kept true to his signature style.

Industrial yes, but there's nothing even remotely punk on D+Sect :P

Just going by Mana's own words. I don't have an expert opinion on punk.

However, I agree that it was not meant to be the most original album ever made. Moi dix Mois is about Mana developing his own personal style. None should expect major stylistic diversions from the elements Mana likes most in music. Especially not in this album, where Mana said he wanted to make the basis of the album sounds he was fond of. However, within this framework, I believe Mana was capable of composing many original sounds compared to what he has done previously with Moi dix Mois. I definitely disagree with those saying that this album is redundant.
 

Jareth Drakul

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TsukikoPipari wrote:
Jareth Drakul wrote:
TsukikoPipari wrote:
Cradle of Fear isn't exactly a horror-film that makes me think about Moi Dix Mois. :P Have you seen it?
:lol: have to agree on that, then even Cradle's music doesn't make me think of a movie like that.

One song does for me, since it was used on the soundtrack (or at least in a video from the flick).
Scorched Earth Erotica? Come to think of it that song did fit the album....a couple of songs from Bitter Suites to Succubi did actually.

Just going by Mana's own words. I don't have an expert opinion on punk.
Punk was abit varied at the time so I can guess maybe he took influence from one punk band or another (even though punk was a shortlived thing....unless he refers to post-punk music, as that's even more varied). I didn't hear it myself, but then I wasn't looking for it.
 

Lemon

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Jareth Drakul wrote:
Just going by Mana's own words. I don't have an expert opinion on punk.
Punk was abit varied at the time so I can guess maybe he took influence from one punk band or another (even though punk was a shortlived thing....unless he refers to post-punk music, as that's even more varied). I didn't hear it myself, but then I wasn't looking for it.

Yeah, he mentioned "pajipan" more than once which I suppose refers to a movement called "positive punk".
 

TsukikoPipari

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Jareth Drakul wrote:
TsukikoPipari wrote:
Jareth Drakul wrote:
TsukikoPipari wrote:
Cradle of Fear isn't exactly a horror-film that makes me think about Moi Dix Mois. :P Have you seen it?
:lol: have to agree on that, then even Cradle's music doesn't make me think of a movie like that.

One song does for me, since it was used on the soundtrack (or at least in a video from the flick).
Scorched Earth Erotica? Come to think of it that song did fit the album....a couple of songs from Bitter Suites to Succubi did actually.
.

Yeah, I think it was that and From the Cradle to Enslave?

As for the punk-stuff,I don't know anything at all about that, so I'm gonna stay far away from that. xD
 

Mikal

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Lemon wrote:
Just going by Mana's own words. I don't have an expert opinion on punk.

Well it's possible to be influenced by something without it being obvious in the final product... but then again Moi dix Mois is essentially a metal band, and pretty much every metal band (except the earliest ones like Sabbath) were influenced by punk.
 

surfingspider

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d_sect_32332.jpg
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monologue-de-chi

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Just to answer one question about the photo:

There are different photos. It depends on the shop you have ordered I think.
CDJ has the group photo and Zeal Link the Mana-only photo.
If there are more... dunno XD Like an Edison offered nothing for the first press though...
 

Geisha

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Lemon wrote:
Jareth Drakul wrote:
Just going by Mana's own words. I don't have an expert opinion on punk.
Punk was abit varied at the time so I can guess maybe he took influence from one punk band or another (even though punk was a shortlived thing....unless he refers to post-punk music, as that's even more varied). I didn't hear it myself, but then I wasn't looking for it.
Yeah, he mentioned "pajipan" more than once which I suppose refers to a movement called "positive punk".
Positive punk isn't punk as in The Sex Pistols & Co, it's an early form of goth:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gothic_rock
 

Phantom Pabulum

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^^ Positive punk is sometimes a little too whiny and moody for me, but I like Mana's take on it. The guitar style blends in well with the Moi dix Mois' sound.
 

Berserk

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o hai guyz did i miss nething

OK, so I avoided coming anywhere near this thread until I had the CD in my hands, and that day has finally come. Mwahaha! I couldn't resist listening to the whole thing even though the only sound system at my disposal is real crap. Because these speakers suck and because I had to play it rather quietly, I'm not going to give an in-depth review, just my overall first impression.

I don't know about anybody else, but this album legitimately shocked me--I don't consider this their best album by any means, but there is awesomeness aplenty and this clearly represents a big step forward for Moi dix Mois' production and sound.

The first thing that's apparent to me is that Mana has been listening studiously to classical music, particularly late Classical religious works from the likes of Mozart (such as his most famous Requiem mass which includes, among other movements, its own Dies Irae and Agnus Dei, go figure). The result is some renewed imagination and a much tighter, more polished sound that sounds much more truly "symphonic" than anything else Mana has done previously.

The second thing--which is related to the first thing--that is apparent to me, is an attempt on Mana's part to really bring Moi dix Mois' talent to the next level. There are solos on here that have heretofore been completely unheard of for Mana and, even though they risk giving the impression that he's a HIZAKI understudy or something, I'm still fucking proud of Mana that he managed to step up his game so late in the game. Like they say, you only get old once you stop learning, and Mana seems to be forever young. Another thing that risks sounding like Versailles is the English-speaking narrator--but I still support the effort to be more accurate and polished, especially since (what the fuck!) I can actually comprehend Seth clearly in Dead Scape!

I feel that this album has fewer shining stars than, say, DIXANADU, and a relatively weak tracklist, but some of the songs that stood out to me my first time listening to it were:
  • In Paradisum
    Divine Place
    Pendulum
    Dead Scape (shit, Mana’s been practicing!)
I have mixed feelings over Ange D-side and I was actually disappointed when I heard Agnus Dei for reasons I'll get into in a later review.

Until then, I'll just say that this album was pleasantly surprising in multiple ways and has renewed my interest in Moi dix Mois--it doesn't sound like a masterpiece, but still an intriguing development.

And now I get to read all 17 pages of this thread! ::squee::
 

Garnet in the Eden

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After listening to it a few times, my favourites are :

The Seventh Veil (the harpsichord!)
Witchcraft (the synths!)
Divine Place (the drums!)
Pendulum (the organ!)
Agnus Dei (kawaii ne!)
and Sanctum Regnum

I really want to see Divine Place live, it seems like an "important" song.
 

Berserk

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After reading the thread I'm kinda surprised at the relative consensus on this album. All my observations were more-or-less pointed out by other people before me and, aside from some bickering about Seth's singing, everyone seems to have pretty similar assessments of it.

I thought at least as many people would hate it as they did DIXANADU.
 

flowersofnight

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Berserk wrote:
I feel that this album has fewer shining stars than, say, DIXANADU
Really? I think I'd only pick out, say, "Xanadu", "Angelica", and "Lamentful Miss" as the classics from DIXANADU. (if you even want to count the latter since it was a single).
Whereas from D+SECT I think "Witchcraft", "Divine Place", "Pendulum", and "Agnus Dei", in no particular order, are the top picks, and maybe one or two more in addition to those.

Random gripe: did anyone else notice that the print quality of the D+SECT booklet is much shoddier than previous albums?
 

Berserk

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flowers wrote:
Really? I think I'd only pick out, say, "Xanadu", "Angelica", and "Lamentful Miss" as the classics from DIXANADU. (if you even want to count the latter since it was a single).
I would add Metaphysical and Lilac of Damnation to that list, plus I really love Exclude and Last Temptation. Basically neo pessimist is the only song I would consider a weak link on that entire album.
 

SDjilliaRE

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I finally got around to opening my copy and listening to it and I really love it. It feels like Mana played around a lot more with the compositions of this album (especially with the ambiance and the intro to Dead Scape), but it ended up really solid and it was nice to see some change in his style. I also love the track names.

My favorite tracks were The Seventh Veil, Ange ~D side holy wings~, Agnus Dei, Sanctum Regnum (those bells, oh god I love them), Dead Scape, Dies Irae, and the SEs. This album does sound a lot like Dix Infernal and NOCTURNAL OPERA combined, but I almost want to say that D+Sect is almost like if MAD INGRAIN was extended into a full album (that's a good thing). I didn't really feel the Angelica effect this time around, where I'm really into a song but it just drags on for way too long; everything was where it needed to be. Ange is probably the best Juka cover Seth has done thus far and he actually made it sound like it was written for him. Last Temptation was awkward and neo pessimist was good but didn't showcase his vocals so well, so this is a really fresh change from DIXANADU's covers. This album also made me feel like I was in the same mindset of Bara no Seidou, which makes me really happy about MALICE MIZER's mini-reunion possibly affecting the sound of this album. Overall, the time it took was well worth it and he was able to create some quality work.

I really don't care for the cover of this album, but it's slowly growing on me. Despite that, the booklet is really beautiful. I love the shot of Mana next to The Seventh Veil lyrics and the random cathedral shots. I also really like the fact that the titles were written in katakana on the obi. The big downside was that I didn't get a poster, but the photo is hanging out with my DIXANADU flyer, so it's all good. :P Off-topic, but does anyone else hate those CDJapan freebie magazines? I have like three copies of the same issue and they're annoying. I wish I had an option to not take it. lol

@Flowers: Yeah, I noticed that the booklet was considerably thicker this time around. It's kind of card-stocky.
 

Mikal

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This album gets better and better every time I listen to it ::k::
 
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