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Underground
Support Brings Dir En Grey To Forefront...
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Posted on Billboard.com on April 17th, 2006 at 2:30 PM ET
"Before having released an album in America, Dir
En Grey is causing a commotion here.
In March, the Japanese band ignited frenzied response with
its first three U.S. shows. Dir en grey made its stateside debut with a showcase at last month's South by Southwest Music
and Media Conference in Austin, Texas. That was followed by stops at the 800-capacity Avalon in New York (March 21) and the
2,000-capacity Wiltern Theatre in Los Angeles (March 23), both of which sold out within hours of being announced online.
The ecstatic response has put Dir en grey in the enviable position of a likely support spot on 33
dates of Korn's summer tour, according to Bob Chiappardi, co-president of Warcon Enterprises (Dir en grey's American label/distributor),
as well as another source close to the band.
The tour deal has yet to be announced. "We're in
negotiations about them performing on tour with Korn this summer," says Peter Katsis of the Firm, one of Korn's day-to-day
managers. "We saw a performance at the Wiltern and were blown away."
What's just as surprising
as the rabid reception for Dir en grey is that the Japanese-speaking band gained its audience without singing in English.
The quintet has been building in popularity in its home country for about 10 years, releasing four full-length albums through
either Firewall Div or Free-Will Japan and a variety of singles and video collections.
Dir en grey has
transcended the language barrier in the United States through its music -- which mixes pop elements with metal, incorporating
lyrics that vocalist Kyo sings and screams -- and its appearance. In Japan, the group alternates its look with the release
of each single, switching between fluorescent hair color and flamboyant apparel favored by visual kei bands (Japanese
acts that use dramatic costumes and imagery) and more typical rock garb.
Dir en grey came to
Chiappardi's attention when its management company, Free-Will Japan, and Warcon were discussing distributing each other's
titles in their respective countries. He says some think he's crazy for giving the band's album "Withering to Death" -- which
Warcon will release May 16 -- a shot, but he feels Dir en grey's melodies and visuals, plus its ability to get across its
emotions, was powerful enough to overcome the language obstacle. He points to German act Rammstein as an example of a band
that's been able to do just that.
"There's a lot of Cookie Monster bands, if you will; you can't
understand what they're saying anyway," Chiappardi says. "It's kind of no different than that. If the music's real strong,
if the emotion's there, if you feel that passion and get your blood boiling, it really doesn't matter if you don't understand."
Through the underground, Dir en grey has attracted Anglo teen and young adult fans of both genders
who are knowledgeable of Japan's language and culture, and enjoy such popular entertainment as anime. The band also counts
among its followers the Hot Topic crowd -- the goth, industrial, alternative and metal enthusiasts who patronize the clothing/accessory/music
chain's U.S. mall stores. Harry Lo, Free-Will's representative for North and South America and Mexico, notes that fans like
to investigate Dir en grey's lyrics and their translations, and that interest helps build loyalty.
"A
lot of things are written in a Japanese style that when [the fans] find out [what the lyrics mean], they are real drawn into
that," Lo says. "So when they hear them live or see them live, they really get into it more."
"Getting
into it" is an understatement. About 100 Dir en grey fans -- who already had tickets to the sold-out concert -- camped out
the night before the Avalon show to get as close to the stage as possible. The venue's special events director, Andy Griggs,
says, "I've been in the business 23 years, and I've never seen anything like it. I was astounded by the loyalty... Kids arrived
at 10 or 11 the night before."
Hot Topic VP of music and marketing Cindy Levitt described fans'
eagerness to get their hands on the band's T-shirts at SXSW as "pretty crazy, and then the Los Angeles merch lines were really
frenzied." Seeing the demand its target crowd has for the group, Hot Topic intends to soon carry "Withering to Death" and
Dir en grey T-shirts.
Levitt compares the band's onstage theatrics and shock element to Marilyn
Manson, recalling she was surprised when Kyo began cutting himself during the performances. She describes Dir en grey as a
"good, solid band; hard; very visual to look at." The audience "was not the Fall Out Boy crowd. That's what was so fun and
different about it too, that's why we were so excited... It's like, 'Oh my God, something fresh and new that looks good.'"
Lo and Chiappardi say more offers are coming the band's way, and the original March release
date of "Withering to Death" was pushed back to May because of the escalating buzz. Chiappardi says Warcon is discussing creating
a J-rock tour that Dir en grey would headline in the fall to capitalize on the group's burgeoning popularity and the audience
that exists for such music.
"There is this culture of mostly American kids, and they're the
ones that watch [Cartoon Network's] 'Adult Swim' and anime shows on that. They're the ones that shop at Hot Topic, and [many]
can speak Japanese," he says. "A bunch of them just enjoy the culture, and they are really into it.".."
Korn Touring for Cheap on Family Values
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Posted on Billboard.com on April 19th, 2006 at 1:05 PM ET ( Changes
were made by moi mostly because the incorrect spelling of Grey was used when talking about Dir en grey and they called Withering
to death 'Withering to Debut', but typos are understandable.. )
"After a five-year hiatus, Korn has revived its Family Values tour for a summer
run that will feature Deftones, Stone Stour, Flyleaf and Japanese upstarts Dir en Grey. The trek will begin July 27 in Virginia
Beach, Va., and will also feature a second stage with bands to be announced. Lawn tickets will be sold for $9.99 at all stops
on the tour.
Korn will be out behind its 2005 Virgin debut, "See You on the Other Side," which
has sold 825,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Latest single is No. 12 this week on Billboard's
Mainstream Rock chart.
"When Family Values first started it felt like music was fresh and exciting,"
says Korn frontman Jonathan Davis. "We want to recreate that same feeling for our fans, and offer them a full day of fun and
some great music."
As previously posted, the Deftones' long-in-the-works new album is due in
September. Dir en Grey's American debut, "Withering to death," will arrive May 16 via Warcon."
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