Jinsei Game: Avanchick’s Newest PV Release

Avanchick is a relatively new Visual Kei band circulating lately. A-To-J had the pleasure of being able to chat with the band’s vocalist NOAH on Skype at a special livestream held out one of our panels at this year’s Anime Los Angeles in Ontario, CA. Ever since, I have been closely following them as a new band that has piqued my ears with a sound that is full of delight and intrigue! They’re definitely one of the up-and-coming bands that I cheer on as I watch them grow. Now, members NAH, Otake, Rey, Kagari, and Hyu-ga have released the new PV for their recently released sixth single, “Jinsei Game”. I’ve kept up with their previous release “Tanin no Fukou wa Mitsu no Aji”, so I’m eager to see what they deliver next.

The PV opens with aggressive guitar play followed by the appearance of five dark figures. We see the members clad in dark robes playing cards, an act that is rather symbolic considering the title. As the opening progresses, the white and gold setting of the PV compliments the band’s purple and red outfits as they play.  The opening was already catchy and made me anticipate what Avanchick had to deliver. NOAH adds in his own rendition of “Ode to Joy” in the opening verse. This really shows of NOAH’s singing capability and range as I can sense a bit of opera-like influence as he sings. The guitar riffs that play as NOAH sings mix well together throughout the song. From watching previous PVs, I’ve noticed that NOAH usually has a little dance incorporated into his performance. That aside, the rest of the band also bring a high amount of energy into the mix. This PV also indulges in the cliché of having a random Western woman be featured. In this case she deals the cards to the game that the band is playing. Speaking again of the cards, the concept of “game” and chance seem to be closely tied to the song’s title as we see the band’s take on the concept of “Jinsei Game”.

The chorus at first didn’t strike me as anything special, but after the second chorus I believe that’s where it picks up. I ended up singing the chorus to in my head after watching this PV. Following a second view, I started to really notice other things that stood out. The mix of Kagari’s bass line and Hyu-ga’s drumming was a big highlight for me. When it transitioned to Hyu-ga’s double bass pedal drum solo, it instantly became my favorite part. This song really allows Hyu-ga’s drumming skills to shine! I feel that it had more of an impact on the whole song rather than Rei’s Guitar solo. I couldn’t help but pay fuller attention to the drums as I listened to the song again.

I’m excitedly happy to see Avanchick back at it again with new music to listen to! I hope to hear news of a new album from them soon enough. Though Avanchick is still a fairly new band that is still finding their footing in the Visual Kei scene, I’m always happy to see new up-and-coming bands like them progress and find their own type of sound that defines who they are.

=Paloma (alpacqueen)
 
For more information on Avanchick, check out their website: http://avanchick.jp/