A history oozing with blood, phantasmic goth darkness, irresistible flamboyance, anime wizardry and French baroque lavishness, Japanese rock has been dominated by an aesthetic as quintessential to its existence as corpsepaint is to black metal. Unlike stereotypical heavy metal sensibilities, the subculture of visual kei flirts with colour, gender, and genre in a way entirely unique to Japan, with its cohorts opting to change their look and style not just across albums, but often within the same record. But this kaleidoscopic vision of an artist’s self is just the tip of the J‑rock and metal iceberg. Here we present the 13 albums you need from the ever-evolving Japanese scene – from its skyscraper hair origins to its planet-dominating present… X Japan – Blue Blood (1989) Thi...
