Usually, a Dir En Grey album is something to look forward to. However, with ‘The Insulated World’ being a borderline unlistenable barrage of noise that completely forsakes the band’s trademark dynamic songwriting, particularly during its first half, I was a bit apprehensive about ‘Phalaris’. Fortunately, ‘Phalaris’ puts Dir En Grey back on the right track. It has turned out to be an album that puts thick, meaty modern metal riffs and melancholic melodies with that typical Japanese flavor in excellent balance again. Fairly streamlined by contemporary Dir En Grey standards, but not without its crushing moments; exactly as dynamic as it needs to be.

Stylistically, ‘Phalaris’ sounds like the album that should have been released between ‘Dum Spiro Spero’ (2011) and ‘Arche’ (2014). It isn’t quite as extreme and dense as the former, but there are plenty of the extreme progressive metal riffs that characterized the album to be heard here. Especially the excellent lengthy opener ‘Schadenfreude’ and the brief ‘Mouai Ni Shosu’ would not have sounded out of place on ‘Dum Spiro Spero’. ‘Phalaris’ also isn’t quite as open and accessible as ‘Arche’, but it has a similar approach to memorable songwriting that gives every track its own instantly recognizable character.

Kyo seems to have toned down his vocals ever so slightly as well. His vocal extremities will always be a defining feature of Dir En Grey, but his approach is more musical this time around. Most of ‘Phalaris’ features his clean mid-range, his head voice or his hardcore-ish bark. There are some deep growls and shrieks here and there, but where he would have crammed the heavier songs full of them ten years ago, he actually goes for a fairly unpredictable approach on the likes of ‘The Perfume Of Sins’, making the songs so much more satisfying in the process.

After my first spin, the bookends of ‘Phalaris’ were clear standouts. ‘Schadenfreude’ is a ten-minute prog metal monster with fantastic riffs, ‘Kamuy’ a nine-minute brooding semi-ballad with interesting use of synthesizers. The idiosyncratic start-stop riffing, cool tom-heavy rhythms and surprisingly subdued atmosphere make ‘Utsusu, Bouga Wo Kurau’ a favorite as well, while ’13’ and ‘Oboro’ are the best examples of the types of “heavy ballads” that only Dir En Grey knows how to do. As usual, the actual ballads – ‘Hibiki’ and the almost alternative rock-sounding ‘Otogi’ – are excellent as well. Due to the dynamic nature of ‘Phalaris’, even the blunt, heavy tracks like ‘Ochita Koto No Aru Sora’ and the somewhat punky ‘Eddie’ manage to impress.

In a strange way, following up the worst album they have ever released with something this good is typical for Dir En Grey. While there are some characteristics you will always get, the overall sound of their albums tends to be a surprise until you hear them. ‘Phalaris’ is the sound of Dir En Grey clawing their way back to to the unique contemporary progressive metal sound that put them on the map worldwide around the time ‘Uroboros’ (2008) was released. ‘Phalaris’ isn’t quite that good, but it is as close as it gets. It is also somewhat more accessible, which might make it a good album for newcomers to get acquainted with the band. Keep in mind that “accessible” is always relative with Dir En Grey though.

Recommended tracks: ‘Schadenfreude’, ‘Utsusu, Bouga Wo Kurau’, ’13’

 

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