photo by Amuse Inc. Asia

photo courtesy of Pulp Live World Inc. the official producer of ONE OK ROCK Live in Manila

photo courtesy of Pulp Live World Inc. the official producer of ONE OK ROCK Live in Manila

photo courtesy of Philippines' ONE OK ROCKers Facebook page

• ONE OK ROCK's website: http://www.oneokrock.com/
• Pulp Live World: http://pulpliveworld.com/shows/2016/one-ok-rock
• Amuse Inc. Asia: https://www.facebook.com/Amuse.Inc.Asia

 

Hi guys!
So I've been busy these past few weeks and I do miss blogging...A LOT!. That's why right now I am going to share to you the recipe of my current obsession: PANCAKES.

source: http://totalbeverage.net/wp-content/uploads/Pancakes.jpg

What about these pancakes?
Hmm...Actually I don't know really. But I find them very comforting, though. It may be a bit weird that I am associating them with heartaches but pancakes are known to be the ultimate comfort food in almost any time of the day. It may be everyone's favorite breakfast, but I could eat this stuff all day long whenever I feel down, or just plain hungry :P

...and here it is!

Ingredients (for 3-4 large pancakes or 5-6 medium-sized pancakes):

• 1 cup cake flour (or all purpose flour)
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 large egg
• 3 tbsp. sugar
• 140 ml milk
• 2 tsp. vegetable oil
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• maple syrup
• butter
• jam (optional)

• 3xxxv5 - Taka said that this was the last track they made before the album was released. Must be because they were trying to figure out the whole story of the album and I can feel a lot of mixed emotions with this intro since this is like a stepping stone for them. I love the part where they mixed the Japanese and English rap together. 
• Take Me To The Top - Just like the previous albums, Niche Syndrome and Zankyo Reference, they start it off with a pure English track in this album, and that's not really shocking because I know they are trying to target the American market this time. A very powerful track that showcases all of the band's strengths. There's a lot of screams which is not bad at all. 
• Cry Out - This track is one of my favorites because I love the lyrics, but....there's a big BUT! the back up vocals, I find it a bit disturbing and I don't even know why T.T

• Suddenly - It's one of those tracks in the album where I'm so-so. It's not really a bad track, it's actually catchy, plus the lyrics are in English, but this one kinda reminds me of some punk-rock bands in the US. Expect that this track is highly influenced by them.
• Mighty Long Fall - This is the OST of 'Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno'. I find this track very cool. Definitely a ONE OK ROCK original when you hear it, but again something annoys me, must be that there's too much effects in the song. I would've want it to be a bit raw, but hey! Again, they wanted to try new things, right? That's not bad at all. When I heard the acoustic version of this song, I really loved it!

• Heartache - The best track in the album everrrr!!! When I first heard this one, I almost broke down inside (know more about it here). 'Heartache' is the OST of 'Rurouni Kenshin: The Legend Ends', and it's this song the main reason why I am THIS addicted to the band right now! (If you hear it, you'll know why). This is the album's ballad. When Taka was interviewed about their new album, he said that he was tired of singing 'Wherever You Are' during live concerts and that they really worked hard on making a new ballad piece that they can perform during lives, and it's going to be this 'Heartache' track. The part that really struck me most is the chorus.."so this is heartache...so this is heartache".. awww the chills, dude!  

• Memories - I like this track from the album. There's full of teenage angst on it, and I was actually expecting that this was going to be a sucky American-influenced track, but once again, ONE OK ROCK nailed it!
• Decision (featured in FOOL COOL ROCK) - Hmmm...Yes, I know this song is one of the best in the album. I actually like it, but I prefer the acoustic version more than the full band. The only thing I hate about the full band version is that it reminded me more of Fall Out Boy, than OOR.

• Paper Planes (feat. Kellin Quinn of Sleeping with Sirens) - Trust me, this is a pop song. I'm a bit disappointed with this track. No offense to Kellin Quinn, I mean he's great, but this song is just too Americanized for me. At first, I thought this track was catchy, but at the end of the day, it's annoying! I was expecting that their collab was going to be something like whoa and not a shitty pop track.
• Good Goodbye - It's one of those tracks in the album where you are allowed to rape the replay button as much as you like. I find this one to be very relaxing. It's like if you're too disappointed with 'Paper Planes', 'Good Goodbye' is going to chill you out. Imagine that one perfect song that you want to play in your car for a long drive in a one Sunday afternoon. Taka's falsetto in the chorus is the thing!
• One By One - Are we going to a war?! haha! These guys are really fighting for their dreams, and they know that it's not going to be easy. When I first heard this one, I was trying to picture something on my mind, like the fight to achieve your dreams. It must be one hell of a war. The screams are just, ugh! Very powerful and I call it as "beautiful desperation".
• Stuck in the Middle - After going to that war, there is always a point where you're gonna think if what you're fighting for is worth it all now that you're left with nothing. I get it all in this song, and this is definitely one of those meaningful songs in the album. If you're in the middle of a mid-life crisis and you want to shout it all out, then this track must be the one for you. Take time to listen to it.
• Fight The Night - What a perfect way to end things. 'Fight The Night' is one of my faves from this album. When you hear it, you can say it's a ONE OK ROCK original, even though the intro is kinda of a Maroon 5-ish. It seems like that they really want to reach out to their fans in the west. Since ONE OK ROCK make songs not just for pure fun, but also to inspire people, they have already accomplished that here in Asia and Europe, and I can really tell that this time, they are hoping that they will also touch the hearts of their fans in America. This song is full of hope, and I know Taka is really good at making lyrics with those kind of songs in Japanese and Japlish, but this song blew me away because it was beautifully written in English.

ONE OK ROCK: Mighty Long Fall in Yokohama Stadium

To summarize my thoughts about '35XXXV':

• It's not that I hate it, I'm just so-so with this album. There were great tracks, and there were also not-so-great tracks, but I have a great respect for the band for their craft. 
• I love the fact that they have included six (6) English tracks this time to gather more attention to their non-Japanese fans. Those tracks were Take Me To The Top, Suddenly, Paper Planes, Good Goodbye, One By One, and Fight The Night.
• I know most songs from this album have more sound effects compared to their previous albums, and that's what made this album more westernized. But whatever! I know that this band really sound better when they perform live!

Jinsei x Boku = album cover

• Introduction~Where idiot should go~ - Once the cello started to play its strings, I know that it's going to give a heavy feeling, but on the later part of this introduction, the music gets lighter, it's as if hope will always bring light to a person's life. The intro's quite nice actually.
• Ending Story?? - At first, Taka starts to whisper, and then he screams! I love the way he screams by the way haha. Anyways, this track is one of my faves from this album, and they really did show something new because Taka did rap in this song.
• ONION! - "Life is like an ONION!"...Yeah and now their talking. I'm not really a huge fan of this track, but it's definitely promising as they want to let their audience listen to their songs about life and stuff. 
• The Beginning - I hereby declare that this song made ONE OK ROCK popular all across the globe. Takeru Sato asked Taka to write a song for the movie 'Rurouni Kenshin' and he did not fail. The movie became a great hit, and so as the soundtrack. What I love about this song is the message and the way they interpret it musically. A lot of people can relate to it because it's all about fighting for something that's precious to you. 'The Beginning' was also the key for the band's new beginning, as they became one of the world's top bands today. 

• Clock Strikes - This soooooong!!! This is the reason why I fell in love with this band a lot! And I heard it in a live version, which means that they are REALLY that awesome. Until now, whenever I hear this one, I always feel a lot of emotions. For me this song, even when I don't understand all of it 'cause most lyrics are in Japanese, touches my soul. Really gives me the feels of positivity and hope, and I bet some fans do feel it too.

screen cap of 'Clock Strikes' MV

• Be The Light - It's one of this album's ballads and this song's really emotional. I love it when Taka pours a lot of emotions in a song because it really affects whoever listens to it. What's special about this one is that it's a pure English track, must be because he really intended to reach out to a lot of people as much as possible, and his English keeps getting better and better every album. Definitely one of my faves, and it's a must-listen track. 

• Nothing Helps - Another English track! I like this song a lot. Seems like they're telling their own band's story to their fans. I've gotta say, it's one of those OOR songs that I'm proud of. For me 'Nothing Helps' is like a prequel of the next track - 'Juvenile'.
• Juvenile - A song about knowing what you want in life and chasing after them. This track's giving me more reasons to love this album. At first, I thought this was a chill kind of rock song, but at the bridge, Taka top it off with a scream, and that made this track more passionate than ever. Honestly, this is one of my fave songs of the band.
• All Mine - I've heard that this is Ryota's fave song from this album...awwww isn't that romantic? I love it how they put variety in this album. This song, 'All Mine', is a mellow track. Just the piano, cello, and violin all together. This is also one of my faves from the album. So, if you're looking for a romantic, mellow, and sweet track that's perfect for a slow dance, then it's gotta be this one! 
• Smiling Down - I'm not really a fan of this track. But again, they are putting variety to this album. For me, this is an emo track. It's also worth listening to anyway. Whenever I hear this one, it reminds me of the band The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus...just sayin'.
• Deeper Deeper - I really really wanna see the band play this song LIVE! Deeper Deeper is this album's hard rock track. Whenever I hear this one, I'm craving for more of their music. The intro, the bass, the drums, the guitar, and the vocals blend perfectly to make that ultimate rock track that's gonna make the fans scream...'soshite good good days!!!'

• 69 - I know what your thinking, but that's NOT it! Sorry to disappoint you, but this is not a sex track. Nope! Not at all! LOL XD '69' simply means 'rock' (roku is 6 in Japanese, and ku is 9 in Japanese, all together it's 'rokku'). In this track, you can hear more of Taka rapping. I find this one interesting and it's one of those OOR tracks that have a very good musicality. I love Toru's guitar here! If you ever feel like dancing to rock, then this gotta be it.
• the same as... - It started with just the piano and Taka, then after the first chorus, the band comes in with a bang! Next the verses were sang gently and heartfelt, and also the band toned down a bit, but during the second refrain, the band goes louder. The track's full of transition and for me it's not bad 'cause the transitions did match the lyrics after all. This is not really one of my favorite tracks from the album, but it's also a good one.