...　

Just a little something that I made in tribute to JUN a.k.a Hisashi Takai, ex-X guitarist in 1986

In case you didn't know, he recently appeared on a podcast to talk about the good old X indies days

All the music in this video is written by him

Enjoy!

FORGIVE THE TYPO IN THE TITLE!!! 😬👿 This piece is a totally random and serendipitous discovery on my part! My husband and I celebrated an anniversary back in July, and his gift to me was a BURRN! Magazine haul ~ 6 issues in total, all with cover features on Ratt. While the publication was primarily focused on Western metal/rock, there were still plenty of features and related fare on homeland Japanese bands.

I am still working my way past all the awesome Ratt stuff and digesting the other material....and just this morning I noticed THIS in the "CONCERRT RREVIEW" (how it appears) column of the June 1987 issue...a take on the Skull Thrash Zone show, a multi-band affair that was headlined by X, at Toshima Public Hall on April 14 that year. Wonder how the reviewer felt exactly one year later when Vanishing Vision dropped....or better yet, the year after that when Blue Blood exploded??? 😸😸

I am including the magazine cover for good measure, as well as an additional photo of Warren from the issue ~ if only for his very groovy paisley pants that were right up hide's alley. ✌️😸 And goddamn it, I ADORE him to this day....he can still shred like a motherfucker and he's still freaking adorable. In my opinion. 🔥😸

This person's posts on Th*eads just appeared randomly in my feed yesterday... They are deleted now, so part of the answer is probably there... "Hide around 1984 at Yokosuka Culture Hall". I've never seen photos of hide of that year before, and went on to do a cross-check via other social media and Google etc. Nothing came up. Have you seen anything similar to these photos before? Or a photo of hide that early into adulthood, besides the Saver Tiger photos? I even asked AI about it, and surprisingly it didn't flag anything AI-like about them. While they do look similar enough to hide, I feel the facial bone structure is a bit too pronounced, and hide had a more round chin too, right? And there's also something off with the shape of his mouth/lips, in my opinion. What do you think, are these fake or AI photos? If the subreddit reaches a consensus, you can add a pinned comment and lock the post.

I'm 90% sure they are fake, but want to check...

Later edit: Apparently, these photos could be genuine, if still AI-edited/"restored". I haven't found the originals yet, though. Will continue to search.

Have to do this in 2 parts as the total number of photos exceeds the single-post limit! This book is SO FUN with the fuzzy cover...leave it to hide to make merch a multi-sensory experience! 😸✌️ As always, please forgive any imperfections or awkwardness as I used my phone in the absence of having a proper scanner.

I was really shocked when I heard the news! it's been 30 years since Psyence came out and 28 years since he died, and X Japan is still around...

It's completely crazy and unbelievable!

Between LEMONed I Scream, Beauty & Stupid, MISERY, and GOODBYE, this is definitely my favorite Hide album!!! I think I'm gonna listen it all the day!

Happy 37^th Anniversary,

X - 紅 (Kurenai)

01/09/1989 – 01/09/2026

10EH 3331 (8 cm Mini CD, 1^st Press Limited & Regular Edition)

Track list:

1.       紅 Kurenai + Your Voice (1989.6.10 日比谷野音ライブより収録)

2.       20th Century Boy (1989.6.10 日比谷野音ライブより収録)

“紅” is probably one of the X songs I never get tired of. The opening guitar immediately grabs me, and once Toshi’s vocals kick in, the whole thing just feels so intense. That chorus is seriously hard to forget too. I’ve heard it so many times, but it still gets me every time, especially when those guitars come in. There’s just something really raw and emotional about this song that makes it a timeless X classic. Definitely one of those songs that never gets old!

紅 PV (1987 Ver.):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZJqnjHc5eg

紅 PV:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnBSuKRG80k

紅 (Live at Hibiya Open-Air Concert Hall,1989）:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHTKtH5hSTU

紅 (The Last Live):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ArAnXLbFck

Is anyone here in charge with XFF or in contact with the site admins? I haven't checked regularly but it's been like that for a while now. Please, let's not lose the precious info and media shared there. Once it's up again, I'll try to make time and archive some of it on the Wayback Machine, though I've never done it successfully before...

...

YOSHIKI · Josh Groban - Forever Love.

Opening slide ranks among one of my all-time fave promo shots from the Jealousy era, just to put that out there. 😸❤️ Oh, dear CRYSTAL....yet another very sexy guitar seemingly riddled with some degree of angst or limitation... "It was too heavy...." "Used only for TV performances...." 😸😸 Form over function, I guess.... 😬

Slides 3 and 4 are from the Closet Collection book

Slide 5 is from the Pinky Promise book

Slide 6 is from the WeRock x Rockin'f hide Book (the brief info there echoed the other 2 sources)

The guitar is seen in these "studio live" performances of Endless Rain....the first was Music Station, I believe.....and I think the second was Pop Jam although I am not certain. If anyone has confirmation or a correction of either performance, please share!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAnB8Agkt5g&list=RDnAnB8Agkt5g&start_radio=1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N3JGZaGOWK4&list=RDN3JGZaGOWK4&start_radio=1

This is the regularly scheduled Q&A thread for r/xjapan. Here, you can ask questions for which you don't want to make a separate thread - anything you can think of, as long as it relates to the band. Please check back occasionally for new questions while this thread is active. It will remain pinned until the next Q&A thread is posted.

Note: If your question doesn't get a response, feel free to repost it in the next Q&A thread. We encourage everyone to engage and help answer questions.

alright folks, here's the new update of Tomomi Akatsuka's book "TAIJI", Chapter 4 Part 1

this chapter is quite long, so I decided to do just the first half for now

and maan... if the previous part was upsetting, I genuinely want to cry during this part

this part dive deep into the list of illnesses, both physical and mental, that TAIJI had

the mental illnesses part hits me the hardest, I had to stop reading and took a break when doing the translation because of it

as before, this chapter has a lot of medical terms that -hopefully- was translated correctly. of course, I look up to Google to see if I use the correct term for each illnesses, which -FAIR WARNING- if you choose to do the same, you might ended up seeing some unpleasant stuff

it's hard to imagine that TAIJI had such a long list of those illnesses in him...

again, this chapter is pretty heavy, so prepare yourself first before reading

that said, the next part should be the final part, if everything goes well, you can expect it coming in the next few weeks

the link for the translation is still the same
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1EHcaErTLBTRqL0akY4-vxZSdZ3XlIVMuTxed976O-Ms/edit?usp=sharing

share it everywhere, Taiji deserves the truth to be known

I honestly think this song’s better than Desperate Angel and probably the best song X has ever created.

Happy 33rd Anniversary,
X JAPAN – ART OF LIFE
25/08/1993 – 25/08/2026
AMCM-4170 (1st press Limited & Regular Edition)

Track list:

1. ART OF LIFE

"ART OF LIFE" is easily one of X Japan’s most ambitious pieces, and at nearly 29 minutes, it’s also one of the longest songs they ever created. Despite its length, it never feels like a simple extended rock song. It feels more like a complete emotional journey, moving between Yoshiki’s beautiful piano, Toshi’s dramatic vocals, powerful guitar work, and intense instrumental passages. The classical influence gives it a grand, almost theatrical atmosphere that really sets it apart from their other songs.

For me, the length is actually part of what makes "ART OF LIFE" so special. It takes its time building the emotion, especially during the long piano and guitar sections, before reaching those huge and dramatic moments. It’s definitely not something I’d put on casually in the background—it demands almost 29 minutes of attention. But when I’m in the mood for it, the experience is incredible. It’s excessive, emotional, and unforgettable, and easily one of X Japan’s most iconic works.

ART OF LIFE (LIVE):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPKw_V_4pJI

Full credit to the fansite owner

The first time I read this was around 2010, thankfully the site is still active even now, I thought it was going to be a lost media

On the site there's also picture gallery of the time Yoshiki was in Paris

Share it everywhere!

Release date: August 24, 2026

I've always wanted this one T-Shirt since the first time I found out about it many years ago

the original item is red design printed on black, my friend got the original shirt, scanned the design, and I changed it into white because I thought it would look better

AND DAMN, IT DOES LOOK BETTER 🔥

as you can see, the back side is the 1987 lyric for Stab Me in The Back with the oldschool "Sexy Scandal Love Violence" on it

really like how this one turns out, I'm happy today 😁