A Potentially Unpopular Opinion!! - So, I hear YELLOW FRIED CHICKENz are breaking up?

All opinions expressed here are my own. I'd prefer if you didn't go and judge how good a fan I was based on this, because, really, screw off, I don't have to love everything the man does to be his fan.

Thank you~

YELLOW FRIED CHICKENz, the band formed by GACKT -y'know, the amazing-looking one in the front

So, it seems that YELLOW FRIED CHICKENz will be splitting up come the 4th July - which is also the 39th birthday of the man responsible for it all.

And, as cruel as it sounds, I almost sort of...rejoiced upon hearing that news.

Oh, that's right -  I was openly happy that the project my favourite artist had been working on for so long was coming to an end.

I invite you to work out why this may be - is it because I can't handle that isn't all about GACKT all the time; I can't accept that there's some white dude stealing the spotlight; I can't put up with all that English in some songs (god forbid!); is it because I'm not a true GACKT fan?

And, I can easily tell you, it's nothing like that at all.

In fact, I have nothing against Jon at all.

Jon Underdown - in case you couldn't work that one out on your own

Well, it's worth pointing out that I don't active love the guy, but he seems perfectly nice and I do like his voice. Besides, it blends a treat with GACKT's, so, I can't really complain. I mean, he talks like he's still stuck in the 90s ('Hey G, I'm stoked for the show tonight!' would be a typical Tweet from this guy), but that's no reason to dislike someone, now, is it? And, he seems totally enthusiastic about everything, too. So, all in all, I honestly do like Jon - even if my Mum disapproves of the fact that 'he isn't as beautiful as GACKT' (Oh Mum, it's cruel, but I agree). Jon is not the reason I feel a little relieved about the split-up - I'm not some weaboo who doesn't want boring old whites like me mingling with those perfect Japanese adonises (please, sense the sarcastic tone here). I'm not that kind of fan. 

And I refuse to hold it against GACKT that he did something different for once. I can accept that if I don't love it, no-one's forcing me to. I'm aware of how elitist some members of the GACKT fandom are, that there's this sense of having to belong in the fandom, having to be worthy of the fandom - honestly, all that puts me off sometimes. And, to be fair, I've never actually managed to fit into the fandom, somehow. I probably haven't tried hard enough, but I just don't think I can handle so much fandom drama. I don't mind drama, but in the GACKT fandom, it's a huge problem. There seems to be a bunch of fandom splits, after all. And, this sounds harsh, I know, but, those fans who go around acting like they own GACKT, like he's their man or even being slightly over-protective of him? Never liked 'em. Not even for a moment. There's a large fraction of the fanom that are like that, though, so, yay. Lucky me.

Image (c) j-music-confessions.tumblr.com - I didn't submit this, but it seemed pretty apt, right? Sort of summed up my feelings?

Fandom Civil Wars aside, the reason why I'm not so overly-enthusiastic about YFC?

It's pretty simple, really.

They're just not my thing.

Okay, I admit, I do like them, but, thing is, they're a tad on the generic side for me.

No, seriously, their songs are just like watered-down GACKT songs. It's like GACKT, with an extra voice but without that extra...extra...oomph that GACKT's solo stuff has. GACKT's solo stuff is special, it's original, it's like nothing else I've heard. Whereas YFC...sound like a band. Just a band. A band that has the honour of the powerful vocals of GACKT at their disposal, yes, but whatever. If I gave them a proper listen, I'd probably love all of their song, but they still wouldn't hit me in the same way as GACKT's solo stuff.

GACKT's solo stuff always had a stronger impression on me, even if it did sometimes involve him getting up on stage and belting out those tunes whilst being dressed as a Nazi commandant. Well, I'll give him that he wasn't promoting Naziism in anyway - rather, he was condoning war as a whole.

Another point is that YELLOW FRIED CHICKENz are too overly-erotic.

And, before you all start judging me and getting all like 'You idiot! GACKT's been erotic for years! And you call yourself a fan!' - I know that. I'm not stupid.

But, my issue with YFC is that it's too in your face erotic. Mind, the fact that Yamapi has an album coming out called 'Ero' doesn't bother me in the slightest.

I don't mind erotic stuff, though. If it really bothered me, I would have probably gone off GACKT the moment I saw anything from the D.R.U.G Party con, as opposed to ending up more drawn to him (I'm sorry, he was particularly gorgeous in that con). Or the famed live version of Vanilla, for that matter (or even upon reading the lyrics for that same song). Hell, I would have ditched KAT-TUN by now, and Kame would not be my favourite, if anyone!

Go, GACKT, go! HUMP THAT GACKTJOB MEMBER! - A screenshot from the live perf of Vanilla, well-known for its huge helpings of BoyxBoy Sexytime

A typical KoKame moment - Here's Koki (who's resposible for a collection of tracks loosely known as the MAKE U WET Trilogy, may I add) midway to shoving his face in Kame's crotch, just to further my point.

So, I have no problem with eroticism or suggestive songs or performances, especially if there's no misogyny involved whatsoever. This is a mould most of GACKT's more sexual solo songs manage to fit with great ease, but, as to YFC's stuff? I'm not so sure, due to the fact that I've heard of arguments within the fandom about GACKT being sexist. Obviously, I haven't looked into it in much detail due to lack of interest in the meanings behind YFC's music, but I'll just leave it as it is - whatever it's like, it probably doesn't rival that pile of shit Jin Akanishi came out with earlier in the year.

Despite him once being a favoured artist of mine, the moment I heard that disgusting excuse for a song, 'That's What She Said', I was well and truly put off, but that's another story for another time.

My point is that all is forced eroticism on YFC's parts make the more sexual songs seem pulpy. At least GACKT's solo stuff with suggestive lyrics had a general sensual feel to them. Like...they were unf as a song, for want of better terminology. Whereas YFC's don't have that same feel. I also adore the experimental nature of GACKT's solo work - YFC seems to be a bit safer where genres are involved. That's arlight, seeing as it's just a side-project and all. I mean, doesn't that just make them another product of GACKT's experimenting?

It's funny, though, considering that YFC started off as nothing more than a tour name, really. I missed both the YFC gigs in London due to being abroad on holiday, but, given the choice, I would choose the '10 gig over the '11 one anyday. After all, it was the '10 gig that was essentially just a GACKT gig in London, no offense to YFC. I think, really, part of the reason I'm glad that this is happening is because YFC meant less Solo GACKT. It wasn't that I wanted to see more of GACKT in the splotlight, it was just that I prefer his music by a long shot. YFC splitting-up basically means that GACKT may release more solo single or maybe even an album! His last solo album was released in 2009, after all - I'd say us Dears are due a new album. I'm not interested in any of this YELLOW FRIED CHICKLETz nonsense, I'm already a dedicated Hyphen on the side of being a Dear, what more do you people want from me?!

I preferred it when Yellow Fried Chickenz was just another one of GACKT's weird tour concepts, this time having been inspired by his grandad who, apparently, looks like Colonel Sanders