Full disclosure, I don't know if this band identified as visual kei, but anyway... THE HAKKIN is very close to my heart and it hurt a lot when they disbanded. They were a really special little project with a cool retro sound that made them stand out from the typical acts.
If I recall correctly, my first encounter with THE HAKKIN was thanks to some cool person who linked one of their Youtube promo videos in the chatbox of the late great Monochrome Heaven forum (R.I.P.). It was love at first listen! The catchy upbeat new wave sound was an instant hook, even if the production was demo-level (nevertheless, this band's demos sounded better than a lot of other young groups' professional releases). From then on, it was a painful and slow process of obtaining their live-limited demo CDs one by one through Japanese auction sites, but it was all worth it!
Thankfully, the band soon released their first longer record, which was the mini album "Bansei"—or "Bansay", as it's stylishly written on the front cover, haha. This compact disc perfectly captures everything that THE HAKKIN was about. The ingredients are quite simple, building from a pop-rock sound with elements of new wave and synthpop in the spirit of the '80s. The arrangements blend the worlds of soft visual kei and J-pop into a fun mixture that sometimes feels like listening to old osare kei, and other times it sounds like it's straight from an '80s pop countdown TV show. An interesting tidbit: the members previously played in VIDEO GLAMOUR, and just like there, I can hear some echoes of cali≠gari influence here too.
Of course, they didn't coast along purely on their influences, as evidenced by the quality of their compositions. The songs themselves are expertly crafted and full of catchy bits, in a sort of retro way that aims for a happy atmosphere but due to its use of bygone tropes, ends up being profoundly bittersweet. I'm a sucker for this type of mood, so naturally I love every track on here. My standout favorites would have to be the disco-rock banger "Kinjite" with its loveably cheesy synths and vocodered vocal hooks, and "Furueta kuchibiru ni saigo no KISS wo shiyou", a dramatic uptempo number full of longing and passion in the chorus (moving closer to the VK-sphere).
Sadly the guys only released one more album after this one, and then in short time they disbanded. In any case, I hope they're doing well (I know the vocalist brought some of VIDEO GLAMOUR's music to digital platforms since then, which is a welcome gesture!). I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we'll get to hear some more tunes like these in the future. Until then, I'll keep spinning THE HAKKIN, 'cuz there's no future like a retro-future!
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