At the bitter end of 2013, Kaya released his third solo album, Gothic, that followed a very specific theme. All of the singles for this album were very dark, much unlike his previous solo material. In 2014, Kaya decided to carry this theme onward by forming a new rock band, Femme Fatale, and reuniting older unit, Schwarz Stein. In doing so, Hora and Kaya together released new singles Gebet and Cocoon -Fallen- to an incredible fan reaction. These singles included massive remixes of classic Schwarz Stein songs "Rise to Heaven" and "Succubus", both of which they performed live in America for the first time at Anime USA where they announced their new single Sleeping Madness to be released on November 5th.
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| 1. Sleeping Madness 2. Lilith 3. Sleeping Madness (Instrumental) 4. Lilith (Instrumental) |
Fans at Anime USA were immediately crazed with excitement when Hora announced the single was a little bit harder and darker than previous singles and that he was featured on vocals alongside Kaya, and for good reason. "Sleeping Madness" is made what it is entirely by Hora. Kaya's vocals are only displayed momentarily when he sings a total of four lines throughout the song; vocals that are, of course, uniquely Kaya. However, the beat of this song is far more EDM-inspired than anything in Schwarz Stein's catalogue. "Sleeping Madness" has a very hard, dance floor-ready beat and a dance break after the first verse that can only be rivaled by super-famous western DJ's like Afrojack and Hardwell. What sets this song apart from not only western EDM, but other Visual Kei music, is Hora's vocals. He creates a hook that will get stuck in your head and he does it in harsh vocals, something you'll never hear in western EDM. Listen to this song once and you'll be screaming "Sweetest blindness, immortal madness, sleepless mind" for days.
"Lilith", on the other hand, is a return to more typical Schwarz Stein music. It features no harsh vocals, no hook, and no big dance break. What it does feature is an incredible vocal performance on Kaya's part and an otherwise very beautiful production from Hora somewhat in the vein of "Last Hallucination". Additionally, the tune is a formidable five minutes and 39 seconds in length, which isn't a problem unless electronic ballads aren't exactly your cup of tea. Another one of my personal favorite things about "Lilith" are the lyrics. Kaya is an excellent lyricist and "Lilith" is no exception."悪い夢をみないように闇に怯えないように歌ってあげる眠るまで" he sings, "So you won't have nightmares, so you won't fear the dark, I'll sing you to sleep."
Overall, I highly recommend the single. This release, in my humble opinion, really signifies that Schwarz Stein is back and better than ever and could really be gearing up for a huge 2015. You can buy the album here on Hora's website.
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