Todays post is authored by Homicidols’ reader, BobIsRandom, who is also active over on the Homicidols Discord Server. This is not the first time Homicidols has received and published an unsolicited column, but it is the first in a while.  BobIsRandom may be one of REBEL REBEL’s biggest overseas fans and, since we on Team Homicidols haven’t paid the unit much individualized attention in some time, they decided to take matters into their own hands.

If any other readers out there happen to have the urge to put their thoughts and feelings about an idol unit, album, MV or event into writing and send it our way, feel free to do so. Direct any unpublished articles to daemetal@gmail.com and we will consider posting it here on Homicidols.

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Let’s Catch Up with REBEL REBEL

By BobIsRandom 

Technically, there’s not a whole lot to catch up on considering that there have been REBEL REBEL updates on Weekender posts, though mostly for MV releases. However, I’ve prepared a statement on why I’m writing this, paraphrasing Paul F. Thompson from the movie Pick of Destiny:

“Homicidols asked me not to say this next part but I’m going to say it anyways because I wrote it, and it’s the truth. I love REBEL REBEL. They’re the best group ever. Period.”

The ability to say such things is a perk of gaining access to the bully pulpit.

REBEL REBEL didn’t just release an MV last year that came close to rivalling Kinopo’s push for artistic, creative music videos, they released an entire album with equally artistic album art:

Even the album liner notes are nice to look at.

I don’t have direct confirmation of this, but I think the second album was a bit of a shift in direction for REBEL REBEL. Their songs from this time period used to be marked “Rebel Rebel 2.0”. It certainly felt like a shift musically. With Second Coming and beyond, their music seem to better fit the “electro funky” sound they say they are. The most obvious example of this from the album is “Blood Music” whose riff and vibe sounds like it could’ve been a Stevie Wonder song (and don’t ask me why the album art was changed for streaming):

 

And then came a follow-up EP, Zugzwang, a chess term which matches the accompanying MV ( mentioned in a past Weekender). To continue the very biased, slanted nature of this article, I think Zugzwang is one of the best EPs ever crafted. Musically, I think it’s perfect. There’s not a track on it that I don’t think is amazing. And it stayed more or less true to the funky direction of REBEL REBEL:

 

Also of note with track, “THE WORLD”,  they took an older PiGU song and made it their own.

That brings us more towards the present, and what should have been the point of catching up with REBEL REBEL. They released another EP not long ago called No Cheating, which had no accompanying MV and thus has never been mentioned on Homicidols as far as I know. In a lot of ways this EP felt like a return to the Beyond the Law (their first album) days, musically speaking. I’ll highlight the jazzier “221-B” which, according to the producer, was played on radiko.jp (and is a Sherlock Holmes reference to accompany sister group EVERYTHING IS WONDER’s song “Poirot,” another fictional detective).

 

And I want to point out that the riff on “SHOUT UP BABY!!” is near identical to the riff of PiGU’s “Accelrater” (just pitch and tempo differences). Just one of those things that let you know it’s definitely the same production team, like the way WACK songs can sometimes sound alike.

Anyways, their discography is on digital streaming to listen to. I think Spiritwalker would prefer you listening to it via Apple if possible, since iTunes is what they seem to pay attention to. They’ve also finally started posting concerts to YouTube again, if that’s at all interesting to you.

Let’s end this with another paraphrase, this time of David Bowie: “Rebel Rebel, I love you so!”