Say what you will about Dir en grey’s music, management, fans, or attitude: these five men put on an amazing rock show. Cathartic and revealing, their performances seethe and roil with a furious energy, and the three concerts they played this fall at New York’s Gramercy Theater were no exception.

Dir en grey has had twelve years to hone their craft, and the experience shows in their ability to manipulate the emotions of a crowd through music. Their latest album Uroboros is a carefully constructed collection of tracks that seem made for the stage, each one a roller-coaster ride of moshpit-inducing metal guitarwork and airy, melodic choruses. Soaring vocal sections punctuate heavy riffing and guttural growling, letting you up for air just long enough to take a breath before being pulled back down by violent rock into the inky darkness at the heart of Dir en grey’s music. It’s always electrifying, never boring, and damn fun to hear these songs live.
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