Osaka-formed visual kei rock quartet XAAXAA (ザアザア) turns the makeup mirror into an identity crisis on 化生 (Keshō — “Monster”), released digitally on October 2. Vocalist Kazuki describes a creature applying makeup in an attempt to become human—a deliciously unsettling premise for a scene fluent in transformation.
Here’s the linguistic rabbit hole: keshō also sounds exactly like 化粧, “makeup.” Two spellings, one pronunciation, and an existential headache tucked inside the cosmetics bag. Kazuki connects the song to how XAAXAA changed his own life as the band approaches its twelfth anniversary. Beneath the monstrous imagery sits a personal question: can the face we create help us become ourselves?
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