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[deadgrandma]

If Wakusei Abnormal don't fuck it up with future releases... they could be the next great thing. The potential is there. The whole mini album is worth grabbing, not a dull moment on it.

I thank op2 on last.fm for sharing it with me to begin with. This and Maron Hamada are the two new (Japanese) acts that are worth getting excited about for me (even if they do admittedly basically sound like my favourite two of Shiina Ringo's styles).

Time for the west to throw me some new stuff (that isn't just flavor of the month, something with substance and lasting appeal please) too.

[Superficial Fan]

I'm happily surprised to find Wakusei Abnormal on Spotify. However, I'm not sure how much I like them so far. There are obvious resemblances to Old Shiina, yes, but there's not as much happening that is musically interesting, to me. Lots of chaotic avant-prog (but pop) sort of stuff happening, but without the brilliant touches in much of SR's early music. Five songs in, and no really exceptional melodies, for instance.

[hoopra]

Originally Posted by deadgrandma

Shoulda just wrote []Smashing Pumpkins (particularly the second track) :-p

Which I do like, and I do like what I hear here.

But hear, hear, did you not get the memo about Wakusei Abnormal being the new 'rock' thing to look out for?



Perhaps not enough guitar for your liking, but I imagine its certainly of many other people's interests on here.

This is Awesome!! did not expect that change up at all, beautifull!!



edit:
Just listened to the whole EP album Nani De Mo Nai Kyouki ?
thoroughly impressed then by the time i get to
the singing on track 6 - Tensai? = http://25.media.tumblr.com/29f5cd21c...mk93o1_500.png

i give this album a 4.5 out of 5
one of the best releases this year

[Superficial Fan]

Chris & Cosey - Coolicon

New.

[Tokyo Jihad]

I’ve been in a bit of a Japanese kick lately, so I’m going to do some quick reviews of albums that caught my ear.


Nandemonai Kyoki - Wakusei Abnormal
I don’t think anyone is surprised that this band has won some attention on EMF. The singer plainly bites Shiina Ringo’s vocal styles. The growls, the flourishes one might expect from a prime Shiina Ringo are all there to the point where just for a moment you can fool yourself. Even the music smacks of Shiina, albrit not as deftly. Funnily enough, the song “Fura re Uta” sounds like what Tokyo Jihen would sound like if Shiina Ringo was their frontwoman. Even the lead single, “Tsukiyou Kaisuiyoku” to an extent sounds like the piano work of Izawa Ichiyo -- as well as the sharp, haphazardly juxtaposed song fragments. This leads to one of the bands biggest shortcomings on this record. The songwriting isn’t up to the lofty ideas and nods the sounds evoke. Too often different melodies and moods are just slammed next to each other in a song to give some variation, but it’s done so without reason much of the time. The songs rarely ever build to anything despite their large psychedelic backdrops. The song structures are always: raucous verse - poppy chorus – repeat. I think the best song by far on this EP is the closer, “Tensei.” It’s the song with the least wacky shifts and it feels the stronger for it. It actually builds and flows, has some deft production, and some really beautiful singing. This is a fantastic track. I also appreciate the abstract middle of “Kamisama Gokko" and I feel the song is dragged down by the more straightforward parts. This album is full of bits that I absolutely love and bits that are undercooked. I feel that the band leans a little too heavily on the Shiina Ringo idea, especially on the first half of this EP. Going forward, Wakusei Abnormal needs to find their own sound, I think they’re close, but too often I just think about spinning Zecchoshou.
This debut ep, with all the good, bad, and questions of the future remind me a lot of those that accompanied the Yeah Yeah Yeahs debut ep. If the growth between Nandemonai Kyoki and future lp can be as fruitful as the difference between the Yeah Yeah Yeahs ep and Fever to Tell, then I look forward to listening to a kick ass album.
6.2


Eureka - Kinoko Teikoku
Is “Yotaka” a killer open or what? The spoken lyrics haunting the thick cloud of guitars that builds intensity. Where Wakusei Abnormal saved their best for last, Kinoko Teikoku lead with theirs. The guitars on this record are pretty spot on, forceful but ethereal, they drape each song and are complimented by the band’s singer. Kinoku’s singer isn’t the most notable facet of this band, which I enjoy for a change. The songs I enjoy most are the ones where the vocal melody is practically a drone (like the first two tracks.) The more straightforward tracks where she takes a more prominent role remind me a lot of Bugy Craxone songs. That’s not necessarily bad, but if there was ever a Japanese rock band that didn’t quite live up to its potential, it’s Bugy Craxone. While the more accessible songs are all pretty good, the one that sticks out most is “Fuuka-suru Kyoshitsu.” It’s the brightest song on the album and the infectious guitar line with the hushed vocals make for a sweet enjoyable listen. Of course, I don’t care for too much sweetness, and Kinoko Teikoku is good to not spend too much time in the sugar. Kinoko is best when they are in “My first Boris” mode, but only about half of the tracks operate as such. If next time around the band can find a better way to meld these heavy, cavernous sounds they create with the poppier tunes as well as further indulge their droney-shoegaze tendencies, then we’ll have a truly “eureka” moment. Until then, this is probably one of the best guitar albums this decade so far, and there are really some fantastic moments (the opener, the title track, and the final two tracks. Good lawd “Musician.”) However, it’s weighed down a little too much by how light it can sometimes be.
7.4


UBU – Illion
This was the big surprise record, but I found it like many other great surprises: cool cover art, cool video (“Mahoroba.”) Illion is the solo project of singer-songwriter Noda Yojiro who puts a lot of thought behind his piano-based pop. His songs vary from bright and cheery like the song “Planetarian” to spacy and bordering on abstract like “Grasshow.” UBU is very ornately produced with all harps and strings, timpani, as well as various bleeps and bloops. The production drifts towards Merriweather Post at times and sometimes in the same song Noda’s voice can be dressed to sound like a boy band. The track “Lynch” has a hip-hop beat, and climaxes cinematically. On top of the stunning production, Noda’s pop sensibilities are top shelf. His melodies are lively and memorable. Take a more stripped down track like “Un&Do,” I dare you not to bob your head or tap your feet. Rarely does a pop artist have such confidence to be so in command of his sound.
EMF fans note track 2 features Shiina vets Kameda Seiji and Yukio Nagoshi (aka Not-Hirama from Expo.) It’s also a pretty killer track.
8.0


Bonus review: “Couleurs Perfum” – Shiina Ringo
I really don’t think this song would sound so out of place with Tokyo Jihen. That’s not a note of quality, but of what to expect. It reminds me of any of the pulse-less post Dai-Hakkan songs that have trickled through the band’s totally disbanded (“wink wink”) corpse. The bridge at around the two minute mark is a very Shiina Ringo thing to do, and the instrumental build after it makes me think she’s going to tear in to “Live and Let Die” or something. Instead, she repeats the early part of the song. It’s a fine song. It doesn’t light any fires, and I hope no one expected it to.

[TeslaGuy]

I'm not quite dead yet… Work is crazy.

Ogre You Asshole - フェンスのある家 (from dope EP)

[Superficial Fan]

Savages - Husbands

Thank you, Savages! I was going to post this without comment, because my initial comment seemed like such a turn-off that people might not bother trying this for themselves, but I can't help saying I don't have much use for all this post-punk revivalism. The real puzzle is that I even bother with it, since I'm almost always going to have that reaction.

[Tokyo Jihad]

Though I have yet to sit down with their album, I love all the Savages I've heard.
shewillshewillshewillshewill

[Superficial Fan]

Originally Posted by Tokyo Jihad

This leads to one of the bands biggest shortcomings on this record. The songwriting isn’t up to the lofty ideas and nods the sounds evoke. Too often different melodies and moods are just slammed next to each other in a song to give some variation, but it’s done so without reason much of the time. The songs rarely ever build to anything despite their large psychedelic backdrops. The song structures are always: raucous verse - poppy chorus – repeat.

Which for me boils down to something like: they borrow some of the surface features of Old Shiina, but without her strength as a songwriter.

[ra_yy]

SLAYER, rest in peace Jeff Hanneman