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Archived Reviews
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I must say that I was over the moon when I got this CD – to have in my hands a compilation album of Alternative genre acts from Japan it seemed like Christmas all over again. Listening to this was going to be a special journey indeed. Fourteen tracks adorn this album, so for review purposes it would be better to take each one in turn, as no two tracks are alike, and this really is a mix-match of Rock, Industrial, Goth and anything else ‘alternative’ you care to think of. Kicking things off is Sino, with their track ‘02’ – an aggressive mix of angry industrial metal. No vocals, just music, well laid down, and very powerful in its delivery, with a throbbing bass line, and frantic guitaring. Nice opening track, and it certainly waks you up. Next up is IOIA, with the track, ‘Miranda Lethal Weapon’. A rocking track, with sleazy female vocals stepping their way through the dimension laid sown by the guitars and drums. A good ‘rock’ track, well produced and well delivered, and definitely one to get you up and moving. The imaginatively entitled artist Meltdown I Scream brings us the track ‘Rin-Pun’ – a male vocal lead number with an almost quirky theatrical style of synths and keyboards providing the foundation to the track. This is slightly off the wall, but quirky enough to hold your attention. Oh, the vocals are in Japanese of course, and full of angst and passion – typically Goth! Sweetness Coma are the next bad up and they deliver ‘Frozen’ – a bizarre mixture of electronic keyboards, rock guitars and English male vocals, I’m almost made to imaging a Japanese Killing Miranda such is the delivery of this track. Once again this track is full of driving passion and there is a hint of angst behind the vocals. Musically it’s all over the place and rarely settles down, but that’s what makes it stand out. Next we have Hitomi, with ‘Torikago – kaeru beki basyo –‘ – an almost operatic number with high pitched female vocals. The drumming is kind of offset against the string instruments, and takes some time to get your head around. Coupled with some of the stringed instruments being out of key with each other, this is a bit of a mind wash if ever there was one. Time to skip to the next track… The brilliantly named Zombie Lolita bring us the cyber influenced cacophony that is ‘BLOOD” – ansgty shouting vocals scream across the manic guitaring and thrash drumming. This is Superb! You can almost hear the spittle from the singer’s mouth hitting the microphone as he belts out the vocals! This could be an anthem for angst ridden teenagers everywhere, and I especially love the screaming by an accompanying singer on the track. Top Stuff!! Next up is an unnamed track (well, on the album inlay at least) by Mandragora – a much more classical Goth offering, with acoustic stringed instruments, thoughtful keyboards, male (passionate) vocals and a liberal helping of Goth angst. This is much more contempory Goth track, and not too bad at all. The band ‘Selia’ bring us another operatic influenced number called ‘L eraclito amoroso’ – female operatic notes accompany a harpsichord (!) giving this track a distinctly classical feel. This is actually quite good, and it’s almost relaxing to listen too. Nice one! Kao ga nai bring us ‘1st album’ – a semi ethnic sounding guitar laced affair, which is nothing much more than a cacophony of instruments and multi-layered vocals. Too weird, and too much of a head fuck to really get into. Skip to the next track… …. Which is the artists Kehre with her tarck ‘iconosophia’ – a genteel and acoustic guitar based number, building up with electric guitar, and mellow female vocals. Nothing too alternative here, and this does sound slightly mainstream. Nice vocals though, and a good track in all. The band Redsun bring us ‘GGG’ – a more contemporary Japanese influenced track, but with English vocals, sung by a whispering, secretive voice. This is very Cure – ‘Lullaby’ influenced, but steeped in Japanese tradition. My favourite lyric has to be ‘I go to my place, secret toilet, alone’. Nice one! This track is fluffy Goth at it’s best, and if it were a pet it would be a fat fluffy striped cat. Don’t ask why… just listen to it! Abominate offer up their EBM styled track ‘Time to be different’ – a very club based EBM affair, and instantly very good. This would have no trouble filling a dance-floor over here. Instantly accessible and very danceable. My only criticism is that the vocals (male and female) could do with being louder in the mix, as they are kind of lost in the music, but that said, I still rate this track. Nice one! Next we have JLHA with ‘st Kan-non’ – another EBM fuelled track; female vocals adorn and lace their way through the soundscapes created by some cleaver programming and keyboards. This is high energy EBM, but with a slight dampening down. Another club hit for sure! The female vocals are to die for – soft, sweet and dynamic. This is a very cool number, and we like it! The last track on the album is ‘The end of the world’ by No Holds Barred. Acoustic and electric guitars build up to deliver a track with a heavy rock bias, which is very US College band influenced and anthemesque. I’m slightly reminded of a Japanese Coldplay, or band of that ilk, especially in terms of the vocal style. Good stuff though. So there you have it – a monster review for a monster album. There is so much stuff on here, both in terms of style and talent, but it is ALL good. Japan has a thriving alternative scene, and we can’t wait to hear more of it! This album allows us to sample it all. |
