Japan’s definitive third wave ska band that proves you don’t need pop-punk power chords to be a third wave ska band at all. Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra are a ska-jazz ensemble that occasionally dip into pop crossover stylings but in a masterful and concise way. I think they are utterly brilliant and up there with Eastern Standard Time and the Rotterdam Ska-Jazz Foundation as some of the most essential ska masterworks even though I am a total scrub in anything beyond two-tone and even then my exposure is rather limited. TSPO are also crazy influential in Japan as they’ve gone on to influence a whole generation and scene from Pistol Valve, Oreskaband, and countless others. If you like ska or jazz it’s definitely worth your time and it would make me happy. This album is pretty much TSPO being TSPO, rather consistent with what you expect out of their records - it is also one of their most consistent so a great entry point if you have not done so already.
The energy of performer Kiriko Takemura and the genius of producer Yasutaka Nakata hits, in my opinion, its apex after only three years of producing albums that have garnered not only local acclaim in native Japan but also internationally (Katy Perry is apparently a fan, for example). For me, this contains the same kitsch charm and ridiculous energy but packages it into what I would say is the most “subtle” of the three releases which gives it this sort of flare of maturity and well-paced journey through the mind of Kiriko and her nonsensical approach to Japanese pop music, to which she has been blatantly honest with in various interviews who is astounded by the crossover appeal of her music. The first tracks are some of the finest contemporary Japanese pop around and that consistency isn’t completely lost by the second half of the record. Don’t avoid this record, okay?
Recommended for: The regulars who like contemporary pop will probably love this.
Dessa minimalizes her rapping and focuses on her singing and storytelling abilities (though there is still stellar hip-hop songs on here like “Fighting Fish”, and “Warsaw”) as she takes a more alternative-meets-art pop direction that is exceptional as all hell – I imagine some might disagree though. I love Dessa’s bite, lyrics, and fluidity in the mechanics of her rapping though she’s hardly brilliant at spitting but I do think she emotes it very well (hence me liking her bite) with a staunch sense of emotion and bitter commentary on her life. Production is about the same as her debut record and I like it all around.
Recommended for:dividesbyzero (perhaps) and Precedent; fans of alternative hip-hop or the midwest hip-hop scene in general.
Part of my “essential summer music” and probably one of the more “moody” of the supposed music I associate with the season. The sloshy production trips me over in waves as Bethany Cosentino’s vocals really takes me into her world and whilst my peers have called Best Coast lyrically mediocre and forgettable overall I would have to say I strongly disagree. There is just something here that appeals to me and I don’t hear the mediocrity or lack of memorable music but rather the opposite especially since Best Coast has sort of set a standard alongside Tennis and Makthaverskan with this type of slosh indie pop and I absolutely love it. There is just something so bluntly honest about the angsty songwriting that is waves better than the teen angst anthems of the 1990s and 1980s to me.
Recommended for: If you are interested in sloshy yet bluntly honest indie pop.
Scandal grows up into a cohesive and very mature pop-rock outfit that fleshes out their sensibilities with vocal melodies and instrumental tightness within a pop-rock landscape. Songs such as “Yoake no Ryuuseigun” show what Scandal has become which has come a long way from their more rebellious sort of vigor that was seen on songs like “Shunkan Sentimental” and “Doll”. Their pop artistry has improved immensely and their playing has only gotten tighter and more cohesive as they have gone from teenagers to young adults. Worth your attention if you are curious about the pop-rock scene in Japan or if you like bands like Silent Siren who owe a lot to their peers.
Yeah, that’s Japan deciding to mix idol industry pop music with death metal, trance synths, crunk/pop-rap verses, and just a lot of energetic “what the hell is this oh god give me more now”.
Last edited by mickilennial on 05/03/2015 11:49; edited 1 time in total
Not too different from Seimeiryoku, Kokuhaku expands little on the Chatmonchy formula as the trio is far more concerned about making the best songs out of their formula rather than maturing or evolving (which would come later), and whilst it is less “bouncy” than its predecessor it holds a well-executed album that is my second favorite by the band. However one of my favorite songs in their career is on this record too: “Last Love Letter” which is a jangly indie rock masterpiece by my definition.
The soundtrack to my childhood was the music of the golden standards of pop music and for a long time it took me awhile to really appreciate Brian Wilson’s labor of love that he poured his heart and soul into. Now, I had always loved the Beach Boys since I heard the very first collection of songs that left the car radio and entered my ears. I’m not sure what exactly captured my imagination at the time but the important fact of the matter is it did. The car radio was where I learned everything about what music could be and The Beach Boys were in great company as I experienced music that was grounded in melody and harmony which up until I was fourteen believed to be the utter objective definition of music. The Beach Boys stuck with me the most out of all of those musicians and songwriters however and it was also one of the few bands both of my parents seemed to be on the same page about—my mother loved the melodies and harmonies, my father enjoyed the baroque pop arrangements and compositional merits; it was very much a case of different cause but same effect.
Pet Sounds is a very popular record for great reasons, and believe it or not I had a lot of trouble dealing with how Pet Sounds seemed to be the only thing Brian Wilson wrote that people even remotely cared about to the point there was this short period of my life where I wrote it off as a sort of a boring record that the critics liked for abstract reasons that were irrelevant. Of course all of this has changed as I sit here with Pet Sounds as my number one record of all time and I feel it’s this timeless sort of transcendent piece of art. I can’t imagine why or how I could ever write this record off.
Recommended for: For Fans of- oh shut up, you know what this is.
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