Cheap Trick ~ Greatest Hits: Japanese Singles Collection (hits comp) (album review) ... Deep cuts & beloved hits!

Style: hard rock, pop rock
Label: Sony Japan
Year: 2018
Home: n/a

Members: Robin Zander ~ vocals/rhythm guitar
Rick Nielsen ~ guitar/b. vocals/keyboards 
Tom Petersson ~ bass/b. vocals 
Bun E. Carlos ~ drums

Additional: Jai Winding, Paul Klinberg, Kim Bullard ~ keyboards
Mark Radice ~ keyboards/vocals
Steve Lukather, Todd Rundgren ~ guitars 

I've never been a huge fan, as their songs have been a bit too pop for me. I'm more interested in the how to, than the what is. Everyone knows the famed multi-necked guitars of Rick Nielsen, but bassist Tom Petersson has a unique custom bass & sound I'm a bit envious of, speaking as a fellow bassist. They aren't my thing, but I appreciate the fact that they've made some classic ear worms, which you end up enjoying even if its not your style. I also give them credit for making all their early music themselves without an array of session players. They are creative & talented, no doubt. I will listen to them, but do not actively seek them out. I will confess I really enjoyed their 2017 album We're All Alright!, which I wanted to hear having not heard anything they had done since the '90's. It deserves a revisit & review here. I don't know how this album is reflective of their current sound, as the pop music Cheap Trick excelled in has come & gone from the charts. This leads me to the problem I have always had with them. I call them pop rock, but are they?  Pop love ballad lyrics with careening guitar solos feels so contradictory & mismatched o me. I'm reminded of the Smithereens, who I recently reviewed & called out for the same reason. Are they rock, punk, pop? I could never get what Cheap Trick was trying for, while their sound went through changes making them more unpredictable & hard to pinpoint. This might be why I enjoyed We're All Alright!, as it leaned more ragged punkish than pop. Also, his is where Greatest Hits: Japanese Single Collection is actually good for someone like me. It includes the live versions of "I Want You To Want Me", a "Ain't That A Shame," plus the U.S. hit singles "Surrender", "Voices", "Dream Police", "Stop This Game", "If You Want My Love", "Tonight It's You", "The Flame", "Don't Be Cruel", "Can't Stop Fallin' Into Love". It also includes lesser known songs. There is the punkish "Clock Strikes Ten", punk meets rockabilly "California Man", "Speak Now Or Forever Hold Your Peace" with a great thumping bass, the rolling pop song "Everything Works If You Let It", the rockin' "(Love Comes) A Tumblin’ Down", the new wave-esque "Dancing The Night Away", the pop ballads "Ghost Town" & "Wherever Would I Be", & soundtrack contributions "Mighty Wings"& "Stop That Thief." The hits are nice to hear, but these deep cuts I enjoyed so much more. They sounded like a whole different band. Having not heard much beyond the hits I didn't know this side of the band existed in years past. I'm actually impressed by their musical range the band has tried after hyearing these deep cuts. All but the last four named I enjoyed. Dump the keyboards I maybe would have enjoyed them more. These additions make this hits comp a worthwhile purchase. This hits collection, one of many to choose from, includes all the singles released in Japan between 1977 & 1990 while on Epic. More precisely, every album is represented here from their debut to 1990's Busted, which also is before the departure of drummer Bun E. Carlos. There are a few songs missing that were hits in the U.S., like "She's Tight", but the deep cuts make up for it. I had a domestic hits comp years ago that didn't have these songs on it. I wish it did. This includes the versions released in America, a bit odd as this is a Japanese label, & it feels almost like they are catering to both countries. These are the original mixes, no remastering. The DVD, which I haven't seen, has the music videos & clips from their Budokan concert, & was previously released as the Every Trick In The Book DVD. I don't review music video DVDs here.

Kard (카드) ~ Red Moon (Mini-Album/EP) ... Latin beats for a dark & sultry experience!

Style: k-pop, dance, Latin, Reggaeton, trap
Label: DSP Media
Year: 2020
Home: Korea

Members: J.Seph, BM ~ rap
Jeon So-min, Jeon Ji-woo ~ vocals

I've never reviewed dance music on this blog, as I think the electronica aspect & focus on the beats pulls it too far from rock & thus outside of the focus of this blog. Yet, I've decided there are exceptions to the rule. K-Pop group Kard are called dance music, yet there's something about their musical approach which makes their dance beats outside of the norm & a must hear. Essentially, they've got soul & emotion via a fusion of numerous music styles. Electronic drum beats are placed against a Reggaeton-esque guitar backbeat & something like a muted trumpet for the verses of opener "Go Baby", while the rapped chorus uses the same beat but with darker sounds to accompany. Its a fascinating mix of a couple styles of music that wonderfully push & pull each other. The song also features the two softer female voices for the verses, while the two males shoot out the chorus in near anger. Gender is thus used to increase the tension & release of the song. Its not just the tonal differences of the voices, which is the common approach, but the natural contrast of feminine vs masculine. It takes the song to a whole new level. Even if you don't speak Korea, which I don't, the song screams with emotion. One female has a sexy silky voice, while the other is a bit harsher, & then there's the determined almost tough male voice. The end response is almost like a call & response, or a conversation between folks spanning a wave of emotions. I wish I knew the meaning of the lyrics to verify which of these is more true, but its intensely addicting just the same & worth checking out. "Red Moon" features Spanish, English & Korean against a Latin beat that could be part of Shakira's catalog. It opens slow before diving into a huge beat. If this was Shakira you can picture her hips suddenly shaking & taking you on a sexy Latin ride at that moment. Yet, it doesn't stay on one beat, but continues to change to accentuate the different vocal styles. The song has such great & unpredictable dynamics that I can imagine a dance floor just pumping with this song. I'm not the only one who has heard this comparison. Created in 2017 by DSP Media, Kard has actually found a huge audience in South America. I love the fact that the rap here is not just like American rap, but also is heavily influenced by Reggaeton & Latin rap. "Enemy" takes a completely different approach, going with a trap dance breakdown & leaving the Latin feel behind. It plays up the darker feel that Kard has & lets the girls take the spotlight for a song. Its got some great musical moments. I'm not sure if the members of Kard compose the music or not, but whoever it is has crafted a great mix of styles & emotions. I find this album to be stellar. I found it hard to put down. I don't know much Latin music, even though I have a former girlfriend who was Mexican & we listened to a lot of Reggaeton. I just know if it makes me move or not. This album absolutely made me move. "Inferno" allows the boys a moment of their own. They go for a heavy rap moment that reminds me of some of the stuff from the Horrorcore scene. I do have to make one side comment. I've listened to a lot of J-Pop, having lived in Japan for 3 years, but one thing that always bothered me was the non-sense English that was used. Quirky lines that sounded good, but don't make sense in English & thus can't make sense in Japanese. Its nice to hear a band, & K-Pop in general, using English properly & not nonsense phrases. It makes me want to learn Korean to know what else is being said. Closer "Dumb Litty" keeps the feeling of "Inferno" but now brings together all four members. The Latin drum beat makes the song something more, fusing the Horrorcore with the Reggaeton. The synthetic beats are thick & unique with lots of layers. Latin Horrorcore trap dance? Is that a thing? I don't know, but I love the fusion found on this album. I hope they keep it up. Kard has a great thing they've stumbled upon that I recommend highly for a new Latin, rap & dance experience.

Red Velvet (레드벨벳) - Queendom (Mini-Album/EP) (album review) ... Pure fun & happiness!

Style: K-pop, dance, pop
Label: SM Entertainment
Year: 2021
Home: South Korea

Members: Irene, Seulgi, Wendy, Joy, Yeri ~ vocals

The music & visuals of SM Entertainment's Red Velvet have struck a chord with many in South Korea & across the globe. It would not be saying too much to call the girls musical ambassadors, as they've earned noticed from the Ministry of Ministry of Culture, Sports & Tourism for helping spread Korean popular culture, while others have noticed their influence on promoting the K-Pop scene & Korean culture. Time magazine even called them one of the world's best K-Pop groups, & in 2019 Billboard said they were the best idol group alive. In a very crowded musical scene, that's quite an achievement. Hint: you should be checking them out! Their 6th mini-album, or EP for westerners, Queendom might come off as synthesizer heavy dance pop with some lightweight vocals that is catchy & fun & thus open to a large international audience. One might even draw comparisons with the Pussycat Dolls, early Madonna & many U.S. pop dance acts, yet that would be a mistaken write-off of a group that has found a special place in K-Pop. Korean girl idol groups tend to be promoted as sexy or cute/girl next door or mature woman. Red Velvet has found a rare place bringing in traits of all the above, but lace it through promoting the idea of strong confident women who make their own choices about their own lives. Its youthfulness without naivity. Its being an adult, but still not growing out of youth. Its being strong, but still having fun. Its being sexy, without constant booty shaking. As the addictive title track says in translation: "We are strong & beautiful" & "We are makin' the rules" &, my fave line, "The new color is together." Can you say girl power? They're young, fun, & sexy by being confident, having good self-esteem & doing it together. Its the same vibe that ran through the Spice Girls, Garbage, P!nk & many other female groups in the U.S. in years past. Drawing that comparison I can't help but notice the contrast between Red Velvet & songs in the current American music scene where we have songs like "W.A.P." where its not about uniting as women, but essentially falling into selfish behavior to please one's senses. What happened to girl power? While does girl power have to be all about what is listed in W.A.P.? That's not girl power. Essentially, I miss lyrics & a message like this. I'd love to see an English version of this song released for the world. Listening to this album, even as a guy, I feel good. I feel happy. The music is just so infectious I can feel what they are saying. When I google a translation it just makes it better. I honestly rarely say that music makes me feel happy. That is maybe the best thing I can say about this album. I want to go out & dance. I want to find my girlfriend & give her a big hug & kiss. I want to have fun. Honestly, this gushing is all over the opening song ... but the album keeps the vibe up with five more strong tracks of great beats & girl power. The first song is strong, but what follows is not a let down either lyrically or musically as the band explores different dance pop styles that should delight most ears. You'll be dancing along with the modern darker beats & raps of "Pose", & enjoying the softer yet fun side of the band with "Knock On Wood" that has a slight '80's feel. There's also the sensual longings of "Better Be" that has some great seductive whispered vocals, moving away from the dance beats of the other song. "Pushin' N' Pullin'" is a fun little piano ditty of a relationship that is a pure delight. This is my second fave track. The title might have some overt sexual connotations in English, but actually in this case its meant less sexual & more romantic. While the album ends with the ballad "Hello, Sunset" that fuses a simple beat with a '70's-esque funky guitar. Feel the love of Red Velvet. This is a great album. Check it out without hesitance.

Purple Kiss (퍼플키스) ~ Mini-Album Vol. 2: Hide & Seek (Mini-Album/EP) (album review) ... A funky dance break!

Style: K-pop idol group, dance, rap
Label: RBW Entertainment
Year: 2021
Home: Seoul, South Korea

Members: Park Ji-eun, Na Go-eun, Dosie, Ireh, Yuki, Chaein, Swan ~ vocals/rap

I've recently discovered & fallen in love with K-Pop. I spent 3 years in Japan & used to listen to a lot of J-Pop, while I've had a lifelong love of Indian classical music, while a year in Hungary led to a large collection of Hungarian rock bands, so I like foreign music, yet  K-Pop never came up on my radar until recently via a commentary by youtuber Matt Walsh. Even when Psy's "Gangham Style" was huge, I wasn't grabbed to look more into the K-Pop world. Now I can tell you of bands, particularly of the first generation, along with who my favorite singer is, & all about the Idol Band scene. I find it all so fascinating, as it comes out of a music factory like we don't have in America, while one band can cover numerous music styles with ease. Once I got beyond the shock of how derivative the music is, I actually find a lot of the songs super addictive, the videos often are works of art, & the boys & girls are some of the best dancers I've ever seen (& I lived with 2 dancers in Hungary, & saw dance theater weekly. I'm no expert, but I've seen a lot beyond the Britney Spears world of stage dance). So, while it might be a stretch on this blog where I'm reviewing Iron Maiden & Kiss, since I'm listening so much of K-Pop it was time to start writing about them. First, I don't speak Korean. I have no clue what the lyrics are or what the songs are about, which is a shame as I miss out on some great messages. All I have is the voices & the music & the hook. A lot of K-Pop bands I don't care for. A lot of the ballad stuff doesn't do much for me, while a lot of the dance stuff I find bland & not distinctive. A lot of the groups synthesize & auto-tune their members voices so much I can't tell who is who singing as all the voices sound alike. If you're going to copy the Spice Girls, remember they were more than just interesting visuals. Plus, do all Korean girls sing high & all boys the same? Is there no deep voiced singers of either gender? I don't think so from what I've found so far. But, at least, for this first K-Pop album on my blog I can say girl group Purple Kiss do let each member's voice shine with modest tweaking & the music is unique.We're hearing voices, not computers. This 6 song mini-album released September 2021, or what might be called an EP to westerners as we don't have mini-albums, opens with the dance track "Zombie" that fuses a basic beat, a funk guitar & thick funk bass, with some smooth vocals & the obligatory rap break all idol groups have. Its a fun upbeat metro funky song that is what many of us have wanted from Britney & Christina Aguilera for years now. This should be played in every American club. "2am" (새벽 2시) is a slow song that might remind you of a ballad from some girl group of the '90's like En Vogue. A classic sound made even better by the background vocals under an echo effect. "Cast Pearls Before Swine" (돼지 목에 진주 목걸이) brings an Asian feel to the dance beat & sounds totally unique, with a great rap breakdown. I even enjoyed the synthesized delayed effects on the rap break, which worked surprisingly well on a singing style often better without effects. A total highlight. Next to "Zombie" this was a total favorite. "So Why" was a bit of a letdown with its simple beat, but it has a solo bass break that totally saves it. It feels like it needs a stronger hook with the vocals, as without the funky bass - a highlight of the whole album by the way - the song just feel under-whelming & filler. "Twinkle" & "ZzZz" are dance ballads that just felt like more filler, even with the surf-like guitar of "Twinkle" which isn't used enough. I would have liked to hear more of its quirky tone against the rap break. The rap has a dark energy that can totally be played with for contrast. Simplicity is the name of the game here, with simple uncluttered beats & all the focus on the vocals, yet after "Zombie" & "Cast Pearls Before Swine" the simplicity of these songs doesn't do the album any favors. "ZzZz" goes for something that tries for something that reminded me of a Hawaiian beach fell, but I never felt it landed. The ideas are here, but musically need work to bring out the personality of the music. Formed in 2021 by RBW Entertainment Purple Kiss is part of the 4th generation of idol groups. A lot of the 2020-2021 new idol groups I'm not much of a fan of, as too many lean too far to the technical end of dance, but the girls of Purple Kiss have a wonderful '90's street feel that totally makes their music stand out as unique. There's a lot of great stuff here, but they just need to push the button, push the energy, go a step farther with it to make it pop on the next level. This is only their 2nd album & I look forward to how they develop their sound. If I was producing I would lean more into the '90's hip-hop street sound & develop that out for something totally unique. Dump the cute girl next door look & go street.

Rudra ~ Brahmavidya: Transcendental I (album review) ... Slayer meets goddless Devi!

Style: religious, Vedic Metal, death metal, Hindu
Label: Trinity Records
Year: 2009
Home: Singapore

Members: Kathir ~ bass/vocals
Selvam, Devan ~ guitars
Shiva ~ drums
n/a ~ tabla, tambura, chanting


The interesting thing is what this Singaporean band says they create - Vedic Metal, that is metal inspired & influenced by the ancient Hindu scriptures known as the Vedas. The sad thing is how little this Vedic Metal idea comes across to the non-initiated listener ... & even as the initiated I struggle. Though, probably anyone not interested in Hinduism is not going to be listening unless Rudra is involved in a concert with other non-religious bands, which has been their fate considering the number of Vedic Metal bands on the scene before & after. I recognize some of the mantras & words & names of Gods being growled out, but if you don't know Vedic scriptures or mantra, for example the stories of Krishna, it'll just be another foreign language, which might be fine for you. As for the music there are passages of traditional Indian tambura, tabla & Sanskrit hymn chanting. "Meditations At Dawn" fuses tabla & female chanting with acoustic guitar for a very interesting track that ends up being more of an intermission on an album that is less than interesting. These are my favorite bits of the album, having a fondness for Indian music, but there's nothing metal about them or anything that's not traditional classical Indian. They're just fluff essentially. As for the non-fluff there's nothing Indian there. It's just straight by the book twin guitar riffage in the Slayer tradition & like black metal with growling vocals & double bass drums doing blast beats like Sadistik Exekution. Interesting is the biting twin guitars that create a heavy sound, but uninteresting is how they just speed away like any other band with riffs as by the book as everything else. So, if Vedic Metal is a bunch of fluff with a bunch of metal but not fused together this is nothing but a joke or some false PR. Though, for me its just disappointing. But, I've said this with other bands that try to fuse different styles but don't really fuse but just use one as an intro to the other & they lay as unfused as ever. So, where exactly does the Vedic Metal tag come in then? Solely the lyrics. The lyrics are inspired by & include Hindu philosophy & stories & mantras. But, while I can pick out some mantras in the lyrics, most of it will be indistinguishable to someone who is unfamiliar with sanskrit, while the growling vocals make what is there largely undecipherable. So, the Vedic of the metal is going to be lost on many folks unless you chance to her the name Krishna growled out. For me, if you're going to sing hymns about God & the mythology about the Gods ... well, let me put it this way - I hope God understands what's being said as while I've chanted many Vedic hymns over the years I made sure the words were clear even if the definitions not. I made sure to keep my gargling in the bathroom. But, I have this problem with black metal. I know there's a lot of folks who can't sing, including myself, but there are lots of folks who can & would love to be in a band. Find one instead of singing lyrics nobody can understand. There's a few English moments, but sometimes I couldn't tell what I was hearing & I don't know what language most of the album is in. That just disappoints me. For me the idea of Vedic Metal sings of potential, not rehash of Slayer & just replacing songs about god with songs about Vishnu the God. Remove the extraneous classical Indian music bridges & this sounds just like any other black metal band with a very dense sound & lots of blast beats. There's so many bands like this I have trouble recommending one more. I think it's great what they're wanting to do lyrically, even if I can't understand any of it. I support Hindu rock & welcome more of it, but this isn't interesting. I'll stick to Slayer when I want Slayer & just read my Hindu texts at night before bed. It's worked so far. Originally formed in 1992 as a trio & known as Rudhra, an alias of Shiva who is the embodiment of unpredictable nature, the band put out a demo & some contributions to compilations before separating. They reunited in 1996, now as Rudra. They'd go through numerous line-up changes over the years. This is the second chapter in a trilogy of albums starting with 2005's Primordial I & finishing with 2011's Immortal I. It would follow a line-up change & be followed by one. This is their fifth album. In 2010, Rudra headlined the first day of Baybeats, an annual alternative music festival in Singapore. This is thought to be one of the few times, if the only, when an extreme metal band has headlined a non-metal music festival. Rudra has also become the interest of musicologists & research papers have been published about both Vedic Metal & the band. Personally, I'd rather read those than hear the music, but having heard the music I can't see that much musically to talk about that's not elaborating on things that aren't there. Though, maybe I should give them the benefit of the doubt that their riffing uses Indian raga forms? Maybe I just shouldn't ask?

Sigh ~ Scenes From Hell (album review) ... Act 1, Scene 1, the devil enters stage left!

Style: black metal, experimental
Label: The End
Year: 2010
Home: Japan

Members: Dr. Mikannibal ~ vocals/saxophone
Satoshi Fujinami ~ bass/percussion/tambourine/vibraslap
Shinichi Ishikawa ~ guitar
Junichi Harashima ~ drums
Mirai Kawasima ~ Vocals/orchestration/keyboards/theremin/whistle/sitar/tabla/tampura/glockenspiel/clavinet/recorder

Additional: Greg Cossar, Hideto Nagai, Zoltan Pal ~ trombone
Jonathan Fisher ~ trumpet
Erin McGowan-Slee ~ oboe
Ashley Pahmiyer ~ french horn
Catherine Williams ~ flute
Kazuki Ookubo ~ euphonium/tuba
Koichi Koike ~ cello
Kyosuke Matsumoto ~ viola
Takatoshi Yanase ~ violin
Adam Matlock ~ accordion/clarinet
Quatro Gradini ~ strings
Frederic Viennot ~ keyboards
Kam Lee ~ b. vocals

Guest: David Tibet ~ narrator

Putting on a black metal CD the last thing you probably expect to hear mixed with the typical growling vocals & thrashing guitar lines is a gypsy-esque horn & string lines ... unless you're listening to the original demos of Earth, aka Black Sabbath, that originally included a couple horn players ... but that's the rarely heard exception to the norm. Actually, Sigh is the rarely heard exception. Sigh is a moody dark black metal stomp given some exciting extreme counterpoint with horns & strings. Of course, black metal bands use synthesizers all the time for a classical touch, but Sigh carries things in a new direction with a more gypsy or drunken Klezmer feel. It's startling exciting not for the inclusion of the instrumentation itself, but also because the classical motif has worn out its welcome with abandon. Sign is one of the more textured black metal bands I've heard in a while. I'm often writing about metal bands that throw in a strange instrument here or there, as their gimmick, but its only a disappointing gimmick & could be removed & nobody would notice. Sigh, for the most part, take things a lot further. Opener "Prelude To the Oracle" features colliding horn lines while the guitar sticks to being a rhythm instrument. Dueling male growling vocal lines also add another chaotic element. It's a highlight, though it dips back & forth between average & interesting. The growling, outside of the dueling element, the guitars & the double bass pounding rhythm section aren't doing anything particularly interesting ... or unaverage. Its the normal black metal so many people find tedious. But, then, they accentuate different lines with upbeat horns/strings. This is where everything gets exciting, but the sad part is that this is only accentuating things. You could remove those extras & still have a complete song. They don't drive the music, just add an element to it. Though, much of the melody line is by the horns as the guitars stick mostly to rhythm. But, the melody lines feel more like what is referred to a orchestral stabs than anything flowing forward. The first three songs feature variations on this theme (i.e. "Prelude To The Oracle", "L'art De Mourir", "The Soul Grave") with the only variation seemingly to be on how chaotic it gets. But then, things take a big leap & the horns move from accentuating to being a key player in the sound. Skip the second & third song & go right to the fourth, where Sigh does what I'm looking for & waiting for. Though, they start slowly. They train the ears. The fourth track, "The Red Funeral", opens with a moody piano & narrator that's out of a movie, before going into a strange horn line for a bar leading to sirens & other sound effects & then the riffing guitars. It takes a bit, but when the horns do return they actually are the primary instrument with the guitars pulled back into the arrangement, even absent for a brief violin moment. The horns/strings are even given some solo moments & slowly take a step towards becoming a big part part of the song, where the song would feel empty without them. It's an exciting epic track. Then, things take an bigger step in the dirge "The Summer Funeral". Here horns/strings are truly entwined & the guitar is often reduced to the most minimal of rhythm marking out chord changes. Take out the horns/strings & there's no song left. Though, there is too much repetition. At seven minutes, the longest track on the album, its a classical epic in the true spirit of the world, but it repeats where it should have variety. Though, I can overlook the repetition as this is a true fusion of black metal & non-rock forms & is exactly what I'm looking for from supposedly inventive black metal bands for years. Though, having gone as far as they can with the experiment, the next track, "Musica In Tempora Belli", takes to keyboards with cosmic lines like a 60's sci-fi movie soundtrack, before having narration & a strings bridge. It moves from sci-fi to something a Middle Ages poetic feel. Very different than the previous tracks but still exciting & completely unexpected. Sadly, closing pieces "Vanitas" & "Scenes From Hell" go back to the uninspired chaotic thrashing that opened the album, with some horns coming in late to have any interesting effect. On the whole the highlights are invigorating, delightful & highly recommended. The rest is just chaotic black metal well played, or well growled, but not incredibly unusual outside of the dueling vocals ... though it should be mentioned that its a girl growler, a rarity, so that inherently makes it more interesting. But, if you didn't know about the band you wouldn't know its a girl, so those scrolling through itunes aren't going to be struck by this fact. It should be mentioned that Sigh is one of the first Japanese black metal bands & its later in their career they've shifted to more experimental work. I haven't heard to anything else they've done. I can only hope it's like this. The band was originally signed Euronymous of the legendary black metal band Mayhem, releasing their first album after his death.

Yngwie Malmsteen with the New Japan Philharmonic ~ Concerto Suite For Electric Guitar And Orchestra In E Flat Minor Live (live) (album review) ... When you can't be pretentious enough!

Style: power metal, progressive, symphonic metal, instrumental
Label: Pony Canyon Records
Year: 2002
Home: n/a/Japan

Members: Yngwie Malmsteen ~ guitar
Taizo Takemoto ~ conductor
Nabomi Mizuno ~ harp
Yasuhito Sugiyama ~ tuba
Yasushi Watanabe, Kenji Wada, Hiroshi Arakawa ~ flute
Junta Yagi, Ryuta Suzuki ~ harpsichord/organ
Hisato Yamaguchi, Nobuko Miyashita, Yasumitsu Eto, Ryota Fujii ~ trombone
Toshihiko Mitsunobu, Takaya Hattori, Kazuhiko Ichikawa ~ trumpet
Toru Yamada, Rika Yabiku, Tatsuya Kawase, Hikaru Kojima, Takaaki Kondo ~ drums/percussion
Takaaki Tsuboi, Junji Sekikawa, Akiko Mori, Hidemi Mikai, Akira Ishikawa, Akira Ueda, Takako Ueda, Shiro Ide, Shozo Aida, Nobuyoshi Asama, Daisaku Sakuma ~ horns
Koichi Morizono, Hitoshi Makita, Tsunefumi Ishida, Yoshihito Hiroshima, Otsuo Shibata, Tatsuya Anpo, Nobuaki Nakata ~ upright bass
Izumi Yamazaki, Sayaka Miyazawa, Megumi Koike, Shozo Kaibara, Hatsumi Ishida, Ai Ishida, Momoko Inagaki, Hiroko Ichiju, Keiko Kimura, Toru Kawakami, Noriko Karaki, Maki Horiuchi, Chizuru Koyama, Toru Hirota, Kaoru Hanazaki, Masamichi Hara, Takaaki Hara, Yoko Mase, Kenji Magaki, Mari Kuwata, Makiko Matsumiya, Eiji Nakaya, Fumiko Nakagawa, Mariko Nagata, Yasushi Morisawa, Hikaru Moriyama, Yoshie Sunahata, Yuji Soda, Eiji Shinohara, Noriko Nishimoto, Reo Tada, Kumi Tanaka, Asami Tamura, Masato Takahashi, Mio Unosawa, Hiroko Yamada, Sachiko Yamaguchi, Noriko Yamamoto, Yoichi Yoshitsuru, Akiko Yano, Keiko Yamazaki, Tomoko Yoshimura, Hayato Takenaka ~ strings
Ritsuyukai Choir ~ choir

Responding to critics that said his 1998 release Concerto Suite for Electric Guitar & Orchestra in E Flat Minor Op. 1 had overdubbed guitar parts YM set out to prove them wrong by re-recording the Suite live in full view of an audience with the New Japan Philharmonic behind him on stage. There was no question after, & there never should have been before, that YM is truly the super technically advanced player he claims to be & has proven over numerous recordings. The two recordings don't differ much except for some length changes in a few songs for the stage while the concert doesn't have the cold studio sheen, or to put it another way you can feel the air hanging between the players which is lost when parts are recorded individually & pieced together later. There's also less tonal variation by YM on stage where he's not switching guitars ... which leads to what is wrong with this recording & many of YM's albums - the lack of some much needed variety in his playing. YM has a particular well-honed style featuring notes flying from his fingers at amazing speeds, but after an hour of this all done in the same tone & maybe even the same key the result is less spectacular than it should be. But, YM is the king of anti-climactic showing off. He's never understood that lightening fast playing is great but there's also a time for slower more subtle playing & what was impressive thirty years ago eventually becomes less impressive. You can't show off forever though YM has tried his hardest to do just that, seemingly oblivious that a couple generations of inspired players have come after him with maybe not the same technique but with lots more variety. Plus, these players have found emotional pockets in their music which is nearly absent from YM's playing many a time. It's very difficult to have lightening fast technique that is still emotive. Very few players, regardless of the musical genre, have managed to walk that line successfully & usually it works because they balance the fire with the water. YM just keeps feeding the flames & wondering why everyone is walking away because they're feeling too hot. YM's albums, & this one is no exception if not actually a perfect example, tend to feel like one long solo that go nowhere & have nothing to say, versus intricately crafted songs. There are a few albums, particularly the early Rising Force days, that are stellar but YM has always had this need to constantly impress instead of just relaxing. Writing for a orchestra ... might that not be just another way to impress? It might also be a way to expand his music beyond what a rock band can offer. The problem is that he doesn't use the orchestra to its full potential or to accentuate his playing nor even to seemingly challenge him. Many rock musicians have recorded with an orchestra & most use only part of what such an ensemble offers not digging into its rhythmic & tonal abilities, not using it to make music on its own versus just accentuating what the band is doing. When YM plays it's all about YM. There is no other instrument of importance on stage. He could have done this Suite with multiple keyboardist to similar, though weaker, effect. YM solos for an hour while the orchestra just plays some weak ditties in the background. There's very little interplay or letting the orchestra ever step up to bat or being more than a gimmick. Rock musicians should take a page from Yanni's Live At The Acropolis where he doesn't even play piano or do much at all on many of his own songs as he's all about letting an orchestra reinterpret his past compositions, not showing off his particular keyboard skills. YM's "Cavallino Rampante" comes close to some intertwining lines, & so does "Fugue", though the later at times sounds like the guitar is trying to work against the harmony of the two by constantly adding flourishes when the two are supposed to be playing the same thing in sync. It's shooting sparks out of the fire when it should be flowing like water. But, Suite is not all bad. There are a few good moments if one is paying attention & can get beyond the monotony. "Brothers" is about as close as we get to an emotional piece but YM is still attempting to fill the air with as many notes as possible crowding out anything else including letting the emotion have a moment to itself. "Icarus Dream Fanfare" & "Adagio" include some good guitar lines, too. The seventh song in "Prelude To April" is the one piece which pushes the limit with a change of tone, choir & even some soft nearly acoustic playing & allows the orchestra to shine for the first time. More of this, please. Though the rapid fire solo kills the piece just as it begins to take off. Change of mind. No more of that. Thankfully "Sarabande" follows & picks up the pieces, but one shouldn't have to rescue a song with another one in a similar vein. As for this album being of interest to classical fans. Probably not. Too much guitar. & there's not much particularly Romero-esque about the guitar playing. Don't introduce your classical geek cousin to rock with this particular bridge. You'll never get a second chance. Theoretically, YM could have crafted an album that bridged both classical & rock fans. Billy Joel did this with his final studio album while many classical musicians have stepped across the bridge. But, it takes more than technical playing to woo a classical audience brought up on rushing musical landscapes & operatic posing. As for the "Suite" itself ... none of the songs really rise to any great height or are profoundly interesting & are just backdrops for solos. A solo isn't a song. It might be a little two or three minute bit on an album, yes, but it's not the entire album. If YM had some solo singing or a few guests that would have moved this concert miles forward ... but when YM performs there's only room for him. It's really a shame as for someone of YM's skill he could create magic that no other guitarist could touch. Instead he's been playing the same furious lines too much in love with his skills to realize the flash has lost its flash & most people want music with more depth. Joining the "Suite" there's also the added tracks of the orchestra only "Black Star Overture", plus "Brothers", "Trilogy Suite Op. 5: The First Movement" & "Blitzkrieg" as an encore which make this the more worthwhile of the two versions of the Suite to listen to.

Imari Tones ~ Victory In Christ (album review) ... Walking with the original rising sun!

Style: heavy metal, Christian
Label: self-released
Year: 2010
Home: Yokohama, Japan

Members: Tak "Tone" ~ guitar/vocals
Yuki "Hassy" ~ bass
Hide "Jake" ~ drums

People don't typically think of Japan as a Christian country, but it actually has a large Christian population though Buddhism remains the most obvious religious practice in daily life & the Japanese are considered Buddhist by birth until converted. This Buddhist dominance even extends to the artistic culture where the country itself seems more intent on continuing the idea that it's 100% Buddhist rather than accepting the fact that many religions live on its islands & have for a long time. The trio of Imari Tones is working towards breaking this stereotype through positive & inspirational 80's power metal & their claim, though unverifiable, that "they are one of very few bands in the world that can claim true originality. How so? They are the first Christian heavy metal band ever to come out of Japan." Victory In Christ is their latest of 15 releases, all independently recorded/produced ... something not as common in Japan as in America. Imari Tones understand the challenge they are facing, according to their press release, quoting founder/frontman Tak: "There are very few Japanese bands who say 'Hey, we're a Christian band.' A Christian band from Japan almost sounds like a joke, since most people in Japan are Buddhists or Atheists." But, these guys are no joke. Think of Christian rockers Stryper in a meeting with Van Halen & you'll get a feeling of the musical maneuvers being executed by Imari Tones. Highly skilled technical 80's hard rock that draws from the careers of Yngmie Malmsteen, Steve Vai, Eddie Van Halen, Eric Johnson & all the great power metal rockers of the time. Tak has done his homework well in crafting his soaring solos & an endless variety of riffs. He's also paid attention to song structure & knows that the best of his heroes is when they sit back & groove & not aim for one over-the-top hour long solo. Tak & company also shy away from the influence of speed & thrash metal, keeping things firmly melodic & accessible to more than just a minority of metalheads. Sadly, the production quality could be better as the guitar/vocals are upfront but the rhythm section is little low in the mix so their impact is less than it could be. The feeling is of a guitar, with some overdubs, with a basic backing band behind it & not a unified band with a shared spotlight. It would be nice to hear more of what the bassist is playing, along with more experimentation from the drums. Imari Tones likes to compare themselves to Rush in their press release but they could take some lessons from the Rush rhythm section. Just bringing the instruments up in the mix would help a lot towards this. As for the lyrics, Tak's somewhat predictable lyrics of love & Jesus are all in English, good for the international crowd ... as long as nobody minds a typical Japanese accent & a few mispronunciations such as the famed Japanese substitution of 'l' for 'r'. Though, for the folks interested in international sounds, Tak's accent is the only thing that sounds explicitly Japanese on Victory In Christ as this is one of those bands not hemmed in by natural or theoretical borders ... their role model is Jesus & Jesus has no borders.

Hideaki Nakama ~ Point Of No Return (album review) ... The Japanese Satriani!

Style: progressive, hard rock, instrumental, power metal
Label: n/a
Year: 1989
Home: Japan

Members: Hideaki Nakama ~ guitars
Norio Sakai ~ vocals
Satoshi Miyawaki ~ drums
Fumiaki Ogawa ~ keyboards
Hiroshi Kondo ~ bass

Guest: Tatsuya Umehara ~ b. vocals

The Japanese seem to have an undying affection for complicated power metal & six string flights of fancy that would put Hendrix to shame. Just consider the love they have for Mr. Big or even innovators The Ventures, while numerous guitarists, such as Marty Friedman of Megadeth, have moved there ... & seemingly vanished from earth (if you've lived there, as I did for 3 years, you'll know what I mean about its isolating quality). I, on the other hand, just turn to Joe Satriani's Flying In A Blue Dream & call it a day completely satisfied I've gotten my intake of power for the year. Next to Van Halen, he's my choice of 80's power metal instrumentalist. Though Herman Li of Dragonforce gets my attention for the next generation. Yes, you may argue that I'm excluding a lot of great guitarists, which I am, but this should show that I'm not the biggest fan of power metal. But, as I haven't review any Japanese music yet I felt it was time & all I have available is power metal. I used to follow a lot of J-Pop, as it's called, but Hideaki Nakama is one of my few discoveries after the fact. Point Of No Return is the first solo outing by the former lead guitarist of Hurry Scuary, which I think is bad English for Hurry Scary, which is just bad English but typical of what you find in Japan ... a lack of proof-readers though English teachers are in abundance. Much to my liking, Nakama is a Satriani disciple through & through. Heavily overdubbed instrumentals span the range of sounds that can come from a guitar in heavily melodic musical masterb... um, creating. The few songs that feature singing use that stereotypical English language tenor approach common to Japanese musicians that's a bit grating on the ears, let alone sounding too much like disco drag queen Sylvester. Ironically, the tracks with singing ("In 2040, On The Beach") happen to be some of the strongest as they feature more than just a 4 minute guitar solo. But, even Satriani employs under-thrilling singing so one can't fault the disciple if the imitation is too good. & it really is too good. There's one stand out track on the album, "El Giza", which features acoustic guitars with a classical feeling, keyboards floating in the background & acoustic hand drums. This track is some of the best acoustic flavored rock I've heard in a long time, though it's hardly rock & more akin to Indian inspired jazz great John McLaughlin's work with Shakti & the music of Al Di Meola. Besides this track this very well could be a solo album by Satriani, Steve Vai, Eric Johnson or any number of guitar players out there & only a diehard fan might be any wiser. The imitation is so strong that I'm wondering why I would just turn to the original, considering there's nothing particularly individual about the playing. & there's definitely nothing remotely Japanese or Asian sounding about it. The strongest point I can bring up about this release is that if you are a power metal fan then don't forget to look outside America if you don't already. Death metal fans regularly & without hesitance turn to Sweden Norway & Germany choosing to not limit themselves to Florida or Texas. There's no reasons fans of other genres shouldn't either. I happen to know there's some great metal coming out of Hungary. Though, I find the Japanese great at imitation while the Europeans better at interpretation. could Bjork have come out of Asia? & how many Japanese rock bands have really made their mark from their original sound? I know the Japanese can make great & original music, the B'z & Globe come immediately to mind, but so much of it seems imitative ... but then, what am I saying? We all know Christina Aguilera is trying to be Lady Gaga on her new album Bionic so imitation is the name of the game.

Nutrition ~ Hyperdimensional Awakening (EP) (album review) ... Vitamin overload!

Style: black metal, experimental
Label: Death To Music Productions
Year: 2009
Home: California/Japan

Members: Jeremy Mauney ~ vocals
Roland La Goy ~ guitars/bass/keyboards/drums

 
I often have trouble enjoying black metal. It's not because I don't want to but because I don't know what to listen for. I fight against what I perceive as a lack of creativity in the double bass drum & repetitious guitar figures with indecipherable growling. Then, I hear a band where the growling has dimensions (i.e. Arch Enemy & Cradle Of Filth most immediately come to mind) & where there is some musical variety in the arrangement. In that moment I realize the enjoyment in black metal ... I just have to weed through the mass amount of junk metal out there to get to the really tarnished stuff worth collecting. A good stage show doesn't hurt either, which was my introduction to Satyricon who I like. But, on record this asset is missing & I'm stuck struggling trying to find things about a recording that makes it attractive to me. When I find it it's a goldmine. This 4 song EP did shimmers with a gold hue. On one hand it's straight-forward black metal, but the hyper-dimensional in the title should be taken literally. It's full of little nuances. These range from radio transmissions as voice-overs to haunting gothic keyboards, which particularly bring out a new level to the music with quasi-polyphonic melody lines, solos in different keys & a third track that goes for a more ethereal approach. I've found myself listen to this EP over & over & over in the last few days unable to find the words to review it because I know I'll fail & I kept hearing new things in the mix. Whenever I think I'm missing something I know it's good music. This album can be downloaded free, so there's no reason not to check it out!

Sunn 0))) & Boris ~ Altar (album review) ... The sound of sounds!

Style: experimental, drone metal
Label: Southern Lord
Year: 2006
Home: Seattle/Tokyo, Japan

Members: Stephen O'Malley ~ guitars/keyboards
Greg Anderson ~ guitars/bass/keyboard
Atsuo ~ drums
Wata ~ guitars/vocals
Takeshi ~ bass/guitars

Additional: Dylan Carlson ~ guitar
Tos Nieuwenhuizen, Rex Ritter ~ organ
Bill Herzog ~ bass/drums
Adrienne Davies ~ percussion
Steve Moore ~ trombone
TOS Nieuwenhuizen, Troy Swanson, Randall Dunn, Mell Dettmer, Troy Swanson ~ keyboards
Eyvind Kang ~ violin

Guests: Phil Wandscher, Jesse Sykes ~ vocals
Joe Preston ~ vocoder
Kim Thayil ~ guitar
Rex Ritter ~ keyboard 

If you haven’t heard of Sunn O))) you probably don’t read many rock mags, cause it’s hard to forget their name (pronounced /sun/) and all in the music news. Or, you might have seen pictures of them on stage where they dress like monks with guitars...also unforgettable. This Seattle duo is attempting to redefine heavy metal, which for them is not blistering guitar solos & double bass...of which neither is on any of their CDs. Labeled the leaders of experimental drone metal with tuned low droning guitars played super slow & heavy on feedback, sans lyrics, rhythm, riffs or drumming, think Lou Reed’s Metal Machine Music, but far more listenable. Out of pure curiosity I listened to these guys...and this cat wasn’t killed. They’re addictive & really do prove that heavy isn’t in riffs but in sounds & feeling & I've been quite inspired by them. Altar is a collaboration with Japanese doom group Boris, with guests including Soundgarden’s Kim Thayil & Melvin’s Joe Preston. This is a great starting point for the curious as it has a bit more variety in the texture than other Sunn 0))) recordings. This is heavy. No doubt. Sabbath heavy at times even. Metalheads pay attention!

(originally written for the Roman Midnight Music newsletter Issue 3, Feb 2010, unchanged for blog)