数年前に東京のGive Me Walletsを初めて聴いた時、踊る為の音楽というよりは、じっくり聞き込みたい、マスロック的な音楽だと感じました。マイスペースにあげられていた曲はフォールズを彷彿とさせ、好みではあったものの、ダンスフロアには適さないような気がしていました。
なので、Give Me Walletsにはよりダンサブルに、そしてエモーショナルになってくれるように期待していました。彼らの新曲、”Look After You”は、８０年代風シンセやビートで彩られ、まるで当時の曲のようでした。
また、”Look After You”のボーカルは、歌詞は聞き取りにくいものの、The Brixton Academyのように、感情的かつ情熱的でした。”Look After You”を含む、SoundCloudにあげられているGive Me Walletsの新曲は、バンドが良い方向性を見つけた事を証明しています。視聴は以下から。
“Parade” is a perfectly pleasant pop song, young singer YeYe handling her vocals well over the peppy music, the sort of thing that could be easily rejiggered into the backing sounds of a Broadway musical. It’s good…but what makes it interesting (and, disclosure, gets it a post here) is the backing vocals. Few songs this…
“Young Love” is one of the most exhilarating songs I’ve heard so far in 2013. It comes courtesy of a Japanese band I had no idea existed until last weekend called Andersons, a boring name concealing something really special. “Young Love” does a lot of what the music I’ve fallen for so far this year…
It has been an amazing year for bedroom musicians in Tokyo, and as the year winds down, here is one more song to add to the ceiling-bursting pile. First up is a tune from Kasumi Hasegawa called “These Are The Days I Forgot To Write Down,” and the title should clue you into what to…
Ever do a double take when listening to an album? Like, it sounds as if the artist behind the record is getting into this groove…and then the very next song is a total flip, said artist totally spinning off in a new direction. Pretty cool, right? For Tracy Hyde haven’t been around that long, yet…
First off, not safe for work! Kindan No Tasuketsu recently released a new album, and tracks off of it have been trickling online over the last few weeks. Here’s the latest, being released as a special Christmas special (B-side….”Santa Claus Is Coming Back”), though it also appears on her new full-length as well. “Ring A…
Ahhh Picnic Women, that jokester. The title to his latest collection of juke cuts comes off like the punchline to what he pulls off the title track, “II Women.” On that song, Picnic Women takes Mariah Carey’s and Boyz II Men’s “One Sweet Day,” specifically the vocals from Boyz II Men, and pitches them both…
When I first listened to Tokyo’s Give Me Wallets almost a year ago, their music was more math-rock than dancey. The songs featured on their MySpace page reminded me of the precision-minded rock of a band like Foals, which was good but also not particularly tailored for the dance floor (well, maybe a really awkward one). Jump ahead a few months, though, and Give Me Wallets seem to have become a bit more dance friendly…and also a bit more willing to let down their emotional guard. Their new song “Look After You” brings to mind fellow Tokyo group The Brixton Academy, as it is full of ’80s-evoking synth and a club-minded beat, the entire track sounding like it could have come out 25 years ago. Also like The Brixton Academy, “Look After You” finds Give Me Wallets evoking emotion through the pitch of their vocals. You don’t even need to hear what they are specifically saying to pick up on the longing in the lead singer’s voice. Along with other recent uploads to the group’s SoundCloud page, “Look After You” finds Give Me Wallets moving in a nice sonic direction. Listen below.
There’s always bands like this, probably in every country – an outfit (or individual) in love with the synth-tastic sounds of the 1980s, enamored by the sleekness but also the heartstring-tugging abilities of those bright-ass noises. Japan has no shortage of these groups – Nile Long (formerly The Brixton Academy), Orland, Give Me Wallets (now…
To take you into the weekend, here is a new Love And Hates remix. The Pixie Stick snorting duo work their twee-club magic on Desmond & The Tutus’ “Peter.” They take the power pop of the original and absolutely gut it, turning the track into a goofy quasi-rap joint complete with the Love And Hates…
There’s a moment about midway through Tokyo producer Eriqu’s “Gang Star” where a familiar sample – of dogs barking, or more accurately someone imitating dogs barking – pops up. It has become a common sample in Jersey Club tracks, and as more and more track makers from around the world take that style and play…
Siblings Yu and Rima Kato comprise Family Basik, a project offering up intricate chamber pop. It’s far busier than Rima Kato’s sparse solo work, and often features lyrics with a slightly darker bend (see 2014’s A False Dawn And Posthumous Notoriety, a generally chipper collection speckled with lyrics about death). The duo have a new…
私はちょっとした理由からJ-Popのリミックスにはあまり興味を持てません。というのも、本来のJ-Popのままで十分なのでリミックスは必要ないからです。あと、J-Popがジャンルとして劣っていると示唆していたり、それを直接的に伝えていたりするから、というのもありますね。中にはチョップド＆スクリュードやテクノ・リミックスやらなんやらをしないと楽しめない音楽だと思ってる人もいるのでは？ でも最近Ghetto Pop Idol を聴いた時は驚きました。この５曲入りの作品ではLil’諭吉というアーティストが、有名なJ-Popの曲をヒップホップ・ビートで奏でています。嬉しい事に、私の好きなきゃりーぱみゅぱみゅとPerfumeが使われています。これにはついつい惹かれてしまいました。ただ、それだけじゃないんですよ！きゃりーのキラキラしたトラック”ぎりぎりセーフ”も、Lil’諭吉が切り刻んで手を加えれば幻想的なビートに一新。他のプロデューサー達が単にテンポを遅くして満足しているのとは訳が違い、原曲の良さを残したまま新しいものを作り上げています。彼がリミックスした“Plastic Smile”も個性的。Perfumeのボーカルを１秒程の長さにカットして、それを上に重ねたり、連続させたり。更なる目玉はAira Mitsukiの”ニーハイガール”のリミックスなのですが、オリジナルに使われている多すぎる電子音を強調してみたり、逆にメローにしてみたりして、曲の中に強弱を付け、上手く展開させています。これがJ-Popの本当のリミックスの仕方です。試聴はこちらから。
Over the past year, I’ve gotten a little burned out on found-footage videos. They were charming for a while, but now just feel like forced nostalgia. This attitude, though, clashes with what I think about Greeen Linez’ new song and video “Hibiscus Pacific.” Though the video below relies on VHS-quality footage of old Japanese advertisements…