Golly. It starts all heavy and cool, massive and voluminous, but then the singer starts singing and some confusion sets in. Japanese accents are harder even than Northern European to get used to, as their basic phonic palette really comes from a completely different angle than English, obviously. So it’s taken more than the general three sittings to get my mind around this.
The good news is that the singer varies the attack. You want some grindcore screaming? OK. Hardcore shouting? Check. Power metal lilting? Got it. A little Pop teasing? Yeah, that too. All that’s missing is the death gurgle. The analogy I am going to provide is a Japanese Mike Patton at least in methodology. Whether that analogy holds true or not, the point I’m trying to make is that you get some slightly cheesy clean vocals mixed with some truly warped throat rippers.
All this over music that would fit fairly well within the American spazzcore scene, although again the sensibility is definitely more melody based. It almost wants to get emocore, but never quite steps over that line. It stumbles from time to time, but never firmly steps. Even the strangely uncompelling ballad “Itoshisa Ha Fuhai Ni Tsuki” remains too much its own musical animal to be easily subjected to easy comparisons. It’s definitely Japanese, but it’s also strangely, funkilly American. This happens again and again throughout the record. The best analogy I can come up with would be somewhere between Faith No More and Dillinger Escape Plan with just a hint of old EZO.
The musicianship is above par pretty much across the board. Keys/programming, bass and drums combine to create a base of operations for some decent guitar work. The styles are varied, so competence is a must, and all the players are up to the challenge. The production is warm and deep, and each instrument is clearly audible.
If I may bottom line this fucker, and I may, it’s not a triple sixer, a year ender or even a best of the month probably, but I am damned if it’s not worth a listen. It treads some fine lines in my head, but it’s got enough pure quality in execution and production that are not enough to dissuade a recommendation. Enter with an open mind, some patience and an ear for the idiosyncrasies that make sometimes unfamiliar musical theory appealing or enter not at all.
