A sampling of bands from across the musical spectrum.
Containing a little bit of everything, Fresh Cuts from Japan, volume 1, is a compilation album of various artists, released by JapanFiles.com. Most of these bands have so far slipped beneath the radar of many international fans but one must be careful not to be dismissive just because of that; this album is all about hearing something exciting and new.
The first track is by veteran band, Guitar Vader, who may be familiar to some international gaming fans already for their participation in the video game, Jet Set Radio/Jet Grind Radio. Satisfy is a good song, as to be expected by a band who has been making music for nearly ten years, but is an odd choice to start this compilation off with considering how strangely familiar and western it sounds.
The second band, F.C.Hyakki-Yakou, dishes out some guitar riffs and a wonderfully funky bass line for those left craving something a little more straight-up rock 'n roll after Guitar Vader's electronica. F.C.Hyakki-Yakou's vocalist needs some polishing but his vocals work with this sort of song well enough and seems to grow on the listener as the song goes on.
Poplar's track is a mix of electronica and rap, followed by another rock song courtesy of G-Ampere. The mixing of male and female vocals is interesting, along with the use of filtered and unfiltered singing, and while one wishes that they'd lay off the synthesizer just a bit, it doesn't ruin this track which remains a rather fun and almost nostalgic-sounding little song. The next two tracks, by Mizoguchi Ryoko and Myria, are possibly the weakest on the album; one is an obvious Björk fan and the other suffers from vocals which become rather grating as the song goes on. Myria sings in a very little girlish tone and while it is curiously endearing at first, one quickly yearns for her to drop the act and really sing.
Thankfully, after those unsteady tracks, the listener finds a real gem- Mothercoat's Galileo. An experimental sounding tune that manages to not distance the listener despite that, this song is rock with just a pinch of disco and dance and framed by surreal-sounding vocals. Punctuated by slower moments and occasional chaos, such as an acoustic guitar and an electric guitar battling it out for your attention, the song often tricks one into thinking it's coming to an end before surprising you with even more rock 'n roll and some absolutely amazing bass work. The track is long but it seems to go past in a blur and leaves you feeling slightly disheveled, like you just came off of a crazed dance floor or rollercoaster.
Swinging Popsicle brings the listener back down to earth with some beautiful vocals and solid rock as does the next track, Robot Factory by Trash Box. After these rock songs comes a track which will no doubt delight some and drive others crazy; a mix of disco, violin, and koto makes up Miami's Shiratama Disco. Hard rock fans will no doubt recoil in horror from such a song and its lack of guitar and bass, but fans of dance or even video game music should enjoy it. Cuppie Rumne has the unfortunate task of following Shiratama Disco and while their Super System No ! is a decent song, it probably should've been snuck in before Miami as it seems to just fall short in comparison.
The next two bands, The Hangovers and Baggy Chopper feature vocalists that may turn some off; the first's lead singer reminds one a bit of Asian Kung-Fu Generation's Masafumi Gotoh and the latter may just be flat-out unpleasant to some ears, but bass fans should stick with this song for an unexpectedly amazing bass line. The next and fourteenth track is Maria Gadget's Dependence, which a strange little gem of a song comprised entirely of vocals and synthesizers.
Wrapping up this compilation is Rebel Action, who tells the listener to "Come on, rock and roll!", and then Higuchi Makiko's Tooku ni iru kimi e. This final track sounds almost naked compared to so many of the other tracks on this CD but it's also very refreshing; acoustic guitar, tambourine, and Higuchi Makiko's lovely, relaxing vocals. Not at all a bad note to end on.
For those interested in only one genre of music, be it rock or hip-hop, this compilation of such a wide variety of artists will probably cause more consternation than delight. For instance, most fans of rock and roll will undoubtedly turn up their noses at some of the more experimental or electronics-based tracks. But for those who have a wide and varied taste, and are interested in sampling some very distinct flavors from the Japanese music scene, Fresh Cuts from Japan, volume 1 is a juicy little album that shouldn't be missed.
