1 post tagged “asian kung fu generation”
First off, I'd like to say thank you to all the people who have taken the time to read something I wrote, because page views of my site have increased over 50% since my last post - which is very encouraging.
So...It seems I have been somewhat of an idiot in saying that "nothing major was released" in my last blog, because the day after, Ajikan (short for ASIAN KUNG FU GENERATION) released their 5th full length album. To sum up briefly, World World World is a whole lot of fun, easy to listen to, and a great soundtrack to everyday life.
Tracklist:
1. ワールド ワールド ワールド (World World World)
2. アフターダーク (After Dark) PV
3. 旅立つ君へ (Tabidatsu Kimi e)
4.ネオテニー (Neoteny)
5.トラベログ (Travelog)
6. No.9
7. ナイトダイビング (Night Diving)
8. ライカ (Leica)
9. 惑星 (Wakusei)
10. 転がる岩、君に朝が降る (Korogaru Iwa, Kimi ni Asa ga Furu) PV
11. ワールド ワールド (World World)
12. 或る街の群青 (Aru Machi no Gunjou) PV
13. 新しい世界 (Atarashii Sekai) PV
Before I start my review, I'd like to say that Ajikan's PVs have always been a joy to watch for me, and if you haven't watched them before, really, you should. I would recommend the "After Dark" one, and especially the "Atarashii Sekai" PV, because it is simply a piece of art. This also goes for all the covers of their releases, which are simplistically beautiful.
I first got into Ajikan through anime (Naruto and Fullmetal Alchemist). After hearing the opening songs, I went "Wow, that's a pretty good band!" And soon, I was hooked on their music. Ajikan's style reminds me quite a bit of Weezer. It's always a fat guitar rock sound, and that doesn't change much throughout this album. This is both a good, and bad thing, because at some point, you start to think everything sounds the same. Most people will find this is the only problem they have with Ajikan, and everything else is fantastic.
The quartet are able to strike the perfect balance in their songs: catchy, yet not so that they fade away very quickly. Often, I find myself walking on the street, and out of nowhere pops out a refrain from an Ajikan song in my head. Their music is never "epic", and always remains human - easy to connect with.
World World World is an interesting instrumental intro (like the alliteration?) which sounds like it belongs at the end of a record, not at the beginning. However, what it does do is get you in the mood for some good Ajikan music. This song was actually played as an intro to Rewrite during the Rising Sun Rock Festival. (See here)
The second track, After Dark, was released as a single earlier, and THIS really sounds like the beginning of the album, starting with the energetic drum beat, which Ajikan builds off of. The refrain is very catchy, and although the bridge sounds a little out of place, the track is still a great "real" opener.
Tabidatsu Kimi e and Neoteny are a two song suite. The first one keeps the energy from After Dark with the driving drum beat, and suddenly slows down two-thirds of the way into the song. It fades out peacefully, and in the background, the opening riff of Neoteny starts up. There is NO pause between the two tracks, which seamlessly fade together. On my first listen, I had to do a double take when I saw I already hit the 4th track although I thought I was still on the third. Neoteny is quite interesting, which the refrain simply 3 voices singing a triad (a three note chord). So far, Gotoh (vocalist and 2nd guitarist) has not unleashed his signature belted choruses.
Travelog is also more mellow, never fully rocking out, but keeping the flow of the first 4 tracks. It's actually the first time where I noticed the guitar solo, which is quite funky. It starts to feel like you've heard this song somewhere in the album already, however.
No.9 is finally a departure from the style in the first couple of tracks. This sounds more like the Ajikan I know. There is a fun little "Oooh" intro, and the refrain also has these little vocal accents (the "ooh"s). The song has a more Rock n' Roll feel. I start to get the sense that Ajikan has also matured musically a bit, because they've mellowed out a bit.
Reggae! That's what I think when I hear the beginning of next song Night Diving. Slowly the song becomes an Ajikan style song. That's what you think for about 30 seconds, at which point the guitar solo is something else, and then we have a section with Kita, the guitarist, singing a small duet with Gotoh. The song jumps around, and is, if anything, fun.
Starting off with on time rhythm guitar and drums, Gotoh's voice escalates a bit, and we settle into Leica. This has a bouncy, school-time feel to it. It makes me bob my head, and think of everyday moments. I've also noticed that although the songs sometimes feel simplistic, Ajikan is actually very good at layering tracks, and have some pretty complicated arrangements.
Wakusei is another one of those Ajikan rock songs, but really, it feels like this has already been heard somewhere earlier. However, as you start to feel that each song is similiar, you also start to pick apart the subtle differences with each listen. This song, for example, actually has a faint summertime, nostalgic feel.
At this point, we enter the best part of the album, beginning with the newest single, Korogaru Iwa, Kimi ni Asa ga Furu. It's a fun track, and has a great intro, flowing refrain, and a bridge that really gets stuck in your head. To me, this song stands out quite a bit because as with all of Ajikan songs, they get better with time, and this one already had one month to get better before this.
Following Korogaru Iwa... is another interlude, World World. It has this funky "tic-toc" click track, and gives you a break before moving on to the final stretch of the record. It crossfades into....
Aru Machi no Gunjou, which is my favorite track on the album. (But it's possibly because I've been given about....1.5 years or so to fall in love with it.) Beginning with the sound of people talking and walking around, it has a city-life feel, and the instrumentation in this song fills out the rest. My favorite moment is when Gotoh sings "hikari datte, yami datte kitto" (Even into the light, into the dark, surely)
Closing out the record is Atarashii Sekai, which delivers another one of the best tracks on the album. The rock-out in this song reminds quite a bit of their older sound. It leaves you with a very content, happy feeling. The refrain has a "let's all come together" vibe to it, and considering the title, it's very fitting. And really, the PV is just beautiful, featuring all their old album covers too.
I find that Ajikan's songs are great for when you're in the car, walking somewhere, doing you're work, just going on with you're everyday life. It's very easy to get into a song, and then jump out again to resume whatever you were doing. As I said earlier, the only problem with World World World is that the general arrangement and sound never really changes.
Neither is this album one of those "Amazing!" ones, and neither is it a "bad" record in any sense, so I will give it a:
4/5 - Good
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