Customer Reviews

Maxion

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Japanese pop guru Takako Minekawa takes on New York masters of invention in one of the best standoffs I've heard in years. Clattering, bleeping, blooping, and tinkering around with hundreds of samples and a barrel of old instruments, Dymaxion makes Takako's presence into a new phase of her work more creative than anything before. Less from the Romper Room than other Minekawa releases and more like riding space mountain through Manhatten (yet less stress-inducing), this is the pop you put on to confuse the duplex next-door and to put that good ole train of thought back on track.

This is the music of tomorrow! Brilliant, innovative, and psychedelic pop fun! Similar bands, such as Cornelius and Fantastic Flying Machine, have only touched the surface of Japanese pop. Minekawa is growing with sheer genius. On previous albums, such as Cloudy Cloud Calculator (also VERY GOOD), the creativity is sometimes hidden behind "cute" sounding harmonies and often "lullabyish" vocals. On this exceptional record, Minekawa drops the girlish charm, and slams the listener with a wall of noise and sound. This can be best appreciated through headphones! The entire album flows through gracefully. Trust me, after hearing the album two or three times through, you will be hooked. With all of the predictable and easily labeled bands swarming the mainstream scene today, it is nice to hear a voice that will never succumb to change, and will never have a label. Check out Cornelius "Fantasma" is you like this scene, it is also a classic to be had!

this is an extremley beautiful recording. worth the cost for the title track alone! takako sounds more honest than her former bandmate kahime! her record sounds forced. the sounds on this record are truly inspiring. they make electronics feel organic. there is a lot of feeling here. often kraut and always a pleasure to listen to.

Japanese pop guru Takako Minekawa takes on New York masters of invention in one of the best standoffs I've heard in years. Clattering, bleeping, blooping, and tinkering around with hundreds of samples and a barrel of old instruments, Dymaxion makes Takako's presence into a new phase of her work more creative than anything before. Less from the Romper Room than other Minekawa releases and more like riding space mountain through Manhatten (yet less stress-inducing), this is the pop you put on to confuse the duplex next-door and to put that good ole train of thought back on track.

For as talented and popular as Takako Minekawa is in Japan, its a wonder that she hasn't maintained as strong a following in the US. Minekawa differentiates from other breathy Japanese vocalists in that she is also a talented composer, producer, and arranger. The playful numbers she has been so closely identified with are present on her EP Maxi On!, and flow effortlessly into deeper arrangements that suggest an urgency and emotional complexity that makes the EP so engaging. Minekawa's understated vocals guide the listener equally well through both the playful and somber, the distraught and ecstatic, and altogether seamless collection of songs. Song titles including "Lullaby Of Grey," "A Report On An Investigation," and "Sleeping Bag" allude to this playful and varied emotional romp, making for a listen just as rewarding the nth time thru.

whoa...what happened? my shock is not in refernece to the music, but to the absolutely horrible cover art. a drab, sloppy image that only gets worse when you open the cd case and see the cut out body parts underneath the cd. just a crappy job of design. now...onto the music. after having followed Takako's music since the early days of her Roomic Cube album, i was a bit taken back at this little mini ep. it took me a long time to warm up to it. now, looking back in retrospect, i'm not sure why. it seems to have the same basic sonic elements as her early works...bubbly synths, dreamy vocals, and cute melody lines...but perhaps i was just steering away from this kind of music when Maxi On was first released. most of these songs are not bad...but none seem to really match the creativity and spark that was so abundant on her Cloudy Cloud Calculator album. "A Report On An Investigation" is a neat song with a spooky vibe to it that works quite well. another standout is the U.S. only bonus track "Sleeping Bag" which works a simple repetative piano line that slowly builds into something quite special. one of my favorite tracks by Takako. it's kinda dissapointing that this was the last set of recordings that emerged from this artist. i always felt like she had something very unique to offer the music world. but even though she could write some really wonderful songs, many of her albums seemed a bit unfocused and poorly planned. this is a weird little album to end an interesting discography...unfinished business, perhaps? let's hope so.

Description: pretty, mumbly, cooing sounds over weak arty noises. I was very disappointed with it after hearing Fun9 and Ximer.