Customer Reviews

Same As a Flower

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

 

 

A fragile, autumnal thing - half reclined, half unhappy. They inspire a cultish zeal amongst converts. They're as open and clear as empty brackets ( )

World music, has been a genre of music that has bridged the gap, between the music language barrier and listeners that don't actually speak the language. A form of music that is able to fully entertain listeners that that don't speak a word of the language being sung. The musicianship and vocal performances transcending any obstacles of understanding whats being said. So we now have a multitude of foreign music to choose from, but are we ready yet for Japanese Indie-Pop?? Judging by the pastoral and atmospheric Neo-psychedelic pop of two piece act "Nagisa Ni Te", the answer is....'quite possibly'. Consisting of male multi-instrumentalist "Shinjii Shibayama", and his softly voiced female partner 'Masako Takeda'. the two have delivered albums of quietly affecting pop, that forgoes saccharine traditional J-Pop and is more indebted to bittersweet indie-pop, and precious singer/songwriter material. Obviously the songs here are sung completely in Japanese, and no amount of close listening is going to give an understanding of whats actually being said, but bizarrely, such is the nature of the songs, that you can (sometime from the tone of the song), have a rough idea of what the songs are about.

And so it is more about an album that is based around gorgeous, delicate melodies, and a tangible surrealism of naive acoustic sounds, and equal parts sweetly intimate '60s pop, that the fact that the lyrics are indigestible seems a small point. First track "The Same as a Flower" mixes delicately strummed guitars, and takes a simple drum pattern...and that's all that's really is accompanying the track here. But the vocals are exquisitely forlorn, seemingly mirroring some of the superbly downcast singer/songwriter tracks out there, and work perfectly with the stripped down approach. And manages to conjures up images of meandering laid-back thoughtful moods. "Threads of Souls" uses a funeral-paced chugging bass sound at the beginning of the track, with Masako Takeda, singing with an almost twee nursery-style delivery, against the beautiful juxtaposition of sound. This is certainly a heavier sounding track than the previous song, with the stuttering electric-guitar chopping away in the background. This is a minimally composed track with electronica flourishes evident, and is almost exclusively sung by Masako throughout, and relgates Shinjii, to upbeat vocal harmonies (which surprisingly he does very well).

Third track "River" surprises with the incorporation of an almost prog-rock (Pink-Floyd-esque) acoustic guitar harmonising, that quickly gives way to a warm synth drone with both Shinjii & Masako stretching their vocal capabilities and hitting increasingly higher vocal scales, with the same melodies held and then repeated in a sort of bittersweet soaring Baroque pop song, that then lowers the tone of the vocals to allow the superbly crafted folk-inflected acoustic guitar to softly fade back in. "A Light" is a gorgeously reflective song, which is clear even without understanding whats being said. Masako muses wistfully over subtle keyboard and brushed acoustic, that references the eloquent down-tempo pop music, that they made their name by, before the track then settles into a contemplative guitar strum and Masako's singing becomes a mere hummed melody, over which the delicate fragile arrangements and shimmering keyboards become the main substance of the track...(and sounds Marvellous).

"Wife" is one of the most beautifully melodic pieces of instrumental acoustic pop guitar, I've had the pleasure of listening to in recent years. Recalling '60s folk & a dash of Spanish guitar, its a perfect instrumental track that breaks up the album perfectly. characterised by a mellow and delicate playing that has a sense of intimate air & poise, it's echoey jangly guitars chime wonderfully with the overall sweet tranquillity of the record, that remains generally low-key and quietly affecting, with the sort of melodic, contemplative & introspective arrangements that are dotted throughout the album, but condensed here in instrumental form, this is possibly one of my favourtie tracks, as its just so exquisitely plaintive. "Bramble" is more electronic sounding that previous tracks, with the emphasis less on plucked guitar, and more toward elegant piano arrangements, that are slightly melancholic in tempo. Shinjii takes on board the vocal duties here and sings in fragile tone, matching the slowly considered pace, and sounding simultaneously detached in tone, before vocal for the second half of the track are passed over to Masako. And yet the track (somehow) still remains curiously uplifting & Positive...its almost as if you get the impression, that although the delivery is Sad/melancholic. that there is a more inherently overall positive message contained.

This is a achingly lovely record, one that although unlikely to win them a massive fanbase in the western world, will delight those that are prepared to put any preconceptions aside, and ignore the language barrier, and enjoy the atmospherically intimate sounds. Sure, they'll be those that can't see the appeal of listening to what amounts to a singer/songwriter album in a different language, and unfortunately don't see the point in missing all the lyrics. But then, anyone searching for reviews for this group, probably has a fair idea, what the band are about anyway. It'll please existing fans, as there seems to be more progression from the previous work (expanding the sound and becoming more proficiently instrumentally), and its likely to be one of the cult albums, that has a small (but devoted) following, for those that feel that language, really shouldn't be considered a barrier as far as much is concerned. Truly superb!!!