5 Japanese Albums That I've Bought Since Coming to Japan and OMG I'm SO Glad I Bought Them
And now, because nobody asked for it, here's another top 5 list:
5. CHEMISTRY - One X One
Maybe I don't wholeheartedly enjoy CHEMISTRY nearly as much as I often profess to. Maybe the real reason I like it so much is because it fills an R&B niche that simply can't be filled by the likes of Sambo Master, and Shonan no Kaze. But even from a modestly objective standpoint, CHEMISTRY's music is just far too good for even the most cynical of music critics to puff up their chest and say, "CHEMISTRY sucks." Indifference? Yes, it's more than possible. Hatred? I just can't see it. Anyway, yeah, this album is their best.
4. YMCK - Family Music
The sheer gimmickry of the first few tracks of this album is just enough to pull you in and grab your attention. "8-bit music plus cute human vocals!" you think. "Incredible!" But somewhere at around track 3 or 4, the gimmick wears off, the music starts to get a little sloppy, and you begin to think that it's getting to be just a little repetitive as your expectations dip lower and lower. Then, the album takes a brief interlude... and BAM! Musicality makes a triumphant return. The interlude at track 6 doesn't just serve as a marker to divide the album in two - it serves as a signal telling you that the REAL music is about to begin.
3. raison d'etre - Rafflesia
As ridiculous as it may sound, one of the best album purchases I've ever made since coming to Japan was brand new and only cost me 300 yen. I still stand by the fact that the songs on this album musically stand up to anything made by a professional band in a decked out recording studio. Some of it may sound a little L'Arc-ish at times (hey, they're fans too), and yeah, there's one particular track that's hit or miss while another is just simply miss. But everything else on the album shines brighter than just about any music I've ever seen from just about any band - indy or major, past or present.
2. GO!GO! 7188 - 竜舌蘭 (Ryuzetsuran)
This pick is, without a doubt, the most understated of my top five. It's an album that I keep going back to, yet it's also an album that I never really talk about because it's buried so deeply under everybody's music radar. Every song on the album sounds the same, yet it also sounds so different. It's strange. It's almost like familiarity and the exotic mixed together in equal portions in a cocktail shaker.
My #1 album should come as no surprise:
1. m-flo - ASTROMANTIC
My love for this album simply can not be overstated. Everything in it has been done so absolutely perfectly that you needn't work in the slightest to fully appreciate its genius. "Jazz and hip-hop?" some skeptics might question. "That's absurd!" "Wrong", says m-flo. In fact, they've proved it wrong about three times with three different subgenres. Next thing you know, m-flo will collaborate with some famous polka band from Wisconsin and they'll somehow make it all work. Some fans will say m-flo just hasn't been the same since Lisa left. I strongly agree. They've never been better.
Honorable Mention:
FREENOTE - Introducing the popline according to FREENOTE
Sukima Switch - 夏雲ノイズ (Natsugumo Noise)
THE BABYSTARS - Laugh→Love
Nakashima Mika - LOVE
Otsuka Ai - LOVE JAM
L'Arc~en~Ciel - SMILE