Albums etc. of 2018: Top 20
Jan. 1st, 2019 05:04 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
adevyishNote to self: Dreamwidth tries to close <br> tags. Use <br/> (shrugs, cries).
20.
cero
POLY LIFE MULTI SOUL
Objectively I can tell this album is incredibly intricate and assiduously assembled, but subjectively I don’t have a good musical frame of reference for it so I can’t appreciate it fully. If you like high-concept music or polyrhythm, or if you just like the Katamari Damacy soundtrack, this is an enjoyable listen.
• “Sokou” [Spotify] (“Arrival”) is what I find to be the most accesible track, as it’s almost café music.
19.
harunemuri
harutosyura
Western-leaning J-rock with netlabel embellishments. The sing-rap style surprisingly lends a confessional feel and the over-filtered guitars and punk-style shouting pour emotionality. However, the fairly consistent style inherently begins to sound repetitive half an album in.
• “lostplanet” [Spotify]
18.
COR!S
Temporary Prose (mini-album)
I didn’t think anything interesting could come out of future bass–adjacent any more, but this mini-album is so good at throwing curveballs. It isn’t cohesive at all, but when it hits its stride the production can be deceptively simple yet gorgeous.
• “Firefly”, its most pop song.
17.
Maison book girl
yume
[Like many groups who made this list, I know of them through Next Music From Tokyo (NFMT).]
Maison book girl have a very instantly recognizable production along the lines of Japanese songwriting collectives making indie game OSTs circa 2006, and it gets tiring to listen to after a while. Even the album’s structure, littered with instrumental breaks, is very much in this subgenre. There’s some more deviation and experimentation with this album compared to their pervious output, but the bad strings font needs to go.
Stand out tracks that I would love to see with better instrumentation include “Boy Meets Girl”, which reminds me in turn of Luna Sea’s “4:00AM” and Jyocho in turns; and “Yume”, which has some beautiful usage of electronic noise, and whose strings remind me of the theme from Lagrima (indie game OST from 2005).
16.
LELLE
UNITE (mini-album)
The trance-y beats paired with rock music is inevitably going to be compared to Sakanaction, but in terms of the strings instrumentation and melodies, they’re closer to an upbeat TK from Ling Tosite Sigure. It’s a very market-friendly sound.
There’s some interesting instrumental breakdowns, like in “Silhouette” which pairs an erhu-esque violin(?) with a guitar solo, on top of all the tinkling sprinkled in the song. They have an actual violinist, which is always a plus in my book.
• “Hanabi”
15.
w-inds.
100
In seventeen years since their first single, w-inds. has, like many pop acts around the world, mainly released music written by international (often Swedish) songwriters. This changed last year, when their main vocalist Tachibana Keita composed and produced one of their singles for an album, and it turned out to be one of their better songs. This is has led to their next album, 100: their first album composed and produced in its entirety by Keita with a handful of collaborators and their best album yet.
100 is firmly rooted in western eletronic pop, but there are glimpses of a more Japanese netlabel influence that shine through in tracks like “Time Has Gone”. It’s incredibly good for an album that doubles as a songwriting debut, and while the production could use more detail and better mastering, it never distracts from the music.
14.
LLLL
Chains: Part 4 “Resemblance” (EP)
This was supposed to come out by early January as part of last year’s Chain series. The first two tracks are so good and exploratory and LLLL at their best, but the last track is forgettably generic Western pop of a few years past.
• “Indefinite Grounds” (feat. Yeule)
13.
Hitsujibungaku
Orange Chocolate House Made no Michinori (A Short Trip to the Orange-Chocolate-House) (EP)
[In my research for this post I discovered Hitsujibungaku played NMFT the same tour as Maison book girl and I missed that tour. This is nearly as bad as my Kinoko Teikoku @ NMFT fomo, except I knew of NMFT by Hitsujibungaku’s tour! Actually, I don’t remember if I knew Hitsujibungaku were going and skipped anyway. Eep.]
A lot of Orange Chocolate House… sounds like other fuzzy retro rock EPs, without much in the way of soulful melodies or experimentation that make it stand out. That said, the closing track “Muffler” is soulful, pleading, and despondent.
12.
MOSHIMO
Attouteki Shoujo Manga Story
J-pop punk that retreads a lot of familiar (read: 2008) ground. It moves through of aural ideas and some interesting production even peeks through on one or two tracks. A fun listen.
• “15fun”
11.
Applekid
PLENA
It’s j-pop with a netlabel sensibility. There’s nothing too groundbreaking on this, but it has a chill vibe and smooth production—well, as smooth as glitchy netlabel can get.
• “Echo”
10.
KEY
FACE
First solo effort from Shinee’s Key. This is mostly an EDM club bangers album, and extremely Western. It doesn’t necessarily bring anything new to the genre, but it’s very well-executed package.
The lead single, “Forever Yours” (feat. ex-SISTAR Soyou) is a fun romp that definitely sounds like it was considered for a title track for Shinee’s The Story of Light, rather than being intended for FACE. “One of These Nights” (feat. Crush), also sounds like a TSoL track (especially as the featured artist sings in the chorus rather than as part of a verse!) but it’s a good track with an actual build up, making it feel like a bit of a throw-back despite the trop house production.
My first real impression of this album was from a live performance of “Chemicals”, which I really liked, but on CD some of the production is tired, namely the beats in the transition. (Surprisingly, or unsurprisingly, it’s co-written by Skrillex who also lent his hand to the upcoming Kingdom Hearts Utada theme).
The part of FACE I appreciate the most is the inclusion of tracks with electric good guitar/bass, never mind great guitar/bass deployment, in “Good Good” and “I Will Fight” (feat. VINXEN). It’s so rare to hear good guitar/bass in K-pop tracks. As well, “Good Good”, along with “Honest” and “Imagine”, make a good case for retro-inspired EDM with a bit of funk and call back to the retro funk pop of Shinee’s Married to the Music. “Easy to Love” tries its hand at this as well, but the production on it is more stereotypical and ultimately makes it a forgettable track.
“Miweo” (“Hate”/“The Duty of Love”) and “This Life” both have folk sounds in the midst of all the EDM, which is very current as well but I absolutely hate the folk trend. (I blame Niall Horan. Niall is fine, because he understands the genre and can execute it, but pop musicians chasing the “Slow Hands” number one can eff off.)
9.
Kinoko Teikoku
Time Lapse
[The original source of my NMFT fomo.]
In this album Kinoko Teikoku mostly abandon their signature shoegaze post-punk sound for a much more mainstream j-pop rock sound still rooted in the same era. There’s a lighter touch with instrumentation and emotion that comes across more mature and accepting than their earlier output.
Favourite track: “Lapse”, a bit shoegaze, a bit math rock, with a classic banger J-rock chorus.
• “Kinmokusei no Yoru” (“Osmanthus Night”), a retro beach rock number
8.
SHINee
The Story of Light
[If you don’t want to support someone who has groping allegations against him—Onew, here—this is your warning to avoid this album.]
The Story of Light split different musical concepts into different EPs: one for critics, one for the public, and one for themselves.
EP1 is musical successor to 2014’s Odd, with lots of London electronic influence. When Shinee balances EDM and pop perfectly they’re amazing, but EP1 leans more towards experimental EDM rather than pop. It’s great to see a pop group get EDM as a genre, but it is very hard for me to like a trap-based song. On my first listen to EP1, it was hard not to notice the missing presence of Jonghyun. It closes with “Annyeong” (“Goodbye”/“You & I”), a ballad with lyrics by Key about missing someone (Jonghyun), that thematically fits more into EP3.
EP2 is also firmly in the vein of Odd: lots of trop house pop, some pure London house. It’s catchy, but some of it sounds like it could have come out a year or two ago. (Rumour has it Shinee were supposed to release an album in late 2017.) The production has some standout moments, but is sloppy in others. By far the weakest track is “Dokkam” (“Flu”/“Who Waits For Love”), during whose live performances Shinee exuded nhft.
EP3 is much more downtempo than the other two, highlighting Shinee’s vocal abilities. “Nega Namgyeodun Mal” (“The Words You Left Behind”/“Our Page”), the lead track, is a beautiful tearjerker tribute to Jonghyun; Shinee co-wrote the lyrics with longtime SM lyricist Kenzie. However, like Shinee themselves, EP3 doesn’t wallow in grief, and includes some lighthearted tracks that still contain signposts to Jonghyun and his music. It closes with the only Korean song with Jonghyun’s vocals released since his death, a typically catchy Shinee b-side with unusual chord progressions in the breakdown. Its inclusion in this EP really highlights how different Shinee’s vocal colours are, and how much Jonghyun’s loss impacted their sound.
• “Derireo Ga” (“Going To You”/“Good Evening”), EP1’s lead single
7.
Gozensanji to Taikutsu
Tsuki (moon) (single)
[Saw on two separate NMFT tours.]
I don’t really get “Miyabi” (“Elegance”); however, “Narawashi” (“Vulgarity”) is Gozensanji on form, sounding all at once introspective and emotive, angry and accepting in progression.
6.
JONGHYUN
POET | ARTIST
[I put off listening to this until Dec 30, hence the late post.]
POET | ARTIST consists of obviously written-by-Jonghyun tracks, neo soul or breezy kpop; and obviously written-by-others tracks, very 2017–8 American pop. Both parts are good, but given everything that’s happened I’d rather have more Jonghyun tracks. The album title hints towards the tension between “Poet” and “Artist”, but the tension in the album is between the troika of lyricist, musician, and pop singer.
It’s hard listening to “I love you girl” songs—all of the written-by-others songs and a few of the written-by-him songs—even if the lines about giving blowjobs are incredibly Jonghyun. For the written-by-him songs, “Eotteon Gibuni Deulkka” (“What Would It Feel Like?”/“I’m So Curious”), a soft callback to Shinee 2012’s “Sherlock”, and “Sentimental” are both good café track offerings.
Wallowing: “Wapeul” (“Waffle”/“#Hashtag”) is an jazzy upbeat number about negative online comments. “Gireumttae” [Spotify] (“Grease”) ostensibly is about a ruined relationship, but as someone who writes break-up songs about depression I can’t help but read it as about depression or his career.
“Urin Bomi Ogi Jeone” (“Before Spring Comes”), a quiet farewell song with only minimal piano and strings instrumentation, closes the album. It was chosen to be the second promotional song from this album, and Shinee’s “Our Page” appears to reference it directly.
Musical highlights: The full-out brass breakdown in “Saram Gugyeong Jung” [Spotify] (“Sightseeing”), and “Rewind” being an entire house meditation from the POV of someone either with a migraine or hangover.
5.
Nagagutsu wo Haita Neko (Puss In Boots)
Honoakari ni Oboeru (Drown In Dim Light) (EP)
A solid j-rock EP. Opens with “Ori” (“Lees”), reminiscent of instruments tuning. Then, “Suisou” (“Aquarium”) veers between a quietly tense hook and bass line to a guitar-driven near-cacophony. Closer “Anya Mitsuji” (“A Dark Night’s Passing”) is more stereotypical j-punk rock with a few interesting flourishes.
4.
JYOCHO
Tagai no Uchuu (A Parallel Universe) e.p
[Yet another NMFT alum! Went to their tour but skipped them, oops. With this EP I’m glad they’re going to get the attention that comes with getting their music attached to a major anime—as of late last year their vocalist had a full-time job and the music was a hobby.]
Tagai no Uchuu is a bit too much like Jyocho’s previous output; that said their previous output was incredibly good. Their music is rooted in math rock rhythms and flourished with flutes and chorals, so “Euclid” [Spotify] is a welcome slower-paced track that reminds one of early dawn or seasides.
3.
mol-74
▷ (Saisei) (mini-album)
Laden with nostalgia and tense with yearning; each song flows into the next like a complete story. This is an mini that understands when to increase tempo and anxiety and when to slow down and reflect, and sometimes does so within the space of one song.
• “▷ (Saisei)” (“Playback”), an overture
2.
Utada Hikaru
Hatsukoi
[No links, because it appears most of her Japanese tracks were taken down from streaming or possibly region-locked recently. After our so-brief period of freedom!]
With a title drawn from her debut, you’d expect an introspective or retrospective album, and it is both. Most of the songs on Hatsukoi are deceptively unassuming at first but build in emotion and detail. The more electronically-constructed tracks could use more production polish; the tracks with full orchestration shine brightest.
Favourite track: “Shittosarerubeki Jinsei” (“A Life to be Envied”) with all of its little, hesitating instrumental details.
1.
Suiyoubi no Campanella (WEDNESDAY CAMPANELLA)
Galapagos
Suiyoubi no Campanella have taken what they learned from making a tightly produced but fairly standard deep house-meets-pop album (Superman), and discarded genre altogether to go full experimental pop. Galapagos layers instruments and beats from disparate regions and genres, masterfully tying them together with KOM_I’s vocals which travel from light and floaty to dissonant and plaintive. The album’s name is fitting.
Galapagos opens with “Kaguyahime” (“The Bamboo Princess”), a song that goes from traditional children’s song to fanciful harp transition to exultant chorus. By contrast, “Minakata Kumagusu” is far more restrained, as evidenced by its usage of tribal drums in place of a typical house beat, yet has no shortage of carefully layered vocalizations. It easily transitions to the tentative “Picasso”, which combines the haltering, empty spaces of “Kaguyahime”’s verses with jazzy guitar and stripped down drum n bass.
Then: “Melos”, which goes from jazzy indulgence to triumphant brass to empty, confused space and back in an instant. “Mizaru Kikazaru Iwazaru” [Spotify] (“See Nothing Hear Nothing Say Nothing”/“Three Mystic Apes”), still with stuttering beats and pared down instruments, hints of prior guitar and harp, with a few indulgent strings, builds the soundscape back up like one might traverse a hilly terrain.
The album is rounded out with “Matryoshka” (collab with Moodoïd), “Aiishi Monotachi e” (“To My Beloved Things”/“The Sand Castle”), and “Kiiro no Uta” (“Yellow’s Song”/“A Cat Called Yellow”); quiet, contemplative tracks that I would not have foreseen from this band even last year. By far their best album to date.
Need help for sheet music
Date: 2019-01-30 04:34 pm (UTC)Re: Need help for sheet music
Date: 2019-01-31 06:19 am (UTC)Re: Need help for sheet music
Date: 2019-01-31 06:28 am (UTC)