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Kabatomushi EP. Mei Semones
Mei
Semones, the 23 year old singer-songwriter from Brooklyn of Japanese
decent, can be spotted on this blog with three singles from her five
song EP that was recently released. The three songs, 'Wakare No Kotoba',
'Inaki' and 'Tekami', all held this promise of exotic adventures. Mei
Semones blends genres as if the borders between them do not exist. The
closest in my discotheque is Steely Dan. Mei Semones goes a few up in genres and
may not match this level of quality (yet) but certainly in adventure. The songs
on Kabatomushi (Rhinoceros Beetle) all mix jazz with pop and rock or
bossa nova. In fact anything can happen in Mei Semones' musical
universe. She sings in Japanese and English, making it partly impossible
to understand, while she sings over a song that would have surprised
Astrud Gilberto but would have suited her perfectly. 'Takaromono' moves
from jazz to bossa nova to rock and somewhere in between. Mei Semones
has no limits it seems to where her imagination takes her. It may be
awkward music for purists but as soon as they free their minds from the
inhibitions stopping them to appreciate something new, they will find that Mei Semones delivers the goods.
Kabatomushi is the EP of a very talented your artist who is not afraid
of experimenting within her artform. As that is what the music on Kabatomushi
is, an artform.
Will
Willem Smit ever stop to amaze me? With Intangible Personal Trainer
moves into a funky kind of disco track. It is the more surprising after
the huge intro that promises the listener everything but the empty beat
coming after it. It takes some time to get into the groove of Intangible
because of that huge intro that promises a huge over the top party.
Instead the listener gets his own private party. No huge rave. Over a
year ago Personal Trainer showed the promise the band holds in a sold out
Paradiso that was ready for a Personal Trainer party. The next record
will be very decisive for the growth potential of the band. It holds
that promise in Intangible. Whether it's shown more in the huge part or
the empty funk, is to be determined.
The
contrast between the harrowing video and the song is huge. Megan de
Kruijff appears to be chased through the woods, looks like a soldier
without battle dress and is ready for conscription should it ever
return. The song is a softly driven alternative pop-rock song. The drums
and bass have this relaxed beat, slowly but very determinedly pushing
the song forward. In short interludes everyone gets a breather before
they continue and the song is set back into motion. Electronic elements
make the song sound modern. Be on the look out for very short
contributions of other instruments. It can be just a few notes before
the instrument disappears again. Over it all Megan de Kruijf sings her
song about a bird, building its nest, while she is contemplating what
the rest of her life will be about from her dark and cold home.
Listening to Bird, the positive energy the bird gave her, leads to very
positive results. Bird holds a promise for the future in a few ways.
It's
been a while since I last heard a new song by Lenny Kravitz and what I
heard after circa 2006 did not exactly make me run to the record store. Let's face
it, he will never make another 'Are You Gonna Go My Way', which will
probably remain my all time Lenny Kravitz favourite. I heard Human come
by on the radio and thought it was not too bad. Listening repeatedly for
this review, I'm not completely certain any more. It is ok but also
remains a bit bland. Even the solo is, although nicely played, not
exactly inspiring. Human has a soul element but also a part of this
percussive bells that get on my nerves a bit once I seriously noticed
them. All in all, Human does not make me curious for more new songs, but
it won't be the first nor the last time an artist I've known for
decades does return with a great song. That song is not Human unfortunately.
Texans
Daiistar return to the blog with a super dreamy song called Clear,
released as a 7" with a remix of 'Sonic Boom' on the flipside. Clear is
clearly a psychedelic song. One of the kind that is a smooth continuous
trip of the kind where this person is just sitting and smiling at the
world marvelling at everything going on about him, without a worry in
the world. In Clear it is all about watching the ocean and not much more.
Listening closer into the song, you will find that Daiistar has found
all these nice little melodies surrounding the drummer who just keeps
going. The steady basis for the smooth sailing trip and keeping it all
together. Daiistar's Alex Capistran (guitar/vocals) says that "the idea
behind 'Clear' was to write the perfect song for a perfect day". I can
only answer, mission succeeded. No matter how wavy the song is, perfect
pop is perfect pop.
Put
on All Business and within seconds you know you've heard it all before
and from Boston as well. In the next five seconds you'll start moving
and after fifteen you'll know you are going to be alright. Robotic Hawks
know where Abraham found his alternative rock mustard and dipped its
writing pen deep into that mustard well. You will hear everything from
Buffalo Tom to Gin Blossoms and back and on the side you'll find a short detour to
stark punk rocking. 'Further', is the song in which the Bostonians
really let go and start rocking with lead-filled riffs. The most
surprising is the cover of 'Wishing Well', one of the four or five hits
of Terence Trent d'Arby's debut album. The song is turned into a
huge rock song without any trouble. The huge guitars fit it easily. The
lead song from the EP is the opening song 'High Maintenance'. The band
rocks in a melodic way but to me appears as the least itself. (I know, it's hard to judge based on four songs.) This is
something different than not having produced a good song. 'High
Maintenance' rocks, period. Add the fourth song 'Cab Ride', a cover of a
The Squaeky Fromme song, and All Business becomes a highly entertaining
alternative rock EP with more than enough songs worthwhile to get to
know and to sing along to.
Schedule
1 makes its debut on WoNoBlog. The Vancouver, Canada band is ready to
release its album 'Crucible'. Expect the clock to strike rock. Schedule 1
finds its inspiration in punk and post punk from the 1980s. The song
kicks off in a stormy manner. An instrumental intro with the band fully going at
it. When the singer joins the music does not leave off in any way. The
punky vocals come straight out of the U.K. 1976-77 punk song book. The music is
more from the 1980s what bands like Killing Joke played. In 2024 the combination of loud
instruments, a few good riffs and a strong melody remains unbeatable still.
Drifting contains it all. All through the song a new melody pops up
underwriting the strength already there. Schedule 1 has released a very
strong single that makes me more that curious to learn more. 'Crucible'
it soon will be.
Previous
single 'Mindcave' was described by me as "a fierce uptempo psychedelic
outing". Hidden Sun is all but. The psychedelic track sounds like French
duo Air having started a psych rock band. The music floats more that it
rocks, finding the perfect middle between the two acts. So expect a
nice guitar riff leading the song towards the softly sung verse and
chorus, under which the riff returns. Because of it I'm inclined to
write that Dreamwave makes dreampop in this song. Well, my definition of
it, as all the bands my colleague reviewer on this blog calls dreampop, do not exactly excite me. To me this Hidden Sun is dreampop. The Brighton, U.K. band has
shown two different sides of itself but both make me curious to get to
know more. We will just have to wait for that EP coming soon.
What,
a single of 19.21 minutes? I already have reviewed a song of 18.22 minutes this
week, 'Flight Of The Sloths' by No Man's Valley. Now, The Decemberists had an album years ago that was sort of one
song. (I was sure I had it on cd but can't find it anywhere.) With 19
and a half minute the band nearly has a new cd already. The beginning
sounds immediately familiar. Exactly why I like this band so much over
the years. Nothing happens in a way, yet every second somehow counts.
The melody is pleasant Colin Meloy's voice sooths in a roughish kind of
way. The accompaniment is all soft, nice and so melodic. In the
arrangement all sorts of melodies meander over and through each other.
Meloy stops singing and the listener enters a mix of Pink Floyd with
Mike Oldfield's 'Tubular Bells'. The melody on the tubular bells in Joan In The Garden is lifted from 'Welcome To The Machine'. The song rises in volume and denseness and becomes
darker fast. Only God knows where this is going. Well, I know, The
Decemberists are honouring Pink Floyd, Roger Waters and David Gilmour
here. This is simply a huge surprise, as I have never any association of these two
bands with eachother. From there it becomes The Decemberists' 'Echoes', sound experiments and all. Like with 'Echoes' something like too much of a good thing exists here as well. The instrumental freaking with electronic instruments is just not that interesting, I'm afraid. Before the sixteenth minute the band returns and turns into a heavy metal version of itself. Quite convincing by the way. Compensation for the previous 10 minutes is justified. The drumming is the loudest this band has ever presented. The end of Joan In The Garden is the equivalent of racing a horse on the prairie. There's nothing stopping it. Summing up, this is a composition with four very different faces.
Two Headed Horse is a new folk pop band from London formed only in 2023 and already it has worked with Ride's Mark Gardener. The debut album's release is scheduled for this summer. I'm Not Hidden is the band's first single and shows that the band is a part of a long tradition and on route to its own sound. The song reminded me first of what would have happened had Steve Winwood decided to make his hit song 'When You See A Chance' as an acoustic folk song. There's a connection here to my ears. And of course the hey ho influences, translated here into ooh ooh ooh. The intro is somewhat disconnected from what follows. It sets the listener on the wrong foot. Two Headed Horse starts to trod a fine line between alternative and folk. But then listen to that piano coming in. As if heaven opens up and the clouds are gone immediately. Yes, I can mention a few names here, but I want you to focus on the strength of the song and not get distracted. I'm Not Hidden shows a few sides to Two Headed Horse that all score well. What more can you ask of a debut single?
Wout de Natris
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