Sayonara Ponytail

If nothing else, I can at least use this space to ensure that I do not forget about certain music.

Today will be a short write-up about a group I stumbled across not 15 minutes ago.  They are "Sayonara Ponytail" [さよならポニーテール], and, so far as I can tell, they are an unsigned Japanese pop group who have been on MySpace for less than two months.  Judging from the illustrations on their page, the band consists of three girls, and they seem to specialize in acoustic-based pop songs that bring to mind the airy, sugary sounds of the '60s.  I can tell you that they immediately reminded me of advantage Lucy, one of my favorite bands.  Even the vocalists from both bands sound uncannily similar, and, since advantage Lucy have not released an album proper since 2005's Echo Park (an undeniable masterpiece, do no misunderstand me), I very much welcome this new incarnation of pop goodness.

It is hard to find any information about these girls, considering both their newness to the internet scene and the fact that I can barely read the simplest Japanese.  Their songs have simple arrangements; one girl plays guitar, one covers the keyboards, and the other handles the lead vocals, with minimal overdubbing.  After spending some weeks listening to some of the busiest albums of the year (Seven Idiots by World's End Girlfriend and The Age of Adz by Sufjan Stevens), finding a sound so simple, yet so well-crafted, is quite refreshing.  There is a soft pleasantness to this music.

They do not have an album yet, so far as I can tell.  Again, they only joined MySpace on August 22 of this year, and I cannot find a trace of them before that point.  Only a month and a half later, however, their page has over 40,000 hits, and I am anticipating exciting things from them in the future.  For now, visit their MySpace page, listen to the tracks they have posted, watch the videos (which have really adorable illustrations that I assume are done by the bandmembers), and enjoy.

さよならポニーテール [Sayonara Ponytail]

On Myspace

On Twitter

 

Waking up to French Gypsy Jazz Swing

Well, that sure was a great nap!

Today, I have the perfect treat for anyone in need of some table-centered toe-tapping whilst working on their lappy or compy of choice. The band is Les Gosses de la Rue (The Street Kids, or so Google translate tells me), the album is self-titled, and their forte is upbeat gypsy-influenced swing/jazz. If you are familiar with Django Reinhardt (and you should be--if not, get an album, any album of his), then you can expect a very similar sound, but with a larger ensemble. As far as I can tell, there are at least two guitars, a flute, a violin, a double bass, and sometimes an accordion. The mix of instrument colors always sounds great, and the production is fantastically clear.

Song structures are about what you would expect from a jazz ensemble--lots of chord motif repetition as different players take their turns at solos. And the solos manage to be both musically engaging and technically impressive most of the time, which helps propel the length of some songs past six minutes. To be honest, though, you are not going to find a lot of diversity in this album. The instrumentation never strays far from the pre-established lineup, and the sounds of the songs are very similar compared to each other. It is very easy to hear the album as a continuous 45 minutes of minor variations on the same theme. It is not a bad thing; it is just a consequence of the style, a style which I can say confidently that this band has mastered.

Song highlights include the immediate punch of the first track, "Rythme futur."  If you like it, then you can expect to enjoy the rest of the album.  If you do not care for it, then you are not going to find much else here.  I also particularly like "Valse a Margaux," which has shades of "Greensleeves" and a gorgeous B section that is the most melancholy, and unexpected, moment of the album.  The following track, "Minor Swing," is a cover of the Django Reinhardt classic, and they have a lot of fun with it.

Best of all, the band has made the album available for free, so you can download it liberated of legal or moral stipulations.  I really respect the kind of people willing to give away their art like such, and so should you.

Les Gosses de la Rue - Les Gosses de la Rue

2009 LP

Support Les Gosses de la Rue and download from Amazon

Download for free from Jamendo (click "Download" [duh])

Format: VBR V2 mp3s in a .zip

Tracklist:

01. Rythm futur

02. Le fils du facteur

03. Amsterdam

04. For Sephora

05. Noto swing

06. Valse a Margaux

07. Minor swing

08. Legend

09. Ungarom

10. Hora ca la Caval

A Taste of Oorutaichian Culture

Today, I have a very rare treat for you to enjoy and digest. I literally just last night came across this CD of traditional folk music from the small Southeast Asian country of Oorutaichi. It would be unsurprising if you have never heard of it, and even top experts in geography tend to overlook the nation, which has remained one of the most secluded societies in modern times. However, this trend of isolation may be seeing the beginnings of its reversal. An artist who, out of love and devotion for his homeland, goes by the name of Oorutaichi released only two years ago a full album of his faithful recreations of Oorutaichian folk music. This record allowed Western and, indeed, most Eastern audiences the chance to hear these songs for the very first time. Not only that, it gave the tiny country a bit more a voice, a presence in the world. Even judging solely by its music, I can say that its culture has a lot to offer.

The few Oorutaichian scholars in existence all agree that the country is one of peculiarities and contradictions, not the least of which are present in its musical traditions. For the most part, its music evolved similarly to that of other societies in neighboring countries, and those familiar with Indonesian folk or pop music will find a lot of analogous rhythms and sounds embedded in Oorutaichian songs. When its stylings really started to diverge, however, was, oddly enough, not until the early twentieth century. It is uncertain exactly when, or what trade ship it was that stimulated this renaissance in musical development; all that is certain is sometime in the 1930s, the people of Oorutaichi were introduced to a theramin. They were immediately captivated by its sound, so much so that research into electricity was immediately made a top priority by the country's leaders. It took only two years for them to develop their first crude, yet functioning, generator. Its power was used to operate theramins that they had either traded for or had constructed themselves, and musicians immediately began adapting traditional tunes to the newly available instrumentation.

This trend continued throughout the rest of the century, with songs evolving in continual accommodation to the new technology available to the Oorutaichians. The construction of their first Moog synthesizer in the 1970s was of particular significance, marking even more exponential growth in experimentation. Musicians became stratified as members of society whose importance was only secondary to the most powerful leaders in the country. Not only was the most advanced electronic equipment made available to them, but it is estimated that, on average, over 86% of the country's electrical resources was being used solely by musicians. While most of the citizens continued to live fairly simple agricultural lifestyles, the songwriters enjoyed a bevy of advanced resources that rivaled that of the United States.

The current result of this unique evolution of sound can be heard in Oorutaichi's album, appropriately named Drifting My Folklore. Simply put, you will hear some of the most inventive electronic music ever produced: avant-garde and unfamiliar, but at the same time structured, danceable, and, above all, catchy. It is perhaps the most authentic example of folktronica you will ever find.

Words can only go so far, and it is best to hear some of it for yourself. Here is a live performance by the man Oorutaichi of one of my favorite tracks from the album--Jimaji (if you can't see the video, let me know, and I'll try uploading it to Youtube).

Music as rare and interesting as that of the Oorutaichi culture is a wholly precious phenomenon, and you owe it to yourself to check it out.

Oorutaichi - Drifting My Folklore
2007 LP
Support Oorutaichi and buy from CD Baby!
Download:
Part 1
Part 2
Format: CBR 320 kbps mp3s in a split .rar
Tracklist:

1. YORI YOYO (3:30)
2. Beshaby (5:05)
3. Chusan (3:59)
4. MISEN Gymnastics (4:15)
5. Hamihadarigeri (3:20)
6. Boo Shan Boo (3:52)
7. PAN 1 NONAKI (8:53)
8. Uiui-Mar-Chan (5:13)
9. Jimaji (4:54)
10. Bii!tan (3:18)

Oh no! Keep that awful body snatching thing AWAY from me!

Oh my, I do not intend to be neglecting this blerg so soon, but darned real life and other matters of productivity I like to be attempting have been getting in the way. I also need to convince myself that I do not necessarily have to compose an essay for each album I want to post, which should also result in an increase in entry frequency and subsequent decrease in their period.

At the moment, however, I hold confidence that this record should make up for my tardiness. It is a small piece of brilliance from 25 years ago (which suddenly makes me feel old, since it was released not too much before I was born). I am naturally talking about Haruomi Hosono's S-F-X. Now, I will be the first to admit that I am no small Japanophile, and Japan's electronic music scene is something whose sound and history I continue to enjoy exploring. You may, then, at certain times be a forced witness to lessons in its evolution, but I will do my best to spare you anything worthy of thesis work. The important thing to know about Haruomi Hosono is that he was one of the three founders and members of the band Yellow Magic Orchestra, who could perhaps be considered one of the first, if not the prototypical Japanese electropop ensemble. They were the equivalent of Kraftwerk, in Western words. All three members had their own solo careers, but Hosono's in the '80s was particularly very colorful, with a number of different collaborations and releases, my preferred of which (so far) is this album, S-F-X.

It begins with one of my favorite tracks to come out of the '80s, period: "Body Snatchers." This track is sonic danceability in its most pure and neatly distilled form. It combines the best elements of the New Wave, hip hop, experimental electronics, and Yellow Magic Orchestra's own brand of crazy. It's like a Max Tundra song fell through a time loop and came out in 1984, if that means anything to you. The best part: the song cuts off and appears to end at just before five minutes, but then, JUST when you're resolved to have the next track to play, it keeps going for an entire other minute! The moral: music needs more cockteasing. "Body Snatchers" alone may make the record, but the rest is still solid, although never quite living up to the first track (but 99% of history's musical output also suffers from this inadequacy). "Androgena" is significantly more laid back, with a bossa nova-esque feel. "SFX" and "Alternative 3" venture into more experimental wizardry, but they are still highly listenable. "Strange Love" is just plain smooth. "Dark Side of the Star," finally, is gorgeously, hauntingly ambient--only piano and atmosphere. It needs nothing more; the album concludes as subtly and beautifully as it had begun brashly and awesomely.

(Note: I am posting the LP version, which has a different, shorter tracklist from the CD version, but it also has the superior mix of "Body Snatchers")

Haruomi Hosono (細野晴臣) - S-F-X
1984 LP (2008 SHM-CD Remaster)
Download Snatcher
Format: VBR V0 mp3s in a .zip
Tracklist:

1. Body Snatchers
2. Androgena
3. SFX
4. Strange Love
5. Alternative 3
6. Dark Side of the Star

You Can (Not) Listen to a Fuckwin Soundtrack

I've always been a sucker for a good soundtrack. It stems from the days when all I would listen to music-wise would be classical (baroque through contemporary if we're going to get technical) pieces and soundtracks to awesome shit like movies, videogames, and anime. In truth, my penchant for the orchestral flair has never gone away, which is why artists such as Final Fantasy and The Divine Comedy sit comfortably at the top of my last.fm charts. But sometimes nothing quite satiates like the ups and downs, the tenderness and epicness, the assault of goosebumps that rushes out of a good soundtrack.

For the past few days, I have been very much enjoying the score to the second part of the new Neon Genesis Evangelion movie tetralogy: Evangelion: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance. If you're not already familiar with the show, I am not even going to attempt to summarize it for you. Wait, actually, I will attempt to do so and fail at it: the mecha genre gets deconstructed like a motherfucker when a bunch of teens with psychological issues abound are forced by adults with psychological issues abound to pilot gigantic robots to combat gigantic aliens for the sake of not only preserving but evolving humankind. And if THAT doesn't make you want to watch it, I don't know what will! All that you need to know is that the creators are still milking the franchise 14 years later, releasing new movies that follow the plot of the original series. [OR DO THEY???????]

Anyway, I'm not here to talk about the show; I'm here to talk about the music, which is overall excellent. Fans of the show will recognize some reworkings/rearrangements of familiar pieces (the "shenanigans about at Misato's house" theme, the "Evangelion Unit 01 launch!" theme, the "OH SHIT THE POWER CORD'S BEEN SEVERED FIVE MINUTES UNTIL CERTAIN DEATH" theme), but it's always done well, and there is plenty of new material to keep interest. There are no classical tracks by big names such as Bach or Handel, but honestly Sagisu Shiro's new pieces are more than spacious enough to fill up the album (inclusion of a choir, fuck yes). Plus, you get some bonus tracks of old Japanese folk/enka music, which I found to be an unexpected treat.

I am also here to assure people who may have never heard of Evangelion that this soundtrack is standalone worth it. You get a nice variety of moods and genres throughout: some smooth bossa nova, some very quiet and beautiful piano pieces, and, as mentioned previously, some awesome Japanese popular music from the '60s.. But for me, the main selling points are the blood-pumpingly epic pieces that incorporate definite and driving orchestrations, heavy electric guitar, or chilling choruses (and sometimes all three!). If anything at all, this soundtrack is versatile--it can be just as good for studying as it can be for working out.

If you're a fan of the Evangelion series, you're doing yourself a disservice by not downloading this. The music alone has made me ridiculously excited to see the movie, even if all I can get at first is a shitty cam-rip. And if you're not a fan, there's a lot of excellent music here you should be listening to RIGHT NOW.

Evangelion: 2.0 YOU CAN (NOT) ADVANCE OST
2009 Bonus Double LP
You Can (Not) Download:
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Format: VBR V0 mp3s in a split .rar file
Tracklist (tracks by Sagisu Shiro unless noted otherwise):

Disc 1: EVANGELION:2.0 YOU CAN (NOT) ADVANCE. original sound track
1. 2EM01_B01 "At The Very Beginning"
2. 2EM03_0908
3. 2EM04_E4
4. 2EM05_KK_B09
5. 2EM06_KK_B16
6. 2EM07_KK_B09_InDoor
7. 2EM08_B17
8. 2EM09_YAMASHITA
9. 2EM10_KK_C01_AddGuit
10. 2EM11_B16
11. 2EM12_KK_A09
12. 2EM13_EM20_Alterna
13. 2EM14_EM10C
14. 2EM15_0938 "Destiny"
15. 2EM16_0944 "Fate"
16. 2EM17_KK_A08
17. 2EM18_KK_C01
18. 2EM19_ソル:モーツァルトの主題による変奏曲
19. 2EM20_KK_A09_Kuriya
20. 2EM21_KK_C01_Str+AcGuit
21. 2EM22_KK_A08_Orche
22. 2EM25_Piano_Nu
23. 2EM26_EM05B
24. 2EM28_EM13
25. 2EM29_E5
26. 今日の日はさようなら [by Hayashibara Megumi]
27. 2EM31_0948 "In My Spirit"
28. 2EM32_0910 "Keep Your Head Above The Mayhem"
29. 2EM33_0902 "The Final Decision We All Must Take"
30. 2EM34_E13
31. 2EM35_Nu02 "Carnage"
32. 2EM36_E16
33. 翼をください [by Hayashibara Megumi]
34. 2EM38_F02
35. ふりむかないで [by The Peanuts]
36. 恋の季節 [by Kon Youko & Pinky & Killers]

Disc 2: Shiro SAGISU Music from EVANGELION:2.0 YOU CAN (NOT) ADVANCE.
1. At The Very Beginning (2EM01)
2. L'Agresseur (2EM03)
3. Ambassadrice Rouge (2EM04)
4. Des Cordes: opus1 (2EM18)
5. Destiny (2EM15)
6. Fate (2EM16)
7. Robe des Champs (2EM20)
8. Des Cordes: opus2 (2EM18)
9. Tranquillité (2EM25)
10. Les Bêtes (2EM29)
11. 今日の日はさようなら-Tribute to "Sound of Music" [by Hayashibara Megumi]
12. In My Spirit (2EM31)
13. Keep Your Heads Above The Mayhem (2EM32)
14. Instabilité:Orchestre (2EM22)
15. The Final Decision We All Must Take (2EM33)
16. Evanescence: mouvement 1 (2EM34)
17. Evanescence: mouvement 2 (2EM34)
18. Evanescence: mouvement 3 (2EM34)
19. Carnage (2EM35)
20. Sin From Genesis (2EM36)
21. 翼をください-Tribute to "Sound of Music" [by Hayashibara Megumi]
22. Instabilité:Piano Solo (2EM17)
23. Mellow 2009 (2EM18)

Going the way of the dodo(s)

If there is one thing I try to strive for, it's probably not appropriate even for semi-anonymous public internet publishing. If there are two things I strive for, then the second would be innovation. Whether or not I have ever actually done anything that could possibly be remotely considered creative and exciting is up for thesis-level debate. What good is a goal, though, if you can achieve it?

That said, I will try to keep things fresh here at the Samsonite Samurai (if you want to receive that sentence in its proper context, whip out a sharpie and either embolden the word "try" until it resembles a black block, or, alternatively, underline it no less than fifty times--I lack the html prowess to do so myself). For instance, I will now do something I have never attempted before: writing a review for an album I have only listened to once, that being two days ago, going purely from memory. I was kind of half-listening to the music for about half of the record too, since, at the time, I had no idea my future self would conspire against me in this fashion. As a person who typically likes to be excruciatingly sure of himself before attempting most actions, this should be interesting, or, at the very least, useless and pedantic.

So, today's record of RAW discussion: The Dodos' Time to Die

[I am thinking now this will probably be better facilitated if I turn off "Groovin' Magic." That is a song for another post.]

The Dodos are a band I like, but not to the point where I follow them religiously, so I had no idea they were releasing a new album in September, the leaking of which just occurred a few days ago. That's over two months ahead of its scheduled sale date, which even I think is a little excessive, but such is the industry.

First impressions of the album are pretty positive. They really have a good sense of pulling off epic-sounding folk songs, which I appreciate when there are so many "lo-fi" folk-and-such bands that are quiet and sound exactly the fucking same. Of course, I do enjoy listening to such bands from time to time, but the theme for this entry is innovation, and in that regard The Dodos are a cut or so above many of them. They have an excellent sense for buildup and falling back, for letting a song evolve as it is being played. The mixing is done well, too--they let everything retain a very wet sound, with lots of reverb, definitely adding to the perceived epic nature.

On the other side of innovation, however, on the first listen, this album doesn't sound all that different from Visiter (and I realize that my perception of this may change with repeated plays, but informed opinions are not the point of this entry). I remember reading they got a third member, a vibraphonist, to join the band, but I only recall noticing a vibraphone once throughout the album. I'm sure I need to listen more closely, and, in retrospect, including a vibraphone subtly into the arrangement is probably the best way to go about it.

No track in particular stands out right away, but The Dodos area also the sort of band whose songs need time to grow into you. Alternatively, I can't think of a song I didn't like either. My favorite thing Meric Long has written, however, has not been anything with The Dodos; instead, it is the track "Notes" off his solo release, the Dodo Bird EP. The band has yet to top that, but I also won't put it past them to be able to do so.

So, overall, this review has indeed been pitifully uninformative, but I approve of Time to Die, and so should you. I am not going to post a download link, methinks, because it's already easy enough to find with a simple Google search. I also feel bad about it leaking so early. For that, I am also a hypocrite worthy of a good tar-and-feathering.

However, that doesn't mean I will leave you empty-handed. Instead, you should enjoy something a bit harder to find--the previously mentioned Dodo Bird EP by Meric Long, one-half (well, one-third now I guess) of The Dodos. If you like the band, you'll like this. And regardless, it is simply well-written music with good arrangements and lyrics--short but oh-so-sweet. I don't think you can buy it anymore either, so that is all the more reason to check it out here at the Samsonite Samurai. Enjoy!

Meric Long - Dodo Bird
2006 EP
Download (Ahoy!)
Format: CBR 192 kbps mp3s in a .zip
Tracklist:

1. Notes
2. Coals
3. Friends
4. Couples
5. Popo

Back with a Vengenace: Cricket Pop Edition

Cripes, I have not touched this site in over a year. But like a phoenix arising from ashes that some asshole swept under the carpet and proceeded to completely forget about for 15 months, the Samsonite Samurai is reborn! In blog form!

Onto the first point of order:

I know next-to-nothing about cricket (to my defense, America is probably not the most opportune country for garnering exposure to the sport). I have surmised that it has little to do with the insect, and I fondly remember Douglas Adams having fun with it in one of the Hitchhiker novels, but that is about the extent of my knowledge. However, after listening to The Duckworth Lewis Method's self-titled, I find myself tempted, nay, compelled to learn about the sport, for better or worse.

Backing up, The Duckworth Lewis Method are self-proclaimed pioneers of "cricket pop," an exciting new subgenre of pop where the lyrics are always cricket-oriented and the music is always fantastic. More referentially, the band is a collaboration between Neil Hannon, the founder of and creative genius behind The Divine Comedy, and Thomas Walsh, a.k.a. Pugwash. I cannot pretend to speak objectively about Mr. Hannon, so I will refrain from doing so, and I'm not familiar with Mr. Walsh's work (although that will soon have to change, considering the quality of this album), so I can't really speak about him either. I CAN, however, talk a bit about The Duckworth Lewis Method, which I hope will be appropriate.

Musically, the album is pop bliss. I am fairly certain writing catchy and splendidly-arranged songs is hard work, but damn it does Mr. Hannon's consistency in doing so make it seem easy. But this is not a Divine Comedy album, and (I am merely deducing here) Mr. Walsh's contributions seem to add a more psychedelic or power-pop slanted sound to several songs. "Flatten the Hay," for instance, reminds me of some of Martin Newell's work, Mr. Newell being a prominent underground figure in Britain's psychedelic/jangle-pop scene, or so I have read. "The Age of Revolution," the album's first single, is also a highlight, starting out old-timey before turning a downright smooth quasi-funk-like romp. Even when the album slows down for a song like "The Nightwatchman," it only serves to exhibit Mr. Hannon's excellent penchant for strings and piano.

Lyrically, I can't help but feel at a disadvantage, having no knowledge of cricket's rules or history (which is, again, why my curiosity about the subject has been piqued). I'm sure there are countless servings of cricket wit about, but 95% of it is flying over my head. That's not to say I don't enjoy the lyrics, however. "The Sweet Spot" goes from good to hilarious once the double-entendre sinks in about thirdway through the song. "Jiggery Pokery" also works so well because of its lyrical content, telling its tragic tale as the words bounce around the music. I mean, cricket aside, it mentions a contrabassoon, and that alone gets point from me. While I am disappointed that the album censors a very appropriate instance of the term "fuck," it is but a small complaint.

There is no viable reason why any fan of The Divine Comedy, Pugwash, or cricket should not already have ordered this record. Even those unfamiliar with the former (or even harboring enmity towards cricket) can find a lot to enjoy here, simply as fans of music. But I think the real lesson here is this: who better to write a musical tribute to probably the most English of sports than two Irishmen.


Below you will encounter more technical info about the album, a link to download it, and a link to buy it. I plan on including a download link in every music post I can, but the buy links should hopefully not be ignored by perusers (for instance, in this case, may I recommend the iTunes download, since a. non-UK people won't have to worry about importing and b. you get BONUS SHIT)

The Duckworth Lewis Method - The Duckworth Lewis Method
2009 LP
Purchase from HMV (for UK types)
Purchase from Amazon (for US types)
Download (Avast!)
Format: VBR V0 mp3s in a .zip
Tracklist:

1. The Coin Toss
2. The Age of Revolution
3. Gentlemen and Players
4. The Sweet Spot
5. Jiggery Pokery
6. Mason on the Boundary
7. Rain Stops Play
8. Meeting Mr Miandad
9. The Nightwatchman
10. Flatten the Hay
11. Test Match Special
12. The End of the Over

An Introduction

Things of an as-of-yet undetermined nature may or may not be posted at sometime soon in a place perhaps resembling this one by one or more persons whose identities are still under question.