 Now, Jun Togawa
achieved a lot of commercial success, but it seems weird to call her
"mainstream." She's just too damned odd, too willing to go off into
utterly bizarre directions. Koji Ueno, the synth wizard that comprises
the other half of Guernica, was a bit less baffling in the synthpop Halmens,
so one might reasonably assume this duo finds a middle ground between
Ueno's relative level headedness and Togawa's flightier tendencies.
Well, that didn't happen: if anything, Guernica qualifies as the flat
out weirdest project either artist has been involved in. Words can
never do the band's concept justice, but since this is a review, I'll
give it my best shot: inspiring wartime songs, sung in styles that veer
from opera to cheesy showtunes, often within a few seconds of each
other, structured in completely unpredictable ways, and delivered with
thoroughly unhinged synths that sound both cheesy and dangerously
unbalanced at the same time. Maybe this clip, a TV commercial (huh?) the duo did for a drink called "Sweet Kiss," might clear things up.
Or maybe not. That clip is actually pretty grounded compared to this
album: it's pretty clear from the opening trills of "ブレヘメン" ("Bremen")
that this record is WAY out there, but even the slight understanding
that comes from that brief opener is pulled out from under you with "カフェ・ド・サヰコ"
("Café de Psycho,") which not only introduces the synths into
the fold, but goes from the clear sound of "Bremen" into a lo-fi morass
that is much like leaving a modern piano recital only to magically step
into Fritz Lang's "Metropolis," fuzzy black and white futurism and all.
Things don't calm down from there, although a general approach does
eventually emerge from the careening walls of electronics, yodels (??!?!)**
and military beats. It's one of futuristic nostalgia (hence the
"Metropolis" reference above,) perhaps one that would have more
cultural weight for a native Japanese, but one which still comes
through loud and clear to this white guy. Then there's the, uh...I
guess it would be "vaudeville" of "スケエテヰング・リンク" ("Skating Rink.") It's as if Guernica took the future retro of Yellow Magic Orchestra's debut and replaced their Martin Denny fixation with a military band, albeit one with attention deficit disorder.
And since that's come up, this album was indeed produced by Yellow Magic Orchestra creator Haroumi Hosono,
and it offers a crazed counterpoint to that band's cool demeanor.
"Inspire To Rebuild" isn't for everyone, Lord knows, but it's
fascinating to hear an album made up of such user friendly parts come
out so utterly off the wall. Togawa would release her stellar solo
debut "Tamahime Sama"
two years later, and Ueno would make one more Halmens album ("Halmens
Deluxe") before embarking on an equally productive and eccentric career
involving soundtracks, experimental jazz, and teaching at Tokyo's Nihon
University. The duo would return six years later with "新世紀への運河"
("Passage To The New Century,") then make one final album ("電離層からの眼指し",
i.e. "All Eyes To The Sky") before going their separate ways. While all
three albums are worthy, the disorienting shock of this, their debut,
is the recommended starting point. Enter, if you dare...
---
Available from Amazon Japan
**
= This clip is "夢の山獄地帯" ("In Prison, Dreaming Of Mountains,") and is a
live rendition that sounds very different from the studio version.
|
