大橋トリオ - White

[Zeus 7997]

Score: | Color me shocked, I actually am impressed.

---

Not that I started this experiment with the intention to bash releases or anything...

For me, jazz is a musical style that I can only enjoy when I'm in the right mood. I don't yet consider myself to be sophisticated enough to throw on jazz whenever and immediately enjoy it. I also haven't been in the mood lately to listen to jazz, even struggling to put on the flawless Shiina Ringo for more than a few minutes. So when I say that I enjoyed this album, I enjoyed this album.

Stylistically, this album is a lot more downtempo and sparse than the usual fare I review. The main attraction for me is the vocal work, with the instruments taking more of a relaxed, backseat role. They're still there, but they don't steal the show. The vast amount of guest features and the styles they bring to each song do. For some people, so many different artists contributing to one release can be a positive aspect because of diversity. For others, it's a negative because there are too many cooks in the kitchen and ideas from one track clash with ideas from the next. I only notice when one track has Engrish lyrics and the following track has more pronounced enunciation - it's very distracting. It's not something that happens very often, so I'm willing to let it slide. I can say that no track is as left-field as some of the contributions on the SOIL&"PIMP" collaboration album from earlier this year, so if that turned you off this will work better.

 

Lyrically - since for once I can understand a great deal of the message - this is a very positive album. Topics range from love to happiness and all of the other positive topics underneath that rainbow and sunny sky. I'm not used to hearing people sing about such positive topics (or even giving two shits about what they're singing about anyway because hey, I don't pretend like I understand Japanese). I like that this album focuses on positivity without sounding contrived, so it gets points for that.

 

If you're feeling down, this album should cheer you up. If you're feeling upbeat, this album may make you melt from happiness. If you're not into jazz, this can be a hard pill to swallow. Try it out - it's worth it.

[bonsaijodelfisch 328]

ok, since this one is claimed to be worthwhile i'll try it aswell. i'm not much of a Jazz listener so take what i write with a grain of salt, but here's my on-the-fly first listen trackbytrack impression/review...

TOO LONG;WONT READ

SCORE: | earpleasant album focusing on chilled laidback athmosphere. quite a bit too long tho.

Top Tracks:

1. 東京ピエロ

4. Natural Girl

7. She Is A Rainbow

8. Be There

1. 東京ピエロ

nice chill start into the album, very coffee-shop-ish. i like how the harmonies are pretty simple pop-esque most of the time but with a few odd ones to throw you a bit of. i like it. cool to nod along to

4/5

2. turn the world around

oh, a duett? nice, a little stompier than the previous song with that continuous beat, just enough change to keep me interested. i could swear that i've heard 90% of those songparts somewhere else already tho. also much simpler harmony-wise, almost predictable. still okay track, perhaps the "pop-song" of the album.

3/5

3. モンスター

ok, singer-songwriter now? adding another vocalist to the ensemble (i guess?) and providing some sorta blooming open chorus parts with strings. feels a little like the obligatory ballad on kpop-albums, which is really not a bad thing. i just think the song is quite a bit too long, or it could've used one or two truly different parts, this way it seems just like the same 16bars repeated over and over with a bit of variation here and there and they don't hold enough substance to do that.

2.5/5

4. Natural Girl

ok, here's now the jazz finally again. obviously connects back to the first track but is quite a bit more upbeat and groovy than that. nothing groundbraking here, but why fix it if it ain't broken? very cool piano-solo too and xylophone intermezzo. all adds up to a nice track to listen to

4/5

5. 窓

Vox-Duett with piano? naturally makes the connection with musical/disney type of music. i take this opportunity just at how nice it is to hear actually played piano without clicktrack and all that for a change by a skilled musician. it sounds just beautiful. that said whilst providing a beautiful athmosphere the track in itself is pretty forgettable.

2.5/5

6. 日曜の夜に鳴く鶏

hmmn, continuing the same realm as the previous one, now with added band. hrmpf, it might be just be me, but this kind of song annoys the hell out of me, the only interesting thing about it is that one key-change near the middle and the general annoyingness of the slide(?)-guitar

1/5

7. She Is A Rainbow

another coffee-shop-track, for the first time i notice a slight hint of singalongability with the start of the chorus which is a nice addition. apart from that it's just more of the same, still nice.

3.5/5

8. Be There

a groovy one, another one with guest vocals and instrument-solos. super bonus props to the bassist also for that verse-opening such a subtle but impactfull chromatic walkthrough deserves a medal negative points for "yeahyeah" (yeahyeahyeahyeahyeah...)

4/5

9. This is the love

is it just me or somebody else getting a slight jamiroquai-vibe here? although nothing much changed with the whole beat, arrangement and the e-bass this has in general a more "modern" feel to it than most of the tracks before. one might also make the comparison to tokyo-jihen perhaps. also flute-solo. but somehow it still doesn't really catch my attention, idk i'm kinda torn...

3.5/5

10. 顔

ok, this one almost lost me. basically it's just roughly 6mins of -song-. wouldn't there be the pushing buildup at halftime i'd have skipped. not a good sign.

2/5

11. JASMINE

the album is becoming a bit long i have to admit. the track flows nicely and is pleasant and all, but i have to admit i have the urge to skip through the remaining tracks. it is becoming a little bit paint-by the numbers versechorusversebridgechosus-repeat. unique selling point is probably the porn-guitar here. the rest don't really do anything.

2/5

12. フラワー.

hmmn, it's a track i guess. i'm probably not very fair anymore at this point, but i guess it should be along the lines of

2.5/5

13. 真夜中のメリーゴーランド

next instalment of the actually jazzy parts, again with duett vocal. as it shapes out those tracks are probably the better ones on the album. still nothing surprising anymore, just a bit of soft and calming earcandy. nothing wrong with that probably

skabadaba-dubidubidu vocal-solo is the earcatcher on this one.

3.5/5

14. オールドタイム.

it's the finale, and they're going for sad piano-ballad. with added whisteling it's a nice anti-climatic endingpoint for an album, doesn't do that much as a song tho, just kind of a harmonic-exercise.

3/5

------

mathmatically that will probably add up to 3/5 or sth.

my personal beef with the album is, that there's not really a standout track, something that even slightly resembles a hook of sorts. i know it doesn't really want to be like that, but as a whole it couldn't really keep my attention up, it's more of an album that just flows by nicely without hurting anybody. in it's whole i don't think i'll listen to it again, because it simply is too long, but i think if i boil it down to 5-6 tracks this could be a really cool mini of sorts.