Breaking the Cycle
July 13th, 2008
I’m a sucker for ballads, no doubt about that. I love everything about ballads, the passion, the heart, the structure, the lyrics, the instrumentals, everything, especially when it’s sung by female vocalists. It’s poetry in song, it really is beautiful. If I could put how I feel about it, it would simply be, “earsex”. Sometimes it almost feels like ayaka or Satomi Takasugi are stroking my ears after every line. A good majority of my music collection are ballads, and the majority of those ballads are sung by females. I don’t know what’s with me and females vocalists, I just like the purity and grace of their voice.
But there are times where I have to break away from the monotony of female singers and female idol groups and regain my masculinity. Who do I turn to save my masculinity from the smooth and heartfelt voices of females? Simple, male fronted bands! I could easily turn to my British Indie bands which can pump out alternative rock beats like no other, but this entry isn’t to promote them, they already get enough recognition as it is. But I’m here to share and introduce a few bands and groups that I’ve listened to the past few years which have saved me from the flood of oestrogen gushing at me every day.
What do all these bands have in common?
Dirt, Grit, Rough, Testosterone-packed and head-smashing music.
Not a lot of a lot people know this band, but they rock as hard as any other big name out there. Their name is Sambomaster, a trio dedicated in playing a blend of punk/classic rock, pop, jazz and rock ballads. If you’re looking for raw and relentless energy, look no further than Sambomaster.
The vocalist, Yamaguchi, is the core of the band imo. His voice is just sensational; his voice can shift from a jazzy melodic voice to just plain madness. But Sambomaster aren’t all about Yamaguchi’s sensational voice. They are exciting riffs and drum fills, but Yamaguchi’s voice just makes the song SO exciting. Why? It’s his voice and his energy. His voice interacts parallel with the instruments, he doesn’t sing for the instruments nor do the instruments play for his singing, they play synchronously together, and it oh works so well. It’s not like lock and key, it’s like lock and key with butter smothered all over it.
His raw energy is something to be fearful of; I mean people keep saying, “Oh I’m going to put 110% in it!” Yamaguchi just goes, “Fuck that shit, I’m going to fucking throw myself into this song, screw what the producers are going to think, this is how I fucking sing.”
The album from Sambomaster which I highly recommend is “Sambomaster wa Kimi ni Katari Kakeru”, their second album. Every single song on this album is a JOY to listen to. Frankly I haven’t had the time to listen to Sambomaster’s other albums because I have too many things to listen through. But trust me; this album will not disappoint you. Every single song on this album is tailor-made for new listeners to Sambomaster; really, it has everything from the jazzy ballads to just schizophrenic, controlled madness.
Ellegarden is another well known male fronted rock band which I’ve been listening to. These guys have been rocking out since 2001 but they are sadly on a year long hiatus because they are losing their inspiration to create music. Although I’m quite sad about this, the hiatus is quite well deserved since after 5 albums and one best album I would have trouble writing new and original music as well and it’s also good they can get a nice holiday as well. I hope the guys will come back all guns blazing next year. If you didn’t know, mostly sing in English, and they don’t sound like fobs, unlike some other artists. Their English is understandable and concise and their music sounds extremely familiar with English/American punk bands like Blink 182 or Good Charlotte, and the lyrics only make their similarities even more related.
What I love about Ellegarden is exactly what I love about Sambomaster, except the fluctuations in vocal variation. The pure raw energy threaded within each and every song is just a spectacle in itself. But its how these guys process this energy into flamboyant, head smashing music is what keeps me craving for more. The album I recommend for new listeners is no other than their latest Best of album which was released this July; it is an excellent compilation of all their greatest songs. The songs I enjoy the most from Ellegarden are from their album, “Eleven Fire Crackers” which include Fire Cracker, Salamander and Acropolis. All three songs are pretty much the same, just pure energy converted into song. The songs are fast and loud and the vocals are gritty and rough…just perfect.
You can’t get manlier than naming your band after a type of bullet, and that’s what these musicians from Yokohama have done. 9mm Parabellum Bullet is a pretty unique band and I honestly can’t put them into a specific genre but I’ll tell you this, they are a fusion of punk/post-punk, metal, indie and hardcore. Their crazy, fast and non-generic guitar riffs is the core, no, the soul of the whole band. The profound emphasis on the instrumentals, especially the guitar and drums is always “in your face” so to say and with the intensity of a fired bullet. These guys have an obscene amount of skill with their respective instruments, the guitar riffs are complex equalling or better than DragonForce’s and the drum fills are equally as impressive. While the instruments are catchy and aggressive, the one problem I had is with the vocals. It took me quite a while to get used to Takuro’s vocals because his style and the way he sings is quite different to what I’ve experienced but in time, his crisp vocals fits appropriately with the song like a lock and a key.
When I first listened to 9mm Parabellum Bullet, the first thing I picked out (except the emphasis on the instrumentals) is that the verses sound very distorted and peculiar. I’ve listened to my fair share music and I’ve never heard/seen such odd structure in a verse. Despite the randomness in the verse, they always manage to capture my attention with their harmonious yet aggressive chorus. Their latest album, “Termination”, is definitely not for the fainthearted. It comprises of what 9mmPB do best, extremely fast, violent and complex music, but at the same time, extremely catchy.
I’ve read some articles saying 9mmPB is “intense danceable rock”… You gotta be shitting me. Intense, definitely, but trying to dance to a song like “Punishment” just boggles the mind. If your definition of dance includes punching and kicking everything around you, sure, you can definitely dance to 9mmPB, otherwise it is…quite hard. If you’re willing to open up to new bands, try out 9mmPB. They’re different, but once the adrenaline starts pumping though the veins, you won’t regret it.
And I’m already back listening to another female sung ballad.
Tags: 9mm Parabellum Bullet, Ellegarden, Sambomaster
Posted in Artist Review | Comments (Comments)
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