Japan - Were they EVER good?

http://www.musicfolio.com/modernrock/japan_tindrum.jpg

And your mentioning Sylvian's obsession with the hoarier aspects of Ferry's voice illustrates the orientalism point as well. At that juncture in his career, Sylvian was indulging his interest in style as content. And rather than synthesizing conflicting cultures (which is where Polaroids stumbles a bit), on Tin Drum he's pitting them against one another. The result is unmitigated exoticism by way of subtractive process.

Anyway, absent that underlying tension, you had style for its own sake. Or, as noted, Duran Duran, who apparently asked him to produce their debut.

Twee psychedelic pop from 67-68, certainly. Also 70s prog rock

(And wrong in both cases)

I can imagine Dave255's sneer as he typed that.

GREAT!

!!! WHAT'S GOING ON THERE?

You're not the only one who's thought that!

"Tin Drum" is a concept album about China.

anyone else reckon the guy out of my chemical romance is modelling himself on sylvian these days?

Now John Foxx -- I'm starting to see more and more that HE is probably where former choir boy SLB (whose mom, trivia-seekers, was a former opera singer who turned into a stage mom with her little Simon and had him deeply involved in acting from a very early age) derived quite a bit of influence from. And Nick Rhodes has totally gone on the record as being absolutely wild for Ultravox's first three albums, so there's something worth looking at.

As for the most recent posts, WTG for picking up some Japan love! Please make sure to repeat "Still Life On Mobile Homes" and "Canton" a few times for me, thanks.

uh, no

OH HI BEST SONG EVER, IT IS GOOD TO MEET U

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOM7N924Rls

Japan were a fantastic band and have not dated at all. Partly because early 80s synth based music hasn't and will never date. But also, Japan were better than most.

"Ghosts", in particular, has to be one of the dullest Top 10 Hits EVER.

Couldn't disagree more..

What top 10s are weirder than Ghosts, except O Superman, of course...

I marvel at UK pop culture, such a mash of MASSIVE artists and (presumably) inaccessible artists, completely different than the US mainstream. Never change!

"Ghosts", in particular, has to be one of the dullest Top 10 Hits EVER.

Couldn't disagree more..

Yeah no kidding, this song is fucking incredible.

amazing!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGcteC2_H2c

I am so big on Tin Drum, Gentlemen Take Polaroids & Quiet Life...I tried their first two albums over five years ago & they didn't hit me in the same way. I am thinking I should try them again.

I am thinking I should try them again.

Eh, I'm in the same camp as you. Their first two, which I revisited last year, are simply a different band, and not one that I particularly like.

You have to approach their first albums as a diff band, basically. "Adolescent Sex" is pretty bratty, but has a few standout moments if you like glam rock. I like a lot of "Obscure Alternatives" - its all over the place, its quite an odd little number.

I'vbe had a Japanese original pressing of AS since I was 16, I feel like I grew up with this band even tho they'd broken up before I ever found out about them.

Haha xpost!

Yep, that's the right perspective.

Meanwhile, don't forget the reunion-that-wasn't-quite album as Rain Tree Crow. It's haunting.

i've never heard a japan song in my life other than "ghosts" but that song more than justifies their existence for me

obscure alternatives is a great record. I prefer it at times to gentlemen take polaroids which can sound bland to me, compared to tin drum (which is texturally interesting) and quiet life (which still has some swagger to it). obscure alternatives is weird. I think it's weirder than polaroids.

Its quite weird! It has this strange harsh vibe to it. "Communist China" is such a Roxy rip, but it's great for it.

early 80s synth based music hasn't and will never date

I love 80s synth-pop but this is a crazy statement. Certain voguish sounds were already dated a couple of years later.

The sound of the 80s was intermediately dated during the 90s, but has been reinstated during the 00s. The 90s was a very different decade that will remain different forever and have little relevance on music beyond the 90s.

Amazing.

Some of the sampling/FM based synths of the late 80s sound dated now though, and always will. The trademark bass sound of the DX7 will never ever be trendy again.

wow i agree with Geir, whats the world coming too

On sounding dated i think its to do with digital synths in the 80s and cheap sampling in the late 80s/early 90s

Yes, it is. But also some of those DX7 sounds that were being used way too often.

The DX7 (and the FM synths that followed) was a strange creature. Technically, it was a synth and not a sampler. But the sounds it made sounded more like badly sampled samples than like synth sounds. Avoiding the most cliche-liked sounds (also the el piano sound) FM synths can still work nicely together with analogue synths to create more varied sounds though.

But, well.... Better keep to Japan here. And they did not use DX7 or samples. :)

I have to agree with Geir here about early 80s synth before everything got all poopy. However Japan are so depressing! Were then and are now! Am happy to be reminded of this.

It's Sylvian's Ferryesque croon on the Japan records that I have a hard time coming to terms with. Thankfully he mostly dropped that affectation when he went solo. I love "Ghosts" and (even more) "Nightporter" but he should have redone the vox on those songs later.