Japan's GLAY (東京都), Japan and France's KOKIA and Beijing, China's TOOKOO!

OK, I wandered back to Japan, a bit off course of my world tour, but I'm glad I did. I happened to find a group that is a bit rock and a bit roll (ok and bit J-POP too!)

GLAY (東京都)
Aside from the messed up MySpace layout which covered up the audio player (at least on my machine, using Firefox, it was covered up) and aside from the little snippets of songs rather than full songs, I really liked this band.

I hate it when they don't put up at least one or two full length songs but instead only put up soundbites. It's like watching a movie preview when you were expecting a movie. You can tell they are signed; I expect some marketing bigwig thinks that he or she knows best and doesn't want the public to have anything for free...sad. Personally, if I like what I hear online, I go out and buy a CD...I'd much rather have a professionally made and guaranteed CD over a wonky download everyday. Can you tell I don't use iTunes??? :)

Anyway, GLAY (東京都) is robust and energetic with driving beats, great musicality and impassioned vocals. Here's another band whose music you might expect to find on anime shows like the fun but edgy Bleach, Ghost in the Shell, DeathNote and so forth. Except this isn't a grunge, goth or metal band, it is a rock J-POP blend, but in a great way. Think rock band with hits that span into and appeal to pop fans as well.

I just wish they'd put up some full samples on their MySpace page and do something about the wonky layout...but listen to them anyway, I think you'll like them.

You can find their MySpace page here (and other links I didn't visit) at
http://www.myspace.com/glayofficial

KOKIA
And if a Tokyo, Japan group is actually based in France, does that count as part of my world tour? The MySpace page is generated and written in French, the band is Japanese J-POP/Pop and a bit of Opera in style.

KOKIA, when I first started to listen didn't impress me. As I listened to the echoing overlayed soprano-like vocals, I thought I was going to listen to yet another singer and group that spent too much time showing off their vocal range and other tricks and not enough time showing that they could execute a song with passion and timing.

I was wrong.

Those fragile, self-indulgent vocals suddenly transformed into a grandiose theme with reach and power. The song, Follow the Nightingale, was mesmorizing, building in drama and intensity until it crescendoed and exploded.

Frankly, it reminded me of Alanis Morisette's song 'One', the complexity, the sense of a lone singer that is suddenly surrounded yet not overwhelmed by a powerful symphony of musicians and intricate music--it was there in this song.

So I listened to the other songs. I liked them as well. Some were playful and simplistic, like the songs children sing in complete innocence, some were complex but with rather annoying voice-over bits that I could do without, but happily others were deeper and complex.

Great vocals, intensely impressive instrumentals and composition and best of all, entertaining and powerful--enough to sweep you away to distant worlds only available in movies or your own imagination. Grand, sweeping, overwhelming -- give them a listen and see what you think.

And I'm counting France as part of my world tour with this group--regardless of it being a Japanese group. :)

Find KOKIA at
http://www.myspace.com/kokiavoice

TOOKOO
Finally, I stopped off in China and after wading through some popular bands (according to their stats) that didn't sound so special to me, I did happen upon a very Rock band called TOOKOO. They say they are a blend of Emo, Indie and Rock. I would place them more firmly on the Rock side with a bit 70's psychedelic and right on the edge of being Metal, but not quite.

Wild, fun and off the wall -- what more can you say except listen to those driving beats and irrepressible energies yourself.

Really, they were a blast to listen to -- just plain fun!

They are at
http://www.myspace.com/tookoo

Enjoy, gotta go!
CG Anderson

You Decide--Nell (Korea) vs. Art of Dying (Canada) Quickie Music Review

Well, I couldn't decide to go west toward Korea or east, across the Pacific, back to Canada and the US.

So I went both ways.
Isn't Internet travel just so much easier and convenient? !!

Nell is out of South Korea. They are an alternative/indie rock band. They are very easy on the ears, so think of them as more the easy-listening type of alternative band, rather than the hard driving rocker type.

The music was a bit tinny but I blame the upload to MySpace. The vocals are very nice and the musicality good. The samples I listened to tended to the ballad-like and I would have preferred some that were a bit more passionate and intense, but then that is me.

Decide for yourself. A nice group to listen to, especially after a hard days work or while studying for a midterm. At least that was my impression.

You can find their MySpace page at
http://www.myspace.com/bandnell

Don't want easy listening? Not interesting in studying but would rather dance around your room pretending to be a rock star?

OK, try the wildly popular, yet unsigned?, grunge band out of Canada -- Art of Dying.


Raucous, wild, over the top, energetic, evocative, emotional, you name it. It's a grunge band. Good emotive, angst-ridden vocals, good musicality, driving beats without 'over-amping' -- it is no surprise why this band is so popular.

The only complaint was the overdone MySpace site that slowed down the download and made me wait in order to sample their songs. I almost gave up waiting, but still...I'm glad I hung in there and gave them a listen.

Check them out at
http://www.myspace.com/theartofdying

So there you have it. East and West by going west and east!

Enjoy!
CG Anderson

Got an idea for a band I should review? Let me know at cganders1@yahoo.com

くるり / Quruli (Kururi) serves up some easy listening with a bit of kick

Travelling a bit to the east today (from China) we are back in Japan. I'm in an easy, slow mood today since the sun is shining and it is actually warm here in the Northwest (Seattle, WA, USA.)

So perusing through Japan MySpace music sites I find くるり or Quruli by their spelling (Kururi by other Romanji spellings of Japanese Hiragana characters.)

This duo is an easy-listening group, and yes, it's pop music but again not necessarily the outrageous J-POP that most think of when thinking of the pop music scene of Japan. This duo is simply easy to listen to, with a focus on ballads. The musical orchestrations also tend to the ballad-like side, but with complexity and emotive overtones that I also hear with ballad-pop songs of Alanis Morissette.

I like pop tunes that have musical complexity and intricacy. It's one reason I love the work of Alanis. And these guys definitely have some of that same spark.

Vocally, they seem to stay in a safe range and their music tends to be a bit more controlled than American counterparts, but it could just be the selection of tunes that I heard.

Why not see for yourself. Kick back and listen to some Japanese pop for awhile (especially if you aren't into Japanese Metal. Though the two metal bands I found, see previous reviews, are really superb.)

Their MySpace music page is at http://www.myspace.com/quruliofficial

Have an easy, "slow riding in the sun" day!

Where shall I go next on this pre-Olympics musical tour? Continue WEST to Korea, perhaps? or EASTward toward Canada and the West Coast of the US?
Hmmm...

Cheers!
CG Anderson

Alex Fong and Stephy Tang Prove Hong Kong Knows Pop Music

OK, sorry it's been awhile but as life would have it, things came up that had to be dealt with right away.

But enough of the boring details of my life.......Let's start a summer international tour, in honor of the international cooperation surrounding the Olympics. In this case, surrounding the Beijing Olympics.

And let's start with Hong Kong!
And Alex Fong ...

No headbanging this time, just some easy listening pop. The singer? Probably unknown outside of Hong Kong, maybe known in Asia, but likely not much beyond that area. Alex Fong, aka Siu Fong, aka "Little Flying Fish". He's a pop singer, a Hong Kong swimming medalist, an actor and pretty darn cute to look at, too!

As a singer, he has a nice voice, well suited to easy pop tunes as well as romantic ballads.

Do I need to know Chinese to appreciate him or his voice? Of course not, I'm always listening to more than lyrics. I listen to voice quality, which is good here, delivery and emotional impact, which is GREAT here, musicality, instrumentation and in general, how it's all put together. He is signed by a major label, so as expected, the quality is good, and the band members are first rate professionals, as is the producer.

Even given those advantages, Mr. Fong doesn't just rest on the hard work of others to make him look good. He delivers a quality song with emotional impact--and that is why I'm reviewing him today.

So if you're curious to see how pop is done in China, and done well, take a listen and look at Alex Fong.

His myspace page is

http://www.myspace.com/alexfongls


Cute Pop guys aren't your thing? Well, what about cute Pop girls?

Stephy Tang

Stephy Tang, aka Tang Lai Yun, could easily fit into the cutie-girl JPOP group, except that she is Chinese.

This "model turned singer" is unsigned but has obviously got what it takes to make it big--and I mean successful beyond her obvious visual appeal!

This girl has a lovely voice and better yet, delivers songs with emotion and impact. I like that. It tells me that the singer really feels the music and the intent of the song (and the songwriter.)

It's hard to tell her range (as difficult as it was with Alex Fong), but despite that, it's obvious that she's had some good people helping her refine her voice, her presentation and her delivery--making sure that she doesn't overextend herself AND doing that without deadening the impact of her emotive delivery.

Stephy, unsigned, has just as many MySpace hits as Alex Fong, who is signed, so once again, MySpace proves that it can be a great equalizer.

It's up to viewers (listeners) to decide if they like what the singer has to offer.

In my case, I liked both--very much--in spite of the harsh start to some of the songs.

Check them out for yourself, compare them (minus the language issues) to other singers you like, and see what you think.


Stephy's myspace page is at
http://www.myspace.com/stephytg


And if you like them, let them know!

Never mind if you don't speak Mandarin or Cantonese or English or even Martian, for that matter! Just letting a singer or band know that you like their work is an encouragement that they need.

It's the kind of acknowledgment that we all need, no matter who and no matter what we do. So why not drop a line of encouragement if you like them?
Don't just lurk -- reach out and connect!

Cheers!
CG Anderson

A Tale of Two Goth Bands - Japan's "X Japan" and "Suicide Ali"

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