I wish it were easier for us overseas listeners to sample the eclectic and inventive independent Japanese music scene. We often have to rely on the efforts of bilingual fellow fans and/or word of mouth, which was how I discovered the instrumental five-piece mudy on the 昨晩 (the kana segment of their name is pronounced ‘sakuban’). Thanks to the wonders of the internet I was impressed enough with their full-length debut Pavilion to import the CD. Who says online music file-sharing is bad for record sales? ^_^

Sakuban already have two EPs Voi and Kidnie to their name but their reputation at home appears to be based largely on their live shows. Perhaps this is why the production of Pavilion has a deliberately live feel with little evidence of overdubbing or studio effects processing. Although it is the polar opposite of overproduced, the sound is clear, powerful and exhilarating; the arrangements are noticably more complex than those of their earlier material too.

It’s hard to categorise Pavilion beyond the vague genre definition of instrumental guitar rock; the band make use of not one or two but three full-time guitarists in addition to bass and drums. Unlike, say, Mono or Mogwai, who use multiple layered guitar lines to create expansive soundscapes, the aim of Pavilion appears to be the impression of chaos enclosed in a small space through shorter pieces.

The raw, gutteral distorted guitar riffs of the opener moody pavilion and the single YOUTH set the pace with frantic drumming and galloping basslines but unlike their contemporaries Sakuban use their multiple instruments to create a tense and wild stop-start structure to songs that rarely break the four minute mark. In the absence of lyrical content, dynamic changes in tempo and volume provide the hook to draw the listener in, and in this aspect at least pavilion follows the trend.

Even so, there are no epic crescendos or classical influences here: Sakuban’s roots seem to lie in punk-fuelled garage rock, married to unconventional time signatures that remind me of the math rock of Sheffield’s 65DaysOfStatic. Sakuban however rely solely on guitars, bass and drums (it wouldn’t surprise me if the drummer is jazz trained); the staccato slapback delay and hairy fuzz in レダロ for example ensure that the licks are colourful and varied with selective use of effects pedals, but the emphasis is on their own brand of melody.

The warbling lead lines in Fashion [pavilion ver.] capture that delicate balance between catchy and experimental that is often the deciding factor between a band whose music sticks in your head and a band who ‘do different’ for its own sake. pavilion definitely hits on the former for me: the mayhem is underpinned by rigidly-followed structures that are more apparent with repeated listens.

This is an album that is all about *songs* rather than over-long passages with excessive amounts of FX that seem like they’re trying to hide shortcomings in the musicianship. The members of Sakuban are still in university as far as I know but the jagged, textured riffs of IDEA would suggest otherwise: it exudes well-founded confidence and for those who are familiar with the EPs, the song structures are more focused with a firmer sense of direction.

Although the signature style of this band is distinctive the songs don’t blur into each other as much as I expected them to. 夕日の slows the pace a little with longer periods of smooth arpeggiated chords and verse breaks, which offers a slight pause for breath in time for deltal. It seems that the guitar duties are divided between the conventional concepts of lead and supporting rhythm parts, but the third sometimes steps in and out of the sonic picture to colour it with occasional shrieks, pick scrapes and quasi-random bits of noise to maintain an air of constant unpredictability.

The reason why I suspect this album is an attempt at capturing the essence of their live shows is because the likes of sarliban are so immediate – it’s a recording that succeeds in making the music feel alive and tangible. This track unusually features vocals; admittedly only background wails which give a haunting element of humanity before the coda quickly descends into a sonic riot.

夜が入ってくる is another change of pace and style, being as it is the slowest-paced track on the album and featuring its only employment of acoustic guitar. This one feels more stripped-down as a result, but is no less effective in that it provides the necessary contrast with the closing track TOWN, which ends the album on the appropriate levels of boundless energy that it showed in the opening tracks.

The problem of too many bands and artists sounding alike is the same as it always was I think, but there are always some who make the extra effort to do otherwise. mudy on the 昨晩 are a case in point: the lack of lyrical content gets around the language barrier (although physically buying the records can be tricky for overseas fans) and their striking sound is genuinely unique to my ears. I strongly recommend this record to those of us who really do appreciate fresh, original musical talent.

Track listing

1. moody pavilion
2. YOUTH
3. レダロ
4. Fashion [pavilion ver.]
5. IDEA
6. 夕日の
7. deltal
8. Sarliban
9. 夜が入ってくる
10. TOWN