Albums I Adore (and Why You Should Too!): Gorillaz - Demon Days

Welcome to the third edition of a series where I talk about the albums I keep coming back to, ones I hold in high regard and are the best of the best. I can keep these records on repeat and never get tired of them. Last time, I had covered the latest Gorillaz album, The Now Now. This time we're stepping back into the animated band's universe for another go, this time for their sophmore outing (and magnum opus) Demon Days. It's certainly a grimmer affair compared to the summery Now Now or their debut album. Compared to the self-titled debut, everything also feels grander. It has more complex production, smoother animated music videos and boasting a larger guest list to match. The ideas and setting in place is also much grander than anything showrunner Damon Albarn had accomplished. Does the album crumble under this much more ambitious angle? Well look at the title of this post, that might tell you something. On to the track by track!

1. Intro - YOU ARE NOW ENTERING THE HARMONIC REALM! I would love to see anyone propose a better way to start off an album. Seriously, I'm up for any and all challengers. This intro feels like a walk through a vicious hellscape. Just imagine that it's the middle of the night, and you're walking through a forest. This forest isn't like any you've seen before. The trees are all dead, the sky is grey and lifeless, and it's filled with demons crawling out of any corner. They are not quite on the attack but lurking patiently with their hateful eyes lusting for a chance to strike. It's perfect for setting the mood!

2. Last Living Souls - This album has just begun and already one of my favorite tracks from this band's entire discography shows up! The wind sample from the intro crossfades here very nicely as this track expands on the feeling of traversing upon a hellish land. I love it when the acoustic guitar kicks in towards the middle of the track and the piano works so well underlaying it before that amazing string section kicks in. It all feels just so natural and the production so layered as the strings continue on into a reprise of the hook.  I am floored every time I listen to it, and I just stop doing whatever else I am doing when I'm listening to it just to take this track in. This is a song that encaptures you into the broken, jaded disaster of a world the album takes place in and promises to not let go. This paired with the instrumental intro is everything needed to prepare oneself for this experience, and it does this in such a captivating way.

3. Kids With Guns  - One of the best basslines on the record is right here! Demon Days was a record made with the troubles of modern day society clearly in mind, as this tackles the violence seen in everyday life. The Columbine shooting was no doubt on Damon Albarn's mind as he wrote this tune of guns "turning us into monsters." Desire is a powerful thing, and it can turn even the cleanest of human minds into destructive beings, both for themselves and the people around them. This track drills into you by its chorus that desire can lead people down violent paths, even the youngest and most fragile among us. I love the huge explosion of a crescendo this song undertakes in the last minute too, but it will not be the last of its kind on the album.

4. O Green World - Can this be the theme song for that new Swamp Thing TV series that's coming out? But in all seriousness, this is Demon Days leaning on alt-rock, as the guitars twang along to 2D crooning about the polluted, deserted environment he finds himself within. It's another great piece that helps to truly flesh out the setting. This world is dirty, distorted, lacking of purpose as it screams to be cleaned up and brought back to a better place. I really dig the synths kicking it up a notch more and more as the song reaches its dramatic conclusion, changing up from noise to loneliness with only the lone bell playing.

5. Dirty Harry - In true Gorillaz fashion, it seems like it's time to bring in collaborators. While those last three tracks were 2D by his lonesome, with the exception of some backing vocals in the end of Kids With Guns, here in the album is where the collabs really come to the spotlight. This track is also one of the most explicit in its politics, with Bootie Brown's reference to George W. Bush's infamous "Mission Accomplished" speech. May 1, 2003 was when Bush made an announcement signaling what was supposed to be the end of the Iraq war. Little did the world know on that day that the war was far, far from over. Two years on from that speech, leaves Bootie Brown playing the role of a soldier who feels like he's been played for a fool and wants to return to his normal life. The use of the children's choir works nicely alongside 2D and I'm pretty fond of the catchy synthwork here. This song helps to ground Demon Days back to earth, to keep it feeling integrated with our reality.

6. Feel Good Inc. - HAHAHAHAHAHA! This was my first exposure to Gorillaz, as had been the case for many around my age. My oldest sister played this track a lot on her computer back when the song was popular, and I heard it blaring on radios all the time during the mid-2000's. The music video was also immensely familiar to me when I first got into the band and watched all the videos, even if I'm not exactly sure how I saw it. Maybe they played it back when The N used to play music videos in-between shows? Was it online or on MTV? However I came across it, Feel Good Inc. became the first thing that many think of when they think of Gorillaz or even Damon Albarn or De La Soul. Mainstream radio isn't wrong in liking this though, this song is great! The transition is seemless between alt-rock and hip-hop, the bassline is sick, 2D is in top-form vocally and De La Soul pulls off a great performance as well.  There's a great hook and the laughing feels like the perfect addition, because it helps add to that oppressive vibe the track has. As a centerpiece to the album, it's just about perfect. And who do I have to pay to get a flying windmill island of my own?

7. El Manana - Best track on the album by far, and it's in my top 10 favorite Gorillaz songs (maybe I should post that somewhere?) It's a stunning piece of chamber pop and I'm really into how the string section accentuates the track. It feels kind of like a preview, alongside the next track, of the musical direction of The Good, The Bad, and the Queen that was recorded after the sessions for this album and released almost two years later.  The odd time signatures make this track very feel unique. I really love the imagery that this song creates, one of stormy days and loneliness, of long nights of self-reflection, finding yourself trapped in thoughts and feeling lost and powerless. It envokes a man who's lost something, or everything he held dear, preying to some higher power and hoping to restore happiness or a sense of well-being to their life. It's truly a masterpiece that deserves to be mentioned among the greats in the animated group's career, and Danger Mouse's finest work on the record.

8. Every Planet We Reach is Dead - First of all, is this the best Gorillaz song name or what? The title feels like it would be for some post-apocalyptic psychological horror sci-fi film that becomes a cult megahit after doing mediocre in the box office that everyone who's seen it says that everyone else "just didn't get it." This is also the best use of the string section on this album, because they add so much gravity to this track, making it feel otherworldly and even theatrical. Ike Turner's piano feels very sporadic and the synths unorganized, leaving in its wake a cacophony that can be heard out in SPACE SPACE SPACE SPACE. It feels grand, it feels bold, it feels chaotic, and it feels fascinating. This is 2D baring his soul for what's left of the world to see. I can truly bask in this song's emotion, get myself lost in its world as I am swept up in its world. It gives me chills, lots of chills.

9. November Has Come - MF DOOM. That is All.

Ok, maybe that can't be it, right? Of any of the guests here, MF DOOM dominates the track he is on the most. With his staple flow and odd lyricism, he makes his presence on the album known without compromising anything. There's some pretty nice guitar here from Noodle and 2D delivers a fine hook, adding to the dark atmosphere, but all other aspects of the track just pale in comparison to DOOM doing what he does best on the track. Everyone's favorite supervillain doesn't disappoint with his dastardly deeds here.

10. All Alone - "I've finally found a place where I can be alllll..... ALONE." 2D takes a backseat here, even moreso than on the last track. Roots Manuva and Martina Topley Bird take up the majority of the track. May I say that Martina's part is heavenly? The hard hitting synth beat ceases, almost like a slew of lights are pointing directly at Martina during her voice as the string section plays and Noodle strums along. It almost feels like there was a faint glimmer of light in this bleak world, before harshly getting pulled away from it before the listener gets too comfortable basking within it and finding themselves trapped in darkness once more. Let's not forget the other collaborator, Roots Manuva. His bars are nothing short of passionate and fit really nicely into the groove from the synths. He's definitely one of the best performers on the record for sure.

11. White Light - So I read this comic a month or so ago called Buzzkill. It was a miniseries about a superhero who got his power from abusing drugs and, relevant to this next song, alcohol. This feels like the track that would be going through the main character's head as he fought crime. He became reliant on this alcohol, he needed it to generate his powers, even if it was destroying him. Now it's all I can think of when this song comes on. Otherwise, White Light feels like a throwback of sorts, going back to 1999 when Blur's 13 was released. It was an album that shocked fans, both newer and older. 13 had a sound much heavier, more abrasive and definitely less commercial friendly than anything the Albarn-led quartet had released before. It's sound leaned much more heavily towards punk rock and art rock, mixed with experimentation with keyboards and synths that would eventually lead to the experimentation found on the self-titled Gorillaz album. White Light calls back to this era with its wailing guitars and simplistic synths. It's not too unlike tracks like B.L.U.R.E.M.I. or Battle in a way, it's just given the Danger Mouse touch. It also has another "looking towards the light" moment like All Alone did, as the electric guitar is swapped out for an acoustic one and 2D is replaced by a lovely choir that slows things down for a moment before picking right back up where it started. The band is all around sounding great here, with Russel's pounding drums and Murdoc's bass sliding alongside.

12. DARE - I guess this album needed more singles? DARE encourages you to get up and dance along like Noodle is in the very well animated music video for it. It's an odd switch from the punk rock of White Light and an even weirder transition to the next track I'll be talking about, but that doesn't mean it doesn't serve a purpose. It's a lighter song on the album, one where you don't quite feel like you're trapped in the gloom and doom of a deserted dystopia even as the catchy lyrics might be saying something about peer pressure. It's got a pretty OK chorus and an alright instrumental to dance along to. Shaun Ryder is certainly a cool addition and bounces off of Noodle well. It's almost like this song lures you into a sense of comfort before the rag quickly gets taken from under you later on....

13. Fire Coming Out of the Monkey's Head - The instrumental hits hard on here. I mean REALLY hard. I'm pinning that one on Russel being on his A-game here in possibly his finest moment on the album. Dennis Hopper also completely nails it on the head with his spoken word tale of invaders intruding on peaceful creatures and bringing darkness into their lives. "There were no screams. There was no time. The Mountain called Monkey had spoken. There was only Fire and then... nothing." That line especially is delivered super well. This is one of the more politically charged tracks on the album, except unlike Dirty Harry the relations to the foreign wars for oil and resources is portrayed through tales of strange creatures. 2D after Hopper's last line talks about a small town in the USA to firmly ground the album back into reality. If it didn't before, it will now. Maybe this horrific, violent, polluted world isn't quite a sci-fi premise, but something very near. The demon days are now, in every town in America, and possibly the world at large as it succumbs to darkness. Brilliantly done, Gorillaz.

14. Don't Get Lost in Heaven - Corruption is everyone, and 2D notices it, from the cities to the mountaintops. A choir warns against going too far into the world of addiction, because it might be a world one may never return from, at least not fully intact. The piano is very lovely on here, but this song acts less as an individual chapter in the saga of Demon Days and more as part one of the final track....

15. Demon Days - The crossfade is incredible and every moment of this song is absolutely breathtaking. Never has any piece of music since Kom Susser Tod stirred up so many chills in me, from the beginning strings to 2D's falsetto to the choir in its full intensity to the almost reggae influence in the beat change. This song is brewing with pathos. Everything comes to a head here, all the lessons learned from the album are wrapped up, telling tales of the world becoming worse with each passing day. How does humanity respond to all this horror? They don't. They numb themselves with mindless forms of escapism just for a day, an hour, a minute or even a sliver of a second away from things. If you find distraction, than the realities can become seem much farther away. But maybe, just maybe, it's not too late. What if there's still...hope? Maybe, just maybe, we can turn our heads around and see that there's a light. It's a light that's burning so brightly because it represents all the optimism and goodwill and pride and hope and happiness and humanity that can be found on earth. Even when it seems like the world is so hopeless, maybe we can all just look to the sun, observing just what exactly makes earth so great to begin with, and start to pick up pieces from there. It's a brand new day after all.

It's certainly been a great experience revisiting this album and being able to put my thoughts into words. It's works like these that motivate me to write, so that each and every day I can get just a little bit better, a little bit more wise in my use of words, to be able to truly convey my experiences and even understand myself more in the process. This album is simply a masterpiece that defies all genres and expectations to create something that's still just as groundbreaking and relevant now as it was in 2005, and I will never not be astonished by that fact. I hope that I did this album justice, and that the people who end up stumbling upon my blog who somehow never heard Demon Days do. It's a modern masterpiece of music and animation that cannot be praised more. Thank you for your time.

Circle of Friendz - Human(z?)

Ok, so that was a minute. Haven't made anything resembling a proper blog post with proper structure since June 28th, when I tried cashing in on the hype of The Now Now with my own two cents on the album. Hopefully my writing chops, minimal as they are, haven't gotten weak. Back to business with the Circle of Friendz!

Who is this by? Rag'n'Bone Man
What did he do for Gorillaz? Sung on The Apprentice, found on the deluxe version of Humanz.
When was this released? February 10, 2016
Where was this recorded? somewhere in the UK during 2015-2016
Why is should you listen to this?
Rag'n'Bone is the most recent to the music scene of the artists I have covered thus far. Human is his debut, and so far only, full-length album. He also had some EPs, both solo and with collabs, but this is his first major outing. Damn, is it a great first impression! Speaking of great first impressions, the opening track Human certainly works as one for themes the album comes back to later. It's a song of, simply put, humanity. It's about how the narrator isn't some holy power that everyone can come to thinking that their problems can be solved, getting mad when he gets honest in his responses. This record seems to cycle through different parts of humanity, such has family on the tracks Life in Her Yet and Odetta and death in the tracks Lay My Body and Die Easy. The album seems the most focused on love and relationships, both ones that are failing or have failed like in Fade to Nothing or Skin or relationships that are on smoother waters like As You Are. I think this diversity in subject matter under the very basic premise of an album around humanity works well with the diversity in sound thanks to the several different producers. It all meshes well together for the most part, thanks to the almost divine voice of Rag'n'Bone Man. He's got this really deep, soulful voice that brings with it this power to each track. His vocals nail whatever emotion he's trying to envoke, be it loneliness, hope, anger or anything else. 

I will say however that I'm not big on the track Wolves. It's just an OK track, certainly not one of my favorites on this record but it's not untolerable. I just feel like it's darker sound doesn't quite fit inbetween the smoother sounds from the rest of the album, particularly the two tracks it sandwiches itself inbetween, Lay My Body and Healed. I wouldn't mind seeing Healed and Lay My Body switch places after removing Wolves. Healed could work as a good way to complete a character arc for the narrator, finding a light in darkness and feeling, well, healed! Lay My Body would still work as a reminder that no matter what, all humans have to pass on, some in darker ways than others like a suicide. Healed would be like the Good End to Lay My Body's Bad End, like in a visual novel where two different routes lead to different results. 

Even with this minor setback here, there's still a great album within this. So many great tracks about different parts of the human experience can be found here, and the instrumentals are all strong. Special props goes to Odetta, which gives me some Everyday Robots vibes from its beat (and it almost sounds like 2D is on backing vocals?) The effects on Skin are really cool in the first verse and bridge with that muffled effect to the instrumental. Be the Man is another one of my favorites here, having this really nice beat that doesn't leave your head and a nice message about having faith in a relationship to boot. He may just be a rag and bones, but he certainly has more than enough backbone and support to have a bright future ahead of him in the industry. I'll be cheering him on all the way.

I give Human by Rag'n'Bone Man a 9/10.

It's Freedom Day

Hey Hey It's FREEDOM DAY in the land of the burger that we call America! So how's everyone been doing? Grilling, fireworks (I'll be seeing that movie on saturday!), deep frying things, grilling after deep frying things? Wait shit I dunno if anyone is actually reading this but whatever because IT'S AMERICA DAY and I'm off and I'm doing very american things like watching Teen Titans because somehow I just remembered an hour ago that there was a fourth of july episode of Teen Titans (and I mean the original and not GO but maybe GO has one but I dont care about that right now) and it's called REVOLUTION!!! I had those three exclamation points because they're like the three colors of the flag even though I'm not even using those other two colors because I don't know but blue is cool and the color of cool people such as myself so let's roll with it. So this episode is basically about Mad Mod basically hypnotizes everyone in Jump City to be all British and shit and the ALL AMERICAN ANIME INFLUENCED Teen Titans to start KICKING BRITISH ASS (oh my god can I say that its a cristian blog and i have my parents permission pleas dont tell my mom oh gofd please) I like that this was better than the first Mad Mod episode which was shit other than the montage which was based. Speaking of based this whole episode is about KICKING BRITISH ASS which is absolutely based (oh fuck im sorry uk im sorry i like your music honest) and STarfire is all cool and shit giving out her monologue about compromise which is by the by FUCKING BASED AND WHAT AMERICA BASICALLY IS. The background is all sketchy and looks like old drawings of London and stuff and it looks cool but what's cooler are the Teen Titans KICKING BRITISH ARSE! Beast boy's british accent in this episode is basically what i imagine in my head when I give out interviews for my totally real and not imagined platinum selling album witha  five season cartoon tie in where I talk about the creative process and the state of the animation and music industries combined and people love me on youtube and write essays about my taste in anime on 4chan. Beast Boy was still dropping some truth bombs about the real ass tea party that THE MAN doesnt want the people to know because they got something to hide. We know you have something to hide, THE MAN, I know. 

so basically teen titans is good and cartoon network is better than Nick. Thanks you all and have a happy freedom day 

USA

USA

USA

USA

USA and i love this echo effect doesn't this look like an echo it's so based

Albums I Adore (and Why You Should Too!): Gorillaz - The Now Now

I'll admit it. I'm a pirate. As soon as I heard word of leaks, I got to them pretty quickly. That's how I'm able to write the post you're seeing now this fast, after all. I'll be repenting for my sins by buying the vinyl set soon (and who wouldn't, with all the cool art inside?) Maybe even the cassette, too, because if there's one thing I love, it's novelty. Although I'd snap up a physical release for this anyway, with just how damn good this thing is. I'm getting too ahead of myself, so I'm resetting myself and getting back on track to review the new Gorillaz LP, The Now Now.

1. Humility - Summer jam of the season confirmed! This album is starting off pretty damn strong, as this track is in my top three on the album, and surely one of my top 10-15 Gorillaz tracks of all time. Let's start by saying I love the guitar on here, provided by one of only three guests George Benson. It's just so damn groovy here, and it really slides in well with this bright track. Does anyone else think that this reminds them of Ghost Ship from The Magic Whip? This song seems like it could slip in perfectly on that album. Plus this song is easily one of the group's most replayable. I've heard this track close to 30 times by now and I still can't get enough of it.  I had honestly been in one of the happiest moods I had ever been in thanks in part to this coming out. I felt like I was 2D in the video, happily skating along through life, finally being someone at ease with myself and not letting things get me too mad anymore, feeling almost invincible. If a song can make me feel like that, then there's really gotta be something to it, shouldn't there be?

2. Tranz - DO YOU LOOK LIKE ME? DO YOU FEEL LIKE ME? I see we're only two tracks in and already at the "punk" song. Looks like Murdoc may have had more of an influence on this album than he thinks. This song always gets me pumped up every time it's on and never fails to get me chanting along (however horrific I may sound in the process.) It feels almost hypnotizing, but I can't imagine why...

3. Hollywood - I thought when listening to this feature packed single live months before the album release that this was gonna feel more like several of the cuts off of Humanz, being a little faster paced and upbeat. What I got in this studio version was something a little more chilled out, and I honestly think I like this direction a little better after giving the studio version several spins. It's got a nice hook from 2D, some fun if not as polished verses from Jamie Principle, and a great verse from Snoop Dogg. It's always nice to have Snoop Dogg around it seems. Makes me wanna check out the real Hollywood for myself someday.

4. Kansas - The beginning of this one certainly reminds me of Every Planet We Reach is Dead. "I'm not gonna cry" was exactly was I was thinking listening to this whole album. It works as a pretty infectious hook by the way. This has a pretty great beat to go alongside it too! It's just so pleasant to listen to as 2D goes on this lonely journey through Kansas with a broken heart. Songs like this were exactly what I was hoping for in a purposed 2D solo album.

5.Sorcererz - This was my second favorite single off the album. I just love that Junior Dan from the self-titled album is back on bass here! It's got this super catchy chorus that's just absolutely infectious and it's gotta be the one that gets me dancing the most off this album (however horrific that may be in the process.) Did I mention that "Everybody mining their own inner vision" is such a cool lyric?

6. Idaho - When I heard the live version of this back in fall, it seemed like a somewhat straightforward country song done entirely though acoustic guitar. It was an intriging choice of song to play a few months after the very dance focused angle of Humanz and a fine and calming song in its own right, but not something I came back to much. This studio version blew that original performance out of the water. The production was what really made this song work in my view. It's a lot more atmospheric and feel almost otherworldly now in its fully finished stage. Plus I noticed how the lyrics got completely switched around for this, so sadly no Bruce Willis namedrop like in the live version.

7. Lake Zurich - It's a miracle! Somehow a transition from atmospheric country music to 80's synths works! It's the best instrumental Gorillaz has ever done, hands down! While I was a little weirded out as to exactly why any sort of instrumental got released as a single, it works as a great proof-of-concept to the album's direction towards 80's synthpop. The synths knock it out of the park on this track by the way. I love the weird mumbled chatter going on towards the middle of the song too.

8. Magic City - This one is very close to my top three on this album, like it's soooo close.  I adore the beat here, the lyrics are so precious and I love the guitar here from Noodle. I have heard that Graham Coxon playing guitar here on this track, and I wouldn't be surprised if it was. The guitars feel ripped straight out of something like Lonesome Street off Blur's The Magic Whip. I love the imagery of having a billboard on the moon too, I'm just not sure why.

9. Fire Flies - Really feeling some strong Everyday Robots vibes here in this slower, atmospheric track. It's nice that this track experiments with having different time signatures compared to the rest of the album, it really helps give this a unique sound. It's just ok during the first verse, but it really takes off by its chorus. "All you ever get from the sonnet is the court of the fallen man" is another beautiful lyric in an album in an album that seems full of them.

10. One Percent - I was floored when I heard this track for the first time. It's another track that carries with it echoes of Everyday Robots, but it's honestly better than almost anything from that album, as much as I love it. By far one of the most emotional tracks that Damon Albarn has ever written. The most impressive thing about it is how it can carry all this emotion and deliver it in just over two minutes, being the shortest of the record's eleven tracks. Everytime this song comes on brings chills all over me, bringing me the same otherworldly sensations that Idaho does on this record and tracks like Stop the Dams from D-Sides or A Soldier's Tale from The Good, the Bad and the Queen do at other stops in Damon's discography. The first time I walked away from this track, I knew that it was an absolute masterpiece and one of the best Gorillaz songs ever put on record. However, it somehow does not take my number one spot for being the best song on this album, settling for number two. Now what does?

11. Souk Eye - This may very well be the best song Gorillaz has ever made. There. Attack me in the comments all you want, throw negative karma at me on Reddit, it doesn't matter, I'll take it on! Never have I loved every facet of a Gorillaz track so much since Stop the Dams, the track that had up until this point been crowned the honor of best Gorillaz song. I love these lyrics, lines like "If loving you's a felony now, then I'm a renegade" are just so great. I absolutely adore the beat change, turning from a Latin-influenced ballad to incredible dance song all the while feeling completely natural. I love the piano clinking along throughout the ending. I love that Demon Strings seems to be back for this track, particularly for the outro. That fade out is giving me some serious Tracy Jacks from Parklife echoes and it sounds gorgeous. There couldn't have been a better pick for a closer than this, it's perfect in every way.

That ends The Now Now. At this point and time, it's equal to Demon Days as my favorite Gorillaz album, with so many highlights and gems that make up some of the best of the animated group's discography. Ace is a great replacement for Murdoc while he's out being a jailbird, he's really holding it down on these tracks. I seriously cannot thank Damon Albarn and James Ford enough for bringing this brilliant cycle of introspective tracks to fans, and to Jamie Hewlett for bringing some of his best live visuals and awesome artwork to the album and shows. I see The Now Now as what The Fall could've been with more time attached to the songs. All in all, it's Damon's best work since The Good, the Bad and the Queen all the way back in 2007, which i will be covering very soon. Well I gotta run soon, so enjoy the album! It's truly something special to me, maybe it'll be to others.

Albums I Adore (and why You Should Too!): Puffy Amiyumi - Nice.

Ever since May, I have been on a roll reviewing albums for the Circle of Friendz project, taking a look at an album from almost every single Gorillaz collaborator. Another common thread between those album is not just the animated band that they worked with on a track, but also the fact that I am very new to the vast majority of these records. When I see what album I review next, it's one that I have never heard in full or at all before I started the project. As I was working on one of these reviews, I had the idea to do another album review series, but with works I'm a lot more familiar with. While Circle of Friendz focuses on a great Unown of sorts, going into albums and even genres I wouldn't have looked much into otherwise, I wanted to do a series that focused more on charted territory. This series takes a look at the albums most near and dear to me, ones I have recognized from front to back and have become very familiarized with ever since I started taking a dive into the world of music. While I will be covering some albums that people who like Circle of Friendz may already love very soon, this time I want to go completely in another direction, not getting myself involved in any of Damon Albarn's shenanigans for a minute.

I want to talk about J-pop, more specifically Puffy Amiyumi. I had already covered them in a past article, talking about their three-season animated series on Cartoon Network from back in the mid-2000's. I had started rewatching the show last year, and after getting some ways into the series I had already grown fond of what music from the band's discography was being used. Soon enough, I had tried out their two-disc compilation album 15 and absolutely adored it. The album was close to two hours, but I didn't feel that at all. Right after that, I dove straight in to the albums themselves, first diving into a compliation album made to tie into the TV series. My next stop was Nice, the 2003 album that had come out not long before the show went into production, using a handful of tracks from this in the show itself. While the two compliation albums I had heard before were fun, light pieces of J-pop that I really got into, Nice was when I knew I had stumbled upon one of my favorite bands as the album absolutely floored me in ways japanese music hadn't before. 

On a side note before i begin, the ways reviews will be handled is a little different than from the Circle of Friendz posts. While in those reviews, albums are talked about in a more general sense, as I dive into what makes the album listenable as a whole as opposed to dissecting each individual track, Albums I Adore will go a little more in-depth. These will be handled as track-by-track looks into just how great these records are, focusing in more on every track's strengths. The numerical scores will be ditched as well for these. Now with all the intro stuff out of the way, let's dive into why Nice is one of the nicest albums I've heard.

1. Planet Tokyo/Akai Buranko - This album goes on a powerful start, and I definitely see why this got an English version. This song of any of Puffy's tracks that weren't used as theme songs seems to be the one people remember, although I think Cartoon Network using the song constantly when advertising the show helps out with this. It also helps that this song gets you SO PUMPED UP! It's got a catchy hook and there's some of my favorite guitar work on the album. I don't think there could've been a better opener choice than this!

2. Tokyo Nights - I keep getting the I'M IN LOVE part stuck in my head and try to keep myself from yelling out the hook whenever it comes on. It's a very nice piece of electropop that won't leave your head for weeks. You'll notice that lots of tracks all across this record have some pretty infectious hooks, and this could be one of the best examples.

3. Angel of Love - The weirdest thing about this track is that sometimes I honestly forget this one was on here. Usually when people say that, that's for tracks that are super boring or forgettable. This one isn't boring at all though! It's one of the slower tracks on here, something you turn on just to chill out. It's very relaxing in that way! I love the horns during the instrumental break too, they really make this song feel like something off a Round Table ft. Nino record.

4. Sayonara - This was in the top 3 tracks on the record for me when I first discovered the record, until I listened to the final tracks of the Japanese release some time later. It still stands as an album highlight for me, however. This is a great piece of guitar pop about leaving behind a friend you love as you set off on a new path for yourself. The marimba really adds to the song too.

5. Invisible Tomorrow - Now the album steers towards more energetic pop rock again like on the first track. This has to be one of the best tracks to sing (or scream) along to on this entire album. There's also three different versions of the track for different releases. The one on Nice, no matter what country you got the album from is the original Japanese. Then there's an English version that's on the Scooby Doo 2 (of all things!) soundtrack and on the Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi album tying into the TV show. There's another english version of the track on the mini-album 59 that came out the year after this. All three of these tracks go in very different directions lyrically. Invisible Tomorrow is about heading out towards an uncertain tomorrow, never looking back. Friends Forever is basically what the title says, a song about friends staying together no matter how tough things get. So Long Zero describes a breakup and leaving someone you didn't love anymore. Of these, So Long Zero is DEFINITELY the weakest of the three, the vocals feel unusually weak compared to the rest of the discography. It felt very unsure and kinda uneven. Invisible Tomorrow and Friends Forever are on equal footing in vocal delivery, but I like Invisible Tomorrow the best. It's got the strongest message of the three.

6. Thank You - Yumi wrote and sings solo on this charming little piece. This track is about having boys and girls coming together to talk with each other and connect as people and it's so charming and adorable and I really like it. I had been watching through the series when I heard this one and it was really funny to think that Yumi had made this one when what I had in mind was less her real-life personality and musical style, which I hadn't done much research into then, and more the Yumi of the animated series, who I expected to be behind more rock focused tracks like Planet Tokyo.

7. Long Beach Nightmare - Right after a Yumi-driven track comes an Ami driven one. This one is a pretty fun summer jam (and I will be talking lots about summer jams in my next post!) It feels so breezy and like I'm hearing this playing out from a portable radio on the beach (you know, if I was a beach person...) This is another fun sing along of the several on this album.

8. Your Love is a Drug -  Love is an addicting thing for sure, and I can certainly attest to this. This song feels so damn accurate and close to home describing the way I felt the first time I fell in love back in middle school. When I did, I felt like I was on cloud nine whenever I saw her, and just how much i felt like my life turned around after I started talking to her. This song totally captured that special time in my life in the form of a fun rock song, and one of the duo's most relatable tracks in my eyes. I also see this track alongside Planet Tokyo as being an attempt to get on pop radio and it honestly wouldn't stick out too much I think.

9. K2G - My second favorite song on the album. For the readers who remember Teen Titans, this song played in Mad Mod's introduction episode during season 1. When I watched that season a few years ago, I thought the episode itself was terrible and almost none of the jokes landing. What I did like though was the montage that used this as background music. I loved the music in that sequence and I really appreciated having this track on here, really gave the episode a bright spot. It's a fast, upbeat and super catchy ska track (First my kablam post, then the selecter and now this? I seem to be attracted to ska lately.) A great track to bounce around the house to.

10. Shiawase (Happiness) - My third favorite song on the album. This is a soothing, lowkey acoustic track. It feels like I'm hearing Ami and Yumi gathered around a campfire singing this to each other late at night before heading off to bed. It's a good way to settle things down after K2G and honestly would've been a great comforting way to end off this great album. Everything about the track, from the guitar to the harmonies, feel very comforting to me. It's happiness in song form!

Here's where things diverge. I alluded to earlier about different versions of this album. There's one track listing for the Japanese release and a different one for the North American version. The Japanese version starts with a Japanese language version of the opening track, with an English version for the NA release. The tracks afterward carry on just the same until after track 10, Shiawase. The NA version may have had different tracks because the last two tracks of the Japan release were tracks that had been released on the U.S. exclusive compilation album An Illustrated History just a year before. Let's dive right into the NA version before doing the Japan version.

11a. Urei - This track feels like this should've been a background song during one of the fights in Teen Titans. Heck, this song actually went along great with the fights whenever I read the comics based on the original cartoon. It's got a powerful hook and could go great with whatever fight it gets paired with. This one is a NA exclusive, but is only in Japanese, for some odd reason.

12a. Teen Titans Theme - T-E-E-N T-I-T-A-N-S TEEN TITANS LET'S GO!! ANYONE born after the early 90's who watched Cartoon Network could probably recite this bad boy from heart. This one honestly took a bit to grow on me but damn if this isn't one of the best cartoon theme songs out there. It's catchy as hell and that chant is damn near hypnotizing!  I totally get why this song was on Nice, the series had just started around that time, and it was a perfect opportunity to advertise.

Now let's move onto the softer Japanese tracks

11b. Atarashii Hibi - This is a sweet little track about a woman buried in stress from relationships and works, never able to have much fun with her life. She dreams of escaping this life just for a little while, wanting to go on a trip without anyone knowing or going on a treasure hunt. This one doesn't go for a radio-friendly chorus in the way that the other tracks do, a little odd but it's so fun that it works.

12b. Tomodachi (Friends) - I'M HERE, I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS! Not only is this my favorite song off this album, it's also my favorite Puffy Amiyumi track and one of my absolute favorite Japanese songs in general. First off, just the name makes it feel like this would've been a great ending song for the cartoon. Second, This song is the definition of comfy. It's so calming and I will admit that I teared up just a little when I saw the live performance. God, this song is not just a great little summary of this album's strengths, but also just what I love about this group. It's the ultimate feel good song for the ultimate feel-good album.

Nice is a charming little album that's packed with great moments. It's also extremely consistent in ways even other Puffy albums weren't, it's all super good! This is a pinnacle of 2000's J-Pop in my eyes, and I can't thank Ami Onuki and Yumi Yoshimura enough for this gem of a record. Here's to hoping that a new album is down the pipeline soon, but I'd be just fine with the single-focused angle that they have gone in the last six years. Anything to keep them making music.

Next on the Albums I Adore, it's gonna be a surprise! Let's just say that it's a great summer album...

Bye Bye Boo~

Circle of Friendz: Pauline Black/The Selecter - Celebrate the Bullet

Before I begin, I will be reviewing the Now Now very soon here. Leaks have come and BOY I have some things to talk about! Aiming for a June 29 release date for that post. See you then, and let's get to the review.

Who is this? Pauline Black, lead singer of 80's two-tone ska group The Selecter
What did she do for Gorillaz? Sang on an alternate version of Charger found on the Super Deluxe version of Humanz (which unless you want to shell out hundreds of dollars for the vinyl set, can only be found through less official means.)
When did this come out? February 27, 1981
Where was this recorded? Horizon Studios
Why should you bother? So far, I have reviewed five different albums for this so-called Circle of Friendz project. In each of these five album reviews, I had talked in very general statements about the music involved and how they made me feel. When I made those past reviews, I had focused much more on the instrumentals and how the lyrics can blend in with them. With this particular album however, it was the opposite to an extent. I wasn't very concerned with the instrumentals on this album as much as I was the lyricism found within. That's not to say that the instrumentals were unimportant or bland. The darker take on ska presented here works wonders with its lyrics (I guess you could call it Dark Pop?) I was just utterly fascinated by the songwriting here. I believe that a few, if not all, of this LP takes on some kind of narrative. While I only started thinking about a narrative around track seven, I could see elements of one looking back at my notes from the start of the record. First, let's set the scene.

The setting is sometime on late 70's-early 80's Britain. Britain is going a recession, and naturally people feel... uneased with themselves. They're growing poor and it feels like the whole world is crashing down around them. It's here where we find our protagonist. They're a somewhat typical person, devoting their life to work and their relationship. On the news, however, they see stories of financial crisis, of homes getting taken away, and maybe they're wondering if or when the very same could happen to them. Let's just say that it did. Track one opens up with a song about a failing relationship, (Who Likes) Facing Situations. The relationship is one frought with communication problems or maybe just a lack of sympathy for what the other is going through. The next track, Deep Water, was originally a reflection from Pauline about her frustrations on an American tour, but I saw it as a fictional character study. This song dives in deep, alongside the third track Red Reflections, into a person finding themselves in a personal hell. Their house has been sold off, a relationship has been shattered and they find that they have dark thoughts inside in a moment of self-reflection. The next track, "Tell Me What's Wrong," could be the person trying to talk to a friend they go back years with before avoiding them and asking why they were abandoned. This encounter sets off a further spiral towards madness. The next track could be seen as an aftermath of this meeting. With many relationships broken and being in serious financial trouble, the protagonist goes insane. The next track involves the protagonist making a bombscare (it's literally called Bombscare!), possibly as a way to stick it to the former friend that they talked to. Washed Up and Left for Dead feels like this character's entire situation summed up, as "nobody told him he was just not wanted," one left out by friends and never fitting in, feeling washed away by the world but hungry for fame. After getting jumped by thugs and nobody helps out, he's left out in the cold at night, able to reflect on how everything has gone to shit, signaling a change in themselves towards anger. They're fed up, and ready to burst. Side one ends there.

Side two picks up on an explosive start, the title track single describing just how the anger felt throughout the album manifests itself. The protagonist turns violent, and the track acts as a warning from Pauline to the protagonist that using violence won't bring back everything that they had lost, their money, their friends or their relationship.  Selling Out Your Future shows the protagonist going into hiding after committing the crime, complacent in the fact that they're selling out their future for a peace that may never come. The narrative I find with this album seems to come to a pause with the next track, Cool Blue Lady... or does it? The character in that track is one who gives others everything despite never getting it in return, one who's shut out by society. This isn't exactly unlike our main character, and in fact I read Their Dream Goes On as an intersection of these two characters done from the main's perspective. I took the line "I look at you turn electric blue" as The Cool Blue Lady and the main character see each other on a street corner, if only for a quick glance. Maybe they could have found things to share in common, finding some strength in each other. The final track doesn't add to either character's narrative, but instead focusing on the world those two live in. Bristol and Miami tells a tale of two places on entirely different parts of the globe suffering the same thing. Both are in states of ruin, the people within them turning to music, possibly as a means of escape. To "listen to the echo of the street" is to hear out about the troubles people are facing, and to go help them at a time for need. Even if they're from different countries, they still go through many of the same struggles.

Celebrate the Bullet is a great representation of the troubles found not just within members of The Selecter themselves, but also within the world at large. It's got some fascinating stories to tell, with a moving way of doing so. I encourage anyone to give this disc a spin or six, just to see what they can take from it. It's just as relevant now as it was back in 1981, in my eyes.

I give Celebrate the Bullet an 8.5/10.

Talking Too Much About Cartoons: Hi Hi Puffy Amiyumi

Welcome back to the next installment of Talking Too Much About Cartoons, where I... well you get the idea from the title I think, so let's get to it! I promise this won't be as long as the last one of these I did.

In 2004, Cartoon Network was going through a major transformation. The most noticeable one was in its advertising. The channel went through its second major rebrand in the 12 years since the channel launched. Gone were the days of the "powerhouse" bumpers, for something more elaborate. Cartoon Network started the "CN City" era, having every commercial and coming up next bumper be intertwined within an experimental new concept. In these, all of the original shows on the network all crossed over and seemed to live within the same city, with Miguzi happening underwater and Toonami in space as it always had been. Characters from completely different series interact with each other inbetween shows in an attempt to bring all of the channel's shows together and have more unified advertising and marketing compared to the competitors. Even the logo had changed after 12 years!

Another, maybe less obvious change was in its schedule. By this time, older Hanna Barbara cartoons had been pushed to the wayside, off the channel entirely and off to the spin-off channel Boomerang. Even the first of the original shows, the "Cartoon Cartoons," had been pushed to early mornings. Instead, CN had looked towards newer originals alongside acquired works, mostly anime. Anime had dominated the channel during the early 2000's, playing every afternoon on Toonami, alongside early Saturday mornings and late on Saturday nights. This transitioned to Miguzi as well, which played anime alongside cartoons that took lots of inspiration from anime, like Teen Titans and Code Lyoko. So to say the least, Cartoon Network, for a time was infatuated with Japanese culture at the time in the midst of the ongoing anime boom. In some ways, it only felt natural that the subject of today's post would happen the way the network was moving.

I mentioned Teen Titans a few sentences ago, and for good reason. When Teen Titans started in 2003, the show had blown up in the ratings and did very well for Cartoon Network. But one popular aspect of the series in particular was its theme song. Since Teen Titans tried differentiating itself from the rest of the DC Animated Universe by taking animation cues from anime, they also tried keeping up its "anime-ness" by actually getting a Japanese pop group for its theme song. This is where many American viewers had first heard of Puffy Amiyumi. Ami and Yumi had been popular in Japan since the mid 90's, and Teen Titans having them sing the opening may have been what swayed Cartoon Network to pick up a series based around them. Around the same time as the first season of Teen Titans was ready to release, Sam Register, then Vice President of the channel, pitched a show about the J-Pop duo. Renegade Animation, coming off of two failed pilots for CN and having only worked on commercials and shorts beforehand, had a stroke of luck when the network picked up the pilot for what would be Hi Hi Puffy Amiyumi. The pilot itself definitely felt different from the final product in a few ways.

The main girls themselves got some different designs, Ami's look especially. The different artstyle certainly gave off more of a UPA vibe than the final designs did, a look similar to Gerald McBoingBoing (which also happened to get on Cartoon Network two years later.) Instead of nabbing dedicated cartoon voice actors like the final product did, this pilot got two Japanese women to voice them instead. The culture shock element of the show ended up being scrapped too. Honestly, the animation is somewhat smoother than in the final product, and my favorite part of the pilot overall (other than that brief use of Tomodachi off of An Illustrated History at the end of the pilot, although I'll be talking more about how good that song is very soon.) Comedywise, the pilot doesn't seem that different from the main show itself, I enjoyed it about as much as the series.

The final product is about animated versions of Ami Onuki and Yumi Yoshimura and the different adventures they go on inbetween gigs on a seemingly endless world tour taking them to practically every part of the world with a stage, alongside their penny pinching manager Kaz along for the ride. The dynamic duo face off against insane fans, talent sucking vampires, former band members wanting to take over and just about whatever else the writing staff has in mind. Pink-haired Ami is the typical optimistic girly girl, loving shopping and pink things and seems to fluctuate between drums and guitar in addition to vocals, just depending on the episode. Yumi is more of a sarcastic punk rock type, dressed up in purple. As you might expect, the two contrasting personalities clash pretty often in the show. So about the show itself? It's pretty ok. The comedy can be kinda hit or miss earlier on, as the staff is figuring out what they can do with this show. The dialogue can get hampered at points by some kinda weird voice direction, making them miss their mark. More often than not, thankfully, the direction works! The voice actors they got for Ami and Yumi are great. Ami was voiced by Janice Kawaye, who voiced Jenny-XJ9 in My Life as a Teenage Robot. Yumi has the voice talent of Grey DeLisle, who did Frankie Foster in Foster's Home and TONS of other characters for cartoons. Good on this show for getting them, because they really play a big part in making these characters feel memorable and endearing. They both do great jobs despite the occasional slip-up, and really fit the characters well.

Although I can't deny there are two more parts in the equation that make this show stand on its own as a pretty alright entry in Cartoon Network's original lineup. It's cute as hell and there's J-Pop involved. As you readers will soon find out and what friends I've had already know is that I'm a simple man. You don't need a ton to win me over. A show that combined two of the cutest character designs in western animation mixed with a genre I love and some great voice acting and decent comedy to go alongside it and I was totally sold. There are many moments in the show that use Puffy Amiyumi's music, mostly during montages. It runs the gambit of the group's career, from their debut AmiYumi to the then latest album at the time of the pilot, Nice. They also played songs in small music videos occasionally in the first two seasons. I really liked this aspect because it got me to dive into the discography of the real band, and it was some of the most fun I had listening to music this year!

Season 3 had downscaled two elements I really liked about the show. The music had showed up much less, as the short videos disappeared and less episodes used tracks. Another aspect that seemed to disappear later on were the live action segments. For much of the show, the real life Ami and Yumi showed up to do skits at the beginning (and in season 1, at the end) of each episode. They felt a little awkward at first, especially with how disconnected they were with the segments, but they really began to grow on me, kinda like the show itself did in a way. It helps that the real band were super cute like their animated counterparts were. After Cartoon Network stopped broadcasting the show, the latter half of season 3 dropped these segments entirely. At first, I had thought that it was a mistake on the part of the network that the last five or so english episodes got captured from, but that got proven wrong because the final episode had a live action bit in the upload which was a montage of Ami and Yumi having fun on the set over the seasons. Maybe they thought that the videos and live action were too distracting and got in the way of the show? The tradeoff seemed to be that season 3 was all in all the funniest of the seasons. The writers seemed to realize that the show wasn't gonna last long and reveled in that by doing more fourth wall breaking gags and bringing back characters as opposed to just whatever the new setting of the week was, even if there was lots of that in season 3. My biggest wish was that Julie from the final episode had been used more than once, her design is just as cute as Ami and Yumi's and the idea of her constantly trying to destroy the band sounds like it could've been pretty funny to see in new ways.

I saw this show a little bit when I was younger, mainly on Cartoon Network Fridays, as it didn't have tons of reruns compared to the other originals on the channel. I was ok with it, but it didn't leave much of a lasting impression on me. On a rewatch, Hi Hi Puffy Amiyumi was fun. A lot of fun. Like, more than I was expecting going in. The songs are great, the plots are fun if maybe generic at times with almost sickeningly sweet endings, the comedy works and Ami and Yumi are a great pair. Cartoon Network seemed to like it for a while as well, as it became a mini marketing machine at the time. Several online and console games, an complilation album, a decent bit of advertising and even a thanksgiving day parade float! Maybe it was not the best Cartoon Network had at the time, in an era of modern classics like Megas XLR or 80% of the Toonami lineup at the time, but I certainly had a good time with it. This could've only happened at the exact time in the exact place on the exact channel it was on. So maybe it's a good time capsule into what was happening with animation during the mid 2000's. I'm a sucker for time capsules, anyway.

Thanks for reading this word vomit all the way through. This didn't have the sort of personal narrative that my last cartoon review did, but I just finished a rewatch of the show and I just had to talk about it. I wanna bring up the music one last time, because the first post of a new segment I'm calling Albums I Adore (and Why You Should Too!) will be covering the antics of the real band behind these colorful characters, covering my personal favorite album of theirs, Nice. This will be after the next Circle of Friendz. Hope you read it.


BYE BYE BOO~!!! sorry i couldn't help myself.