[Public Service Announcement: I listen to so much music that my brain gets scrambled sometimes. I might not remember the "influenced by" bands as clearly as I think. For example, I may say a band sounds like another and you may think "This guy's on crack!" I promise you, I'm not on crack. But everything else you would say is true.]
Anyways! To the music. This is supposed to be some sort of review or preview, but it's really just going to me talking about this badass little demo I found on bandcamp. And thank Utada Hikaru that the Japanese bands are putting their stuff up on Bandcamp. It's one of the nicest inventions ever made for bands. I haven't seen anything that works better out there. So, if you're listening: 日本人へ、Bandcampで自分のバンドの音楽をシェアーしてください。よろしく。Blue Friend plays around with bands like Cofun, and generally raises the emo (dare I say screamo) revival flag high. There sound isn't straight-up envy worship, like so many others. They pull most of their influence from really good, but short-lived, American screamo bands like Lautrec and Osceola. Add a dash of European bands like La Quiete and The Mock Heroic. And that never-ending Japanese perfect sense of melody, and you've got yourself a Blue Friend.
There are two songs here, both stand completely alone and provide a manifesto of sorts for this amazing band. There's another song on their soundcloud, for those of you who just can't friggin get enough (like me). Honestly, it's a little bit of a departure from the songs on the bandcamp, and I have a suspicion that it was recorded earlier than the demo.
In closing, this shit is good. It shows promise and ingenuity. I could probably listen to envy knock-off bands until my ears give out on me, but Blue Friend shows that there is more from this new breed of Japanese bands than simple rehashes of the best moments of Japan's music history. What do you guys think?
1. Dasai
2. Saisho
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