Andymori’s debut was one of my favourite albums of last year, and their sophomore release, Fanfare to Nekkyou manages to hit all the same buttons. Once again, Andymori split their time between playful, quicker numbers and slow ballads. Andymori’s best melodies come out when they slow down – “1984″ and “16″ both have stunning vocal melodies that stand out among the album (If you can listen to this album without humming “1984″ for the next several weeks you’re a stronger person than I). The subdued melancholy of these slower songs is offset by the exuberance and celebration of high-energy tracks like “CITY LIGHTS” and “Transit in Thailand”, making this a well balanced release.
While they don’t take many risks on Fanfare to Nekkyou, Andymori expand their sound with horns on “1984″ and with a harmony-laden capella break during “Zutto Groupie”. Regardless, if you didn’t like their first album, you won’t find anything revelatory here. Fanfare to Nekkyou is ultimately a refinement upon Andymori’s sound – which is a good thing in my books.
Andymori’s music is imbued with a sense of melancholy that always draws me back to one of my favourite American bands, Nada Surf. Both bands are fairly modest in their sonic ambitions – sticking to simple instrumentation and a focus on vocal melodies – and both bands create striking songs that get better and better with each listen.
Andymori’s strong songwriting and an incredible sense of melody push Fanfare to Nekkyou above the masses of indie-rock bands in Japan. I’ve been pleasantly surprised to see them getting prominent displays at Tower Records and HMV and I think they could be on the verge of having a big hit. This success comes without any artistic compromise, though,as Andymori’s music is as potent as ever. Highly recommended.
Andymori on MySpace | Buy Fanfare to Nekkyou at HearJapan.
Andymori will be touring Canada in May as part of the Next Music from TOKYO!!! vol. 1 tour!
Here’s the schedule for the tour:
May 22 Vancouver @ the Biltmore Cabaret
May 25 Montreal @ il Motore
May 28 Toronto @ the Rivoli
May 29 Toronto (venue tba)
July 9 Tour finale in Tokyo, Japan @ Shibuya O-nest !!
Audio: “1984″
Videos:
