Album Thoughts
This is my favorite album. I am incapable of being normal or unbiased about it.
Song Notes
Pump Up the Love
- What a bombastic start to the album. It sets the tone so strongly.
- It’s kinetic and layered and dense.
- It makes me want to jump up and go nuts.
- It has elements of almost every upcoming song, short of some light rapping.
Here I Go
- The alert on the radio goes out, and then we start very simply with mouth percussion and a piano. And then it builds. We listen to the sounds of the city, and then we’re out in it.
- Here we go.
Say Somethin’
- Playing a show, and an introduction to 2 Mello here.
- It’s so smooth, and the raps are so good. Please, just say something!
Midnight in Tokyo-To
- The city as she relaxes at night.
- It’s such a vibe with the heartbeat drums and that smooth sax solo, but we’ve still got the samples (if quieter) and effects (less dramatic) and a sound somewhat like a siren (in the distance).
Old to the New
- Bouncy and fun!
- The horns have a somewhat concerning undercurrent to them, a nice bit of foreshadowing that doesn’t really ruin the vibe of the song.
Reach Out
- A song of love and joy. Of being welcome.
- That magnificent usage of the “UNDERSTAND” sample that has its own long meaning, and was popularized by one Hideki Naganuma.
Jet Set Classic
- Dancy and playful, a nice little interlude.
24 Hour Party People
- A song about being great and chill.
Diggin It Baby
- I dig it. There’s some rising tension here that feeds into the next song.
Getaway
- Runnin’ from the cops, a tradition as old (if not older than) cops themselves.
- The sirens playing, the running pace, the interrupts all speak of a good chase.
- The synth solo into the bombastic horn hits towards the end that speak to some slick moves.
Benten-cho Boogie
- Feels like we’re able to decompress after “Getaway” - this is a safe place.
Rock the Beat!!
- There is no song like this one to really kick me in the ass.
- If “Getaway” is chase, this one is pursuit.
- The hard percussion at the front as the low bass synth build and builds really pushes the feeling.
- It’s kinetic, and as the music gets more crowded, it feels faster, despite a lack of tempo change.
- The floaty, slower guitar solo has this moment of flight, that kicks right back into speed, and then the rap kicks in.
- The vocals get louder and more intense as the music keeps building and building and building the beat.
- The problem is here, and we must do something.
- The song is not yet triumphant, but it is active and it is looking for a solution.
Poison Jam
- This just fucks. Goth Jet Set rules.
- Ominous and dramatic.
You Like That? (Interlude)
- This feels like preparation, especially with the way it rolls directly into…
Tag Walls, Punch Fascists
- Which is a sentiment I wholeheartedly agree with.
- It’s bombastic, and it’s time for war, so let’s do it.
- A call to action. We sing to bring others, and together run against the status quo.
BIG BEAST
- This is some bossfight shit.
- The repeating siren sound, the density of the soundscape, the frenetic sounds… It all comes to a head here.
- The bass running throughout has such tone to it that it proclaims the realness.
- The bridge feels tired, taking a breath, but optimistic before the darkness starts back up.
- And the repeating “Be calm…” fades away and detunes, broken.
Ba-da-Ba
- The credits roll. We’re celebrating - it’s a new day.
General Thoughts
- I am incapable of being normal about this album.
- This is the album that gave me my concept of sour music and that introduced me to 2 Mello. I don’t remember how I found it.
- It’s another album that feels attainably perfect.
- This album is cinematic and draws such a clear picture of what’s going on, the core aesthetics and story of Jet Set Radio.
- The soundscape of this album is very full, and very dense. It makes the negative space more pronounced.