Review Summary: Hysteric Telecaster tornado, sadistic secret virgin recollection. Mysterious illusory landscape vibes.
The Japanese record industry peddles preposterously overpriced CDs and DVDs, and is dominated by overwhelmingly generic and bland pop music. For its various flaws, it does have one major leg up on the Western record industry: a willingness to take a chance on music that wouldn't be considered commercially viable in the west. Ling Tosite Sigure is a great case in point, being a frenetic post-hardcore band much too intricate (and complex) for mainstream success. Yet since 2008, Sigure has had a successful career with Sony Music, releasing albums that have sold well and haven't really compromised their artistic identity.
This all sounds pretty laudable, but here's the big difference: the Japanese industry runs at an absolutely breakneck pace. If you're an established act, you're pretty much contractually obligated to release material at a ridiculous rate, with multiple singles per year and a full album almost every year. The result is that major label artists, completely absent of any major-label meddling of the sort you'd expect in the State or Europe, exhaust themselves and burn out, living a zombified sort of existence in which the group banks indefinitely on its established legacy to sell albums that sound like soulless, hollowed-out versions of their early successes.
It's frustrating to see Toru Kitajima (of Ling Tosite Sigure and, uh, TK From Ling Tosite Sigure) approach this point. Though one of the most original and innovative bands to come out of the Japanese indie scene in the past fifteen years, their sound hasn't evolved very much, and each release brings the threat of stagnation.
TK seems to realize this, as from an objective standpoint White Noise is probably his most diverse album to date, incorporating more elaborate instrumentation from the strings and keyboards that were previously window dressing. The problem is that the songs are relatively weak.
The album is hardly a disaster, but any of TK's other material is a better entry point (like his outstanding debut solo album, Flowering.) The majority of White Noise tries to capture the neo-romantic grandeur of his earlier, outstanding single Contrast. This is most obvious on "Addictive Dancer," but TK achieves it more effectively on "White Noise" (more reminiscent of his very early solo song Film A Moment, interestingly enough) and straightforward but enjoyable anime theme "Signal." TK's biggest problem is when he falls back into vocal melodies and guitar riffs that sound virtually indistinguishable from stuff we've already heard many times before.
Elsewhere, attempts to try new stuff don't really go over well, like on the electronica-influenced "Secret Sensation," which features some good moments mixed in with random and unmemorable sections. TK's been going this way for a while and there's potential here, but his ridiculous pace is resulting in songs that emerge half-baked and needed a more time in the oven. "Showcase Reflection" never matches similar driving rockers from his other solo albums, like "12th Laser" and "Kalei de scope," and has a jumbled pastiche of guitar styles that lacks the seamless fluidity of his best songwriting.
Even slower songs, which probably offer TK the most room for growth, don't really deliver. "Like There Is Tomorrow" is a sappy, unmemorable piano ballad that sounds like it was written for an overbearing romantic TV drama, and TK's fuzzy, howling guitar solo is almost comically out of place, like he accidentally spliced in an outtake solo from "Moment A Rhythm." But at least it's better than the utterly dull "Tsumi no Houseki."
In spite of its flaws, White Noise isn't a disaster, and does have a few highlights: along with the aforementioned "Signal" and "White Noise," the closing track "Invalid Phrase" is excellent, and has more natural and pleasing transitions than on other songs, its kinetic chorus reflective of TK at his best, and even features some screaming from TK. "Dead End Complex" sounds a bit jumbled, but at least it successfully reflects TK trying something new, and gives bassist Hidekazu Hinata (of Zazen Boys and Nothing's Carved In Stone fame) more room to shine; his considerable talents are unfortunately under-utilized on this album.
White Noise is definitely worth a listen for fans, but other albums like Flowering, Just A Moment, or imperfect would be better places to start. TK and his bandmates need to slow things down and take a longer time between touring and releases to cultivate new ideas and - if nothing else - just get some rest. He might also try writing some decent lyrics instead of recycling his same dozen favorite words over and over again (as reflected in this review's snarky headline.)
