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Tracklist |
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01. green chord(introduction)
02. Returning
03. Ride the wave
04. スロウレイン (Slow Rain)
05. REAL DISTANCE
06. So Far
07. プリズムの夜 (Prism no Yoru)
08. AM2:00(inst.)
09. Dawn Chorus (inst.)
10. 千年歩行 (Sennen Hokou)
11. 懸命の銘 (Kenmei no Mei)
12. calm
13. toward |
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Review |
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Hippy rockers Acidman have always been an eclectic group, managing a unique sound and terrific musicianship. Green Chord marks their fifth full length album, and while a solid release it lacks much of the bite that enamored longtime listeners.
Introducing the album with its title track, the beginning instrumental has been an Acidman staple since their third album equal. In fact, there are many trademark elements spattered throughout the disc. "Real Distance" is your mellow, bouncy number a la "Sekitou" and "River." It also isn't an Acidman album without instrumentals; this time there's three, with "AM2:00" juxtaposed with "Dawn Chorus." Ooki Nobuo and company even take the orchestration and acoustic guitars found in "Kisetsu no Tou" into further territory with "So Far" and "Prism no Yoru."
This is all well and good, but Green Chord fails to deliver any hard rock, something that even the mellow and world had with "world symphony," "Aru Shoumei," or even "stay on land." "Kenmei no Mei" and "Returning" are admirable attempts that fall just short of really rocking. Perhaps it's the overambitious production; the acoustic guitars used to fill space in "Returning" definitely inhibit the track's potential. Maybe it's just Ooki's voice--his warbly howl is eschewed in favor of more melodic crooning. There's no doubt that the band wanted to go in a more mellow direction. Heck, track 12 is called "calm." It's just the passion present in past efforts is sorely lacking and missed.
Green Chord is by no means a terrible album. Acidman can still manage to write good songs. However, there's no doubt that the lack of teeth is utterly disappointing to those who favor the band's early career up until equal. |
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