I Just Read About That…

SOUNDTRACK: ANIMAL MASKS-EP (2017).

Animal Masks is a band based out of Somerville, NJ (almost my home town).  They have an EP out (buy or stream on bandcamp), and it’s a great four song collection that melds a 70’s glam rock feel with a kind of 80s pop punk.

They are a trio and have the thick, meaty sound that trios do so well.  The disc doesn’t give a lot of details, but the band consists of Dave DeCastro, Dan Zachary and Ronny Day (not sure who does what).

The last three songs of the Ep have more of the punk edge–the songs are faster and shorter (“Tear It Down” is just over 2 minutes), but they are in no way hardcore.  There’s a distinct  major label Hüsker Dü vibe to these latter songs.

“Sad Day” has some nice harmonies in unexpected places and I love the gritty minor key guitars.  The chord progression in the bridge is also a nicely unexpected change up for an otherwise simple melody.  It’s a sweet touch to get a fuzzy wah wah sound in the second half of the (not at all flashy) guitar solo as well.  The “Ohhs” at the end of the song are pure Mould/Hart/Norton.

“Tear It Down” is a bit more upbeat (surprisingly given the “when everything falls apart, it’s time to tear it down” lyrics).  I love the thumping drums (and the screamed harmonies) in the chorus.  “Used By the Universe” is a bit muddier than the other songs–I can’t tell if it’s the same singer on all the songs–he’s harder to hear on this track.  He sounds a bit deeper, gruffer on this one.  There’s some great bass lines in this song, and once again, the drum has some great fills.

The glam comes to the fore on the first song, “For Real.”  The singer’s voice sounds a bit less snarly and the guitars are wah-wahed and echoey in a way they aren’t on the other three.  There appears to be some other kind of interesting overdub sound floating behind the guitars, which is a nice addition.  The song is slower, but I really like the way the drum plays a fast four beats in the middle of the chorus.

One thing that tickles me about this song is that the main body of the song has a chorus of “is it always… now or never” the “for real” of the title doesn’t come until after four minutes (the song is just under 5) with a coda that repeats “are you for real.”

I wish the recording was a little crisper, but that’s probably personal preference.  I definitely wish the drums were mixed differently–they sound kind of flat–which is a shame because the drumming is outstanding.  All of this just speaks to how great they probably sound live.

[READ: October 30, 2016] Cool Japan Guide

After enjoying Diary of a Tokyo Teen, I saw that Tuttle Publishing also put out this book. I got it out for Clark but wound up reading it before he did.

Abby Denson is a cartoonist (the other subtitle is A Comic Book Writer’s Personal Tour of Japan).  She and her husband (Matt Loux–who did the Salt Water Taffy stories) love Japan and Japanese culture and they travel there a lot.  So this is her personal guide book to visiting the wild world of Japan.

While it has some of the same features as Tokyo Teen, this book is far more of a guide book for travelers than a personal memoir of one girl’s travels. The book opens with a pronunciation guide (very helpful) and each chapter has a list of useful phrases and expressions all introduced by the very helpful Kitty Sweet Tooth.

Denson is quite thorough in this book.  Starting from before you leave–getting a passport, making reservations, getting rail passes, everything.  Even what to expect in each of the seasons.  Upon arrival there’s all kinds of fun things to see immediately–train stamps (you get a stamp for every station you go to) vending machines (and how to understand them) and even what kind of (apparently delicious) food you can buy on a train in the country.

Speaking of food, she shows all kinds of delicious food items and does her best to describe them (often with close up pictures) .  She even talks of the store where you can buy the plastic food that is used as models in every other store.

In terms of accommodations, she discusses home stays (staying with a family or friend) and hotels.  And of course, she talks about toilets (someday I have to check out Japanese toilets).  There are even slippers that you wear only in the bathroom.

And then there’s things to do.  Like going to Onsen (hot springs) since Japan is largely volcanic. Or to Comicons (which they obviously go to, being artists).  You can visit parks and see theater.  Naturally there are also shrines and festivals and souvenirs galore.

She mentions the Studio Ghibli Museum and lucky cats.  Imagine shopping in the overwhelming shopping areas.  She talks about the little machines that dispense plastic balls with toys in them.   We have them here, but they are elevated to an art in Japan and are called gashapon and are a serious adult collecting habit.  She talks about Dollar stores (which are called 100 yen and 300 yen stores) as well as the high-end (like Gothic Lolita) and more affordable (like Uniqlo which has recently come the US).

Of course she has a huge section devoted to manga and comics, including all of the stores and arcades and everything else that celebrates this cultural phenomenon.

Unlike in Tokyo Teen, Abby is not so turned off by the Maid Cafes but she also talks about Butler Cafes which cater to women where they treat women like princesses–tea and cakes and what not.

The end of the book offers travel resources, handy Japan apps, destinations and emergency information.  She includes a list of the biggest festivals and their times of the year and even a map of Japan.

If you like any of this cool Japanese stuff, this is a great resource.  As of now it’s maybe a little out of date, but I’m sure most of the information is pretty useful. It’s another fun book from Tuttle Publishing.