Punk’s Not Perfect
Half Japanese was conceived in 1975 during the formative years of punk when co-founder and guitarist Jad Fair was known for shredding on an untuned electric guitar. Over 40 years later, Fair is still the frontman and continues to strum outside the chords, you could say. Growing up alongside acts such as the Velvet Underground and Sonic Youth, Half Japanese has had the time and influence to spit out almost 30 records. The most recent is Perfect, a 13-track disc featuring the group’s cartoonish, rambunctious tendencies in full array.
Signature sci-fi elements amongst grungy guitar and bass lines thrive in opening track and single “This is That,” while “We Cannot Miss” starts off with a more polished rhythm before that key untuned guitar wreaks diluted havoc below scatterbrained vocals. Then, “You and I” kicks in more like a traditional rock ballad, but some organ and punked-out vocals set it apart. Title track “Perfect” begins a little differently, including some steel drums, a groovy bass line, and even a flute. Fair sings, “Now it’s right; now it’s fine. Let’s go. Perfect; inside and out. Perfect; there ain’t no doubt. Perfect; down to a T. Perfectly perfect it had to be.” The song drives along with some additional alien noises, killer electric guitar, and a steady rhythm foundation.
“Hold On” has a stellar rock base and some really pretty melodic guitar work going on in several layers. There’s a tense break in the middle before the lyrics and instrumentals come back in with some more positive messages. “Fill your life up with more wow,” sings Fair. “Man Without a Shadow” arrives with a Western feel, eerie guitar rising underneath chimes and bass, which hit like clocks striking noon and encompassing the lyrical theme of time. Then, “Listen to Your Heart” enters like a Johnny Cash song, with Fair speak-singing words of wisdom above drums, guitar, and bass. The whole song continues in this manner, with some xylophone tings thrown in to switch things up a bit. “We’ll Go Far” features some speedy dance beats and quickly escalates into a full-blown head banging session.
“That’s Called Love,” “In Your Spell,” and “A New Beginning” all revolve around falling in love and soaking up some happy vibes. There’s also some cute and clever lyrics thrown in. “I’m still falling in love, and that’s called gravity,” might be one of my favorites. Fair is bringing a similar sound to what he’s helped create from Half Japanese’s inception, but there’s decidedly more of a studio than garage feel this time around. It’s refined punk. So, is it a perfect compilation? Well, I’d say punk can never be perfect, or it wouldn’t truly fit the genre.
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