A quirky mix of electronica and hip-hop has taken Suiyoubi no Campanella from indie darling to major label signee (and ¡°SMAP x SMAP¡± guest) in the course of three years. Major label debut ¡°Uma¡± doesn¡¯t quite match up to the group¡¯s final indie effort, ¡°Zipang,¡± but it still shows a lot of promise.
The fresh sound that landed Suiyoubi its major label deal is evident from opening track ¡°Chupacabra.¡± It has a house vibe that sounds less quirky than the group usually does, something more appropriate for a basement club, but the addition of synths keeps it from getting too serious. Then there¡¯s ¡°Tsuchinoko,¡± a bouncy track that sees Suiyoubi doing what it does best: earwormy dance music with an indie-pop tinge. Later, the group is assisted by French electronic act Club Cheval on piano house number ¡°Phoenix,¡± a nod to 1990s nostalgia.
One thing to note, while ¡°Uma¡± is a good album it doesn¡¯t quite generate the same excitement that Suiyoubi generated as an indie act. Here¡¯s hoping that any future recording tries to recapture that indie spirit rather than simply replicate that indie sound.
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