Search - Happy End :: Kazemachi Roman

Kazemachi Roman
Happy End
Kazemachi Roman
Genres: Dance & Electronic, International Music
 
  •  Track Listings (12) - Disc #1


     
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CD Details

All Artists: Happy End
Title: Kazemachi Roman
Members Wishing: 2
Total Copies: 0
Label: Avex Trax
Release Date: 5/24/2004
Album Type: Import
Genres: Dance & Electronic, International Music
Style: World Dance
Number of Discs: 1
SwapaCD Credits: 1
 

CD Reviews

Excellent
J. D. Morgan | New Jersey, the heart of bad music | 07/20/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)

"My first cd by Happy End, and will not be my last. This album contains the amazing song "Kaze Wo Atsumete" from the Lost In Translation soundtrack, which is where I first got "wind" of them har har. The first half of the cd is absolutely amazing, my favorites include "Haikara wa kuchi" and "Soraironokureyon"



I hear a lot of familiar influences in their music. There's a distinctive Beatles vibe, except a lot more country in some parts. Haikara wa kuchi sounds like a cross between a Velvet Underground song and an Olivia Tremor Control song (there's not too much of a stretch there, but you'll know what I mean when you hear it).



Amazon.com doesn't have the tracklisting in romaji for the album, so I'll write another review when I can figure out the kanji and do a rough translation of the titles.



Final thoughts: Excellent first side, second side sort of lags a little bit, but it's kept short and doesn't drag on too long. Excellent, very capable band."
Blast from the past pre-YMO past.
J. P. DuQuette | Shizuoka, Japan | 08/18/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)

"Haruomi Hosono has had one helluva long career. In recent years, he's best know for his ambient techno work and his recent participation in the brilliant pop duo, Sketch Show. Flashback 20 years though, and he was (along with Sakamoto Ryuichi) a founding member of seminal electronic pop act Yellow Magic Orchestra. Five years further back, and Hosono was making Hawaiian novelty music. Go ALL the way back to 1970, though, and Hosono was making his debut in Happy End, an amalgam of western folk-rock and Japanese melodies that was notable, ironically, for being one of the few bands NOT singing in English at the time. Now, with the inclusion of the gorgeous "Kaze wo atsumeteEon Sofia Coppola's Lost in Translation Soundtrack, Happy End are back in the spotlight, and this newly remastered album is a mellow, CCR-flavored time-warp well worth taking (although no track ever quite reaches the timelessness of the aforementioned "KazeE. One minor complaint, common with re-releases: the bonus tracks are repetitive alternate takes that quickly become annoying for the casual listener. Otherwise, Kazemachi Roman is a nostalgic kick, a taste of the Happy End Box Set, to be released this year."
J-pop at its best
M. R. W. Uchino | Natchitoches, LA United States | 01/30/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is my new favorite CD! Even though Happy End is a relatively old band, their music is still just as fresh today as when it was produced. The sound is a bit Western, but I feel transported back to Japan just the same. I can't wait to get the next Happy End CD.

"