The Daily OrangeReview: Asobi Seksu, "Hush"
By Ken Gilbert
Posted: 2/17/09, 2:11 AM EST Section: Decibel
Asobi Seksu is yet another Brooklyn-based band that's been basking in the limelight as of late. Its new record, "Hush," put out in the US by Polyvinyl, sounds like shoegaze's bastard child. This very safe record tries its best to synthesize the various sound canvases that came out of Great Britain during the late '80s and early '90s, but it seems to belittle the sounds of the European giants.
Asobi Seksu appears to be a bit lost on "Hush," the follow-up to its 2006 record "Citrus." "Hush" ebbs and flows over 12 tracks that mesh vocally carried dream-pop with reverb-heavy shoegaze. The record complies with all the rules and regulations of a concept record, however Asobi Seksu is missing the key ingredient: an original concept.
Vocalist and keyboardist Yuki Chikudate serves as the group's headmaster with her alluring yet conventional vocals. Chikudate, who sounds like an auto-tuned version of the Cocteau Twins' Elizabeth Fraser, gives you track after track of quarantined boredom. Excessive repetition on "Hush" makes the songs difficult to distinguish and far too easy to categorize.
To be frank, Asobi Seksu lacks a voice of its own. The band's sound is an amalgam of late '80s Cocteau Twins and in particular, two My Bloody Valentine records: "Ecstasy and Wine" and "Loveless."
It seems the best indie rock outfits of the last few years have been the ones that balance a combination of unique influences with their own experimental curiosity. "Hush," however, isn't so much a bona fide creation as it is a lifeless duplicate.
From an elementary standpoint, however, "Hush" does sound beautiful. Guitarist James Hanna paints fragile landscapes backed by basic pop structures that are soothing despite their recycled sound. Chikudate and friends also try to go off on edgy noise tangents to contrast the album's fluffiness, but it ends up sounding pretty synthetic.
"I Can't See," perhaps the record's most tolerable song, actually begins with Hanna singing. "I Can't See" is guided by its stylish simplicity, which eventually builds to an ethereal climax that has "Loveless" written all over it.
The only other tracks that are almost worth your precious time are "Me & Mary" and "Familiar Light." "Me & Mary" is the only melody-driven tune featured on "Hush." This vibrant collage shows off Yo La Tengo's gentle indifference and a tender melody similar to that of the Smiths.
At least I know My Bloody Valentine frontman Kevin Shields is somewhere in Ireland listening to this record, gritting his teeth and asking himself, "What have I become?"
khgilber@syr.edu
Asobi Seksu appears to be a bit lost on "Hush," the follow-up to its 2006 record "Citrus." "Hush" ebbs and flows over 12 tracks that mesh vocally carried dream-pop with reverb-heavy shoegaze. The record complies with all the rules and regulations of a concept record, however Asobi Seksu is missing the key ingredient: an original concept.
Vocalist and keyboardist Yuki Chikudate serves as the group's headmaster with her alluring yet conventional vocals. Chikudate, who sounds like an auto-tuned version of the Cocteau Twins' Elizabeth Fraser, gives you track after track of quarantined boredom. Excessive repetition on "Hush" makes the songs difficult to distinguish and far too easy to categorize.
To be frank, Asobi Seksu lacks a voice of its own. The band's sound is an amalgam of late '80s Cocteau Twins and in particular, two My Bloody Valentine records: "Ecstasy and Wine" and "Loveless."
It seems the best indie rock outfits of the last few years have been the ones that balance a combination of unique influences with their own experimental curiosity. "Hush," however, isn't so much a bona fide creation as it is a lifeless duplicate.
From an elementary standpoint, however, "Hush" does sound beautiful. Guitarist James Hanna paints fragile landscapes backed by basic pop structures that are soothing despite their recycled sound. Chikudate and friends also try to go off on edgy noise tangents to contrast the album's fluffiness, but it ends up sounding pretty synthetic.
"I Can't See," perhaps the record's most tolerable song, actually begins with Hanna singing. "I Can't See" is guided by its stylish simplicity, which eventually builds to an ethereal climax that has "Loveless" written all over it.
The only other tracks that are almost worth your precious time are "Me & Mary" and "Familiar Light." "Me & Mary" is the only melody-driven tune featured on "Hush." This vibrant collage shows off Yo La Tengo's gentle indifference and a tender melody similar to that of the Smiths.
At least I know My Bloody Valentine frontman Kevin Shields is somewhere in Ireland listening to this record, gritting his teeth and asking himself, "What have I become?"
khgilber@syr.edu
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