Quiet Life

Eighties new wave in the late 1970s. Yep, I can see how this was influential.

"Must hear before you die?" Why?? So I can know what the 362nd best album of 1979 sounds like? Stupid and erroneous. Excited to never listen to this again. EDIT: Wow, this is an embarrassing mea culpa to have to give, especially since this review has received quite a number of likes. But I've relistened, and I must say, it's been a hot minute since an album rose this much in estimation for me on one listen. This time around, I was much more drawn into it. It's still not my favorite-sounding album by any means, and there are moments where Sylvian's vocals irk me just the slightest, but in almost every song, I found myself really digging every member's individual performances. Really interesting instrumental choices and arrangements. I'm all the way up to a low 3 stars now, but it could genuinely continue to grow on me yet. I guess that's the beauty of it all, right? 3/5

Unremarkable and forgettable

What a great discovery. This is just a superb album that I kept listening to on repeat. The fretless bass makes this album even one step better than the songwriting already does. I hear influences of Roxy Music and Bowie, and you'll definitely hear where 80's bands like Duran Duran got their inspiration. Absolutely great album from start to end with no bad songs in between. Even as a big VU & Lou Reed fan, I really could appreciate the cover of All Tomorrow's Parties. Fall In Love With Me & In Vogue are my two favourite tracks 4,5*.

At times, completely forgettable early synth pop. At other times, really compelling well crafted music.

Where is 6 stars? Duran Duran took notes from this album.

Where has this been all my life? Eat your heart out, Spandau Ballet.

Crazy that this ain't even Japan's best album. Right in my sweet spot - wonky, eerie New Wave played by a bunch of fey English lads. One of whom who has a voice that sounds like it's from Duran Duran by way of Jupiter. The title track is one of that era's greatest pop songs. No exaggeration, it's near perfect.

I don't expect to convince people that Japan are one of the greatest bands to emerge from the new wave/post glam scene of the 70s but to my ears they were. This album, their musical breakthrough where they worked out their sound, is the bridge between that scene and the New Romantics. Duran Duran came from the image and the crossover disco/new wave sound of Japan. I mean look at them. Japan would make better albums, and they would break up too soon, but from every waaaa of the fretless bass to Sylvian's new found baritone this is a superb example of a band actually doing things to move music on and looking good and sounding good whilst they did it. I think after listening to over 200 albums in this project, I'm more sure of their greatness. But that's to my ears, maybe not yours.

A great transitional album marking the shift from the Bowie-esque glam and disco of the 70s to the fully-established new wave of the 80s Favourite tracks: Quiet Life, Fall In Love With Me, In Vogue, Halloween

So 80’s I almost died.

Not really my kind of music but the album was easy to listen, although nothing really stood out as great.

Duran Duran on downers. Melancholic and angular.

This is front-to-back great. Feels like Depeche Mode's "Violator" played eleven years early, with a slight glam-pop edge--which actually works here. Loses some vitality after the first few songs.

i love synth.

Fabuloso. Una fantasía dirían algunos. Inventan a Duran Duran aquí, pero con mucha más clase, tal vez un poco más introvertido el pedo. Yo noto una influencia recia del Iggy solista berlinés. Y claro, Bowie. No suena a 1978 pero sí. El futuro desdoblado.

Never really checked these guys out before and wow, had no idea how much Duran Duran was inspired by them! As a bass player, I love this guy's sound. The songs don't do a lot for me, but their version of All Tomorrow's Parties is among the better Velvets covers I have heard. Was amused to learn that British frontman David Sylvian lived for a decade or so in the woods quasi-reclusively not too far from me in southern New Hampshire at a dormant ashram he purchased! I had a good time going down the rabbit hole of figuring out his life. Discovering this band, their body of work, and the members' unusual lives has been a treat. Prior to today, my only exposure was seeing their albums in a friends' collection in the late 1980s (I recall making fun of my friend for their look and specifically Sylvian's hairdo make it easy for me to be dismissive). I am looking forward to digging in. Having heard more of their catalog in the last 24 hours, I might have selected their final album as Japan, Tin Drum, for this list. The songs aren't catchier but that doesn't seem to be their objective anyway and the band sounds more confident in what they are doing and the album is better for it. Definitely a band and musicians worth getting to know better and a perfect example of why I like this 1001 project.

Quiet Life ‘It’s certainly crowded, I’d love to go’ I was hoping Life in Tokyo would be on here, but alas it’s not. So we’ll just have to do with a very enjoyable collection of Bowie and Roxy Music influenced Synth Pop. This has that great late 70s early 80s atmosphere, a bit of Kraftwerk and Berlin style detached neon coolness with the above mentioned Bowie and Roxy Music stylings. Duran Duran must have heard Quiet Life. It’s a great track, a super bit of new wave early synth pop. Fall In Love with me is very good too, not quite as immediate as Quiet Life but still a great bit of new wave pop. Despair is fantastic, with its modernist gothic atmosphere, and portentous piano and choir. I can see how this might rub people up the wrong way but I loved it. In Vogue has a lovely string outro, sounds like one of the Bond orchestral motifs, although this and Halloween are slightly less strong than the others, but I admire the consistency of sound and style. All Tomorrow’s Parties is a great cover, I do love the VU original, but I like the moodiness of this a lot, it suits the slightly odd child-like melody of the chorus. Alien is good, it has a creepy vibe to it, with the upbeat and poppy horns and then I love the piano figure in The Other Side of Life, a suitably atmospheric and slightly overwrought finale. This is something I never thought I’d say, but there’s a lot of great fretless bass on here. Overall I thought this was great - I wasn’t sure what to expect but I like the synth, Bowie, Roxy, New Wave mash up, lots of ominous sounds and slightly strangled vocals, and seemingly very smartly constructed arrangements. Was actually tempted to go 5, but I don’t quite think it’s in the top bracket, so I’ll settle on a solid and very enjoyable 4. 🍣🍣🍣🍣🍣 Playlist submission: Quiet Life

If you want to know how ignorant I was (and arguably still am) about music, I'd not heard of Japan until I played Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain a number of years ago, and I always remembered Quiet Life being one of the weaker tracks on that game's soundtrack. To be fair, its hard to discern quality over the sound effects of a guy huffing and puffing, but I basically did not touch this song, and in turn this album, until right now, nearly a decade later. I wasn't NOT looking forward to this though, I mean, Japan is pretty well liked in small circles, and there is no denying that David Sylvian isn't SO HOT DUDE OH MY GOD HUBBA HUBBA AWOOGA HONK HON- Excuse me. So, I had some amount of hope this would be a good time, and I'd say it was! Quiet Life is far more appealing with a good set of headphones, and the whole album gives me Duran Duran vibes, but in a good, more sophisticated way, as if I'm listening to Hungry Like the Wolf for the intellectual. It isn't really like that, its pretty predictable, albeit grand pop music, but I still had a good time listening, and I think this album has its own charm that sets it apart from its contemporaries, such as tHE LEAD SINGER MMM GIVE ME SOME OF THAT B-OING WOO WO- But I seriously think this could be a good time if you go in knowing what to expect. Its a tad dated, and starts to drag near the end, but there's enough here to be a more romantic view of a musical era (new wave) that tends to be overdone in a modern setting. Looking forward to digging into more Japan stuff in the future, I've heard their albums after this one are even better.

79 you could hear the blueprint of new wave coming in

Good bass riffs, very dated but I am sure it was revolutionary at the time

Synth pop is 1979! Clearly influential just not great

My wife, who is much more of a New Romantic fangirl than I'll ever get close to, says she never got into Japan back in the day because they were "too monotonous". After a strong start – the title track is more Duran Duran than Duran Duran ever were – I can see why she says this. It does get a bit, err, boring really. It's OK. I listened twice easily and would probably go back again if it came on at random. But it doesn't ever live up to the start.

This album isn't quite my speed but I'm enjoying "In Vogue". I like the saxophone in the background of the song. The song "Halloween" is pretty fun. We are listening to it on Halloween. Coincidence? The second half of "Alien" had me bumpin' a little. I don't love the vocal style much, and that takes away from the album for me. The music is fun in places, but doesn't keep me engaged. It's like a slightly jazzier and funkier version of The Cure? I lean slightly positive. I didn't have a bad time but wouldn't seek this out again. 6/10

listening to the first two tracks of this album, i was actually pretty excited. a proto-new wave album? awesome! track three is where this thing kinda grinds to a halt. the fun new wave sounds end and are replaced by boring to middling songs that go on for too long. the production is nice and the rest of the album is fine, not awful, but i don't know if i've felt more teased by a beginning of an album before.

Holy shit, a synth pop record that doesn’t completely suck ass, one that has a little bit of life to it. Hold on… Three tracks in and we are getting weepy and funereal. Let’s see if the boys in Japan can turn it around… After a couple plodding tunes (Despair and In Vogue) they’re back to more uplifting territory, though the stench of a film noir soundtrack is still lingering a bit on Halloween. They’re covering All Tomorrow’s Parties now, and it’s evolved from a sort of Krautrock-y intro in a more jazzy affair, but it’s still got some nice ethereal instrumentation going on, but it’s a weird combination with that song, smooth jazz…not sure I’m a fan. That that krautrock vibe at the start was *really* working. Although, on second listen, the Can influence is more apparent, but it’s kind of like latter day, post-Damo Suzuki Can. This was better than most of the other synthpop records on the list, but it doesn’t quite rise to the level of a 4 star rating.

Like duran duran but more japan japan. Thought last song was cheesy

Never heard of them before. Seems kinda synth electro rock dancy and very 80s. I guess this is new wave music? Despair was very mopey and in French but felt like a noir movie song. Album got a bit slow and emo ish at despair and continued that trend with in vogue. Halloween picked it up a bit and improved things. Little to slow but very atmospheric. Not really my favorite but well done. Wouldn't listen to the album again, but maybe a few songs. 2 stars?

Weird spooky complex British music. Great bassist, interesting chord progression, just not that aesthetically pleasing to listen to. Easy to appreciate, hard to enjoy

it is indeed “quiet”. i was not at all inclined to listen to the album and it started over and i did not realize until fourth song and i was like heyyyy. so it wasn’t memorable. it wasn’t awful, it was just boring.

Kompletter Schrott. Stellenweise auch einfach unerträglich. Diese Platte hat mein Leben für ca. 50 Minuten schlechter gemacht.

Need another listen

Yes

My brother, 18 months younger, had this album along with Rio and Let's Dance - I was more a post-punker than a New Romantic. I did see Japan live on the Oil on Canvas tour, and gradually over the last twenty years have found my way back to their genius. Tin Drum, Gentlemen Take Polaroids and now Quiet Life. It joins Iggy's The Idiot as the only album I have had to immediately go out and buy. Come for the immaculate Moroder disco groove of the title track, stay for the finest coda Roxy never wrote on The Other Side of Life. Five stars, even without actual Moroder non-album track Life In Tokyo. Best apocryphal story about the album: that Sylvian blew the entire clothes budget for the shoot on the red jacket on the cover. Good choice.

Was curious about this band when I heard it was where Richard Barbieri from Porcupine Tree started from. This and Tin Drum are genius records. It's like discovering smart art pop all over again.

One of my favorite new wave goes synth-pop albums. The gloomy and almost gothic ambience makes it incredibly intriguing - especially due to Mike Kern’s layers of saxophone. It’s never busy and you feel that Japan take the time needed to let their arrangements breathe. It’s just as great listen!

Sounds superb

The album that revealed what David Sylvian, Mick Karn, Jansen and Barbieri were capable of. Solid guitar work by Dean as well, a fond farewell. This album has a huge warm spot in my heart - was introduced by way of the Velvets cover, and fell in love (awww myyy) immediately.

I kind of forgot about these guys, Such a good listen. Totally in the rotation.

one of the coolest sounding albums but beyond that...so lush and full of life and bursting with love...beyond words...man...10/10

Awesome surprise

Great album, trippy bass lines.

I’m going to be spinning this one regularly. Sounds like if Duran Duran were more artsy and influenced by Berlin era Bowie

Well, what a lovely surprise. I started off thinking Quiet Life is a banger but the rest was kind of meh But something about it drew me in and I ended up listening multiple times and absolutely loving it. Isn’t it funny how that works with som albums? Maybe it’s something to do with being a huge Duran Duran fan back in the day as there is a clear link there. Who knows? Anyhow, thanks generator for another great discovery

This is a great album. The title track is even a bit misleading because the other tracks have more musical ideas and grandeur (for example "Other Side"). It showed that New Wave and Synth Pop could offer more than just a bit of funny dancing.

Well ok. What a fucking record. At times the crossover from Joy Division to synthpop, at times neither, at times both. The influence on Duran Duran is abundantly obvious, this record is so much cooler though. I love it. Never heard it before. By Halloween I was a little bit done with the 'Duran Duran several years before Duran Duran but without the success of Duran Duran' however things take a turn in an interesting direction once again thereafter with an exceptionally Eno/Frippian cover of the Velvets. Yeah nothing to do with United massively unexpectedly beating City in the cup final today, but what a lovely album and what a beautiful day.

Long time Japan listener. Great Album.

Very good

Actually really enjoyed this! Atmospheric synth pop with a very pleasant man voice leading and nice variation in drums and base. Will listen to it again

dark and funky

These guys are too cool for me. Fun covers though!

Great band, I also followed the some of the members in the Rain tree crow and

10/10 perfect album in my eyes even when it gets super cheesy, I’ll still eat this shit up

Never heard of them before but absolutely loved this.

Har gleda meg til detta. Jævlig bra, sjøl om Tin Drum e hakket bedre

From Quiet Life onwards, Japan hit upon an apex that they wouldn't get down from until their breakup in the early 80s. One of the more underrated synthpop groups of their era, Japan always seemed to be more than the sum of its parts and it shows here, with adaptable ease into slinky yet speedy disco, a French language dirge and a Velvet Underground cover to boot all the while crafting their own inimitable path. Great album.

A big surprise, loved it a lot.

Wow this surprised me

Quiet Life, Gentlemen Take Polaroids, Tin Drum definitely belong to the list of best pop albums ever made. Sure, Roxy Music is everywhere, especially on Quiet Life, but they are much more than a slowed-down RM synth-pop clone - the songs and production are incredibly strong, and the whole concept is just perfectly executed.

Loved it, would listen again

Great synth pop / new wave sound. Amazing album, will check out more by this group.

Really good, loved the spooky vibes.

What a beautiful album

охуенно, вторая пятёра подряд. Даже, вероятно, вторая десятка (с этим сомнения, ибо сложно с пары прослушиваний прямо зафанатеть, но вообще очень зашло). Вот тот годный нью-вейв, который не совсем ударен в синтпоп и имеет значимое присутствие других инструментов. Баса в песне In Vogue, например, или гитарных ликов в Alien. По композиторству вообще никаких вопросов, каждая тема пиздец приятно и интересно звучит (и это от глемеров-то!), никаких кринжовых и дурацких моментов, я бы сказал всё очень умно сделано. Единственное, кавер на Вельвет Андеграунд не сильно заинтересовал, ещё и в расширенную версию его в трёх вариантах запихнули, что немного подкашивает. Посему ну 9, наверное, будет, в список прослушиваемого отправляется точно.

Love this album

It’s like hearing the 80’s being born.

So at first I thought WTF is this on the list. So this band ripped off Duran Duran and David Bowie, why are we adding this to the list. Then I thought did David Bowie and Duran Duran team up to make a supergroup named Japan??? So I did a little searching....its not a supergroup. But he does admit to being heavily influenced by David Bowie. And Duran Duran was actually heavily influenced by this band, ala Duran Duran ripped off Japan. With that said its still just 80's synth rock...little dramatic, little new age spacey but not awful. I will say since they had such an influence in creating the sound I will give them a solid 4. not necessarily an amazing album but they did seem to create something that took the 80's by storm. For me it is a little too dramatic and not something I can get into now, but this was a vibe in the 80's pre-grunge pre-emo era.

Let's just forget about that handshake with Carbon Monoxide... and forget about the season 1 final of Dark. (aka other associations that some people tend to think of when they heard the phrase "a quiet life".) first. then we can listen to this. something i wanna say: new wave is fun. Brits are awesome. Japan is an more than decent country. And I love this album because its new wave before new wave was actually born and it sounds like what happens after new wave is born. 4/5

First listen to this, nice album.

I also would give this an album a 3.5/5 if this site let me. Very solid.

Quite peculiar album, specially for a New Wave one. And what makes this album interesting? It is the atmosphere and the instrumentation. The vocals where a bit forgettable in my opinion. This record has a very distinct sound. It feels very sophisticated in comparison to other albums of the same genre, which they tend to be louder. I was surprised to like this album as much as I did as I'm not a fan of the New Wave sound, but the melancholy and refined production made this a great experience.

Well recorded, enough it could be a contemporary revival band. Sounds like unreleased tracks from 80s bands that could have been big hits

Pas mal du tout, je ne connaissais pas !

Pleasantly surprising. Love the overall sound. Best tracks: Quiet Life, Despair, Alien.

Interessanter New Wave, durchaus paar geile Sachen dabei

Some really great melodies and overall pretty radical for the late 70s. Feels ahead of its time in spots. Fall In Love With Me is a pretty epic track.

I dig the vibe! There was a slight lull, but cool stuff.

I really seem to have an affinity for pre MTV generation new wave. (you'll see more of that from me when we get to Gary Newman, I don't think any Tubeway Army is on here). This really gave me a Duran Duran vibe and to some extent, I dug this more than the double D's. I was actually turned onto Japan four yeas ago when I did a daily 81 dive and *Tin Drum* came up. I really didn't write the album's rating or take notes I was just listening for fun. I do remember really enjoying that album when I got to it. I really ought to do. A quick dive on them, the only have five proper albums and a reunion album under a assumed name. As for this light but solid 4 8.4/10 ★★★★

Really cool album with awesome bass playing.

Pretty good. Velvet undergound cover!

I liked this. I’m always looking for more new wave-y mellow morning sounds

Crazy to think that this is from the 70s when it sounds like the 80s. A fun album, but it is tad too long.

I enjoyed this one a lot, interesting how it has a very mid 80s pop sound despite being released in ‘79

3/4

New wave mezclado con rock de sintetizadores y dark. Las guitarras, si bien están presentes, no tienen mucho énfasis en la mezcla. Las canciones son buenas, algunas tienes melodías interesantes y exploran con los ambientes de diferentes maneras.

A new band to me. It’s cool hearing the influence of so many 80’d bands had. They were pioneers in a newly forming sound.

Pretty good.

Opens with the title track "Quiet Life" - a hit single and New Wave / Art Pop classic. The influence of Roxy Music producer John Punter is most obvious on "Despair". I wasn't a big fan of Japan at the time beacuse I thought that David Sylvian was a pretentious twat, (and he still is as far as I'm concerned), but the music grows on you.

Dark 80s pop that mixes a bunch of other bands into a pretty great album. 7/10

Better than expected. Anyone who likes Durand Durand needs to be made aware of this. This kind of seems like a good chunk of this was stolen by DD. It's quite good, would listen to again and/or put into rotation.

Life changing? Perhaps not. Enjoyable and influential? Perhaps yes.

I really enjoyed this album. It's well produced, funky, and just very clean sounding synth pop without the ugly distortion and bloat that the next decade would push further. Despair, In Vogue, and All Tomorrow's Party are great vibes.

great synth album loved the atmospheric soud

Meget bedre end jeg forventede. Lyder som Roxy Music

High 4

1979, worth to listen to again.

Very surprised. Like it

Goddamn this is so cool. Dark minor key synth-based post-punk with an edge in the vocals and the guitars touch of punk to the vocals. The somber and introspective mood constrats with the glossy artifice of the synths for a nightmarish party feel - this is a great document of the imaginary of what the inside of a computer, and so the impending computer-based future, must've sounded like in the late 70s. Kind of a Blade Runner of an album, but projecting that dystopian aesthetic onto an imagined alien other: 'Tokyo'. Favorites: Fall in Love with Me, Alien, All Tomorrow's Parties, Quiet Life

I would’ve never expected a cover of all tomorrow’s parties, and a pretty good one at that, it’s not one of my favourite velvet underground songs but it’s still really good Fall in love with me felt almost smithsy in its vocals. Alien was kinda cool in its chorus. The other side of life is basically a Roxy music song, I can imagine this on for your pleasure. The rest was pretty cool too tbh 4/5

- Sick vibe