Quiet Life
Japan
1979
Album Summary
Quiet Life is the third studio album by English new wave band Japan, first released on 17 November 1979 in Canada by record label Hansa. The album was a transition from the glam rock-influenced style of previous albums to a synth-pop style. Though sales were initially slow, Quiet Life was the band's first album to chart and was later certified Gold by the British Phonographic Industry for sales in excess of 100,000 copies.
WikipediaFabuloso. 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.
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.
Not really my kind of music but the album was easy to listen, although nothing really stood out as great.
Kompletter Schrott. Stellenweise auch einfach unerträglich. Diese Platte hat mein Leben für ca. 50 Minuten schlechter gemacht.
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.
A surprising listen, With some synth-pop sounds I rather enjoyed. "Quiet Life" is definitely a stand-out track, and "Despair" sound great even if not a shuffle-worthy song.
Me gustó, no tenía idea de qué esperar, pero ya que escuché sabía que es algo que disfruto. Una combinación de sintetizadores con las cuerdas y la batería y ya está ese sonido característico de los ochenta. Me sonó a lo que luego lueguito estaría haciendo Tears for Fears. Realmente no tuve skips (no escuché la versión delux), aunque mis favs quizá fueron "In Vogue" y "Halloween". Pero todo bien, a gusto. 9/10
Sí me gustó, está darketón. Tiene sus toques hipnóticos, que su pop, que su rock, que su post-punk, sobre todo el sonido del bajo es lo que más disfruté a lo largo del disco. Canción que más me gustó: Halloween. Mood: zombificado.
Dromerige New Wave muziek met een sterk pop-kantje. Ik vond dit wel een aangenaam album
Muy ochentas, new wave y así pero siento que un poco más dark, corríjanme sí me equivoco
Всё же хороший альбом. Грамотно выстроенные композиции, оригинальный подбор инструментов, продуманные партии. Последние особенно в уши бросаются, когда в наушниках на фоне слышишь что-то действительно интересное. Среди треков могу выделить Despair с её сильной атмосферой. В целом, не могу сказать, что узнаю треки, если где-то услышу. Что внутренне намекает, что субъект - просто приятный проходняк. При фоновом переслушивании пытался выцепить треки, что резали бы ухо или казались явно лишними. Но не удавалось, впечатления были скорее положительными. Так что снова конформистская оценка.
Strange mish mash of synthpop and dark sombre songs. However, even though it doesn't work the best as an album, there are some incredible songs on here. Despair, The Other Side of Life, and the cover of All Tomorrow's Parties were excellent. And I still can't get over this is from the 70s; very ahead of it's time.
A cool, moody, Duran Duran-esque new wave record. A lot of really good songs and the album flows really well. Loved the singer’s voice, and the bass was AWESOME.
I enjoyed this album quite a bit. It sits on the border of New Wave and Glam Rock and anticipates Goth Rock. Some of the songs were a little too drawn out but it was an easy listen. The album wasn’t overly reliant on synth and had a good balance with a strong backbeat
Dobar je ovaj Japan, kao država! Sviđa mi se album. Fall in Love With Me i Alien su mi najdraži sa albuma, a iskreno po mojoj definiciji covera, treba biti kao što je on napravio za All Tomorrow's Parties (inače izvorno od Velvet Undergrounda gdje je Nico na vokalu). Despair je takva pjesma koja paše u noć, definitivno ima taj štih, dok In Vogue dosta podsjeća na stari The Cure. Sve u svemu, album nije overstajo svoju dobrodošlicu.
Contrairement à mon rival eltrapeze, j'ai globalement apprécié la proposition musicale de cet album. J'écris d'ailleurs en ce moment même cette critique en pleine heure de cours avec ma classe de sixième au sein de mon collège situé en Basse-Saxe (vous savez déjà que j'exerce comme professeur assistant). Voici comment j'ai obtenu le droit de me comporter ainsi en toute liberté. Hier s'est en effet tenue dans mon école une longue réunion entre syndicats de professeurs et syndicats de directeurs dont l'objet était une renégociation des conditions de travail et la conclusion d'un accord de branche applicable à l'ensemble des écoles du Land de Niedersachsen. Bien qu'étant nouveau et n'ayant aucun mandat, j'ai réussi à localiser la salle dans laquelle se tenait cette réunion, ai ouvert discrètement la porte et me suis assis à la table des négociations parmi les syndicalistes sans que personne ne remarque ma présence. La discussion portait au moment de mon arrivée sur le nombre de jours de congés à attribuer en période de maternité. Pendant que les négociations se poursuivaient, je lançai lentement le fil d'une canne à pêche miniature de ma propre conception vers le papier sur lequel les points d'accord étaient rédigés et, une fois celui-ci accroché, le tira furtivement vers moi en enroulant le fil de la bobine. Une fois à portée de main, j'y annotai mes quelques revendications et le refis glisser vers sa place d'origine avant de repartir par la même porte que celle par laquelle j'étais rentré plus tôt. L'accord de branche négocié a été publié ce matin au Journal Officiel allemand, je vous joins l'extrait qui nous intéresse : « ... Das ist also der Grund, warum Frauen, die Babys machen, sich ruhig ein paar Tage ausruhen können. Sagen wir grob zehn Tage. § 14 Et donc comme je disais les profs, parmi lesquels Robfourmilière, pourront écouter les albums fournis par Robert et les critiquer pendant les heures de cours sans qu'on vienne les emmerder. § 15 Eltrapeze est interdit de séjour en Basse-Saxe. § 16 Die Jungs, die Babys herstellen, dürfen auch ein paar Tage frei haben, aber nur vier. So einfach ist das. » J'ai donc maintenant la possibilité d'exercer mon activité principale sur mon lieu de travail en toute légalité.
New to me! Really interesting listen. I enjoyed it and will return to it in the future
Pretty good! I was surprised! Remember these from being a kid but never really knew much of the their music but I enjoyed it. Like a cross between Duran Duran, Depeche Mode and the Cure
Japan instantly brought to my mind Duran Duran to me as their sound seemed very similar. But I see that this was released several years before Duran Duran, so I can assume Japan were one of the early creators of this 80s sound. I started out a little ambivalent about this album. It was hard not to compare the infectious hooks present in the best songs from Duran Duran, The Human League, A Flock Of Seagulls, Spandau Ballet, ABC and the like. On my first listen of this nothing stood out like the best of those bands... But every time I listen to this I discover new great moments. It seems I had to listen a little harder to discover these moments, but they are emerging. Maybe it is just a matter of time until Japan becomes one of my staples of the synth-pop sound. I keep adding to the list of favorite songs at the bottom of these notes and it has become nearly a list of all of the tracks… My favorite songs: Quiet Life, Fall In Love With Me, Despair, In Vogue, Halloween, All Tomorrow's Parties
I'm really enjoying early synthpop as I learn more about it. This album seems really really well formed for the time it was made. The production of the album is excellent. Giorgio Moroder's influence on the album seems like it adds a lot, though I haven't heard the bands earlier works to compare it to. Super fun pop album that has a lot of elements of synth music that will come to prominence in the decades to follow. This album also features what might be my favorite Velvet Underground cover in All Tomorrow's Parties 4/5
The missing link between glam and New Romantics. Clearly heavily influenced by Lou Red, VU, New York Dolls, and Berlin-era Bowie, but leaning into a softer, more spacious sound that they became known for in the early 80s. Funny to hear how much Sylvian changed his vocal style from the first two albums. Love Mick Karn's bass playing; it is weird and distinctive and strangely funky, and always adds a fresh surprise.
Неожиданный альбом на 4- (7 по 10-ти балльной шкале). Не знал ничего о группе, не слышал их песен, поэтому получился вполне приятный сюрприз
This really had moments where it felt like a synth forward Talking Heads band. I liked it more and more as the album progressed.
op een of andere manier heb ik dit album 2x geluisterd. Het was erg lekker, relaxed en toch ook intrigerend. Japan was wel echt een band waar een vriend (John) van mij fan van was, wellicht telde dat wel mee.
Very good, very different from the other Japan stuff I’ve heard. A lot of influence/ sound connections between 80s pop rock like Duran Duran- but darker. Really cool listen, will look out for more Japan!
I'm going to go out on a limb and say that the member of Duran Duran listened to this a lot before recording their first album. In fact, a few of the songs I would have sworn were Duran Duran had I not known. I liked this album much more than Duran Duran though, but that could be because these songs are fresh to my ears. Can definitely hear some Roxy Music influence on a few songs. I guess Japan is the missing link between Roxy Music and Duran Duran. 3.5 stars, rounding up to 4.
Really good and unexpectedly substantive . The sax steals the show on several cuts and this one’s easily my fave version of “All Tomorrow’s Parties.”
Some great tracks on here. Ahead of their time and way better than their rock beginnings.
If Japan stole some from Roxy Music, then Duran Duran stole most [maybe all] from Japan. I don’t know whether this is more New Wave or New Romantic, but it feels ahead of its time for ‘79 and a big advance from glam which had got awfully tired. Certainly, this sounds like the '80s looked. Way underrated.
Generous 4. Moody music which I wasn't expecting with the synth style but could see myself listening to this a few times.
I would give this 3 stars (good), but I'm giving it an extra star because I have such deep respect for the musicians involved. David Sylvian would go on to make some of the most transcendent music as a solo artist. Richard Barbieri will later be a part of Porcupine Tree.
Some solid stuff here, but sometimes it drifts into a bad Bowie impression backed by saxophones
It's really hard to believe this was released in 1979. When I think of Japan I think of the 80s, and this is full of their typical electronica, but it doesn't sound at all out of date, even today. I don't love it, nor hate it, but I can see that it's very impressive for its time.
Crazy how much this sounds like Duran Duran. Obviously a big influence on many future bands.
This album was…interesting. I wouldn’t say I loved it, but I didn’t hate it. It was just a bit strange to my ears.
Pre Duran Duran influencer. I liked the album. Although it won't be a part of the regular rotation, I'm glad I listened.
Yeah is okay. Nothing stood out as bad. Listened without any worries at all, enjoyed it. Probably won't bother again...
I moved to Japan in the summer of 1982, three years after the release of this. The Japanese had never heard of it, but had heard of me Nigel Spackman. Their entire culture since '82 is based on my suggestions. Especially the manga porn stuff. I love a bit of that. An octopus strangling a school girl? Yes please.
Synth pop de la New Wave. Algunas canciones chulas pero se hace largo. No brilla demasiado pero es escuchable.
which came first the japan or the duran duran? i kept thinking i was listening to a duran album. so if japan came first it deserves respect, if duran came first it deserves derision. i've checked with my sources and japan came first. nuff respec. especially like their version of ATP.
This sounds like a scary/emo Duran Duran. Really love the use of fretless bass for texture. Good album. Dark synth pop is not something you hear too often, but these folks do a great job of making music that you know a vampire from the 80's would make.
Synth/art pop stuff like this isn’t really my thing, but I can appreciate it for what it is so a 2.5 leaning to a 3.
took a while to get into it, but its a chill album. would use as background music again probably.
All Tomorrow’s Parties was catchy, kind of relaxing. Not a bad album, but probably not my bag.
Some catchy songs but nothing really stands out. Overall it's good, but nothing extraordinary.
I really liked the first 30 seconds but then this went a little too nerdy/Japanese anime soundtrack for me
It seems a little ahead of it’s time - I can’t really comprehend that it’s from the 70s. Kind of a classically good album, I don’t think it’s anything completely unique, but it’s pretty solid.
Italo disco meets Bowie met een vleugje Air. Heerlijk poppie album met veel potentiele hits. Heel erg modern voor zijn tijd, veel synthesizers maar ook gewoon nog gitaren en drums. Dan nog zo'n typisch Engelse zanger en ik vind het leuk! Sommige nummers hebben iets duisters waardoor je een beetje een hardrock sfeertje proeft, maar het blijft toch allemaal in de poppie Italo disco hoek. Helaas zitten er aardig wat "quiet" oftewel langzame balads bij, die mij niet zo aantrekken. Leukste nummers zijn "Fall In Love With Me" en "In Vogue".
Interesting album. I wouldn't have guessed it was released in 1979. Good electro/synth vibes, with variance enough between tracks to let me know there were differences. With that said, the album itself didn't strike me as powerful enough for 4 stars, so it gets a good 3.
I was a heavy listener of Japan in the late 70s so I've tried to get past my early fan bias. Now I also have to get past the silly hair, makeup and New Romantic costumes. Actually it wasn't as bad as I expected with some songs holding up pretty good eg All Tomorrow's Parties. Kudos to them for being such early pioneers in the Synth-Pop genre and influencing groups such as Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet, ABC, Human League etc. But is there anything gloomier sounding than David Sylvain’s voice?
The title track is epic early synth-pop and I thank 1001 for bringing back that memory. The next two tracks caught my attention too, Despair at first with its haunting intro, the again with the clumbsy singing in French. I like the song-writing and arrangements enough to give this a higher mark but I find David Sylvian's voice wears on you after a half-dozen songs.
If I heard this in 1979 upon release I probably would have dismissed it since my hatred for disco had, by that time, extended to almost anything played to fill a dance floor. The first few songs are quite good. I have one question about the ballads: Why? The album recovers a bit with All Tomorrow's Parties but I wish they had more dance floor stuff on this LP. I just made 1979 Johnny cringe.
I judged an album by its cover and expected some Depeche Mode/OMD-like music. Wasn't floored by it, but did enjoy. Prob addition to library.
Very distinctly New Wave. Interestingly enough, belongs to the New Romantic scene form the UK in the early 80's (see: Duran Duran) that took New Wave and added a glam spin on it à la Bowie. Tres chic! Big focus on ambience with this album. Japan likes to fully flesh out their environmental soundscapes, which ultimately sets them apart from other New Wave artists of the day. Otherwise it's not all that notable. Not bad!
Je ne pense pas grand chose de cet album, qui ne m'a ni surpris, ni interessé, ni plu. Mais j'accepte la sentence, après une série des plus excitantes concoctée par Robert. L'occasion pour moi de vous en dire un peu plus sur cet homme. Suite à ma récente promotion en tant que bras droit de Robert, j'ai la chance de pouvoir vivre au plus près du gourou du générateur, et d'ainsi me rendre compte du travail formidable qu'il propose. Il faut savoir que Robert est en contact permanent avec les quatres coins du globe, afin d'être mis au courant des dernières sorties musicales, mais également afin d'organiser des descentes de police/milice si necessaire. Il entretient d'excellentes relations avec la plupart des chefs d'état, qui le laissent opérer sans la moindre barrière. Là où la journée de Robert devient complétement formidable, c'est sur le coup de 19h. C'est à cet instant que Robert décide de l'album qui arrivera sur vos écrans au petit matin. Pour se faire, Robert a un long processus de pensée, bien trop complexe et trop long à décrire ici, qui débouche toujours sur un album qui n'est pas là par hasard. Alors la prochaine fois que vous critiquerez l'album généré du jour, tournez sept fois votre langue dans votre claque merde, si vous ne voulez pas vous exposer à la vendetta de Robert.
It seems a strange mash up of Roxy Music (without so much warble) and Duran Duran. I like the horns used with the synth and the broodiness of many of the tracks. Nothing stands out as amazing, but overall reasonably enjoyable.
"despair" certain lives up to the title. At the tip of the new wave era, I think this would have lived up with a lot of the genre.
Cover Impressions: More 80s New-Wave, fantastic. Do you like Glam and Synthesizers? If you answered yes then this should be right up your alley. On listen: Overall it's not bad, doesn't lean too heavily into the 80s weirdness but it is still there, there are some good hooks in this. I like the melody in "Fall in love with me". Giving me Depeche Mode or Duran Duran vibes, vocals are very familiar sounding but they are the weakest part of this. The more I'm listening the more forgiving I'm feeling of this after my initial distaste for what I was about to be getting into, it's not cringey and there's some pretty solid arrangements. I'm usually not one for the moody depressing stuff but Despair, and In Vogue both had lengthy brooding instrumental sections that I was just vibing with. Probably wouldn't go out of my way to revisit but I appreciated this one.
I was mostly astounded to learn about this band and hear how similar they are to Duran Duran (they came out around the same time in the same country). Kind of interesting that they fell apart right as Duran Duran were on the road to super-stardom. A solid album with some strong early-80s cuts.
Fun, synth-y, sax-y late 70s/early 80s pop. A clear influence on Duran Duran. Not my favorite but good enough and the right beats per minute for an afternoon walk in the sunshine. Love the cover of All Tomorrow's Parties.
I don’t know if I have heard of Japan before or not…maybe…but I have definitely never listened to an album. Not likely to dig this one out to listen again. I was confused at what band I was listening to. Wait, is this Duran Duran on a couple of tracks…maybe Depeche Mode on another. The album did not capture my attention, in any case. I was often bored. I guess that none of the tracks made much of an impression on me…forgetting the tune just after it ended. In fact, I was listening to a version of the album with some bonus single-versions of one of the tracks and when I got to them I paused and thought, “This song is familiar. Where have I heard it before?” Turns out that I had heard it just a couple of track earlier on the album… Thankfully I wasn’t being quizzed on what I had been listening to.
I don’t care for the vocals and it was generally slow paced for me. I enjoyed most of the vibes of the songs though and it’s maybe worth a revisit in a different setting. 6/10
6/10 the most outstanding thing about this album is how much the guy sounds like morrisey
Decent stuff. Not extravagant, but easy enough to have on in the background. Favorite song: Alien
Atmospheric synthwave from 1979. A good mix of poppy and more experimental elements. I liked it. 3.5/5.
Mostly forgettable but plenty to like. Their influences are pretty obvious but this album was also pretty influential. the syth pop/new romantic style definetly took shape in the next couple years after this record.
Despair Welcome to Japan, a place where the things are not as such as they said it, but it’s louder than it looks. Keep calm and listen to the new wave, this band provides such as elements as in the whole 80s sold a bunch of records and different tunes from a lot of bands, names as a-ha, Duran Duran, Eurythmics, you name it. Jealously of them to create a modern sound when their genre was quite unknowable at its time, the music industry was another, well, there were no limits of creativity and no edges neither frontiers. Across the Pacific and surfing in Indian tides, they’re on the shore with a humble group of people playing their songs, people just don’t remember them as they deserve it. B
Pretty decent. Title track and the Velvet Underground cover are the standouts. Nothing too crazy, but a pleasant listen.
Though I'm a fan of some New Wave, this veers more towards Techno-pop and feels a bit too pretentious to me. There are some good songs that have a bit of a Roxy Music/Bowie and maybe even Duran Duran vibe to it, so it did grow on me. The cover photo would probably stop me from listening, but I'm glad I took a listen.
p436. 1979. 3 stars Thin White Duke impersonator and Brian Ferry sound-alike steals the best bits from Roxy Music's "Stranded" and "Manifesto" and creates the template for Duran Duran, Midge Ure-led Ultravox and the entire New Romantic movement. If you like synths and moodiness then you can appreciate how influential this was. If not, then you'll get bored with this VERY quickly.
Dit had wat Duran Duran achtige elementen, wat natuurlijk altijd goed is. Mooie stem, maar over het geheel iets te traag om echt indruk te maken.
Mwah, dit ging aan mij voorbij. Stem deed me in de verte wel denken aan de zanger van Tool.
80s synth. Not great, not terrible. For some reason the entire time listening to this one the lead singer kept reminding me of the Prom singer in the movie American Pie. No idea why that thought kept coming in my head, but it did. I went back and watched the prom in that movie and they're not even that similar, but my brain just can't shake the comparison.
Did Japan ever send a Cease & Desist letter to Duran Duran? Also, I’m not a fan of either, but I get why this was an influential (read: directly copied) record.
Didn't know this album. Some decent synth pop tunes, some of the slow tunes were a bit brutal. It's decent probably a 2.5 for me, I'll round up to 3 since this was 1979.
Bog standard new wave/new romantic gumpf. Someone had been listening to Roxy Music but the tunes juts aren't as good. Best Tracks: Quiet Life; Fall In Love With Me; In Vogue
4/28/2022 - ALBUM #92 https://open.spotify.com/album/0QOBJYviordwqHAgv5g9m3?si=8DymYbWOSainkUeMB8nYyA Today's Album: "Quiet Life" by Japan - This album just kind of sucks in all honesty. Now, I usually don't just write off a record like that, but this really just feels like a record that does not need to exist. The sound this band is attempting was done better by it's contemporaries like Duran Duran for instance. The title track and opener Quiet Life honestly isn't a terrible song and as far as I can tell, it's really the hit that makes this band even qualify as a one-hit-wonder. Any of the songs that are somewhat likeable on this record are typically just shy of hitting the highlights threshold of 7.5 and that usually just spells doom for a record. Tracks like Dispair, In Vogue, and Halloween have some good instrumentals backing the track, but the vocals just really are not very good. There is a definite line in this kind of music where if someone goes too overboard with singing off key, it just sounds bad. It is an art that few punk acts and even fewer other acts can get right and this album just doesn't. The track All Tomorrow's Parties is a cover of a Velvet Underground track from more than 10 years earlier and comparing them back to back just shows the lack of talent in the vocalist and even in the band to an extent. I may be biased by my current dislike of 80's style vocals, but this really is just so unbearable. The only highlight to me on this track list is the closer and to me, it's really just carried by a pretty great jam session from the band. The vocalist is barely scraping by good enough of a performance and there's enough of an intriguing vibe to warrant a listen, but that really is the extent of how good I think this group can get at it's peak. Overall, this is an act that I can only see significance in if it is the first to do it's style (which is might be) because it has just been done so much better and in such a more listenable manor than this. Maybe it isn't my thing, maybe it actually is bad. Either way, give this one a listen if and only if you are a die hard for 80s music and can tune out some honestly unlistenable vocals. Highlights: The Other Side of Life Score: 5.5/10 Inoffensive instrumentals but a damn terrible vocalist
I liked this album. Very Duran Duran but mellower. Nothing that hits hard enough to put on a playlist. Made me want to listen to Oingo Boingo and wonder why these are on the list and not Oingo
3.7 - A cool record that evokes a dark, futuristic atmosphere, like driving through a sleeping metropolis in the middle of night. Standouts: “The Other Side of Life”, “All Tomorrow’s Parties.”
I'd never heard (of) this before but holy hell - i literally would have put a dollar on this being an early Duran Duran album (listen to "Halloween" especially). It's actually a pretty cool album, although I'm a little puzzled as to it being on this list. Maybe/probably because it was one of the first to adopt this sound - I suppose I just admitted as much calling them early Duran Duran. Strong 3 from/for me - I wonder if I'd have ranked this higher if I'd known it beforehand (i.e. nostalgia) and I'll probably listen again. 6/10 3 stars.
Synth pop lluny de la comercialitat. A l'igual que The The, van ser rara avis en el génere. No ho van ser però a la década dels '80, a la que van ajudar a posar imatge i so ja des d'aquest disc del '79, plenament identificat amb el moviment dels new romantics. No hi ha hits, i el so lisérgic, que barreja les sonoritat dels anys berlinesos de Bowie amb les aventures musicals de Roxy Music, és més d'escoltar de forma pausada i reflexiva que com a banda sonora per anar a la platja
This must be my 1979 week. "Quiet Life" is the 3rd album from the English band Japan and marked their transition from glam rock to more synth-pop. The band collaborated heavily with Giorgio Moroder and the album was produced by John Punter who produced Roxy Music. Both of those influences are heard pretty heavily throughout. Another heavy influence is David Bowie and his Low album. Speaking of influences, if you wouldn't had told me whom I listening to, I would have said early Duran Duran. Their lead singer David Sylvian is a dead-ringer for Simon Le Bon. Or maybe visa versa. The bass and drumming are also very similar. Who knew there was musical line from Roxy Music to Duran Duran with Japan being the connector. Well, maybe just to me. Which is good, since I do like Roxy Music and Duran Duran; one would conclude that I would like this album and I do for the most part. I do believe there is some filler here and I do think their Velvet Underground cover of "All Tomorrow's Parties" is just OK. Original though. There are some some really songs. The album starts with title track which has a dance beat and kind of dreamy-sounding keyboards. The influence of Giorgio Moroder and on Duran Duran are both heard, which is a song about them struggling for success as well as noticing all the scenery as they tour. "In Vogue" is mostly instrumental with only three verses, sung in French, for a 6:29 minute-long song. It has an interesting bass intro, a dance beat and a haunting keyboard melody. The influence of Roxy Music is prominent. "Halloween" starts the second side with a saxophone and has a eerie keyboard sound in the background. I don't think the song has anything to do with the holiday. Overall, a good listen. This band was much bigger in the UK than in the States. I really only listened to them within the last ten years. A band definitely worth checking out if you're a fan of the early to mid-1980's synth-pop scene.
I was expecting more of a spectacle with this album given the names and high reviews. It's possible the gentle and slow grooves on these tracks weren't syncing with me, and may just click with me better on future listens.
If you want to witness one of the biggest disparities between a band's earlier image and a later one, why not try contrasting Japan's early single Adolescent Sex, a late, disco-tinted and quite derivative glam stomper with a bit of a dodgy title and a video which has the band done up like a big bunch of jessies, and their later single Ghosts, a sombre, bleak and minimalist cut of New Romantic synthpop which still has them done up like a big bunch of jessies, but a markedly different breed of jessie? So yes, Japan were quite the bandwagon-jumpers, but ones which curiously missed the biggest bandwagon of their experience: punk. Instead, they were still pushing glam in 1978, and their tracks from this period didn't manage much success in Britain, so they decided to hear what Bowie had been doing in Berlin, and thus we have the Japan we all know and, er, actually, let's just stick with "know". Japan fulfilled the standard qualifier of New Romanticism: along with Adam Ant and Soft Cell, they denied being New Romantics. Was New Romanticism any good? Despite all its preeminence in documentaries about Thatcher's Britain, I don't see that much acclaim gathering around the New Romantic bands. This is due in part to the short shelf-life of outré fashions: wearing a grunge-era lumberjack shirt won't invite any comment, but styling yourself as a constructivist pierrot will have meant you have received continual howitser-blasts of "WANKER!" from schoolkids and builders since 1982. Also, robot mime accompanying New Romantic music is the most terrifying spectacle conceivable: falling off a skyscraper whilst on fire and having dozens of spiders crawl into every orifice is nowhere near as scream-inducing or bowel-emptying as two actors behind on the mortgage in white masks raising their forearms 45 degrees to the tune of Fade to Grey. The album is acceptable for what it is. It feels rather generic for the time, heavy bass and synth leads, with lyrics of alienation and glamour. Other bands made worse with the same ingredients, but other bands made better. David Sylvian, the central figure to Japan, has a very particular phrasing, which may irritate as much as beguile, but on their best songs I get what he's doing. The best songs, by the by, tend to be the slower, colder numbers (Despair, The Other Side of Life). But to explain when it doesn't gel properly, I ask the reader to consider their cover of the Velvet Underground's All Tomorrow's Parties. The original version has never enticed me, purely because of Nico's godawful voice. She sounds like a lorry reversing. David Sylvian, by default, has a much better voice. But he ridiculously tries a suave delivery which doesn't fit the song at all. When I listen to Japan, I want effeminate, dispossessed futurism, not David Sylvian acting like a cybernetic Bryan Ferry (who himself has tried and failed to perform a louche, seductive All Tomorrow's Parties). I think it's the consensus that Quiet Life isn't Japan's most feted album. Their fifth, 1981's Tin Drum, had David Sylvian include more elements of East Asian music, and this experimentalism has led some critics to vaunt Tin Drum as a standout of post-punk, synthpop and new wave. I don't really agree. Tin Drum is more interesting than Quiet Life, but Japan never rose above being a mildly interesting diversion. And with a name like Japan, you'd expect then to be a bit more seismic.
Like Roxy Music but without the hits or the talent (bit harsh). Very 80s Brit sound even though it came out at the end of the 70s. It's fine but nothing jumps up and bites you.
Des pièces vraiment très bonnes et des pièces vraiment pas terrible. Pas un album désagréable overall, mais je me demande pourquoi mention dans un tel palmares.
This was a very interesting album. Reminded me a bit of the Talking Heads.. if they were worst. I'd definitely like to revisit this in the future.
Pas vraiment d’interet. Je ne sais pas trop quoi penser de ca .. je n’ai pas de souvenir le lendemain sauf peut etre la 1ere toune qui annoncait quelque chose de bien, mais apres rien du tout. 2.75
The only memorable and interesting thing about this album and band, is their band name.
au lieu du café il ya du nescafé du lait en poudre au lieu du lait ect. au lieu de bowie il y a japan
This is pretty sleepy, boring music. Alien and A Foreign Place were highlights, but this is at best driving music
I thought it was alright, but nothing too special. I found the singing to be very monotonous, and not in an interesting way.
It was ok, it fell flat in too many places for me to consider it any better than that. 2*
Only listened to two or three tracks because I was pulled away but it didn't grab me to be honest.
As much as I love synthpop today, this early 80s synthpop is just not it for me. I think a lot of it has to do with the style of voice/singing that was popular at the time. It also all just feels very repetitive and like the songs don't have a lot of momentum. Not trying to knock it for someone else- it's just not for me.
Agh, just not very good. Pretty forgettable. Feel like their sound is quite close to The Police's but without being as iconic.
Gosh, I've listened to some Japan before but never this album. It's so whiny and I've had enough of this style. Maybe if I'd heard this first I would've liked it, but now I was just skipping songs when I couldn't stand them anymore.
I was quite enjoying it then he murdered and buried the body of all tomorrows parties and i was too annoyed to hear anything else than nico gasping for air. I think there is a lot of interesting proto-synth pop development here and its probably a very important record, so fair play to it but my longlasting impression im afraid is nico silently crying.
Muutama ihan toimiva biisi/hetki levyllä auttoi saattelee levyn loppuun, mut loppupuolen japaniskeida ei toiminu
Kuuntelin kolmessa osassa eri päivinä niin vaikea muodostaa mielipidettä kokonaisuudesta, mutta ihan vekkulista äänimaailmasta huolimatta tylsä levy.