Reviews (page 2 of 8)
Blegh. Was alright until that dreadful cover of All Tomorrows Parties.
While Quiet Life isn't terrible, I find very little to talk about here. It's a fairly average, inoffensive piece of Art Pop that didn't really resonate with me. The first track has some interesting moments, but I found the rest of it forgettable. Their rendition of All Tomorrow's Parties is pretty bad, though.
80s new wave but in the late 70s so a little ahead of its time. Enjoyed the title track and the velvet underground cover here, not bad
Some good tracks. Shades of Roxy music
This album is from the 70s?? What a pleasant surprise as I find myself generally dreading the seeming ocean of British music on this list. There's such a clear line of influence here that led to so much of the 80s classics we all know today. The way the eerie vocals lean into the synth accompanied by undeniably groovy baselines reminds me immediately of Duran Duran and their equals down the line. If nothing else, there's a clear, bold influence here that needs recognized, no doubt deserving a spot on this list. Highlight: Quiet Life Surprise Hit: Halloween Lowlight: The Other Side of Life
I've listened to this album a few times over the last couple years, coming to it via my introduction to David Sylvian's solo stuff (thanks to BBC6 and Fennesz). He is a very interesting fellow, but the bass player on here might be even more interesting! I will definitely be checking out more of Mick Karn's work. Overall this is a good album - a bit derivative of Roxy Music and Berlin era Bowie, but still very enjoyable. Bridges the gap between 70s art rock and 80s synth pop nicely.
Like Duran Duran, Duran Duran, but with a lot of fretless base, I didn’t really like their alvelvet underground cover too much but this was fine. I just didn’t really grab me.
The first 2 tracks and "Halloween" are absolute bangers, but why on Earth did they decide to cover The Velvet Underground like that? I'm gonna give this a high 3
A while back, I was reading Dai Griffiths’ book on Radiohead’s OK Computer, in which, the Author references Quiet Life as an influential album on Thom Yorke at the time. That, along with its tag as “art rock” got me Interested. I listened to the album only to be disappointed to find what sounded like Duran Duran’s dad. Going in today with that memory, I was some bit surprised as how it exceeded my memory. The album isn’t great, but it certainly is better than I recalled. Some songs drag on a bit, but generally it was very good listening
Meh
Surprised me. Actually kinda interesting musically at times. I just never got excited by this style of music.
Quiet Life is a bridge between eras—a sophisticated, highly influential bridge connecting 1970s glam and prog-rock roots to the pristine electronic future of the 1980s. While it didn't immediately dominate the charts upon release, its blueprint can be heard echoing through the entire New Romantic movement (Duran Duran famously took cues directly from this playbook). It is moody, stylish, impeccably played, and essential listening.
The bridge between Roxy Music and Duran Duran, Japan is a band I like personally even if I understand why they can be divisive. David Sylvain's voice and writing feels pretentious but it also works with the band's music due to this being where they shifted to more on synths. "Quiet Life", "Fall in Love with Me", and "Halloween" are my personal favorites. (4/5)
A bit too Gary Numanish for moi - Gary's just not my cuppa - but Quiet Life is still a competent new-wave, synth-pop record. The production begets a very full, very neat sound across the board, & yet what strikes me most of all are the lyrics, abstract yet balanced by something you could call intense & compelling: 'Thru the shrieking wails / Trans European overseas / Silently leaving Amsterdam / We looked a lot like you.' W/ this said, I simply don't get much pleasure out of it, which goes back to the Numan thing. It isn't cold or uninspired, & David Sylvian is neither a hack nor a ham. Simply put, there isn't a track I'm absolutely yearning to hear again, half having to do w/ the fact that they're too long & pretentious, half that they don't cohere.
It's fine, if a little boring to me. I'm far from a historian of the genre, but it seems like it was probably ahead of its time. With the benefit of decades, I'm not sure I'd choose to listen to it again over other albums, but its still cool to hear this transitionary sound.
This was a bit on the boring side.
Was alright
some is good (quiet life, alien); some is bad (despair, the other side of life). maybe a harsh 2, but it'd be an even more generous 3. sounds ahead of its time though. i appreciate the vu cover. better vocals than nico's.
Japan were always innovative in their musicianship, pointing towards later bands like Duran Duran. As with the fourth and fifth album with this band, I really like the production and the musical and instrumental qualities. The title track is probably the standout track here, but there are other good tracks. 'Despair' has a kind of dark, almost gothic atmosphere, and you can hear bassist Mick Karn's fantastic playing on tracks such as 'In Vogue' and 'Alien'.
Not bad, but pretty forgettable. 2/5
First track is great, plodded on a bit from then… velvet underground cover was a surprise…
Surprisingly more melancholic than I expected. Still dig it.
Quiet Life starts with a bang with a fantastic opening 4-5 song run. The bass-driven grooves and atmospheric tone sits really well with me and I love the fact that the tunes sound like a brilliant early example of 80s alternative. The album flows really nicely and despite sailing off slightly in the latter half, still felt like a great listen.
Weird start with this one. I somehow expected glam/hair metal with this album, but am getting Duran Duran if they were post-punk/goth. But then looking up Japan, find out they actually WERE glam prior to this album. I have no clue if I actually heard they were glam at some point, or if I just pulled that out of my ass, but whatever, haha. But yeah. Duran Duran if they were post-punk/goth is a good description. Maybe with a little Stewart Copeland Spyro soundtrack thrown in as well. Really digging the dark vibe of this album. It's goth without really being goth. And I think this has got to be up there as one of the most criminally underrated albums on the list. 2.86? Should honestly be at least 3.2. And I'm not even giving it a 5*. It's just such a good album and I struggle to figure out how such an inoffensively good album gets something that low.
I thought liking Depeche Mode would mean I'd also like Japan (the band), but that wasn't the case. This is a dull album, which I don't plan to even try listening to again. I think that's the type of music that makes people say the 80s sounded horribly.
Not really for me
Great album, really liked a lot of the songs on here. Surprised I haven’t heard this one before either, I think it’s either a light 4 or strong 3. Solid 80s feel but not fave of the genre or anything
Smooth 80's band that is otherwise unremarkable.
My first exposure to this band was while crawling around an african oil field back in the 80's. I was passing the time, waiting for the guard to walk the other way, sitting under a cardboard box listening to a mixtape with this on it. Good times. In all seriousness: Props to the bass player on this one, it is a consistent, strong foundation. Supposedly this album is quite early with the whole dark new wave thing. But that just makes it interesting from a scholarly perspective. By the end you could swear this was made in the late eighties but it's late seventies. Does not surpass those later takes on this sound though. Solid record.
It was alright but nothing particularly impressed me…
Aburrido...
Honestly I don’t think I’ll be coming back to this album very often but still I enjoyed my time with it.
sombre with some roxy and duran duran thrown in
i Liked very new wave but dragged on a bit
Not a fan of this one. Too quiet and didn’t draw me in lyrically or sonically.
80s new wave before the 80s. Pretty cool and can see it defo influenced Duran Duran / Depeche Mode etc. Bit meh in places but a fun listen
80s new wave but in the late 70s so a little ahead of its time. Enjoyed the title track and the velvet underground cover here, not bad
Surprised by this one, though the VU cover was a bit of a stumble IMO.
If you hadn't told me what this was and put it on, I'd have thought "wow, I haven't heard this Duran Duran album before, this is pretty damn good!" So, there you have it, a well recorded new wave album I've never heard of, from a band I've never heard of, recorded before the band everybody's heard of that one can't NOT hear the similarities to became known, and it's pretty damn good. This is what we're here for with this list.
I just like what he's wearing on the cover
Another British band I had never heard of! So many on this list. This one, I am pleased to learn about! This music would have been cutting edge in 1979. Nice mix of moody electronics and new wave beats. Vocals are smooth. Good mix of styles. Really fun album.
The best songs sounded like when The Cure are having fun, the worst songs just fade into the background. I can imagine it being hugely impactful when it came out though and can understand it's place on this list
I can’t believe this was even on here, I can’t imagine anyone thinking you have to listen to this.
Enjoyed the performances but the vocals were a lityle out of place at times
1. "Quiet Life" 2. "Despair" 3. "Halloween"
Listened to it a few times. Very similar to Duran Duran, but couldn't hook me quite as much.
Completely unknown band to me previously. Odd name for a European band. Fun and enjoyable. Will be checking out more of their catalog at some point.
Okay album
2.6 2x not bad just not my thing
In the 70s, young disaffected people picked up guitars, bass guitars, and drums and formed punk bands. They may not have been adept musically, but they communicated frustration, rage, and vigor. In the 80s, young disaffected people bought synthesizers, keytars, and drum machines, and created soulless, boring, and depressing music like this. I was a teenager in the 80s, and although I have some affection for the electronic pop of the era, this type of "I'm so sad and thoughtful" music makes me cringe.
✸ Wild choice for a band name, but okay. ✸ Look, I really like New Wave. This works for me!!! ✸ Stand out track: Fall in Love With Me with it's honky fun guitar and horn noises and spooky synth. ✸ Despair is french?!
Not bad for what it was, especially in 1979.
I have multiple projects going and this is the second time for this album. I believe the first time I was totally unfamiliar, in for it, happily surprised, gave it a 4. This time? God it’s good. It’s spooky and poppy in just the right mix. I’m still going 4, but this album is a grower and I do believe when it comes up again it could be a 5. I remember it now. It’s becoming an album I will return to after this project concludes, which it will… 4 Boolean: True
I liked it! Relatively chill (but not sleep-inducing) for background music on a Tuesday morning
boring
The synth sound is high pitched and I don't find it melodic enough to pull me into listening to an albums worth of songs. .
Start 80s new wave. Good.
Whiney, dated and boring. The triple Crown for the late 70s early 80s genre.
Okay synthpop. Didn't actually stand out to me, but maybe they influenced people later; I'm not sure about their history. Wasn't a big fan of their cover of all tomorrows parties
Kind of peaceful. Not too bad.
This album starts and ends really strong, but most of the middle settles into being pretty average. Even so, I completely understand why it's on this list. What's most impressive is how ahead of its time it sounds. If you told me this came out in the middle of the '80s, I wouldn't question it for a second. You can hear the blueprint for bands like Duran Duran, and there are even moments that remind me a little of Nine Inch Nails. It doesn't quite maintain its strongest moments throughout, but its influence is undeniable. Even when the songs aren't grabbing me, it's easy to appreciate how forward-thinking this album was.
Not their best, but still great.
I quite liked the opening track on this album, but it kind of fell off a cliff after that. Not sure if it's just an issue with Deezer, but some tracks were at like half the volume of others. Overall I kind of dig the band's sound but no songs really grabbed my attention or were memorable
weirdly intoxicating with a nice downtempo disco groove without being annoying. didn't think that this would be possible!
fine
If you'd have told me this was Duran Duran I'd have believed you. Typical early new wave. Enjoyable record.
I prefer the country
It's so 80s synth pop that I feel like I should be wearing netted gloves and have big hair.
There’s this very dark and ominous atmosphere about this album that I really enjoy. It can’t say it’s very unique from other albums on this list, but on it’s own I did like listening.
I went into Quiet Life expecting to hate it. I couldn't have been more wrong. What a cool, expertly crafted album. The song Quiet Life starts it off with a bang and really sets the tone. There is then the first subtle musical ?inversion on the album as it moves into Fall in Love with Me. This song and the following Despair are quite melancholy and pensive tracks that add to the overall atmosphere of the album. In Vogue is probably my favorite track, with amazing plucked bass and very subtle stringwork (an example of how to do this - many other albums on this list seem to think "I'll add strings and that will make it good" but end up just dumping an orchestra on a pile of shit - see the other 1001 album Hms Fable - Shack). Then comes the most clear ?inversion into the song Halloween. I don't have the music theory knowledge to accurately explain these ?inversion moments, but it feels like they flip the prior track and make it sound like a perfect musical compliment to the first. That's nowhere more apparent than this pair, imo. All Tomorrow's Parties sounds just like Another Green World era Brian Eno but which again ?inverts into Alien. And finally The Other Side of Life concludes with some more obvious string embellishments which act as a grand finale. All around a very well crafted piece of dark synth pop. 5/5
This is so sick I felt like I was in the future while listening
It's actually very good, but it also needs time to really get into it.
I was aware of Japan in new wave days, from browsing record stores, but never listened to any. Wikipedia: "one of the key early British synth-based pop/rock albums", or maybe "a very European form of detached, sexually-ambiguous and thoughtful art-pop"? What do I think when I'm listening: it's competently made, yes it's synth-based, could definitely be called art-pop, but the first few songs are not very interesting on first listen (sometimes ponderous). As the album goes on, more of the songs are more engaging musically, there is solid variety of mood and pace, and some interesting stylistic reaches, but I'm still not impressed with singing or lyrics. Reading a bit more, I can see that Sylvain had an interesting musical journey - I feel more positive about the present album while listening to the last three tracks. And on a re-listen, earlier songs (other than title track) seem more engaging. My summary is that it's Okay, 6/10.
This feels a little ahead of its time
I thought this was great. Loved the hybrid of 70s glam and 80s new-wave/synth elements, in 1979 no less, and the slightly dark/moody aesthetic. Underrated for sure.
Very Duran Duran.
Had never heard of them before. Definitely sounded like a blend of some other 80s bands.
Very deadpan 80’s pop.
Cheeky bit of new wave, can see how this influenced the next decade of music. Little bit eerie at times which I enjoyed but not sure I would revisit this album again
4/10 Started alright. Proto-Duran Duran, without the big hits. But track 3 killed the vibe and it never recovered.
Much better than anticipated. Falls in that 3.5 range.
This album didn't really interest me much but was okay. 3 stars or C.
This was fine to me. Nothing really stuck out but nothing really grated. Standout Track: Quiet Life Rating: 2.5
3/5
A great opener with the catchy synth heavy ‘quiet life’ sets the tone towards a very atmospheric and indie feeling album that I started wondering why I had never heard of them. That of course upon googling afterwards what year they released this album is because they were years before I thought the album sounded! Therefore pioneering their work and I hear the sound they produced in many 90s and 00s bands. Certainly right up my street and one I will listen to again. Very good 8.5/10 Best track- ‘quiet life’ Worst track ‘all Tomorrows parties’
Japan - Quiet Life If dog owners grow to become like their dogs, do bands grow to become like their names? Second rate glam failures evolve to become the blueprint for a whole new romantic musical generation. Criminal how so many others, but particularly looking at you Duran Duran, stole all the ideas and bought houses in the Caribbean with the proceeds. Mick Karn and Steve Jansen make a rhythm section like none before or since. Richard Barbieri's synths provides colour, not endless notes - as The Cure 'borrowed'. And David Sylvian learned to croon as though lost in thought in a dark, opium den somewhere in the south China seas. Amazing to think they became the pinups of teenage magazines whilst have a smash hit with a song like Ghosts. Best Track - tempting to go for the title track but The Other Side of Life shows where Sylvian was heading next. Worst Track - All Tomorrows Parties. 8/10
Enjoyable. I'm not sure it's a 4 star album but it's definitely full of catchy tunes so 3 stars it is.
The band name and the outfits are very performative and the music is subpar. I don't know why these songs need multiple versions. I liked that the bass played a central role, and the inclusion of saxophones and strings was refreshing. Quiet Life is decently catchy. These guys probably think they sound psychedelic and eerie like some of the talking heads' songs, but it mostly just comes off as lethargic and uninteresting. The bass playing and the funkiness it produces, as well as them sometimes almost sounding like the talking heads at points, has secured a whopping 2 stars for this album. I also kind of like All tomorrow's parties for its major harmony and "A Foreign Place" for its loose inspiration from Asian traditional music, but it's not enough to warrant a 3.
Glad to hear this one, which fell through the cracks for me, despite my interest in "new wave" music, ca. late 70s, early 80s, much of it (like this) from the UK. (I'd heard of them, but never - that I can recall -- heard their music.) I'd have to say that this one is a bit better than I'd hoped/expected. Not great, by any means, but I'd give it a high 3. I can definitely hear what sounds like (and is apparently frequently noted) a strong Roxy Music influence -- the singer, David Sylvain, sounding quite a bit like Bryan Ferry (Roxy Music's singer). And apparently this album was produced by the guy who produced Roxy Music. Not quite motivated to listen a 2nd time, but did notice some nice bass work, too, the 1st time through, and again glad I can now very belatedly add in this missing piece (for me) of the New Wave music puzzle.
EASY 1 I didn't like anything about this
This album was great 80s sound before the 80s.
A bit of a letdown. Definitely has moments but the whole drags a bit. Maybe a second listen will change my mind though
This kind of washed over me.. it wasn't terrible but nothing stuck out as good.
A bit to pop spacey for me.
Not great, kinda boring.
This sounds like generic British stuff, not a fan. It was definitely more interesting to see the release date. (It sounds much newer than that.) But still... meh.
Gar nichts meins Zu vie synthy zu viel 80s
Another sad 80s boy 2/5 but maybe I’m grumpy
This was actually pretty good… but fell apart a little bit for me later in the record.
not bad at all
Parts of this really cook. Other parts lag
Funky stuff happening here but ultimately forgettable
Escucha
Didn't gel with this as much as I was expecting. It was good but I think I'll need to do some re-listening to fully appreciate it. Perhaps it doesn't work as a summer album either. Always been a fan of Japan's individual songs. They're a great arty, late night band. 'Quiet life' I've heard many times, I prefer the single version to album version. Fall in love with me, alien and Halloween were highlights. Overall, it was interesting experience but I can't say I love it (yet). Meek 3 stars for now.
I don't think they're Japanese
A great discovery, with the highlights being the marvelous title track and an unforgettable Velvet Underground cover. Can't believe I'd never heard of this one.
Better than expected but nothing special
Pretty relaxing
I bet these guys can do some mean Duran Duran covers. Its okay, nothing spectacular, really. Another British Pop album for the heap I guess.
Fine? Only on here because of where the author is from. Definitely not essential
This was fantastic!! I can't believe I've never heard of them before. Definitely reminded me of new order and had all the poppy synths I enjoy. 9/10
Nope
This album is a fun example of what I like about new wave. It's got really good synths and interesting lyrics. I feel like this would be a perfect album for driving through a city at night.
Ei ihan auennut minulle.
Välillä ihan jees mutta ei nyt mun cup of Tea ⭐️⭐️
It ended up blending into background noise but it wasn't unpleasant. I should give it another chance.
Started great then tailed off. Enough to make it worth another listen.
Great album, shame they broke up before the genre really kicked in. You can hear their influence on bands like Duran Duran who basically ripped off the baseline.
Had all the ingredients but didn't bake well for me, might be a mistake to go 2* but it's a 5/10 for me and will try to revisit sometime
Disappointed in this one. I thought I'd enjoy it - I know one or two tracks by Japan, perhaps from a bit later in their career - but it just seemed dull and passive, nothing grabbed me.
The piano riff in Despair was the best part of this album for me. The rest kind of missed the mark. I suppose if I was in a sad emo mood - and wanted to be depressed this would be a great album. but I want to be happy so I was just bored.
It was okay? I guess? Idk there’s really nothing special about thing here. Bass player is good though.
It was alright like
Boring synthpop rock. Vocals are decent. I feel like I should hate this style of singing, but I don't. Being a weeb during the 70s is kinda crazy though. They didn't even have good anime back then.
Closest thing to an Asian album on this list is a white band named Japan.
*1979. *Along the lines of The Cure, Depeche Mode, etc. *Definitely dug the sound, although there's nothing memorable here. (The same song was on the Spotify album 3 times, and I didn't notice until the 3rd time...) *Would definitely listen to this again as background music. RATING - 7.5/10
This wasn’t good
The only quiet life I am after is not listening to this
3.5
Moody. I liked it well enough, but I don’t think it’s one I’ll revisit.
Love the title track but most of the rest is pretentious forgetful dross. HATE the farty bass tones, are they meant to be ironic?
It's not Japan's best, but it's soooo good. Something weird and magical happened in 1979 between the making of Obscure Alternatives and Quiet Life. Also, this has the best version of All Tomorrow's Parties in existence. Then again, I could sing it better than Nico! If you don't like this, listen again and pay attention to Mick Karn's bass playing and Steve Jansen's drumming. Liked Songs Added: In Vogue Halloween All Tomorrow's Parties Alien A Foreign Place Life In Tokyo
Not my music
Ugh could not get into this
I was skeptical at first but this grew on me. Not the best thing out there but I ended up being pleasantly surprised. Its some kind of synth heavy mix. Wheather thats rock or pop or some kinda wave. Im not too sure. The standout stuff for me is the bass. There are some damn near claypoolian links here. Maybe not as solidly flashy like primus but there are flashes of that tone at the very least. And the synths are pretty good too. Im less into the rest of the formula but its passable at least. The moodiness is nice ill give it that. But thats about what I got for Japan. Other than i was wondering if this is Asia just more specific. Anyway its good and better than I expected. Solid record.
Album #191 Japan: Quiet Life As an avid enjoyer of all things new wave and synthpop, I am familiar with Japan and David Sylvian and have checked out some of their later work, but somehow I had never listened to any of their first few albums. My impression of them after listening to an album like Tin Drum was that they were a very talented and influential band, but one that perhaps suffered from a lack of identity: they were trying to be pretentious and avant-garde in a genre which is inherently accessible. However, there was enough to their sound to convince me of their merit, so I was definitely expecting good things from this album, and I was not disappointed. Japan were one of the first bands to really embrace this sound of gloomy pop, as Quiet Life sounds like it could have come out in the mid 80s, similar to something by Duran Duran or Depeche Mode; however, this release actually came out amidst the embers of the punk movement and the blossoming of post-punk. The electronic sound and synths on display would only become more prevalent in the coming decade, so Japan were certainly forward-thinking as far as bands outside of Germany go. That does seem to be Sylvian’s style, always looking for ways to expand the conventions of music; whether or not it becomes transcendent or boring is the problem. Quiet Life seems like the perfect mix between a more accessible style that Japan started with, and the more experimental sound that they would discover. I think as far as new wave inclusions on this list, this one is definitely valid, albeit not a personal favourite. Always love a Velvet Underground cover too. Best Songs: Quiet Life, All Tomorrow’s Parties, In Vogue Worst Song: Despair Score out of 10: 7.5
Another heavily synthed new wave album, this one had a couple pretty good tracks but not really my style.
Duran Duran had to be influenced by this band. They sound so much alike. Three stars.
Weird synth music
i liked the majority of the songs! i didnt pay a lot of attention to it tbf but i did enjoy the music
I groaned when I read about this and played the first track but I actually Enjoyed some of the music itself (excluding the singing). Did I need it in my life before I die? Maybe not, but has some intriguing sounds on it
Pretty cool and interesting and I’d probably listen again
I like this album a lot, but it's not really a casual listen. "Quiet Life" is the most likely song to be remembered, but the rendition of "All Tomorrows Parties" is also fantastic. The album is of its era and the sounds show that. Still the music is original and manages to innovate despite using some familiar hooks. I'm struggling to give it a five though, so four it is.
"Quiet Life" is definitely a transitional album for pop music of the 70s and 80s. It goes from Glam to New Wave, Bowie to Duran Duran.
Very early New Romantic stuff here, Duran Duran definitely took a leaf here
Fine. I think i liked it. Was a few days ago and nothing stood out but had good ambience
Rating: 3/5 Playlist track: Quiet Life and The Other Side of Life Date listened: 20/06/26 Listen when: 80s themed drive with Dad Use of instruments makes this, the sax in Despair and strings in The Other Side of Life. Just not a genre that attracts me in general but did genuinely enjoy songs. Nothing that really excited me though.
3.5 New Wave
Very good. The sound was well-polished for its time. 4 stars.
I think I have heard of this band don't think I have listened to much of their stuff. Sound a little the Police-ish. Cool stuff.
Japan's roots can easily traced back to Roxy Music's cool demeanor, Kraftwerk's synthetic textures and Bowie's experimental edge, but in spite of such obvious influences, they still managed to craft a unique and sophisticated sound which first reached full flower on their third studio album *Quiet Life*. While never a true part of the New Romantic scene, Japan's shadow looms large over it - you can hear echoes of David Sylvian's croon and Richard Barbieri's inventive keyboard work in bands that followed in the early 80s. The uptempo tracks on this record have the most snap, with Mick Karn's fretless bass lines snaking their way through Steve Jansen's drumming. The slower numbers have character and personality also, but at times they go on a bit too long, though. Still, this is an accomplished record that began a terrific three-album streak for the band.
This record grew on me a bit, Japan not being the progenitors of synth pop-rock but still a bit ahead of the curve in 1980. Where the songs sweep dramatically I find them to be the most interesting, but some cuts lack a foothold of emotion. Anyone working with Giorgio Morodor has some taste, of course. The bonus remixes on the deluxe edition are cool, but the Live at Budokan stuff is only for die-hards...quality recording was lacking.
Voorloper electronica
the glam-rock/synth-pop blend is very easy to spot. i can say the mixture was well done even though i only enjoyed listening to Fall In Love With Me. I would have liked Other Side Of Life much more if it had a pink floyd-like guitar solo at the end. the other songs were not as catchy nor funky but 1 star would be unfair and hypocritical to the potential Other Side Of Life has and to how much i enjoyed Fall In Love With Me.
New Wave before the New Wave mainstream. I appreciate it. I'm fighting some sort of sinus or tonsil infection and feeling like crap, and thus a little impatient and having a bit of listening fatigue less than halfway through. Not the best mood to be in for an album review. At least three stars though
I like the fretless bass on some the songs, but that’s about it.
Cool atmospheric sound, but not so much catchy.
This was really boring. The songs were really long. I didn’t enjoy this.
3.5 suenan muy 80 e inspiradores pero falta el fine tunning
yay. synth pop. woo. hoo.
Another laboured album of different songs that might as well be one long moan.
Good off to a good start then drifted.
A bit sparser than your typical new wave record, but it gives it its own unique charm, I suppose. 4.5 bumped down to 4.
Surprisingly enough, I’m at a 4.5 that I’ll bump up to a 5. It took a little longer for me to understand this is more of an atmospheric new wave album; one driven less by pulsing beats & higher energy ala Duran Duran or Eurythmics, and one driven more by lingering instrumentals with sparse progression to just simmer in each of the tracks a bit more. Once these tracks have said what they need to say lyrically, they just shut up & let the music tell the rest of the story. There’s only one track that bothered me here, since I never really understood what it was trying to say lyrically, & that’s “Fall in Love with Me”. Great instrumental (& one that REALLY clicks on another listen), don’t get me wrong, but all the geographic shifting & the barely connected lyrics made it the least effective track on the album on a first pass. With “Quiet Life” being a totally fine but incredibly simple starting track, the first quarter of the album had me really iffy about the direction this album would be taking. “Despair” is the track that started to make it click. It’s got no vocals aside from a brief French portion, and the rest is entirely in the vibe. The instrumental doesn’t really seem to progress at all. By all normal metrics, it’s a stagnant track that survives off of its atmosphere, and while that wouldn’t normally work for me, the thing that makes it work is in the microprogression hidden within: the backing vocals, the piano work, the drums & the strings are all working in a subtle harmony that keeps shifting the track & creating that sense of despair. It’s not a STRONG microprogression, but it’s enough to keep the track sonically interesting. “In Vogue” is the track that made it fully click, and set the stage for the remainder of the album to glide in a much more fruitful way for me. It’s just a breakup track, centered around a little too much confidence in false stability, but the lyricism, vocals & instrumentation finally meet each other in a fruitful way. You can feel a sort of “not again” vibe in all of it, with his filtered vocals, the wiggly synth work, & the warnings throughout. Once it’s said all it has to say, it just lets the instrumental ride out the track, and it creates a perfect vibe to just imagine. The rest of the album follows this formula really nicely, especially so on the cover of the Velvet Underground’s “All Tomorrow’s Parties”, & on the last track, with a sort of Ace Attorney courtroom vibe underlining the orchestral springs throughout the outro. Hence, a 4.5 that I’ll bump up to a 5. One lesser track aside & a bit of a slower understanding to start, once it all clicked, it just really worked for me. I do think it could go down someday, if the atmosphere on some of these tracks doesn’t sustain the same air to it as it did on a first pass, but even now, relistening to some of them as I’ve been typing this, I find myself more pulled in than I was before by some aspects of the production. “Quiet Life” as an opening track feels a lot less simple now, at the very least. I do know this style isn’t going to be everyone’s cup of tea, but for my tastes, there’s just something appealing about an album that uses its “padding” so effectively in terms of enhancing the overall package. I’m glad it’s on the list.
eh, alright, sounds like tears for fears a little vocally. some repetitive noise in a way that gets on my nerves
No, Mr. Dimery, I really don’t need to hear every single generic British new wave album before I die. Minus one for all tracks being two minutes too long.
One of those albums where I can totally see why it's great but it's just bit really my thing
feels like i'm being transported. :) it's really nice. easy listening. glittery. gender neural, ambiguous, flowy, expressive vocals. smooth art pop. favorite songs: quiet life, alien (such a cool, distinct bass sound & groove)
Liked the higher tempo stuff, did not like some of the slower more experimental tracks as much, with the exception of “All Tommorow’s Parties”. That track was cool, and a bit more psychedelic in nature. “Despair” was the low point of the record for me. “Halloween” was the highlight. Feeling a 3/5 on this one.
7/10… new wave / synthpop / *1979
Интересный альбом, немного плоский звук его не портит.
Really sounds like early Duran Duran. Correction. A better version of Duran Duran. Not familiar with Japan but this is a good album! Four stars.
I went into this one having no idea what to expect, and left enjoying the heck out of the album. It's got a different feel to it than a lot of other new wave albums or bands. I could see the influence on the bands of my childhood.
1.2/5 I've never really enjoyed 80s music like this and this was pretty average to my ears
I let out an initial groan when I heard that archetypical 80's pop vibe until I realised this is a 70's record and thus impressively inventive in context. Especially given this is a pretty downbeat take on it. This lead me to go down a mental rabbit hole about influential bands which ended up with my thinking about The Velvet Underground immediately before the cover of All Tomorrow's Parties on this record - which I didn't know was there - started playing. Which was weird. Anyway, inventive or not, unfortunately for Japan that archetypical 80's pop vibe has not aged well.
I though I was not going to like this new wave pop album. I was right. 3/10
Neat album, nothing really much to remark about it. Favorite Track: Quiet Life
Enjoyable, but I won't put it in my regular rotation. The best track was a Velvet Underground cover.
Strong 8 to a light 9. Absolutely do not get how under the radar this album is. Great discovery for me.
Pleasantly surprised. I don't think any individual track particularly stands out as massively strong other than the titular opener, but the whole album carries a pervasive moody vibe. It's Duran Duran but darker (and earlier). You'll know pretty quickly if you like it or loathe it. I'm distinctly in the former camp.
Note to self: never make a band named to something that is really hard to search for online. The album is off to a good start with 'Quiet Life', which has a really cool synth arp. Overall I found the album good sounding with some interesting tunes of varying energy. Very 80s synth pop sounding, but in a good way! I liked the overall tone of the album, but it lacked some hit songs to get a higher rating. Strong 3 for now!
Hard to get excited with this one. Terrible band name and it sounded like Duran Duran without any hooks. Strong 2.
This one was kind of cool. It feels like the kind of album I'll like more the more I listen. Will have to give it a few more tries and see if that's true.
I enjoy new wave so I thought this was nice Playlist add: "All Tomorrow's Parties"
Unremarkable, but decent ambient/background tracks. That doesn’t lend itself to be an essential album though. 2.5/5 rounding down
Pretty cool proto-Depeche Mode. Didn’t need the VU cover though.
От этой обложке я ожидала чего угодно, но не хорошей музыки
Me gusta ese estilo de música, pero, tampoco hay tantas canciones épicas para destacar.
Menetteli. 2,5/5.
Knowing this was released in 1979 impresses me because it sounds like something from 5 years after that. Otherwise, I'm not really feeling it.
I haven’t heard this one before. I have heard a number of songs by Japan and get them confused with Duran Duran since the singer sounds a lot like Simon Le Bon and the music, while very different, is stylistically similar. This is some fun early synth pop and I like their take on the Velvet Underground cover. According to the wiki article the band had a different track listing in mind that the label shot down, I tried listening to it that way and it’s a slight improvement. Solid 80s fun.
Yh enak sih
You can definitely see where the sound they would expand on started here, but it's not quite great yet Fav tracks: In Vogue, Halloween, Quiet Life
This was a great listen - overall pretty mellow but with driving rhythms, very enjoyable
Interesting to hear that sounds like mid-80s New Wave a few years earlier. As with many styles, the originators aren’t always the most well known. This was competent, but without the nostalgia factor I give it 3⭐️.
Mix of electronic sounds with guitar. Arrangements repetitive.
Well put together early electro rock, but the songs are mostly pretty drab. Singing is a bit whiny too. Otherwise not bad, and I'm sure influential at the time
It's cool to hear the shift from the distinctly 70s as it blends into the distinctly 80s. It was just a bit slow for my taste
Something evocative about this
Could be a grower
Modern romantic 80’s rubbish
My first Japan record I ever bought. Absolutely beautiful. That cover of all tomorrows parties is just gorgeous!
Some good parts, but ultimately the songs are too long. Didn’t hate it, but just ended up feeling bored by it.
Not bad but not something I would listen to again. I like the atmosphere but the all tommorows parties cover isnt very good 6/10 Favourite: Quiet Life Least Favourite: All Tommorows Parties
A bit too Bowie sound-alike for my taste. Good tracks and production overall, but I prefer their later records
I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised by this. I had low expectations, but I think I am giving it a 4. Go new wave! Boolean: yeah, glad I heard before I die.
Despair has the most beautiful tenor sax tone I've ever heard in a song. That alone makes it 5 stars. They couldn't have just stopped at having a sax player, they had to go above and beyond and have Mick Karn creaming all over the studio for two minutes straight. The best part is how much saxophone-ing there is on this album. Every band needs a dedicated sax player. Enough about the sax player, there's also a damn orchestra on two of these songs. There's also also a surprisingly good cover of Lou Reed's All Tomorrow's Parties, despite how much I dislike the album it's from. I like the really minimal feel of the album, mostly because they really enjoy pulling everything away to let the sax player continue his creaming. It goes without saying that this album gets all the saxophone bonus points.
Trying to be David Bowie and lowk not really working
Quiet life and life in Tokyo were pretty good, but everything else was not good.
Quiet Life ist das dritte Studioalbum der englischen Band Japan und markiert einen entscheidenden Stilwandel in deren Karriere. Aufgenommen in den AIR Studios und den DJM Studios in London unter der Regie von John Punter und Simon Napier-Bell, verlässt die Band auf diesem Album weitgehend den Glam-Rock ihrer Anfangsjahre und wendet sich einem kühlen, synthetisch grundierten Sound zu, der Hansa Records zwar noch als Heimatlabel hatte, aber bereits auf die Ästhetik der folgenden Virgin-Phase vorausweist. Die Produktion ist dicht und sorgfältig geschichtet, ohne je in Überladenheit zu kippen. David Sylvians Stimme, nun deutlich tiefer und kontrollierter als noch auf den Vorgängeralben, trägt maßgeblich zur hypnotischen Wirkung des Werks bei. Der Titeltrack „Quiet Life" destilliert den Albumgeist auf knappstem Raum – verhalten, melancholisch, mit einem Groove, der sich nie ganz auflöst. Die Coverversionen von „I Second That Emotion" (Smokey Robinson) und Lou Reeds „All Tomorrow's Parties" sind keine bloßen Referenzübungen, sondern eigenständige Neuinterpretationen, die Japan vollständig für sich beansprucht. Mick Karns Fretless-Bass verleiht dem Gesamtklang eine organische Unruhe, die das Album vor Kälte bewahrt. Quiet Life war zunächst kein kommerzieller Erfolg – erst mit dem Wiederaufgreifen des Titelstücks als Single Ende 1981 und im Windschatten von Tin Drum erreichte das Album Gold-Status in Großbritannien. Die Nachwirkung auf die britische Synthpop-Szene der frühen Achtziger ist kaum zu überschätzen; Bands wie Depeche Mode oder Talk Talk schöpften aus demselben Reservoir, das Japan hier erstmals in dieser Reinheit zapfte. Quiet Life ist eines jener seltenen Übergangsalben, das rückblickend vollständiger wirkt als in dem Moment, in dem es erschien.
Not for me
Very easy to see that Duran, Duran stole a lot of ideas from these guys! If you didn’t know any better you’d think it was them. Not a bad album
Synth-y atmosphere mixed with some old school British rock that almost demands a fog machine and neon lights. When the instruments come together it has such a strong presence that is helped by the somber vocal style. There are long stretches between these in the songs where I can see the oomph is lost but I think they made an album that all works with itself.
This one sounds fresh! Never heard to this bend before, so I supposed it should be somehow simialar to Aplhaville (maybe becasue of the Japan name don't know ahah). Still, I liked it and now want to listed to Gentlemen Take Polaroids, as I've heard about this album before
It was ahh
I like this. It's like a bridge between Roxy Music and Duran Duran.
Album #90: Quiet Life - Japan Genre (W): Synth-pop, art pop, pop rock, new wave, post-punk Singles: Quiet Life I have not listened to this album before. Thoughts?: The production is great but overall I found the lyrics and tone boring. I wonder if other albums by Japan would enthrall me more than this one did. Favorite songs: Quiet Life, Fell in Love with Me, In Vogue, All Tomorrow’s Parties, The Other Side of Life
Not my jam in particular, but it seems like every 80s hair band stole at least some element of their sound from Japan.
This was a surprise. I enjoyed it way more than expected
Смитс с синтезаторами и саксофоном. Вообще говоря, неплохой такой нью-вейв, довольно атмосферный, с классическим восьмидесятошным звучанием, интересными синтезаторными партиями и даже необычными гитарными звуками (не только аккорды с хорусом). Короче, норм
Where have you been all my life, David Sylvian? Seriously, I can't believe I've been listening to Duran Duran for decades without being aware of this very obvious precursor to one of my favorite bands' early work. Slyvian's smooth vocals prefigure Simon Le Bon's (albeit with a little less range), while his lyrics cover much of the same ground also - the jetset life, adventurous and simultaneously rootless, full of beauty made all the more precious by its fleetingness. I don't know how much the name of his band played into Sylvian's compositional instincts but I feel like I hear something like the idea of Japan, the place - sleek, futuristic, mysterious in a vaguely Orientalist way. Edward Said would've had a field day with the synth-driven cover of the Velvets' "All Tomorrow's Parties."
Average, but not bad. I can see how a new wave album released in 1979 is extremely influential.
I first came to Japan via David Sylvian's chilling vocals on Ryuichi Sakamoto's theme song for Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence. Stunned, I sought more. Quiet Life is more New Romantic rock/post-punky than I would have thought, but I'm here for it. The electronic rhythms drive the songs nicely. It's moody, yet danceable music, which is becoming a new favorite musical quality for me. Sylvian's voice continues to mesmerize. Not to mention there's a cover of "All Tomorrow's Parties". For all the things I enjoyed about Quiet Life, I kept waiting for the song that would truly put Japan over for me, but it never came. A truly great effort. So close to a 4! If you're a fan of Roxy Music or Duran Duran, you'll love this.
My new struggle with this journey is the 'why'? Why must I hear this album before I die? Because it's a great album? Because it influenced another, more successful act? Because if I want to be a music snob, I have to have the knowledge of Japan? This album is fine. I could tell you it existed and play you a song or 2 that sound like Duran Duran. That's all I get out of today's expierence.
No gusto
i'm glad to see that white people making their artist names randomly themed after japan isn't just something that popped up around the 2010s. it's fitting here because with the lead singer's voice i expected him to start wailing out a vkei song any second fave track: halloween
I had never heard of these guys before they popped up in the generator, and to be honest I was a little unsure of them. I usually like synth-pop, but for some reason I just wasn't sure this was gonna be for me. But I was worried for nothing, this album is sick. There's a really moody atmosphere through most of this whole thing, but it also has a lot of more fun and chill songs too. It's a fairly solid record overall, I really didn't need to be worried. Favorites: Fall in Love with Me, Despair, The Other Side of Life
Duran Duran took this and made it eleventy times better
Aujourd’hui, on s’arrête sur un disque qui marque une frontière invisible entre deux mondes. On parle de Quiet Life de Japan, sorti en 1979, un album qui figure en bonne place dans l'ouvrage "1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die". Pour bien comprendre cet album, il faut se replacer dans le contexte de cette fin d'année 1979. Le punk est en train de s'étouffer dans ses propres crachats et la musique cherche désespérément une nouvelle élégance, une sorte de raffinement glacial pour affronter la décennie qui s'annonce. C'est exactement là que Japan opère sa mue la plus spectaculaire car avant cela, ils jouaient les rockers androgynes un peu brouillons, mais avec cet opus, tout change radicalement. Je lui donne une note de 4 sur 5 car ce n’est pas encore la perfection absolue de l'album suivant, mais il reste un disque essentiel. C'est l'instant précis où le groupe décide de troquer le cuir pour la soie, et la sueur pour une froideur sophistiquée. C'est un album qui sent bon le glam rock noble, celui qui va de la période berlinoise de David Bowie à la sophistication hautaine de Roxy Music. On est dans le chic absolu, le genre de musique qui se déguste avec une distance polie mais fascinée. L'un des points les plus frappants de ce disque est sans aucun doute l'évolution vocale de David Sylvian. Il abandonne ses tics de chanteur de rock classique pour adopter un timbre de crooner baryton, profond et hanté. On sent l'ombre de Bryan Ferry planer sur chaque syllabe, mais avec une touche de modernité européenne qui n'appartient qu'à lui. Il ne chante plus pour la foule, il chante pour lui-même dans une pièce vide et immense. Et puis, il y a la basse de Mick Karn et il faut en parler car c'est le cœur battant, ou plutôt le serpent qui ondule sous la surface de ce disque. Son jeu sur basse fretless est unique au monde : liquide, imprévisible, presque caoutchouteux. Il transforme chaque morceau en une expérience sensorielle, ce n'est plus une section rythmique, c'est de la sculpture sonore. C’est cette basse qui donne à l'album sa profondeur et son mystère. Sur le plan de la production, le travail de John Punter est phénoménal. Il a su capter cette atmosphère de club de nuit désert, où les synthétiseurs de Richard Barbieri commencent à prendre une place prépondérante. On n'est plus dans le futurisme naïf, mais dans une électronique texturée, organique et on comprend immédiatement en écoutant le morceau titre où des groupes comme Duran Duran ont trouvé toute leur influence. Japan a inventé le son des années 80 avant tout le monde. L'album ose même s'attaquer à un monument sacré : "All Tomorrow's Parties" du Velvet Underground. Reprendre Lou Reed et Nico en version synth-pop en 1979 était un pari risqué, voire arrogant. Pourtant, Japan en livre une version robotique, glacée, qui colle parfaitement à l'esthétique globale de l'album. C'est une réappropriation totale qui prouve que le groupe avait déjà une vision artistique très claire et sans concession. Pourquoi 4 sur 5 et pas 5 ? Simplement parce qu'on sent encore par moments que le groupe est en pleine transition et certaines influences sont encore très visibles. Mais c’est aussi ce qui fait le charme de l'objet : voir une chrysalide se transformer en papillon de nuit sous nos yeux. C’est un disque court, dense, sans aucune fioriture inutile, où chaque arrangement semble avoir été pesé au milligramme près. Visuellement, la pochette, avec le visage de Sylvian parfaitement sculpté par la lumière, annonce la couleur : ici, l'apparence est aussi importante que le contenu. C'est l'acte de naissance des "Nouveaux Romantiques", même si Japan refusera toujours cette étiquette trop réductrice pour leur talent. Ce disque est un bloc de glace qui fond lentement sous des néons bleus, c'est l'élégance du désespoir, le spleen de la fin des seventies traduit en fréquences électroniques. Si vous voulez comprendre comment la pop est devenue intelligente et "arty" à la veille de l'ère MTV, c'est par ici que ça se passe. C'est un indispensable, un point c'est tout. En résumé, cet album est le chaînon manquant. Il relie le rock décadent des années 70 à la synth-pop chirurgicale qui allait dominer les ondes quelques années plus tard. Japan n'était pas juste un groupe de plus, c'était un laboratoire esthétique et "Quiet Life" reste leur manifeste le plus accessible et le plus immédiatement séduisant. On ne peut pas passer à côté de l'importance historique de cette œuvre. Dans le grand bordel de la fin du punk, Japan a apporté une réponse qui n'était pas la colère, mais la beauté. Une beauté froide, un peu snob certes, mais d'une efficacité redoutable. C'est un disque qui ne vieillit pas, car la classe, la vraie, est intemporelle. C'est un disque qui demande de l'attention, qui ne se laisse pas apprivoiser à la première écoute distraite. Il faut se laisser couler dans les arrangements, suivre les lignes de basse tortueuses et se laisser bercer par la voix d'outre-tombe de Sylvian. Pour conclure sur cette chronique, je dirais que 1979 était l'année idéale pour ce disque. Une année de bascule, une année de doute où Japan a eu le courage de proposer une musique qui regardait vers l'avant tout en gardant un pied dans le glamour. C'est brillant, c'est courageux, et c'est surtout foutrement bon. Si vous avez ce disque dans votre collection, gardez-le précieusement. Si vous ne l'avez pas, votre culture musicale a un trou béant qu'il convient de combler d'urgence. On ne meurt pas sans avoir écouté "Quiet Life" au moins une fois dans le noir total. C'est la règle.
Not sure what I was expecting but this was way better than I thought it was gonna. 80s AF and I’m here for it. Eat your heart out Duran Duran.
I can hear the influence this had on some banmds from the late 90s, 00's and 10's but it's not my vibe.
OK
Jesus Christ, this went off a cliff didn't it? Why is there so much bass on the vocals? We also have the English guy speaking French AND calling his band Japan? Pick a slightly above average IQ white guy quirk buddy jeez. Pick a "guy who calls himself a creative" lane here, pal. Nyahh I wanted to hate all of this. It's not that bad. I mean for every "Quiet Life" and "All Tomorrow's Parties" there is a "Despair" which crash lands our spacecraft onto planet boredom. Aliens is rad though. I don't know. This was alright. What do you want from me? Do you want me to tell that I've been to Japan once? I have! It was cool. Of course as a white fellow who enjoyed Japan (the place, again, band is meh) I am frequently told "errrm they have lots of problems you know" as if this "news" will render my world to dust under the weight of their transcendent geopolitical knowledge. Frankly, they're pretty comparable to the problems in Canada, and at least you don't have to listen to an opioid user's iPhone 3 at full blast on the public transit system. I don't know. I had a good time. The ability to understand that more than one thing can be true can officially be declared dead. Thanks social media. Nuance: ∞-2007 2.5 HIGHLIGHTS: Bullet Train in the Japanese sense, not so much the American sense (gun attack at train station)
The funny thing to me about this one is that this sounds a lot like several other groups that would follow in Japan's wake (Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Duran Duran, a touch of really early Depeche Mode), and yet they were doing all of this before the decade turned over. Impressive in that regard, but not exactly the most intriguing synthpop I've ever listened to. I always preferred Sylvian once he made the jump to sophisti-pop.
Overall Rating - 3.06/5 (6.11/10). This has all of the hallmarks of late 70s/early 80s British New Wave. It's fun, but nothing necessarily great.
Ok
I disliked this band the first time I heard them . . when they were called Duran Duran.
This kind of blew my mind. I didn't realize that Duran Duran followed a VERY specific blueprint to the point of completely copying this band. It makes me like them less. This is definitely ahead of schedule in 1979.
3/5 - Now I know where Duran Duran came from.
Kinda new wave space mode
Really cool, haunting, dreamy vibe. It's like The Smiths crossed with David Bowie. Had never heard of this record before and I'm surprised it's late 70s because it sounds like late 80s. This was a surprise of a record but I really enjoyed all of it. Think I'll listen to this one again.
I agree with everyone in these comments saying this was a little too derivative sounding of other 80s bands, but the thing is… it literally isn’t! It’s from 1979! One of the hardest parts of this challenge is trying to put an album in its own authentic context. This sounds like a copy because we’ve heard the music that it inspired (and yes, in some cases, did this style better) but these guys did it first. That has to bump this up a few levels. Some really great, weird, and totally surprising moments here. Also, this band had GREAT hair. Wish people still looked like that
Great late 1970s New Wave/Art Pop from a talented band that very much has their own sound (at times eerie) with a singer (David Sylvian) that sounds a bit like Bryan Ferry of Roxy Music. An absolute must hear for New Wave fans and really just fans of good music.
5/10 Best songs: Quiet Life Kind of new wave meets electronica meets goth. Gives Depeche Mode vibes at various points. Each song is its own individual package, not flowing particularly well into the next, which makes this a fairly unsuccessful album in my book. Also, these songs are waaay too long. But it is listenable and I like what the album is trying to achieve (although it's never quite successful), so it gets credit for that.
boring af
Very 80s. It was okay I guess.
It was like discovering Duran Duran B-sides
I have similar feelings to Japan as to Duran Duran. Both are standard 3-star artists that act as cornerstones of a fairly mediocre genre. New wave is not something to get excited about. What Japan does right is adding some wacky and unexpected musical ideas to completely flip the new wave script. The first instance of something genuinely impressive, in this regard, appears in Fall In Love With Me. Great guitar line and subtly aggressive horn notes in the background. Quiet Life didn't exactly give me hope, having perhaps the most archetypal new wave atmosphere of all time, but this second track... Well, I can get behind it. The song Despair doesn't necessarily wow me, but it surprises me. A cold, almost sterile piano ballad-instrumental was not on my bingo card for this genre of music. Halloween is rock-solid, particularly after the weak In Vogue. And the cover of the Velvet Underground's All Tomorrow's Parties stands out immensely. A great up-tempo version of the original, featuring an entertaining deadpan delivery (even more deadpan than Nico's). It has no right to be as good as it is. Certainly, Japan at this point in the record sounds like a completely different band than the mediocre-to-passable antics of the lead single, Quiet Life. And the quality keeps going up: Alien injects still more grandiosity into the tracklist, featuring a few sections with contrasting energy to make those huge moments hit even harder. And that final track (on the main record), Other Side Of Life... you can't get much more cinematic than soaring strings and a relative lack of horrific 80s production. Another reviewer wrote it pretty well: "At times, completely forgettable early synth pop. At other times, really compelling well crafted music." Maybe a little harsh, but a high 3 stars is what this deserves. 3/5 Key tracks: Halloween, All Tomorrow's Parties, Alien
Despite these guys beating Depeche Mode to it by a few years, they still manage to sound like a bootleg version of Depeche. Just goes to show that being first don't make you the best. Despite that, still a decent, dark-ish new wave album.
How much New Wave do I HAVE to listen to before I die?
It was alright
I’m glad to see others making the Duran Duran comparisons so I don’t have to. Not a bad album, but mostly forgettable.
Duran Duran did it better
Not glam rock and not full on 80's synth pop that I found myself strangely drawn, almost hypnotically, into this album. May have caught me on a good day but hey, I've listened to 932 of these things and with the finish line in sight, I could be hallucinating. If so, it's not the worst trip I've ever taken.
Too experimental? Too weird? Too Boring? Too much? Best Song: Quiet Life Rating: 4.0/10 Stars: 2
Didn't love it but I can see how influential it was.
Feel like vibe coding. You don’t do much and don’t even know what’s going on. If you look at the quality it’s just barely passable.
listened to it yesterday, and couldn't tell you a thing about it. didn't have much to capture my interest
I listened to this the other day and I don’t really remember too much about it. I do remember that it was pretty generic 80s music for the most part. I feel like this is strongly in the one hit wonder territory more than super influential, maybe I’m wrong but it doesn’t seem that way at surface level.
The album was fine and forgettable. Nothing to write home about, but a good sounds.
Solid synth pop and way more groovy and fun then I thought it would be. I love 80s Brit synth pop, what can I say?
Meh
I've always meant to have a proper Japan/David Sylvian phase. Maybe the time has come. They were definitely the connective tissue between Roxy/Bowie and lots of 80s groups that took notes, especially the New Romantics.
6/10 - don't know what Japan has got to do with their music but was pleasant, more modern than 1979 for sure
Temu Duran Duran. And never cover Velvet Underground songs if you are a Temu band.
i habe only neutral feelings towards this
This sounds very futuristic, or maybe retrofuturistic. Whatever it is, I'm here for it. And that album art is great, too! Favorite track: "Quiet Life"
bien
It’s actually alright, despite being such a massive influence on synth-pop
quiet life: tiene onda, peor no es tanto mi estilo fall in love with me: tiene onda, peor no es tanto mi estilo despair: malarda in vogue: la voz del tipo me transmite trsiteza halloween: no se no me copa all tomorrow's parties: meh, son todas iguales alien:los mismo que todas las anteriores the other side of life: same shit a forgein place: nada en conclusion, malardo.
Shimmering synths and lovely subtle sounds, but the quality of the songs tails off from a strong start.
Couldn't get into this at all unfortunately. Guess it's an early example of this kind of 80s sound synth pop (new romantic? I don't know where the lines are at all). I'm not mad keen on a lot of that music and this falls short of even that for me so far. Whenever I was trying to think of it as possibly pioneering, I reminded myself it's after Stevie's whole golden period.
I know the title of the book isn’t meant to be taken literally but I think I could’ve lived my life quite comfortably having not heard this before I died. It came and went with nothing of interest and I more than likely will have forgotten all about by the week’s end.
I’ve been obsessed with their fifth album Tin Drum for a long time and yet I never listened to this once? Welp, yup, they had their sound on lock at this point. What a bloody fool I’ve been assuming otherwise!
Chato p caralho. Arrastado
It’s a shame that the progenitor of a style of music feels derivative if you come across it late. When this came out it was groundbreaking. Now it sounds like every other euro synth pop band. Good cover of the Velvet Underground though.
first couple songs are cool. awful cover of “All Tomorrow’s Parties” in the middle and a straight up weird slow sax song
I could see how it's influential due to its 1979 release. It sounded ahead of it's time for pop/electronic, but that doesn't make it musically appealing by default.
Edged between 2 and 3, but with most of the time resting in 2 land. Their take on All Tomorrow's Parties was a great take on a wonderful song. But much of it was a bit moring, often droning and his singing seemed a bit flat and off key at times. I'm not a huge New Wave fan and this did not seem like best-of-breed of the genre.
Duran Duran ripped these guys off.
It was ok
Kind of cool because it sounds like it’s from the mid-80’s.
Classic New Wave vocal performances on a more art rock production palette. The bassist often sounds like he's playing a fretless bass, which is super cool. I really liked this.
Just not for me
Japan are an ok band, some songs are cool, and they were a major musical influence on the new wave movement, third only to David Bowie and Roxy Music. Problem is, Duran Duran are miles better, and the style is very similar, as they clearly took lots of inspiration from Japan, only with better musicianship and songwriting skills. The singer of Japan (Sylvian) is a one octave range, monotone and erratic kind of affair, very boring to listen to after a couple of songs, and sometimes you wonder if he's singing in microtones or if he's just plainly out of tune. The band also experiments a lot, starting from this album. Some experiments land, others don't. So yeah, an essential band only if you really love New Wave, if not I would steer clear.
This way fine, nothing to write home about but I enjoyed the light touch approach to the glam rock form. EZ listenin'. Listned to: at 5MW. Favorite tracks: Despair, Alien
Japan is cool, they influenced a lot of people but once they broke up and Sylvan went on his own, no thanks. His stuff is waaaaay too stark and depressing - heard in the slower tracks on this record. If they are palying hard, it 's alright but that's all
This is an 80s amuse bouche. An array of canapé-like treats that nod towards the flood of food headed your way.
Got to give them some credit - they cover a lot of sonic terrain that hadn't yet happened. They do a killer Duran Duran before DD even enter the chat. You can hear soon to be Cure in here as well. That this is late 70s...a tip of the hat. But then what?
Duran Duran wannabes.
I liked the first half of the album, the second not so much.
Although published 1979, the sound is very 80s. They obviously had an impact on bands like Duran Duran, OMD, etc. So in this way interesting and worthy of being here in the list. But for me not the right music.
This was just so much better than I expected from a New Wave / New Romantic / Electro-synth-pop thing. Good musicality, well done.
ooby scooby dooby music
Weebs?? hell naa
Early New Wave, and it sounds so much like Duran Duran that I kept double-checking that I was still listening to the correct album.
1. quiet - 2 2. fall - 0 3. dezpair - 2 4. vogue - 1 5. hallouueen - 1 6. partiez - 1 7. alien - 0 8. life - 1 9. place - 2 10. tokyo - 2
Kind of boring.
Was there ever a Duran Japan superband?
Peak 80s synthy altrock. Reminded me that I actually knew a Japan song before this and also loved it.