Post by Taylor Bostock on May 29, 2015 14:55:20 GMT
Artist: ACO
Album: Irony
year of release: 2003
genre: avant garde, experimental electronics, triphop, IDM.
Lately i'm really on my Japanese tip. for whoever knows me, recently, i have been really getting into anime and manga and like i said in my Hibike! Euphonium post that i have been embracing my inner weeb. But it's purely coincidental. For years i have always been into japanese alternative music from the heavy sludge stoner stylings of Boris to the agressive and extreme noise of groups like hanatarash and the gerogerigegege. But the album i'm about to present you, albeit being a completely different style than the aforementioned groups, still holds it's own in the sea of japanese Music. Alternative or otherwise.
ACO is a japanese singer, born in 1977. She made her debut with a pop single called Fuan Nano in 1995. Her earlier works explored different styles, but mostly within the realm of electronic music, specifically the albums Absloute ego (1999) and Material(2001) After a 2 year hiatus she released the album, Irony, which is the album i'm about toshare with you.
The stylings on Irony are completely different from her earlier works to say the least. On this album she opted for a more avant-garde approach to her sound. Creating a more ethereal and orchestral approach rather than a more electronic sound. But it doesn't mean the electronic sound is absent. In fact, it finds a way to bleed through and blend with the plethora of sounds creating an atmosphere of absolute calm. It doesn't feel imposingly big. It's a very intimate album with sounds so intriquate it's something that will surprise you in revisiting this album. The soundscapes are amazing, ambient/drone is almost as i would describe it. The album doesn't feel heavy. It doesn't feel dense. It's a very light and calming listen.it feels like getting fucked up on quaaludes or just being very tired, yet content. what i'm trying to say is it's a really calm and intimate listen. Like you just want to wrap yourself in an ocean of pillows and blankets and just drown in it. Being at ease. I think you get what i'm going for. It's a great album with a lot of intriquacies in sounds and also in ACO her absolutely unrooted voice. Floating in between the rythm and notes. a hauntingly beautiful album
maybe in layman terms i would say it like this: it's a chill listen, listen to it if you want to chill. But i don't want to undersell this album because it still manages to make my spine tingle, my hands jitter and sometimes let a tear roll down my face.
The album has been widely regarded as "One of the most beatiful albums to come out of japan in 2003", compared by Allmusic to an "Airy Lullaby". Which is probably one of the better ways to describe it.
personally if you are into very light and ethereal yet experimental music with absolutely angel like vocals and electronic influence you'll probably like this one a lot.
Mega Link, .m4a files.
https://mega.co.nz/#F!yhtRRZrY!mV5cQ9T7AJdQ287G2LUCMQ