Takashi Kokubo - Oasis Of The Wind

Takashi Kokubo - Oasis Of The Wind

 

 

 

 

 

1.  Forest of Ion

               Enter through the Japanese tori arch into vibrant realm of lush greens humming among themselves.  Gossiping birds flirt with whimsical faeries, all is playful.  Guitar hints at something more solemn, an undercurrent of melancholy.  The forest houses the graves of ancient leaders, respect in stillness; sun gallantly warms the earth.  Leaves of trees keep silent the secrets of history’s heroes.  This is a forest of dignity and preservation.

               Towering bark of prehistoric wooden bodies loom above enclosing and captivating the magic held under the woodland canopy.  Slits of light pierce the tapestry of nature and a small frog hops away.  Moss envelopes anonymous gray monuments.

               Eyes closed, kneel, short prayer to the fallen.  Honoring the spirits.

               Soft breeze wistfully passes.

This song has 2 basic sections.  First section is:

||G7      |   G7       |      C maj7      |     C maj7        || Repeated until:

||F maj7 |   Fmaj7|    Bbmaj7     |    Bbmaj7       ||  Repeated for a while.

               The G7 is voiced something like 3x3000, and sometimes switches to 3x3200. 

               The C maj7 is voiced x35200, with the 13 in there (The 2^nd fret of the G string).

               The F maj7 is a big one, 135200, it’s got the #11 in there (open B string).

               The Bbmaj7 does x1303x, changes to x1323, again uses the 13 when the G string is open.

               Lots of G mixolydian stuff happening here, focusing on that C to B suspended interval.

The 2^nd section does a riff off the F major 7 arpeggio for 4 bars, then a riff off Bb major 7 arpeggio for 4 bars.  After this repeats a while, it goes to G-7, C7, then repeats.  After the final repetition, the C7 sustains…emptiness, and then goes back to the first section.

               The guitar plays on the quarter note.  A marimba comes in that can be approximated on guitar, palm mute, playing melody notes E, F, G, E , F, G, F, E.

               Cool song because despite the change in harmonies during sections, mostly the same side tracking stuff is happening.

2.  Twilight

               The sky begins to blink and slowly sun sets.  Slumber heavies all living motions to a leisurely pace.  This is the sound of retiring.

               Music is divided into 2 bar segments.  First bar is active, 2^nd bar is the fade out of the 1^st bar’s part.  This shows us a slowing, restful feeling.  Twilight, slipping into night time, into rest.  So activity is slipping into rest.

||B maj 7       |  B maj7        |      E maj7         |  Emaj7       ||   For a while, until:

||  C#-7        |   C#-7           |F#7                    |F#7               ||   For a little bit, then repeat.

               The B maj7 is voiced x242xx, really simple.

               The E maj7 is voiced  024xxx.

               Similarly, C#-7 voiced x464xx.

               And then F#7 is voiced 246xxx. 

               All guitar voicings use the root, 5^th, and their respective 7ths.

               Synths emphasize 7^th scale degrees here and there.  Very laid back.

Part with silence and a lone G# note playing, then goes to A# note.  What follows is C#maj7, F#maj7.  Interesting!  Same chord root but changes chord quality!  For those of you playing on guitar, move the first chord progression up 2 frets, and there you go!  Actually, the entire form of the song is transposed up 2 frets, including the 2^nd chord progression.  THEN FINALLY it goes back to the original key.  Overall song form is ABA.

3.  Sanctuary

               Blessed nocturnal stream of water congratulates us on finding the way.  Japanese kanji form on the surface of the water.  Mysterious choir emanates omnidirectionally.  The fallen ancient heroes praise, offer their guidance, and foretell warnings for the future.  They depart with peaceful messages.  Spiritual evaporation.

            Intro starts with an A-sus thing, marimba plays A D E A, then root changes over it to Bb.  Sort of implies Bbmaj.

               Once song gets going, seems to transition from G major ideas to G minor ideas,  then I think bass goes to C-7…then to Cmajor.    More subtly, the G minor could be Ebmajor7.

               Towards the end, the intro comes back around, yadda yadda.

Misc. Notes:

-Although these songs are slow, they are abundant with rhythmic variation.  In the first song, the guitar performs mostly 8^th note steady rhythms while snippets of triplets and 16^th note intricate 

rhythms pass by here and there.

-Similar sounds in this album as Yoshimura’s “Wet Land” and Naitoh’s “In The Forest”.

-Each song has an underlying structure that is LONG but simple, harmonically.  Parts fade in and out.

-Lots of marimba sounds!

Yurie Kokubo - Relief 72 Hours

Yurie Kokubu - Relief 72 Hours

1.    スノッブな夜へ

               Flashing red and green and blue lights gently strobe to the pulse of the beat.  Diva red sparkling dress steps out front and center angled with the microphone.  Camera rotates around her during the prechorus.  Friday nii~~~gghhh~~~~~~~t.  If singing is human mating call…then we are in trouble!!  Ouuuuwwwchhh!!  What a voice!  Funky brothers support her.  Musical bodyguards.  Gray shimmery jackets to match her red shimmery dress.  

               -Bass brother, making the stiff upper lip intimidating face.  Sunglasses, bowl hat.

               -Background vocals Brothers, the suave one, clean hair cut.   Tall, handsome.

               -E. Guitar brother, a little skanky, but a good man.  Dreads, Jamaican beanie.

               The flames on everyone’s cigarettes are rainbow glowing in the darkness.  Guitar man rips a funky mournful solo, the groovy mango blues.

              

The first half of the song is so grooving, the 2^nd half uses a bunch of new song forms that had never been introduced yet.  Kind of cool, that divide.

Song form is summat like:  Intro (A), A, A w/vocals, B, A, B, CHORUS, C, A, B, CHORUS, C, CHORUS, C, CHORUS w/ guitar solo fade out.

               A is the part where she sings “Friday Night”, and is only 2 chords I think.

               B has a build up to chorus, but the first time around goes back to the A section.

               C section is little chordal jam after Chorus leading to A.

               Intro verse has sparse guitars, bass and horns filling in the space.  Setting the dance stage.  Keyboards fill in playing here and there.  Background vocals come in 2^nd time around in B.

               Pretty long song, keeps it fresh for a funkish tune !

              

2.  恋の横顔 (Love Profile?)

               Tom and Jerry race, ends in bell chime.  Silky vocal enters the room.  Walls light and pass forward 60’s neon colors, cleaning commercial vibe.  Sax man enters the race now.  Cars blazing Speed Racer style, 70’s anime jive action race car, go! 

               Bell of confirmation, friendly racing.  

               Alternatively, could see this as the opening song for a Love Game Show.

Form is something like:  Intro, A, B, Chorus, Intro, Sax solo new part??, A, B, Chorus, Intro, Intro, Chorus, Chorus fade out.

               Intro has the bell tone.

3.  Weekend Love

               Song starts with bass and snare hit????  Weird entrance but cool, almost didn’t notice it.

               The first song hooked us in, now we are in the album’s lull.  The pre rendering before the meat of the story.  The tempo of the song is slower, the instruments are more sparse, lots of space and ease with this song, it is less active overall.  This song is probably intentionally easier on the ears so we don’t get overwhelmed with fast paced city pop for the entire album.

               Outerspace EWI and EP cosmic ripples like jelly.  So sly.  This is the bridge.  Kinda like Bubble Crab stage in Mega Man X2.

               Bass is less active than previous songs, palm mute guitar, keyboards plopping down on the 1.  Open song overall, lots of air and linger room.  Vocal harmonies introduced later on for build.

              

4.  Love Song

               Music for a heartwarming family experience.  Wool sweaters, cozy fireplace.  Strong community.  Simple candle light ballad.

               The electric guitar solo is outside in the crisp somewhat snown city road outside at night.  Simple yellow street lights.  “Sing me a song from all your love”

               I heard “Airplane” at the end of the first verse.  

               Chorus has strings for build.  Bass + Acoustic Keys + Strings.  Horns on the final Chorus.

              

5.  とばしてTaxi Man

               Brisk walk, London rain.  Glisten on the sidewalks.  Busy city.  Yellow raincoat.  Busy girl, fast camera, turning around at many angles and many blocks, nearly bumping a lot of other walkers.  Spinning, spinning to avoid crashing into another person.    Taxi man!

               Bumping drums intro prepares us for this wild ride!  Back to funky town bass and guitar.  Keys again laying chords on the down beat.

               Prechorus seems IV, III-, II-, I.  Another prechorus to verse build fake out.

               Lots of intricate horns.

               Cool bridge that chills out, has some synths honking making car sounds, like taxis in traffic.   Some kind of parallel 2nds or detuned stuff happening with that.

               Stripped down chorus at the end, vocals and drums only.

6.  回転扉 (Revolving door?)

               ENDING VOCAL HARMONIES, jazzy rain babe.

               Bass sticking close to the down beat on verse, with a slight 16^th note(?) lead into it.  

               Prechorus more chord activity, -7b5 and alt7 popping up in there.

               Shi ka ka nani wa~ Ends on Maj7#11 SUPER COOL band unison on that!  Think it ends on bIImaj7#11.  

               Verse is simple,  ||   I-7    |   IV-7    || repeated I believe.  Good choice for rest of the song to have more involved chord progression.

               Anata nagisa~ bIImaj7#11 Boom!

               Ending rips it on the verse fade out.

              

7.  Dancing Tonight

               Ballad fake out!  Whoa!!  Kaluna action, tomayla yie.  Anata Sexy, Gokena Mete.  The words stand out on this one (these are not the real words, don’t worry).  Back, shi ney!  Low bass synth in unison with the bass guitar.  Gt doing a steady part, rhythmically active keyboards, actually just playing the chords on the down beat.  It’s really low in the mix.

               Verse guitar splashes sidelines.  Bass and drums drive this one.

               Chorus PEEKABO SYNTHESIZER BACK SHI NEY! *DE AWW WAA* 

               Watashi Lucky!  

               Bridge has surprisingly straight forward II- V7 briefly. 

8.  パーティーにひとり

               The shooting star ballad after the ballad fake out.  “Do you ever just look at the sky, and wonder what it all means?  You know, what was your purpose, what you’re here for, and for who…” As two new lovers sit on a hill watching the sky at night.  Subtle teen age melancholy , the two exchange existential concerns.  

               Sky suddenly shatters to day time, activities of normal life are sped up, until sunset sky appears.  

               Middle of song girl explains her possible answers for her questions, excitedly and excitedly she grows, then ends her thought with, “…or… I dunno....” and plops back into uncertain melancholy about herself.   Something uplifting happens, and I’m not sure what, Buddha would say to accept it. 

              

9.  Just a Joke

               The 9^th theme of funky juice, how do they do it?  It’s Just a Joooke!  Pleading, please understand, you misunderstand me!  That’s not it.  Panic of potential heart break.

               Chill freezer Summer day heat verse.  2 chords vamp until build in the prechorus.

               Strings in chorus.  Sounds like Persona 5 if I ever played it.

 

               Sad that this is a short one.  Another chorus I could listen to for hours.

10.  Last Woman

               She just said Sayonara itoshi!  BAAAAAD, dude.  Must be a song about the past.  DID SHE JUST SAY, IN JAPANESE, “Hello, Am I yours”?  “Moshi mo, Watashi na anata tada”??

               Sana yaio, omoshigashite.  Not sure if these are accurate anywhere.

In ballads, dominant 7 chords are heavy bitter sweet sighs.  Major 7s are longing for an answer, existential requests at the sky, “Why did this happen?”.  -7b5 chords are the true sadness.

Jazz melodies are almost made so that the singer holds our chord tones over the chords, with all the other passing notes as accents.  I don’t really see an overall sense of flow with the vocals, besides the theme in the beginning verse.  The chorus melody is more straight through, with less repetition overall.

Verse keys + melody unison.  Chorus melody so bittersweet.  Chorus loops a few times, or an illusion?  

Intro synth bass same as Mondialito’s performance of Moon River.

               No!  That was the last song?  I specifically asked for, “Please don’t let this be the last song” at the end.  Probably the only funk album that doesn’t overstay its welcome.  Leaves me wanting more.

               Most of this album is an upbeat funk album, so why did it end on such a slow song?

11.

               

Final notes:

-Harmonically these songs are all similar.  Lots of minor 7 chords, lots of blues stuff.  Lots of bass, lots of downbeat E. Keys.  What makes them different is the song form and how each song builds.  Lots of prechorus fake outs to verse…lots of fake outs in general.

-As always, rhythms are key to making interactive parts, well fitting instrumentation and memorable melodies.  When in doubt, focus on the rhythm to spice things up!

-Instrumentation throughout album is consistent:  Bass, Guitar, Keys, Strings, Vocals, some Synth.