BUONO!
Buono! 2
(Pony Canyon)
Available on CD and on iTunes Japan
Rating:

Buono!’s full-length debut, Café Buono!, topped TGML’s Best Albums of 2008 list, so their sophomore effort has a big reputation to follow. How do you even dare follow such a perfect collection of modern-day girl-power pop-rock? To be honest, since this group was formed simply to provide theme music for an anime, I don’t even think that Airi Suzuki, Miyabi Natsuyaki and Momoko Tsugunaga expected this project to go more than a couple of singles at best or be more than a minor diversion in-between Berryz Koubou and °C-ute sessions. The fact that it’s gone this long is testament to the likelihood that the surface has barely been scratched as to what Buono! can do. (Don’t even get me started on the Japanese-pop-idols-with-guitars fantasies that the girls keep igniting within me every time they pose with instruments!)

“Early Bird” is a bright, peppy opening number, similar in tempo to Café Buono!’s opening title track. With it’s chiming synth notes, “Lust for Life” rhythm, and the girl’s fine harmonies, the song is so strong that it could have easily been a single A-side on its own.

“Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!”, the band’s third single, took a little while to grow on me. In the context of the rest of Buono! 2, it works like a charm, becoming even more of a highlight than it already is on the LP.

“Kira Kira” keeps the uptempo pace of the album going, albeit a few BPM’s slower than the preceding tracks. A descending chord pattern a-la Richard Hell’s “Blank Generation” gives way to Dinosaur Jr powerchords and Johnny Thunders guitar fills that fit in perfectly with the group’s vocals, climaxing in a brief coda of Sonic Youth-esque feedback.

“Shoushitsu Ten -Vanishing Point-” could have been a Tanpopo song for either the original lineup or the classic Johnson/Marippe/Aibon/Charmy formation. Guitars are mostly deemphasized (save for some acoustics throughout and a slightly Clapton-esque electric guitar solo) in favor of piano, chimes, and string synthesizer.

“Rottara Rottara”, the last Buono! single of 2008, starts off deceptively with an almost surf-like introduction only to shift gears into Dookie-era Green Day pop-punk when the rest of the band kicks in. It’s easily this album’s equivalent to last year’s “Renai Rider”.

“co • no • mi • chi”, this album’s preceding single, is indescribably infectious. The pop/punk guitars are present, but the emphasis on this rocker is the group’s vocals, judging by how prominent they are in the song’s final mix.

“Minna Daisuki”, the only B-side from the post-Café Buono! singles to make it to long-playing status, sounds like an anime closing theme to me – which is a kind of bizarre thing to mention given that it was actually the second opening theme to Shugo Chara!, the anime for which Buono! was first convened to record theme music for.

“I NEED YOU” starts off oddball – early Beatle chords played reggae style over popping syndrums before kicking into hyper-caffienated punk rock with lo-fi drum kit. Definitely a schizophrenic mix of styles (although conservatively so compared to Koharu Kusumi’s infamous polka/punk/reggae hybrid “Konnichi-pa”).

“Gachinko de Ikou!”, the group’s fourth single, is wonferfully typical Buono!, this time with techno-esque snatches breaking up their usual punky pop style.

“You’re My Friend” seems to be one of the more left-field tracks compared to most of the rest of the album. The song’s feel is more post-grunge 90’s rock – think Third Eye Blind’s “Semi-Charmed Life”, of all things, with a few sped up Thin Lizzy guitar harmonies and some uncomplicated organ chords coming in and out.

“OVER THE RAINBOW” starts to bring the tempo of the album down, again deemphasizing electric guitars (save for a couple of leads) in favor of acoustics and keyboards. After several uptempo songs in a row, a ballad-esque song that allows Airi, Miyabi and Momoko to stretch out vocally is a welcome treat.

“Goal” closes out the album with a brilliant mining of the same instrumentation and feel that Coldplay used on the title track of Viva La Vida. Apparently, myself and Vee weren’t the only ones in the J-pop world (inside or out) that were digging on Chris Martin and company’s latest effort. A-B both songs back to back on your iPod and you’ll see how uncanny the resemblance is. If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, Coldplay should be, as they say in merry old England, very well chuffed.

Verdict? The album’s track list is immaculately sequenced, and the group’s vocals have broadened and matured considerably without losing any of their youthful charms. Their chemistry as a threesome has also gotten stronger as well. Simply put, Buono! has beaten the sophomore jinx to a bloody fucking pulp.

5 out of 5 stars.

This entry was posted on Monday, February 23rd, 2009 at 10:41 pm and is filed under Buono!, Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.