Nagisa Ni Te is primarily the work of Shinji Shibayama and his partnerand muse Masako Takeda. Over the course of four albums, the Japanesepsych-folk duo has carved out their own niche among their moreavant-leaning Japanese contemporaries, creating subtle and lovely popmusic that floats by like a gentle summer breeze. Their name, whichmeans "On the Beach" in Japanese, seems to be a direct reference toNeil Young's classic album of the same name, and they do seem to takesome musical inspiration from Young as well. Though their music at timeseems minimal and unadorned, there is a deceptive simplicity at work intheir arrangements. A wide range of instruments is used, as well asgenius multi-tracked vocal harmonies, but always in a refreshinglyuncomplicated way that never seems too calculated. Their chief subjectis nature, and love of the same, as evidenced by the included lyrics,given an English translation by The Wire's resident Japanophile Alan Cummings. The Same As a Flowerevokes the pastoral simplicity of nature in understated surrealistterms, where the sky is "tall as a flower," "brambles taste sweet" andthe sky is "shattered by fish." The album seems to be the duo's mostgelled statement thus far, full of beautiful melodies that etchedthemselves into my brain quite naturally after only a few listens. Theopening title track has a catchy chorus and a catchier melody, a simplesweet duet about the contemplation of a flower. Though Nagisa Ni Te'sprogressive tendencies and eclectic influences seem often to suggestIncredible String Band or other 60s acts, their consistentlyuncluttered arrangements put them closer in style to Belle andSebastian, without the twee affectation. Using only an electric guitarand evocative vocal overdubbing, "River" is able to hauntingly evokethe gentle currents and eddies of the song's namesake. "Wife" is aninstrumental intermission that recalls George Harrison's solo work, orthe Beach Boys' "Fall Breaks and Back to Winter." "Bramble" floats byat a leisurely pace for 11 minutes, ending with a hypnotic guitar andmellotron duet. It's organically psychedelic without resorting to thetired repertoire of studio gimmickry that characterizes most modernpsych. Truly, the album is lighter than air, and constantly threatensto float away like so many dandelion spores. But while it's stilltangible, it's as lovely and uncluttered as any psych album you'relikely to hear all year. Read More
