Fantastic Plastic Machine - Fantastic Plastic Machine

Fantastic Plastic Machine - 1998

I've never understood Japanese culture. I find their food disgusting for the most part, their pornography bizarre, and their traditions incomprehensible. And what's with their economy? Haven't they been in a recession since 1972 or something like that? So it's kind of surprising to me that I like this album as much as I do. If you've never heard Shibuya-Kei before I suggest you check it out.

This is the most interesting pop record I've heard in the last 10 years. FPM has taken elements of various musical styles and put them together in fascinating ways. "Dear Mr. Salesman" for example sounds very much like 60's "Swinging London" pop as it might be done by Esquivel. In fact I hear tinges of Esquivel throughout the entire album, (which of course can only be a good thing). The vocals, often female and wordless, are great, although unfortunately often buried in the mix a little more than I would have liked. The cover of Joe Jackson's "Stepping Out" is surprisingly good. My theory with covers is this, never do the big hits. Use a b-side gem, or a minor hit and find some way to highlight it's strengths. For example, if one were to pick a Warren Zevon song to cover, don't do Werewolves of London for fuck-sake. No one's is going to do that song better than Zevon. That's why it was his hit. Do Gorilla Your A Desperado instead. It's a great song no one knows and if done right could be a hit. But FPM did one of Jackson's biggest hits, and they pull it off admirably. It's not better than the original, but still a great interpretation.

Overall this is a refreshing take on pop music. I don't know if their reconfiguration of pop idioms is intentional, or just a by-product cultural interpretation, but either way it works and makes the crap coming out of West, (see Lily Allen review below), look embarrassingly shitty.