Layered electronics that casually hints at an acoustic base.
It starts off great, first track “New Balance” is a refreshingly layered electronica track that casually hints at an acoustic base. The track comes alive when the guitar chords come in. The result is a instantly accessible tune. Aching to The Books’ experiments with abstract electronica, this track is an indication of Yoshiteru‘s concerns with the ability to cut and paste diverse sounds to form a coherent, if slightly familiar, body of work.
But if the first track is a fantastic way to start an album, “I Don’t Care What They Say” is a step down from “New Balance’s” atmospheric undertones. Yoshiteru loses the good will gained by the opening track by focusing entirely on a vocal sample that floats around aimlessly over an unimaginative beat. Sadly, Yoshiteru does not recover from the meandering second track, opting instead for rehashes of a lot of contemporary electronica. Both “I Don’t Care What They Say” and “Another Angle” end up sounding like a toned down version of James Blake and Jackson and His Computer Band.
More offsetting, however, is Yoshiteru’s occasional gestures towards a layered and deceptively simple sound. Even though the closing track, “In Between,” starts off promisingly, the incessant need to layer the tracks with effects and sounds that would fit better in a live set disorganizes the construction of the track. Whereas the harmonic sound of “New Balance” hinted at something special, Balance disappoints when it should rise.
Balance is available on Acroplane.
