Creative heavy rock anthems without any lengths

 One year and a half after the ambitious predecessor featuring eleven songs and a running time of sixty-seven minutes, Japanese trio Ningen-Isu went for a different direction on the vibrant, entertaining and dynamic Rashoumon. The band recruited a new drummer with Masuhiro Goto who has also been active in progressive rock bands Gerard and Kinzoku-Yebis. The songwriting has become much shorter with only nine songs and a running time of forty-two minutes. The band goes back to its debut album Ningen Shikakku with its hard and heavy rock style. However, this fourth studio record sounds more contemporary, heavy and organic, benefitting from an excellent production. The band has also become more experienced over time which reflects in the creative, imaginative and playful songwriting.

One such dynamic tune is ''Ningen-Isu Club'' which can be interpreted as a band anthem. The song is based upon sharp and gloomy riffs, vibrant and energetic bass sounds and dynamic drum patterns that will make you move along to the excellent song. The track comes around with a moody spoken-word passage while the guitarist's melodic vocals and the bassist's sinister vocals harmonize perfectly throughout the song. Despite all these promising ideas, the song sounds coherent, fluid and focused in four and a half efficient minutes and represents this record splendidly.

The band's outstanding musicianship shines most in ''Shitemushi no Uta'', a moody song carried by slow doom metal riffs and mournful vocals. The incredible middle section starts off with a bluesy guitar solo that gets progressively more chaotic as it recalls the nightmarish soundscapes of early King Crimson and Pink Floyd. This song oozes with atmosphere, creativity and skills.

The fast and upbeat ''Aomori Rock Daijin'' is a tribute to the band's hometown and a very playful rock tune with gripping riffs, energetic bass and dynamic drum patterns. The simple but efficient chorus should work very well in concert. The extended bluesy guitar solo in the middle section is once again out of this world. This song could also please fans of groups such as KISS and Mötley Crüe.

''Nanyadoyara'' is another unique song that mixes fast and aggressive heavy metal soundscapes with some minimal thrash influences and Japanese folk instrumentation. The middle section however is a nightmarish doom metal interlude that surprises at first but only underlines the band's will to experiment. The song is one of the shortest in the band's career and mostly instrumental but also one of the group's most overlooked and outstanding compositions.

The concluding title song ''Rashoumon'' ends the record on a high note as it combines Japanese folk sounds with heavy guitar riffs, sinister bass tones and tight drum techniques to an epic doom metal finale.

In the end, Ningen-Isu's Rashoumon combines the heavy rock style of the band first extended play and first full length effort with the more progressive parts of the two immediate predecessors. The new drummer is integrated perfectly and harmonizes very well with the dynamic duo on bass, guitar and vocals. The record convinces with shorter songs that are easier to digest and quicker to appreciate which makes this album a recommendable introduction to the band's early days. However, the closing epic doesn't only stand out due to its length but because of its creativity and can be considered this album's best song and one of the greatest tracks in Ningen-Isu's career.

Final rating: 87%

Ladies and gentlemen!

Ah, Green Day! Before I fell in love with gothic and metal music about a decade and a half ago, I was an avid punk rock fan. I had several friends who listened to punk rock and some of my friends were even involved in local punk rock bands such as Ohm! and Karma Crash. However, I have an even more personal connection with American punk rock trio Green Day in particular. When I was sixteen years old and had just gone through my first romantic relationship that had ended rather negatively, my best friend back then and I started having a new group of friends who were about two to three years younger than us. There was one girl I befriended and quickly fell in love with. She was different from all other girls I ever knew and that attracted me in particular. I tried to show her that I was interested in her and everybody noticed but her. Her best friend actually asked me one day whether I was interested in her best friend and she was initially quite jealous that I didn't show any interest in her. However, she wanted to help me and informed me that my dream girl actually had a boyfriend who was a punk. However, their relationship wasn't going very well and about to fade out. I felt quite conflicted to approach a girl who was still in a relationship but I just couldn't deny my own feelings. A few weeks later was Carnival, a celebration similar to Halloween in North America. After school, I invited my dream girl, her best friend and another girl to my place. We crashed in my room and listened to Green Day. That was the moment when I finally got the courage to tell my dream girl of my feelings. It turned out that it was mutual and we shared our first kisses while listening to Green Day. Ironically enough, we went partying with my best friend the next day who quickly realized that the girl and I were now in a relationship. Later that evening, he wanted to have a conversation with me and admitted that he had had feelings for my girlfriend and had been shocked earlier that night to see us together. However, he said that our friendship was more important than any romantic feelings shared for the same girl. That proved to be true indeed. Even though my friend lives in Germany and I live in Canada, we are still in contact every single month and see each other whenever I come to Germany. I connect all these memories that I cherish to Green Day and just as my relationship to my friend, my appreciation for that kind of music has lasted for almost two decades and counting. Here's my personal playlist of the band's greatest songs: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/36tjFQDI0PyxpqhSAIRdDT 

1. Going to Pasalacqua (1990)

2. Who Wrote Holden Caulfield? (1991)

3. Longview (1994)

4. Welcome to Paradise (1994)

5. When I Come Around (1994)

6. Geek Stink Breath (1995)

7. Walking Contradiction (1995)

8. Redundant (1997)

9. King for a Day (1997)

10. Minority (2000)

11. Macy's Day Parade (2000)

12. Jesus of Suburbia (2004)

13. Holiday / Boulevard of Broken Dreams (2004)

14. 21st Century Breakdown (2009)

15. 21 Guns (2009)

16. Oh Love (2012)

17. Stop When the Red Lights Flash (2012)

18. The Forgotten (2012)

19. Bang Bang (2016)

20. Oh Yeah! (2020)

Ladies and gentlemen!

Today, I would like to present you twenty-five extraordinary, imaginative and unique cover songs from diversified genres ranging from country over metal to punk. This creative playlist offers almost two hours of stunning entertainment. Click on the following link to discover the covers: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0tnkDeHkzAA3iOjk2mUa2C

1. In Flames - Eye of the Beholder (Metallica Cover)

2. Children of Bodom - Jessie's Girl (Rick Springfield Cover)

3. Over Kill - Miss Misery (Nazareth Cover)

4. NoFX - Les Champs-Élysées (Joe Dassin Cover)

5. Metallica - Last Caress / Green Hell (Misfits Cover)

6. Anthrax - New Noise (Refused Cover)

7. Nightwish - Over the Hills and Far Away (Gary Moore Cover)

8. Therion - J'ai le mal de toi (Betty Mars Cover)

9. The Vision Bleak - Nights in White Satin (The Moody Blues Cover)

10. HIM - (Don't Fear) The Reaper (Blue Öyster Cult Cover)

11. Guns N' Roses - Knockin' on Heaven's Door (Bob Dylan Cover)

12. Leaves' Eyes - To France (Mike Oldfield Cover)

13. UFO - (Come Away) Melinda (Harry Belafonte Cover)

14. Axel Rudi Pell - Hey Hey My My (Neil Young and Crazy Horse Cover)

15. Deep Purple - Hush (Billie Joe Royal Cover)

16. Stryper - After Forever (Black Sabbath Cover)

17. Sirenia - Voyage, Voyage (Desireless Cover)

18. Disturbed - The Sound of Silence (Simon & Garfunkel Cover)

19. Die apokalyptischen Reiter - Ghostriders in the Sky (Stan Jones and His Death Valley Rangers Cover)

20. Johnny Cash - Hurt (Nine Inch Nails Cover)

21. The Foreshadowing - Russians (Sting Cover)

22. Elvenking - No Prayer for the Dying (Iron Maiden Cover)

23. Heaven's Cry - Beds Are Burning (Midnight Oil Cover)

24. Voivod - Astronomy Domine (Pink Floyd Cover)

25. Anubis Gate - Back in Black (AC/DC Cover)

Haunting terror of the abominable

 After its tight and heavy debut album and the more psychedelic and experimental sophomore effort, Japanese doom metal trio Ningen-Isu has finally found its very own style on its third studio record Ougon no Yoake that translates to The Golden Dawn. 

The group offers psychedelic doom metal epics with eerie distorted guitar sounds that collide with heavy riffs. The rhythm section is mid-paced to slow but thunderous in its concise execution. The two vocalists complement each other perfectly as the guitarist offers the more melodic approach of a storyteller while the bassist offers gruff tones that contribute to the album's excellent atmospheric side. The chemistry between the three band members has progressed significantly and the generous eleven songs with a running time of sixty-seven minutes sound cohesive, fluid and structured in most cases. The old-fashioned but organic fashion is inspired by early doom and heavy metal outputs of the seventies which suits the album very well as it recalls the early works of groups like Black Sabbath and Judas Priest.

The lyrics often deal with supernatural elements and are at times inspired by horror literature such as the works of Howard Phillips Lovecraft. The band has focused on evoking atmospheres that bring those inspirations to life. Instead of flashy solos, the album offers slow but steady build-ups intertwined with eerie instrumental sections that will send shivers down your spine.

This record includes numerous songs that deserve to be pointed out. The epic, mysterious and sinister title track ''Ougon no Yoake'' manages to build up a gripping, menacing and unholy atmosphere right from the start. The simple but efficient guitar riffs work wonderfully. The vocals playfully meander between distorted spoken word sections, haunting clean vocals, distorted screams and creepy backing vocals. This song leaves an excellent first impression and manages to grow with every single spin.

Another highlight is the gloomy ''Mugon Denwa'' which translates to ''Silent Phone Call'' that opens with the vintage sound sample of a phone call before a fast, menacing and unnerving guitar riffs kicks in. The song then transitions into heavy metal territory but keeps its haunting atmosphere intact with overlapping vocals and the repetition of the excellent main riff. The eerie middle section integrates slow psychedelic rock soundscapes that make the song even more atmospheric.

Album closer ''Kyouki Sanmyaku'' or ''The Mountains of Madness'' is another masterpiece as it takes its time to establish a profoundly haunting atmosphere. The track opens with calm bass guitar tones and creepily distorted guitar sounds. Occasional drum loops emerge out of nowhere and add to the unnerving atmosphere. The vocals are guttural and low in the slower parts and more melodic and passionate in the few faster sections. The song uses many sound effects in form of distorted guitar sounds and vocals that accentuate this song's haunting atmosphere even further. The album closer concludes with a faster passage that slowly transitions into a brilliant slow doom metal instrumental section that carefully peters out and leaves listeners on a haunted note that should send shivers down your spine.

Ningen-Isu's The Golden Dawn is an excellent doom metal record with eerie soundscapes for fans of horror-themed topics. The album offers value for money with eleven gloomy songs and a respectable running time of sixty-seven minutes. Any fan of the early works of Black Sabbath and Judas Priest should get her or his hands on this overlooked masterpiece that deserves more recognition and attention.

Final rating: 90%

Psychedelic and progressive soundscapes intertwined with folk elements

Ningen Isu's second full length effort Sakura no Mori no Mankai no Shita which translates to Below the Full Bloom Cherry Blossom Forest was only released eight months after the stunning debut album that impressed with excellent chemistry, concise songwriting and a vibrant mixture between progressive rock, hard rock and heavy metal. This second output however sounds very different from its predecessor.

The record has a much more psychedelic note that goes back to the seventies as it recalls groups like King Crimson and Pink Floyd. Three songs break the six-minute mark here and these are also the best songs. They convince with distorted, eerie and floating guitar play, playful bass guitar tones and mid-paced to slow drum play. This psychedelic atmosphere is crowned by hypnotizing and mantra-like vocals by the guitarist and dragging and gloomier bellows by the bassist. Some tracks include a few interesting folk elements in form of hand drums, flutes and shamisen. This record is certainly more experimental than its predecessors and should appeal to fans of psychedelic and progressive rock in particular.

What I'm missing however is the tight, heavy and energetic musicianship that made the debut album stand out. This album loses itself in distorted soundscapes, endless instrumental passages and experimental interludes. Even the shorter songs sound less coherent on this record as the opening ''Bakudan Koushin Kyoku'' or ''The Bomb March Song'' has a weird break around the three-minute mark just as the track started to sound structured, rhythmic and coherent. Another example for this lack of structure can be heard in ''Yuigonjou Housou'' or ''The Testament Broadcast'' that ends with a sudden and hectic spoken word section. The production is average and doesn't have the same raw grit as the predecessor which lowers the energy level even further.

In the end, Ningen-Isu was still trying to find its very own style on its second studio album. Instead of continuing its style of tight and concise hard rock and heavy metal musicianship from the predecessor, Below the Full Bloom Cherry Blossom Forest explores psychedelic rock, progressive rock and even folk rock territories. Some of these experiments sound interesting and are given the time to unfold in the longer tunes in particular. The shorter tracks however sound at times incoherent and overloaded. This album can be recommended to fans of experimental rock music of the seventies but is less interesting for hard rock and heavy metal fans.

Final rating: 73%