Review of Akira Yamaoka "iFUTURELIST"
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January 21, 2007 by Brad Hall When most people hear the name "Akira Yamaoka" they think of the somber melodic pieces that accompany Konami's Silent Hill series as Mr. Yamaoka is the key musician (as well as producer) of the prolific series. Yamaoka has also composed several songs in the Beatmania/Dance Dance Revolution series. iFUTURELIST (pronounced as I Futurist) is Yamaoka's debut solo album. A handful of songs are video game related, such as "Adjust Rain" it's a re-imagining of Silent Hill 4's "Your Rain." The rest of the tracks on the album are a mix of hardcore electronic Trance, House, and Rock, with one ballad thrown in. The album begins with a spoken word opening as Akira Yamaoka puts forth the policy of the "Futurist Party" in German. One track of note is number 16, "Showa-era Corporate Warrior Section Chief Arayama (Lolita on Breaks Mix)" as it was part of an agreement between Akira Yamaoka and T-Kimura of M.O.V.E. Yamaoka remixed a track for M.O.V.E (T-Kimura's band) and T-Kimura mixed this track for Yamaoka. One of my favorite instruments is the violin and right in the middle of an otherwise electronic music trance fest is "Maria" the most untrance-like song in existence and lasts for an ephemeral three and a half minutes. After listening to thirty minutes of heavy electronic synth this song is like a quiet intermission. In my opinion, the best song on the album is "Heavenly Sun" as it's over seven minutes worth of aural bliss in Eurobeat form. Timeless in its emotion and execution this is an album for all time. |
01 The policy of the iFUTURELIST Party
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