[stextbox id=”custom” caption=”Made In Japan …” color=”000000″ ccolor=”ffffff” bgcolor=”dedede” cbgcolor=”cc0000″]

Sorrow
Tokyo Rodeo, 2003
Label: Universal Music
Kaori Kawamura 1971 – 2009

[/stextbox]

Japanese Rockabilly Stories

Tokyo Rodeo by Sorrow has Tex-Mex overtones mixed with a rockabilly beat and a pop friendly sensibility. Sorrow, a female fronted rock / rockabilly project from Japan, has a sound that is best described as raw, defiant and performed with an intensity that most bands lack. However Sorrow does not coast on attitude alone, these are finely crafted tunes. Sung in Japanese with some English the songs are a bit too long, but then it takes time to tell a tale.

Your Storytellers:

  • Kaori Kawamura … vocal / guitars
  • Yuichi … wood bass / bass
  • Masato … drums
  • Motoaki … guitars

Rock and roll without pretense or apologies

Chapters:

1. Intro – Dead Channel, time … 0:19
Channel surfing background noise. Reference to William Gibson? Skip.

2. Tokyo Rodeo, time … 3:10
Clap your hands together and join in this audio thunderstorm.

3. Gabriel, time … 3:17
Merciless riffs at 1:38, almost pleading = singing.

4. Woe Rain, time … 4:33
Another sound effects intro, sultry slightly Siouxsie-ish vocals, takes until 2:48 to rock, but worth the wait.

5. Death On Spade (New Version), time … 3:59
Quicker pace than the previous version with a more somber tone and less performing-in-an-empty-room effect.

6. Husky (New Version), time … 4:27
More accurate description: Japanese language edition, slightly less hard rock edge as compared to older version.

7. God Coming (New Version), time … 3:28
Another JLE. Same attitude, more production than the original.

The by the numbers CD design, doesn’t do the band or the content justice. It’s just a couple of photos of the band languishing in an anonymous hotel room and looks-like-clip-art cover art. The only nice touch design-wise is the silver colored title.

The Takeaway:
RiceburnerFM recommends Tokyo Rodeo by Sorrow. This is rock and roll without pretense or apologies. The epilogue here is that while Sorrow’s singer / songwriter Kaori Kawamura lost her battle with cancer in 2009, her vast musical legacy offers her fans some solace in her absence.


videos courtesy YouTube / kenieezz

St. Vicious Day Poster
photo courtesy Flickr / sanchome