The Japancakes – Loveless
Japancakes – Loveless
This will probably end up on my list albeit with some of the problems that are associated with this disc. While obviously there are issues when you take a seminal album like My Bloody Valentine’s Loveless and turn it into your own there is that inevitable comparison/contrast and even moreso with a masterpiece such as this. First the issues. With some of the more exotic tracks on the album such as ‘Touched’, they miss a beat in regards to offering the level of depth and darkness that these tracks display on My Bloody Valentines version. Other tracks have a tendency to remind me too much of muzak or midi files such as ‘When You Sleep’, and ‘To Here Knows When’.
The band succeeds in creating that southern depth and feel however on tracks like “Only Shallow” and “Sometimes” among others. The key to the Japancakes over the years has been to promote their own vision of droning guitars, pedal steel and all and at the same time provide a unique listening experience that exhibits a side of the south that bands like R.E.M. have so wonderfully created throughout these years. No they are not your Skynrd-Red Neck version of the south. Rather than layering the music in fuzz the Japancakes make the notes deliberate and bring the music out of Kevin Shields symphony.
At the end of the day, if you are not a fan of the Japancakes, I am not sure I can wholly recommend this unless you are willing to break yourself from the forces of Loveless. The problem with putting your own take on an album is that it has been seen through fans in one distinct manner, the reverb, the droning guitars and muddled vocals. The Japancakes have produced this version in a manner with the sleepy strange south where everyone moves at half speed, words and notes are drawn out.
Admittedly, I have been a fan of the ‘cakes for years and their music takes me back to