Budo Grape's newest release Five Hits & Dust is a mix of ups and downs, both literally and figuratively. The EP flip-flops between up-tempo and dreamy tracks, all with the band's stripped-down, surf/new-wave/pop pallet in the forefront. Apparently this no-frills approach is in response to the reactions they got in their various lives shows in the US. Indeed, it is a very live sounding album, almost to the piont of being downright stark. Luckily, the band's playful attitude saves it from being too sonically dire.
It opens up with the groovy “Otome no Price.” The disco/dance vibe was definitely on the band's mind when recording this album, “Price” sets the stage well. It's a fail-safe floor mover. “Otome Kaikisen” shifts down to a lower gear. It's a funky, dreamy tune with some disco guitar and bass action and a toy-like synth live. “Rush Hour” might be closer to what one would expect from the band's previous offering. It's just as stripped down as the rest, but it's decidedly more upbeat and sing-song like, what with its “doki, doki” chorus. It's certainly the most new-wave-ish song on the EP. “Hore Hore” is another dip into slow and dreamy territory, this time less funk and more soft reflection. It still retains the both child and toy-like feel. Once again, “Doki Doki Wireless Life” jumps back up into a ska shuffle and has a Polysics-like break in the middle featuring a screeching synth solo.
That ends the album proper, but it's not over yet. The band has also included two older demos from 2001. “Three Rotation Kiss” and “Penki Nuritate No. 1” have all the hallmarks one might expect from previously unreleased demos from a band's early days. Namely sketchy production, interesting experimentation and some shaky performances. The former seems to be centered around the repeated “Friday night” chant, and the keyboard on the latter are a bit too clumsy to have the same kitsch value it provided on their newer work. That's not to say that either of the songs are bad, they're just rough. Yet they do show the primordial churnings of what the band would later coalesce into.
You can check out clips from each song over at JapanFiles.com, which is also where you can buy it! Grab it now so you're ready to sing along the next time the band hits your town. Oh, and you can also get the bands massive 192 page photo book full of performance photos and a couple English interviews.
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