Rejuvenated Half-Face

Formed in 2004, the short lived Rejuvenated Half Face threw in the towel soon after in 2008. With only a single album, Ccmmgr, released in that time, it's tough to know what might have been, but the crumbs they've left behind are nothing if not a promising sign.

Their natural post-rock elements are tempered by generally softer treatments and front woman Mai Karasawa's voice. She sings in a very clear and restrained tone, instead letting her breathing do most of the angry work. She seems to sing to the point of exhaustion, then letting her lungs shriek in more air. Her breathing/gasping adds tension and a sense of urgency. It's almost an instrument in and of itself. On "Relative Downer" especially, her high pitched and ragged intakes of breath are highlighted when all the other instruments stop, leaving Mai to do her best drowning victim impression, desperate for just one more taste of air before going under another wave of noise.

Much of their music is a bit like that of School Food Punishment or Mass of the Fermenting Dregs, with a heavy dose of some pretty arty progressive tendencies, maybe more like Zazen Boys (see "Herring Roe"). Yet they always manage to reel in their more out-there passages and bring the melodies back down to earth.

This is most obvious on "Antimony," an epic trip through bizarre and frenetic mash-ups of notes followed by some soaring vocal passages. Even more so on "Cucumber," the closing track on Ccmmgr. It's one song, but with many different ideas broken into several tracks. It's as if they wanted to pack up all their remaining material into one song, doing their best to mold it into a single cohesive whole, yet still making sure to keep it separated for some reason, at least cosmetically.

Sometimes it's best for everyone when a band puts everything they have into a single, precious package, quietly leaving it behind for future fans to discover and wonder about. Other times, one can only morn the loss of so much potential. In this case, it might be better if the world could at least get another chance with Rejuvenated Half-Face.

BUY REJUVENATED HALF-FACE RELEASES HERE

Cause and Effect



Official Site
MySpace

Members:
Mai Karasawa - Vocal, Guitar
Yuki Abe - Guitar, Backing Vocal
Hiroshi Kishi - Bass, Backing Vocal
Hideyuki Sakamoto - Drums, Backing Vocal

Albums:
Ccmmgr - 2006