Pedestal 06: Pizzicato Five

A lot of music tends to go in one ear and out the other, but on rare occasions a band will become an instant favorite. Whatever the reason behind it, there's nothing more satisfying than discovering a new artist that you just immediately love, especially if the group is relatively obscure and has an extensive back catalog that can be explored for years to come. A recent discovery of mine that perfectly fits this ideal is Pizzicato Five, a Japanese avant-pop duo fronted by super-classy singer Maki Nomiya and musician Yasuharu Konishi. Starting out as an obscure pop quintet way back in 1985 and eventually breaking up in 2001, the group released upwards of fifteen studio albums, and countless more compilations, EPs and collectibles. Their rapid evolution saw their sound touch upon numerous genres, pioneering the jazzy, energetic "Shibuya-kei" pop sound while dabbling in electronica, bossa nova, dance pop and indie rock, consistently maintaining a tangible kitsch factor.

The album I started on a few weeks ago, 1997's Happy End of the World, was a total impulse buy, having never really heard their songs in full and just picking the cheapest used disc I could find at the record store. To my pleasant surprise, I'm already in love with the album and all of its infinite quirks. Kicking things off, the slow-burning optimism of "World Is Spinning at 45 RPM" sets the pace for the pop masterpiece ahead. The short, clubby "Trailer Music" picks up the tempo to set up the joyous single "It's A Beautiful Day." Complete with chants of "P.I.Z.Z.I.C.A.T.O. Five!" and a rolling rhythm recalling surf rock, bossa nova and lounge pop all at once, it's the brightest song you'll hear in a while. Things get a bit moodier with "Love's Theme" before rebooting with the simple, yet extremely catchy beats of "My Baby Portable Player Sound." "Mon Amour Tokyo," the album's other single, is a bit more straightforward pop (which for P5 is still weirder than anything else out there). It gets a bit repetitive towards the end, but the silly phone introduction and singalong feel of "Arigato We Love You" keeps it interesting until "Happy Ending" wraps up the album on an almost cheekily cheerful note. Overall, an extremely addictive listen and up there with many of its contemporary greats, alongside the likes of Saint Etienne's Good Humor and The Cardigans' Life with its successful integration of retro elements for an utterly fresh sound. Though the majority of the record is in Japanese, I didn't feel lost at all, as Pizzicato Five's energetic, grab-bag sound somehow transcends language, genre and any sense of time or musical context. I already can't wait to explore them some more, starting with the US-exclusive compilation The Sound of Music by Pizzicato Five that I just picked up, so expect to see them show up in some of the more eclectic posts in the future.

Pizzicato Five, "Mon Amour Tokyo" (from Happy End of the World)


From Happy End of the World:
"It's A Beautiful Day" [YSI]
"My Baby Portable Player Sound" [YSI]
"Mon Amour Tokyo" [YSI]

From The Sound of Music by Pizzicato Five:
"Happy Sad" [YSI]
"Groovy Is My Name" [YSI]

From Playboy & Playgirl:
"Such A Beautiful Girl Like You" [YSI]

***Note: Links removed***

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