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Music Compilations Japan For Sale Volume 3 (Columbia) 
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| Japan For Sale Volume 3 (Columbia) |
| By Michael Hulme | |
Tuesday, 25 March 2003 Description:"Just as Japan has been welcoming western music for so long, now we are ready for Japan For Sale Volume 3. Already wildly popular at home, many of these bands could soon be "big in the world." Which means? This compilation CD, the third in the popular Japan For Sale series, is a showcase for the biggest names in contemporary Japanese music; it’s a bit like those compilations that come out at Christmas, except you are unlikely to find this in your stocking unless Grandma’s taken the wrong pills and gone Christmas shopping whilst hallucinating again. Is it much cop? A qualified ‘yes’. The better tracks are the ones that show genuine invention and a willingness to put something of their own culture into the mix. The worst are the ones that take western music, make a carbon copy of same, and then shout "straight back at ya!". How many good tracks? Of the 12, eight are worth repeated listening. Polysics reprise the insanity of their last album, albeit in a more chart-friendly style; they’ve ditched the proto-punk in favour of a love for synth-pop and vocoders, but they still impress. Power-pop three piece Brilliant Green turn in some bubblegum pop in ‘I’m A Player In T.V. Games’. Mayu Kitaki rewrites Bacharach in ‘Latata’, Mai Hoshimura falls somewhere between Macy Gray and the Brand New Heavies. And the worst? Matally’s ‘Four Seasons’ is Japanese jungle nonsense. DJ Krush’s ‘Lost Voices’ is aural valium. Takkyu Ishino, despite being the coolest looking man ever, does give us something that sounds like it was left in a Depeche Mode time capsule back in 1982. Biggest disappointment? Only that you only get 12 tracks, and I’m sure there was room for more. But, when it’s a series, I suppose there’s Vol. 4 and Vol. 5 to fill. Verdict: An introduction to the current Japanese scene that will surprise and impress, particularly as they seem to be doing a lot of things far better than our sorry excuse for pop stars right now. (4/5) Release Date: 25 March 2003
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