Interface - Interface III


Year of Release: 2000
Label: Mellow Records
Catalog Number: MMP 394
Format: CD
Total Time: 53:14:00

Fans of King Crimson-inspired bands such as Anekdoten will get a big kick out of Interface. Still, although you can hear tons of KC influence on this album, the group does manage to outfit the sound with a bit of their own style. But only a bit. Often, you'll swear you're listening to King Crimson itself, especially when six-string slinger Masahiro Noda kicks into lead-guitar mode, where he sounds one heck of a lot like Robert Fripp. As for the band, musically, all that is KC is here: the sustained, shrieking guitar; the crunchy rhythms; oodles of mellotron; and a range of moods from nearly ambient to ferocious.

The only down point is the group's vocalist, Chang-Ishii. Being that Interface is a Japanese group, it's no surprise that the lyrics are all in Japanese, although the booklet does translate the lyrics into English. The language is not the problem, though. The problem is that Chang-Ishii is not a trained vocalist. Moreover, the vocal melodies he comes up with tend to the simplistic and bland. The vocals are almost more chanting than singing. Given the great music, however, it's easy to live with the vocals once you become accustomed to them.

You get a whole range of KC styles here, from the old to the new. For example, the track "Ishitro" starts off like something from the early Adrian Belew-era KC, what with its rapid-fire patterns, the growling bass, and the interplay between the rhythm instruments. Yet the center section of the song travels back to the Larks' Tongues days of KC. Most of the tracks feature a similar mix of KC styles. In fact the raucous "The Gate of Interface, Part 1" combines both old and new styles virtually simultaneously for a wild musical experience.

If Interface went the all-instrumental route, they'd be an outstanding group. Musically, these guys are on fire. However, they need to replace the current vocalist with a trained singer who can also write compelling vocal melodies. If there's one area where these guys are miles from KC, it's in their inability to come up with rich, moving melodies. Still, if you can overlook the amateurish vocals, this is a highly recommended disc.


Tracklisting:
Perspective (0:32) / 5-7 (3:50) / Warae (7:36) / Perspective 1 (2:54) / Jaran (5:13) / Perspective 2 (2:17) / Ishitro (6:43) / Hide and Seek (DUE) (5:56) / Perspective 3 (1:48) / Gate of Interface, Part 1 (8:02) / Gate of Interface, Part 2 (8:20)

Musicians:
Masahiro Noda - guitar, guitar synth, mellotron
Chang-Ishii - The Stick, vocal, synthesizer
Kouichi Hagihira - bass
Katsuyori Aihara - drums, percussion

Discography:
Interface (19??)
Interface II (19??)
Interface III (2000)

Genre: Progressive Rock

Origin JP

Added: February 8th 2002
Reviewer: Clayton Walnum

Artist website:
Hits: 2482
Language: english

  

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