IT REMINDS ME OF MACBETHIA

The Japanese have a tendency to look cheesy sometimes, especially when they begin to emulate certain aspects of Western cultu culture. I sense that some critics get so envious of how well they do things that everything the Japanese touch must be brushed with the "cheesy" moniker.

Social Tension was neither cheesy nor pretentious. They were just friggin' good! They were a progressive rock trio that sounded a lot like ELP and UK, with a keyboard player that could easily give the revered Keith Emerson a run for his money, and a powerful rhythm section that was close to perfect. Their music was mostly instrumental, though there were some vocals done well in Japanese.

With this 71-minute "best of" album, you get all of "MacBethia" (1989) and the best parts of "It Reminds Me of Those Days" (1990). And lest you fear that you're going to just get a lot of ELP wannabe wanking here, be it known that this keyboardist also uses a fair amount of mellotron - an instrument that Emerson shunned.

I'm loving nearly ALL of my ventures into Japanese progressive rock and jazz-fusion. Social Tension is yet another worthy addition to the catalog.