ARMONICO HEWA

As honestly I say, this is my first OOIOO album, the sleeve design of which could attract my heart and let me purchase it. However, as you can imagine, the content is not a fairy tale. Suggest this is a story that a girl, who is entombed under the dark town, tries to flap her wings and fly away for another world of brightness. And maybe each song shows a situation she struggles in, runs away from, or from another sky glimpses, the dark town. Their sounds are very lyrical and passionate - especially the drumming by Yoshimi, with various elements of African, Oriental, heavy, jazzy...can seize the leadership of the sounds, the musical style, and this outfit itself. The story goes with OOIOO's avantgarde, antique, African beats, shots and shouts. Loud but a bit warm guitar sounds do show each scene appropriately. Keyboard ones are sometimes dreamy but sometimes keen and brutal. Yoshimi's voice has fruitful passion but ill-matched fragrance - as if a perfumed smell comes from a matured whisky with estery, woody, salty flavour. On the whole the story is hard but worthy to complete for her. And this album itself is terrific too. ;-)