school food punishment - school food is good food

Tokyo post-rock/electronica quartet school food punishment has seen a huge surge in their popularity over recent years, mainly due to their major label debut with the opening theme for acclaimed anime "Higashi no Eden." 2007 saw the release of their first mini-album, a humble six-track disc encouragingly entitled school food is good food.

The first half of the album is heavier on synths and is more demonstrative of their electronica sound. Close, Down, Back To utilizes a low repeating bass phrase, atmospheric synth drones and some sharp drumming from Osamu Hidai to create a heavy opener for the album. Singer and lyricist Yumi Uchimura's clear vocals emotively ring out above this, and in some parts the reverberating effect gives it a haunting quality. In the latter half, her distorted guitar joins the fray to crank up the volume in a thrashing climax. A truly deep, impressive track, it shows listeners what school food punishment is made of.

The second track, Pool, couldn't be more different from the preceding one. Its bright and pop styled synths from keyboardist Masayuki Hasuo set the tone from the start, giving the feel of an old computer game soundtrack overlaid on some very decent acoustic rock. The sweeping synth drone from the first track also makes an appearance here. The catchiness of Pool may be why it was used as the ending theme to TV drama "Bari-san ver. 2.0."

Set Low, Fine is a more relaxed affair. The syncopated percussion, keyboard and bass make things more interesting, and Yumi delivers a mellower performance than in the tracks before it. Although it is still a good bit of music writing, it doesn't really stand out much by itself and lacks any particular impact.

Snap is a more somber acoustic piece that really lets Yumi's vocals shine. The verse is almost melancholic before leading into a strong, moving chorus. The emotion in Yumi's complex lyrics about shattering dreams and being plunged into stark reality is really reflected in her voice. The band's seemingly signature synth drone is more manic here and adds a touch of chaos to the mix at the start and finish. This track proves to be an understated highlight of this short album.

Shades of Pool can be heard in the positive Ukabi agaru, which has similar soft rock leanings but less of an electronic feel. It focuses more on plain keyboard and piano melodies instead. As with all the other tracks it has a great chorus, but not so memorable a verse. Although pleasant and full of good feeling, it doesn't really hit you between the eyes.

The album is brought to a close with the slow, contemplative Tooku no hako no naka. Beginning with just Yumi's quiet guitar strumming and gentle vocals, the song grows as Osamu and bassist Hideaki Yamasaki join her. It is a contrast of light and heavy: soft piano and picked bass accompany sublimely rolling cymbals in a simple background to the final verse; then everyone launches into a full-on, clashing lament, not dissimilar to the reverb-heavy ending of Close, Down, Back To. It is a great way to close this compilation of original work.

This debut demonstrates the writing and performance capabilities of the whole band, along with helping hand Shoukichi Ishida in arrangement, and it shows why there has been so much buzz surrounding them since they started. There's a sense that the set up of the dynamic opening doesn't quite carry through to the rest of the album, and it isn't full of flash, bang and wallop, but it does make for great listening. It is more of a chill-out session CD, and as such it works very well indeed. The band has had time to develop since cutting their teeth with this, but the creativity of their earlier work should be appreciated as well, and this is a great place to start.