FEATHER FLOAT

Yoshimi P-We of Boredoms leads this avant-prog rock band. The first things that come to mind when I think OOIOO are eclectic, noisy, hypnotic and dynamic, psych-rock. The album opens with the fairly straightforward "Be Sure To Loop." After a lengthy build-up, the band enters and plays a repeated rhythm over and over along to the only lyrics, "be sure to loop." After that, things are so structured. The band's generous use of random electronic noises over repeated phrases sounds like it won't work, but it does. Vocals play a important role, be it screams, whispers or chants. It's really not important as to exactly what's being said, but more how it moves the song along and helps give it more variation. All of the instruments flow in and out of each other creating strange effects. Like, sometimes they'll be playing together and gradually drift apart into more looser ambient and experimental territory. Just about anything is possible here.

Despite all of the idiosyncrasies with the music, it all sounds very organic and natural- like it's supposed to be that way. All of the dynamics flow perfectly- it's loud at the right time, it's quiet at the right time. It's as if they know the perfect time when to give you a little break before pummeling you with the next psychedelic beat. This is probably the best place to start if you want to get into OOIOO. If you are feeling particularly adventurous, give "Feather Float" a try and you'll be surprised at how good it is.

Standout songs: "Be Sure To Loop," "Asozan", "1000 Frogs And 3 In A House"