GENTLEMEN TAKE POLAROIDS

Japan are like Deep Purple (bet you never thought that you'd read that) in that they will suffer for being in the ever widening umbrella of prog. Both bands have their niche (DP's is obviously quite a bit larger) but they both suffer from being reviewed in a prog context.

For me Tin Drum was the definitive Japan album. A definite 5 stars for in any Modern Romantic collection.Gentlemen Take Polaroids was a trailing second. Nevertheless, Mick Karn produced a bass sound that I thought unique at the time. It was a sort of fretless Wal that I hadn't seen or heard before: but then again it could be a Travis Bean.

Anyway, for the proggers out there who want to listen to this modern romantic album my best advice is to concentrate on the relationship between Sylvian and Karn and ry to put aside the obvious Vocal similarities with Roxy Music. There is something quite unusual, dynamic and rewarding in thisJapan album but it takes some aural blinkers from a prog perspective.

Ultimately I fail to see the prog element in this album but the style of Karn easily salvages it from the one star prog waste disposal.

PS ... as for the Keyboardist whatever happened to him ;-)