Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009 by Victoria Goldenberg
Sometimes you have to see musicians live to get them. I had previewed the bands playing the Far East to East Showcase at Webster Hall prior to the event on Sept. 27 , and Gelatine didn’t grip me instantly. My first impression, based off performance videos of singer Seiko shrieking and marching around in a diaper, was that the New York-based Japanese band belonged squarely to the subset of wacky Japanese punk rock, where the hyper music is matched by the band members’ eccentric stage presence. Though I enjoy several such bands, Gelatine didn’t strike me as adding anything new or distinctive to the formula.
That impression changed when I saw the band live. Entering The Studio after attending AKB48’s glossy and highly packed pop concert, I was struck by the dim lighting and intimate feel of the tiny bar in Webster Hall—and how well opener Gelatine matched them. I wasn’t wrong about the band’s strangeness. A bondage-clad Seiko shrieked, stomped and headbanged to the wild music, guitarist Jun delivered his MCs in a novel metal growl, and keyboardist Waiko wore a schoolgirl uniform. But their music and performance had a distinctive dark, deranged mood suited to an underground club show.
Gie Ji Gaii is Gelatine’s first album, released nine years into the band’s lifetime, and it recreates the live experience admirably. The raw production is easy on the ears and makes me feel like I’m back in The Studio on Sept. 27. Even without the visual element, Gelatine’s murky punk has a prominent gloomy undertone that adds dimension to their music and anchors their hyperactivity, a refreshing change of pace from peers content to be superlatively happy. “Let’s Go Gelatine” sounds chaotic and agitated for a band theme song. The grungy, stop-start “‘Cause My Mom Said So” sounds manic, angry, evil, disturbed, and mischievous–all at once.
People often go to concerts because they’re fans of the performers’ recorded music, but Gelatine is one band for which the opposite works better. See them live first, then check out the CD. You’ll understand their music better that way.
Tags: 10yen ana-kinoko, AKB48, album review, cd review, Far East To East Showcase, Gelatine, gie ji gaii, j-rock, New York Anime Fest, NYAF, punk, review, seiko, takeshita jun, the studio, victoria goldenberg, waiko, Webster Hall
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Monday, October 5th, 2009 by Victoria Goldenberg
When pop group AKB48 ran across the stage waving at their fans during their debut American concert, the members were in perfect sync. When Fujishima Mineko of Swinging Popsicle ran across the stage high-fiving the audience at the Far East to East Showcase, she nearly hit her head on a speaker.
The New York Anime Festival closed with two polar opposite Japanese concerts at Webster Hall on Sept. 27. Pop fans could enjoy AKB48’s slick choreography and endearing adorableness. But two flights down at The Studio, the music was totally underground. The second annual Showcase, presented by Superglorious and NYAF, covered punk, ambient, indie pop and cabaret in four distinctive bands. It was an intimate affair all about the originality, raw energy and spontaneity that make small club gigs so appealing.
Gelatine conveyed a simultaneously dark and comical mood through the two-prong thrust of its frenetic punk music and menacing stage presence. This New York City band formed in 2001 to play both original music and that of singer Seiko’s old band, 10Yen Ana-kinoko. Its first record, the murky Gie Ji Gaii, finally came out this year. Gelatine’s chief draw is Seiko, who has the confidence and twisted humor to perform in a diaper and act like nothing’s strange about it. This time she wore a bra and bondage leash, which seemed almost tame in comparison. Though leashed, Seiko behaved more like id unfettered: swinging around from the mic stand, stomping in place, and moving from cute shrieks to aggressive snarls within seconds. The rest of the band was ready to meet Seiko at every capricious turn, and they complemented her bizarreness with their own. Guitarist Takeshita Jun literally growled his MCs about glamorous topics like the sweat in his eyes. Rock ‘n’ roll, indeed.
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Tags: AKB48, ambient, Björk, blood, cabaret, carmen, chocolate soul music, classical, concert, Echostream, Far East To East Showcase, fra-foa, fujishima mineko, Gelatine, gie ji gaii, go on, habanera, hirata hironobu, indie, j-rock, japan girls nite, japan nite, jpunk, junketsu wa aka, Kokusyoku Sumire, live report, lolita, loud cut, mikami chisako, new york, New York Anime Fest, New York Anime Festival, New York City, obama, perfect loop, punk, rainbounds, ryoko, sachi, seiko, shimada osamu, snow-ism, Superglorious, Swinging Popsicle, takeshita jun, the studio, tomo, tony, victoria goldenberg, violin, visual kei, way forward, Webster Hall, yuka
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