With Marbles, band from Nara, The Oral Cigarettes, confirms their wish to evolve within many kinds of rock. Review.
MARBLES – THE ORAL CIGARETTES
After five studio albums (seven with the two indie ones they’ve released before them), two EPs and more, the Japanese band signs a fantastic third EP. Marbles is The Oral Cigarettes’ sound matured and condensed into five impressive tracks. It’s a beautiful way to get into the band’s playfulness with genres. Constantly looking for evolution, they could get lost and astray from their most successful songs (like the unshakable Kyōran Hey Kids!!), but it couldn’t be further from the truth.
Opening the record is Rinka, full of the sweet scent of nostalgia. Vocals are up in the air on the speedy chorus keen to share many emotions. It’s an epic one with shades from the 90s and 2000s, between a kind emo and a smooth radio pop-rock. Deep, moving to a round and precise solo, that’s how they start it all. The Oral Cigarettes grab all the attention and prove how grand they can get. Izayoi is more upbeat, a dash of funk in the bass, and more metal drums. Still, it’s an alt-rock that gets close to their biggest tunes, confirming their appetence for this kind of song. And of course, I love it.
Blend metal and epic and the result is Red Criminal. A true punch in the guts, their pure technical qualities push their unmatched energy even further. A touch of rap comes in before a pretty metal guitar solo. It can satisfy many. Machinegun keeps the same mood alive. Pretty logical as both were used for the anime Scarlet Nexus. But it’s a captivating one, and probably the best song of this EP.
However, to really and fully summon that feeling of evolving savoir-faire, The Oral Cigarettes closes Marbles with a ballad. Seiya has some incredible orchestral arrangements and a softer pop-rock sound, less saturated than the others. Impressively noticeable. It is a natural evolution and these tracks really deserved to be complied together two years after their first release. Excellent.
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