OFFICIAL HIGE DANDISM has decided to make music out of the Sun with Rejoice. Their pure pop sounds navigate seas of emotions to bring up the best. Review.
REJOICE – OFFICIAL HIGE DANDISM
They are already amongst the greatest JPop bands, and prove it once again through their new album. The quartet OFFICIAL HIGE DANDISM has released Rejoice this summer, and through its upbeat air, it becomes the perfect record to ease our return to work. Finder is a great-revealing introduction, telling volumes about the record’s essence. Delicate piano, tender vocals, powerful electro effects, epic build-ups, it’s pop music in one of its best forms. Get Back To Jinsei follows seamlessly with funky bass lines, a vintage atmosphere and a catchy chorus. They’ve set the recipe, now we can enjoy the buffet – and it’s a large one!
Amongst the best tracks here, the colourful, fun, upbeat and tender MIXED NUTS stands out. It’s not surprising that it became such a hit on its release. Funk tune SOULSOUP and the bubbly Catch Ball are also pretty noticeable, the first one for its brass and untameable energy, and the second for its mood and electro-rock production. But, if several genres are tickling their instruments, the whole thing is homogenous, even on longer tracks like Nichijo, Subtitle and the epic Chessboard, all going over five minutes. And that’s the case both before and after the interlude I’m home, followed by the bright Pachelbel-like Sharon.
Calibrated for any radio in the world, even if sung solely in Japanese (Dakuten, Urami Tsumari Kiwami, TATTOO), or with a harder core (Anarchy, White Noise), OFFICIAL HIGE DANDISM’s tracks flow and bring us the same smile. They close it all with B-Side Blues, as delicate and ethereal as the intro. If Rejoice’s mood and flow are rather predictable, OFFICIAL HIGE DANDISM have put together a beautiful record that can be a great initiation to pure Japanese pop for the newcomers, all while pleasing all fans.
