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Hush

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Asobi Seksu

 
Hush
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Avg: 3.5 (167 ratings)

Asobi Seksu make themselves at home on shoegaze's astral plane

  • We Say...

    Review by Matthew Fritch

    Shoegaze is a nice place to visit, but few bands have found the genre a suitable address to establish permanent residence. Even the first-wave U.K. groups in the late '80s/early '90s (Ride, Slowdive, My Bloody Valentine) were relatively short-lived as standard-bearers of the swirling, effects-laden guitar-pop sound. Asobi Seksu, the New York City band led by guitarist/singer James Hanna and singer/keyboardist Yuki Chikudate, tested the parameters of shoegaze with 2004's self-titled debut and 2006's Citrus; with Hush, the pair focuses on delicate and nuanced dream pop that makes the ladies of Lush seem positively butch. The album begins with "Layers," which sounds like a kabuki lullaby sung by Twin Peaks chanteuse Julee Cruise, but don't expect Hush to disappear in the ether. Despite track titles such as "Gliss" and "Glacially" (the latter is actually a spry pop song with Kevin Shields-esque pitch-bending guitars), there's a firm commitment to dynamic songwriting. As if balancing the scales between Arcade Fire and the Cocteau Twins, Asobi Seksu portions out wave-crashing cymbals and galloping drums along with Chikudate's airy, often incomprehensible vocals. It all comes together most effectively on the wiry, upbeat fuzz-rocker "Me And Mary," whose chugging crescendo provides a much-needed release. Though a generation apart, it's not far-fetched to compare Asobi Seksu's trajectory to that of Blonde Redhead, another NYC group of classically trained music-school refugees with a Japanese frontwoman; each band has arrived at gossamer-pop ends through a transitional album (in Blonde Redhead's case, 2000's Melody Of Certain Damaged Lemons). Given the plush sonic scenery on display here, it would seem that Asobi Seksu has found its own vapor trail to follow.

  • They Say...

    Review by Tim Sendra, All Music Guide

    Sometime during the touring cycle that followed the release of their 2006 record Citrus, Asobi Seksu's guitar player and the architect of their impressively layered neo-shoegaze sound, James Hanna, told his partner in the band, singer Yuki Chikudate, that he was sick of guitars and wanted to do something different. Fast forward to their 2008 release Hush and the band, now down to a duo, has dismantled the wall of guitars and gone in a new direction. Where once there were layered guitars, buried vocals, and tons of loud effects, now there are icy synths, precise arrangements, and upfront vocals. It's kind of a daring move seeing how the noisy shoegaze sound was quite popular at the time, it's also daring because if you strip away the guitars and noise you are left with songs, and if they are weak, the album is going to be weak. Luckily, the songs on Hush are for the most part quite strong and emotionally powerful. Even without the thrilling rush of sonic hail, a tune like "Me & Mary" will get your blood rushing. The dreamy "I Can't See" doesn't need to be buried under the rubble of 100 amps to be a melancholy heartbreaker. Hanna never makes the critical mistake of simply subtracting the guitars without adding something equally important. Throughout Hush he proves adept at constructing interesting soundscapes built on guitar tones and dynamics and not just sheer volume and distortion. The washes of synth and fragments of guitar that slip in and out of the mix give the record some of the feel of an autumnal Cocteau Twins disc, the occasional moments of increased intensity and volume remind you that Hanna was a huge My Bloody Valentine follower. Chikudate too shows she is up for the task and it turns out that under all the reverb she has a powerfully supple voice. Sometimes sounding cold and detached like Debbie Harry, sometimes as airy and sweet as Liz Fraser, she gives the record some soul to go with the atmosphere. There's no doubt that on first listen it'll be easy to lament the disappearance of the old Asobi Seksu sound, but if you stick with Hush and give it a chance to really sink in, you might find that the new direction isn't really that different, and the quality of the songs and the depth of the performances make it a very pleasing listen. Besides, when you think about it, Asobi Seksu are only following the path that many first-wave shoegaze bands took. Apparently there's only so long bands can stand to fool with distortion before they feel the need to start writing "real" songs that don't rely on sonic embellishment to get the point across. Sometimes it worked (Lush, Moose), sometimes it didn't (Ride, Chapterhouse). For Asobi Seksu on Hush, it does.

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