WORDS BY: LOU E. ALBANO
September 2, 2010 | 3585 views
Said simplicity is also very refreshing, if not disorienting, given today’s landscape of bands getting sucked in by their very own a-holes of grandiosity and ambition.
What also becomes a relief is the thin guitar sounds that Gaijin goes for. Unlike the thick and heavy guitar sounds of today's bands, Gaijin beautifully makes do with just 6 very audible notes from a single guitar.
This is the most striking thing you will notice upon "Motor Girl," the opening salvo of debut record, Welcome Back, Earthlings.
“Motor Girl” displaces you with its sheer simplicity. It opens thumping and thundering, only for it to undress by measure. When the vocals come up, it is aided only with one or two guitar notes and the drums. As the song progresses, the instruments go back on and off, like an undecided lady getting ready for a night out.
“Goodbye” follows and it swooshes by uneventfully. By the time you check on the record, you would be surprised to see that you’re already listening to track 3 “Swedish Radio.” A super catchy minimalist song, "Swedish Radio" is a definite ear worm.
Jesse Grinter’s unassuming wala lang tone is a gem. It will appear throughout the record, providing the lax vibe that will give the record balance. He will prove to be the bonus, the best part of the entire outing.
“Mindanao Sea” is a song that, while lethargic, is laced with attitude. The chorus is a tad too expected, a tad too easy but it’s hard to deny the magic here.
The very grungy “Rum” follows amiably without much high (without much low, either) almost setting up the stage for easygoing “Bugtaw.” This is easily the record’s best track.
Also, you cannot help but point out the way Grinter enunciates the word bugtaw to sound boogtaw. It is almost a two-part song with the last two minutes reserved for the uptempo coda, it seems.
The next two songs, “The Lights” and “Conclusions” go without much fare, only for “Coming Up” to catch your attention again. The guitars, along side the effect-aided vocals, carry the song to front and center. It’s a fast number at a little over than 3 minutes but it packs all the goodies just right.
Just like “Swedish Radion,” “Van Gogh” is another already-popular tune. It is actually a song that progresses a tad too slowly—too much dilly-dallying, we think—but its climax is a guitar line that’s super trippy you can forgive the necessary dawdle.
You can skip “For You” but allow the record to end as it should with the lingering “Rosalyn.” Here, you know that Gaijin’s strength lies in the slow and the lethargic.
While their punk-ish songs are undeniably good and engaging, the three-man band has a way of making slow songs like “Rosalyn” “Bugtaw” and “Mindanao Sea” feel effortless, casual, and in turn feel commanding and weirdly tender.
You thankfully almost forget the fact that this is just another one of Marasigan’s projects.
In today's local music landscape, Gaijin may not be the most accessible of the lot. They may also not be the hippest or the flashiest or most innovative. But they don't need to be.
