Ling Toshite Sigure
Illusion is Mine (Japanese/Math Rock/2010)
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Back to the Music!
Hey everyone,
Today, I’ll be asking that you trust me as I introduce you to a more niche band from Saitama. Ling Toshite Sigure (or LTR) is one of the few Japanese bands to break out into the Western mainstream. Their sound is a unique mix of heavy drums, frenetic guitar, and high-pitched wails.
As always, I’m selecting one of their mellow and laid-back tracks to introduce to you all. On this track, vocalist and lead guitarist Toru Kitajima (TK) takes a back seat and allows co-vocalist Miyoko Nakamura to lead the listener into an ethereal soundscape. The lyrics do not translate well to English, so I’m not gonna try.
If you liked that, I invite you to listen to one of their trademark songs from the album Just a Moment. Toru Kitajima’s vocal range puts listeners into one of two buckets: they love his voice, or they hate it. Wait 10 seconds for the song to start!
TK generally pushes his voice all the way through the upper 4th and 5th [octave] and does not even appear to possess a lower register as he very rarely drops his voice below middle C (also of note is that nearly every song he has sung has a 5th octave note in it).
Despite his castrato-like favourite range, there's nothing all that high sounding about his natural voice (obviously he's a high-placed man, just not one remarkably so). Though his head voice tone leaves a little to be desired, his falsetto is very strong and well-controlled.1
LTR’s Just a Moment inspired the title of a story of mine that got published in print, way back in 2011.2 That’s me in the purple shirt. I love purple.
My story seems to be a favorite:3
See y’all tomorrow!
Nikhil.
As you may have gathered Nikhil, I love Japan. They love music of every genre and I enjoy checking out what they have to offer. Ironically I liked the second track more than the first. I'm not going to put it on my playlist, but I enjoyed the listen. Thanks for introducing me to them :)
Woah this is awesome! I don’t always enjoy listening to music that I can’t understand the lyrics at all, but really enjoyed this one. Have you listened to Haru Nemuri’s new album? She was new to me and it completely blew my mind! Here’s one of the singles: https://youtu.be/YIqmqRwqaQI