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| Long-time Splendid readers and obsessive types will recall that Minekawa's
Roomic Cube
made this author's top ten list for 1997 -- so naturally, Cloudy Cloud
Calculator arrived
with high expectations. And the immediate response? The disc meets
expectations, but it's a different
animal from Takako's past work. Opening instrumental "Micro Mini Cool"
sounds like video game
music -- which isn't entirely surprising from a woman who's the "voice" of
the Sony Playstation (that's
her saying "Playstation" at the end of the commercials), while "Milk Rock"
is a bewildering combination
of bubblegum pop, choir chorus and Aphex Twin-style drum&bass-paced rhythm.
Fans of vintage
analog keyboards and new-wave melodies will enjoy the catchy "Cat House",
the vocorder-enhanced
referentialism of "Kraftpark" and the creepy calculations that form the
lyrics of "Kangaroo Pocket
Calculator". Bubblegum fans and children will be absolutely entranced by
"Phonobaloon Song", and
will drift happily away on the gentle wings of "Black Forest", which begins
as a mellow keyboard
track and ends with a far more fleshed-out orchestral sound, mournful
strings and all. And there's
still the gentle drone of "Cloud Cuckoo Land" and the pseudo-lounge --
theremin and all -- of "Telstar"
to complete the listening experience. Fans expecting an assortment of
happy pop and techno-frippery
might be disappointed by Cloudy Cloud Calculator, but the current
Japanese Invasion should
provide them with plenty of other listening options. Those seeking more
subtle pleasures will be
well served.
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