Ohayo! Hoahio!

this is a fun little side project from some members of japan's experimental music community. there is a strong pop base to some of the structured songs on this disc and the group's playful side shows through really well on tracks like "Happy Mail" and the last half of "Jellyfish". these tracks come accross as the most solid and memorable cuts from this album. the remainder of the songs utilize some nice electronics, and the koto playing is fabulous; but overall, this album is frustratingly short on brilliance. but if taken at face value, Ohayo! Hoahio! can be enjoyed for the simple fun experience that it is.

The executive producer is John Zorn and that should tell you where it's coming from. If you are after mainstream Japanese rock/pop or extreme noise then you are in the wrong hole brother.The musicians are Yagi Michiyo, Sachiko M. and Haco, the founding member of experimental pop band "After Dinner".Of course I love Haco, but only an objective review will give the punters some idea of what they are buying here. The CD sleeve compares "Hoahio" to Shonen Knife, but this is not the cute and punky pop/rock of the Yamano sisters. It is more avant-garde and in turns, ethereally beautiful and blippy piddling. A mix of electronica and koto to the sublime voice of Haco. Some of the tracks are minimalistic and obscure soundscapes, while others are songs that have a child-like playfulness, which shows the band had fun making these sounds. The above sound-clips provided by Amazon give a fair indication of what you can expect, but they should have included "Jellyfish", which has a wacky charm and "Less Than Lovers, More Than Friends", which is easily the most accessible track and a very beautiful song indeed.