ASA-CHANG & JUNRAY
Jun Ray Sung Chang
Leaf
· Japanese duo push at the frontiers of avant-pop.
Trying to list my favourite albums of the year, I was taken aback at how very few great CDs 2002 has brought, despite being one of the most interesting times for pop that I’ve ever known.
Jun Ray Sung Chang is a good illustration of this paradox. It opens with an absolutely and brilliantly original single, "Hana," which features sampled voices underlined by strings and Eastern percussion. For the rest of the CD, it’s back to the lab, where experimental instrumentals work through their ideas meticulously, breaking new ground yet without building anything terribly exciting upon it.
Asa-Chang is a tabla player, Junray does electronic processing, and their collaborations do a good job of recombining traditional East Asian and Western popular music, including a fine version of Brigitte Fontaine’s classic "La Radio" and some intriguing folk-electronic hybrids.
It’s another sign that, after a few decades mostly spent polishing various forms of Western pop into bright shiny miniatures, Japanese alternative music is at last coming up with its own distinctive forms. Apart from "Hana," Jun Ray Sung Chang doesn’t quite repay repeated listening, and you’re better off with Leaf’s Lost for Words compilation, which includes "Hana" along with a broader spectrum of new musics.
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