Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Zazen Boys


Osh-kosh-b-gosh, it's the Zazen Boys!

One of the many projects of illustrious Japanese indie-rock hero, Mukai Shutoku (lower-left in photo), former leader of Number Girl, Zazen Boys play a rapidly mutating synthesis of rock, funk, club, sleaze, butchered blues whateverthefuck. Their initial releases were pretty much an extension of Mukai's earlier work, only this time sprinkled with bizarre spoken word "raps" focused on a slight perversion of a common Buddhist chant:
kurikaesareru shougyou mujyou / yomigaeru seiteki shoudou
My Japanese is too rusty to really remember what the fuck that means, so google it bro. Anyway, as time went on, the original rhythm section (who had also been in Number Girl) splintered off to do their own thing, so Mukai brought in two dudes who are all about looking stoic and grooving like two dudes programmed to beat you at whatever you think you can do best. Their music often has this illusion of "eh, whatever, I heard this before", but it's played with such intense synchronicity and general aggression that your guts seize up and you just go WHAT THE FUCK! (COLD BEAT)

Zazen Boys Greatest Hits Vol. 1 (Curated by metaghost) - Greatness

1 comment:

  1. Its the post we've all been waiting for you to write meta :) i dare someone to name a group that brings the math funk harder than the boys, its impossible

    http://www.mediafire.com/?4tmz0tmmmgj
    Himitsu Girls Top Secret EP

    FAVORITE! BOOM!

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