REVIEW: Suga Shikao - FUNKAHOLIC
Suga Shikao’s 8th full-length album. Is it as funky as the title suggests? Let’s see.
Suga Shikao
FUNKAHOLIC
Genre: pop, rock, funk, r&b
Release Date: 09-10-08
Price: 3,059 ¥
Label/Distributor: BMG Japan
Tracks: 12
01 Banana no Kuni no Kiiroi Sensou
02 Nobody Knows
03 Pop Music
04 PLANETARIUM
05 Call My Name
06 FUNKAHOLIC
07 Phonoscape
08 Keppeki
09 13kai no Elevator
10 Kono Yubi Tomare
11 Sofa
12 Uchuu
Banana no Kuni no Kiiroi Sensou - gets the funk started right away with a blast of horns and what else but a funky beat. This one definitely has a ska feel throughout.
Nobody Knows - takes things down a notch. This was one of the singles released in advance of the album. It has a lighter funk feel, but a nice, catchy chorus. I like the bass darting in and out of prominence, keeping that line going. Little, almost gospel-sounding part at the end before the fade-out.
Pop Music - I like this one, partly because of the appropriateness of the name. Though, Suga Shikao’s version of pop is certainly a lot smarter and fresher than most of it. And true to its name, it has a typical sort of pop beat, but then slower, soulful singing on top of it.
PLANETARIUM - is a pretty standard, and rather boring
ballad. Suga Shikao stays very high throughout, and he almost sounds
like a woman. But I don’t know, he does do that well…
Call My Name - is pretty much old R&B. A lot of his
stuff really does make you think of old Motown, and this song is one of
the strongest suggestions yet. I like the almost-electro chorus of the
title. The other thing is a lot of the sound effects are actually
guitar sounds, which is neat too.
FUNKAHOLIC - this song comes after the first one without much of a pause, and it continues on the same theme almost. Though the tempo is less driving and more funky, and we’ve got that high bass leading the way again. Love the bluesy solo near the end.
Phonoscape - is a little bit like Nobody Knows minus the catchy chorus. Nothing really wrong with it, but it’s like background music; pleasant, but boring.
Keppeki - has some kind of whistle thing starting it out before the singing comes in. This is another one of those mellow, lightly funky tracks. I do like the whistle thing, but it only comes in once more near the end.
13kai no Elevator - there’s a little funky low end starting
this one out, before it launches into something more rocky than
anything else thus far. I like the instrumental pauses, where it’s
mostly just Suga singing. And even cooler than that is the bridge,
which is more like an electronica interlude. It works really well, and
then back comes the chorus. One of my favorites.
Kono Yubi Tomare - oh bass, and lots of it. This one has
a vaguely disco flavor though, complete with a string section backing
up certain parts, including the chorus. It’s enjoyable though, really.
Probably the only time I’ll admit to liking something that can be
described with the word “disco”.
Sofa - sees the last song’s bass, and raises, well, some more. Those few notes starting it out were delicious. At first it doesn’t seem like it will continue, but I assure you it comes back in. The guitar work is also pretty intricate. Of course, very jazzy and bluesy. It almost seems like there’s an effect on his voice, but I’m not for certain on that. The ending is abrupt, but it works.
Uchuu - is another ballad. The main difference between it and the rest is that it’s pretty much just Suga and a piano. It has somewhat of a hymn or gospel feel. A violin eventually works its way in as well. I’d have to say I like it the best though. It’s simple, but that’s nice, and it really is pretty.
There is really no better name for a Suga album than something with “funk” in it. Because if there’s one thing this guy’s good at, it’s funk. I especially like the bass-heavy, turntable accented track, Pop Music, as well as the alternately rocky and electro 13kai no Elevator. Call My Name with that old R&B style was also good, as was the funky Sofa. I don’t find his ballads very interesting and these are really no exception, though the last song, Uchuu was nice. This is a pretty good album, pretty typical of the artist. As usual, his heaviest funky songs are the best, and the ballads are a little weak. Nevertheless, if you’re a fan, you shouldn’t be disappointed.
Final Word: Some funky stuff, some jazzy stuff, and a few boring ballads. ★★★☆☆
Key:
★★★★★ = Excellent, flawless, perfecto
★★★★☆ = Very good, has some minor flaws
★★★☆☆ = Good, maybe a few boring moments, but overall enjoyable
★★☆☆☆ = Fair, bad outweighs the good
★☆☆☆☆ = Poor, possibly offensive to your ears
