Review Summary: One of Japan's most bizarre visual kei acts create a masterpiece.
Once in a while, the genre of visual kei will create something so bizarre, that it even fumbles the minds of fellow visual kei heads. Guniw Tools is, indeed, one of those bands, and are one of the most creative/bizarre bands in visual kei history. Around for over a decade, the band got their first break when they released the successful debut album, "Niwlun", back in 1996. Unfortunately, it wasn't really well received among visual kei fans, so they planned an album that would launch them into recognition, and gain them tons of fans along the way. That album was Other Goose, and it is arguably one of the most impressive followup albums of visual kei.
The album starts off with the kicker, "Plenty of Flour", which is a superb track by itself, with jazzy-folk-like guitars opening up the song, before it spins into a heavy-hitting tune. An incredible way to start off any album. From that point on, the album takes a much more chill route, with the most mentionable song being "Yomogi no Kokoro", which is a nice apathetic, indie song with a laid back vibe to it. The vocals of Full are also noteworthy, as his voice is characteristically cynical, which goes great with the sound of the band, even more-so the album.
The song "Fancy Pink" shows the band entering a much more poppy sound, equipped with a highly upbeat sound. A bit of a curveball for the album, but still a pretty solid track. The next track, "Billy What Wild Cool Night", shows the band experimenting with a psychobilly sound, and also introduces the vocals of guitarist Asaki. The song itself is a pretty intense track, and has a signature lo-fi sound to it. "Distortion" shows off the vocals of Jake (who left the band shortly after this release), and is a much more mellow track compared to "Billy What Wild Crazy Night". The song is mainly an alternative track, with Engrish lyrics embedded. A pretty interesting track, as it brings the album back to its more mellow, alternative sound. "Living Hairspring" (which turned out to be one of their most renowned singles) has a more spaced out sound, but is still pretty out there. The album then closes with "Fuyu no Uguisu", which is arguably one of the most softspoken tracks they ever recorded, and ends the album on a soft note.
Overall, the album experiments not only with an atypical alternative sound, but also with psychobilly, pop, and folk. Those experimentations help benefit the album significantly, and push it to the ranks of superb grounds. If you like your music a bit peculiar, but not to the point of being overbearing, then check this album out. A superb experience all around.
