To look back on this now after listening to both 'Citrus' and 'Hush' at length almost give's the New York shoegaze band a sense of history and place. Asobi Seksu's 2004 self titled debut presents a band with a clear set of skills and an honest vision but the lack of any direction. Tracks like opener 'I'm Happy But You Don't Like Me' or 'Walk On The Moon' present clear indications that band members Yuki Chikudate (vocals, keyboards) and James Hanna (guitar, vocals) know what they'd like to do, just not exactly how to get there. The songs are accessible, containing fun loving bouncy grooves, coupled with 1-2-1, verse-chorus-verse build ups that all have extremely satisfying ascensions and conclusions, 'Asobi Seksu' is a gem. It is however a gem because on subsequent albums the band showcases their maturation with not only layering tracks (see 'Citrus' and the 10 levels of sound in each song) but handling chaos with beauty. While 'Asobi Seksu' is hardly a bad album, it feels misplaced, unfinished and a bit cranky at times. This is all however mixed with the bands obvious prowess of distortion control & song structure plus they make some truly amazing music here -- other times it sounds like 'It's Too Late'.
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