Spangle Call Lilli Line

Profile
Spangle Call Lilli Line are (from left to right) :
Ken Fujita (guitar), Kiyoaki Sasahara (guitar) & Kana Otsubo (vocal, keyboard)

Links
Official website >> Lilliline.com
Fansite >> SCLL @Keikaku.net
Interview >> Interview by Japan Live (in Eng)
last FM. entry >> here

My selection, download here
3 tracks included: Nano, Veek, piano

Spangle Call Lilli Line (SCLL for short) is another independent Japanese band I discovered while searching for artists similar to Love Psychedelico. In fact, they resemble little to LP although both are tagged 'Rock'. You can read from the above two links. The interview is especially helpful, at least for me, in understanding their style which comes to be what it is, amorphously abstract and experimental. Imagine three art students coming together to make music, assuming (without openly questioning) each other's music taste to be decent and mildly compatible. Without an ounce of knowledge as which direction to go, no concept, no predefined genres, they started experimenting instinctively in a way not too far from playing with clay and happy with the final shape be it a jar or a mug.

I'm not saying they're not serious musicians (although all of them have 2nd jobs other than making music). Most of the songs were composed by the vocalist Kana Otsubo whose voice is similar to 'Lily Chou Chou' (Salyu), wispy and soft. My impression is that Otsubo relies on fragments of images to lead a tune. Even the lyrics are fragmented and make little sense even to native Japanese, according to the interview. As a result their music is most impressionistic and spontaneous, like filtering out your memories as if pulling thought threads and knitting them into a loose drawing. You don't care much about stanza. Flowing stream doesn't have a structure and you just drift along with their melody. The arrangement tends to be minimalistic and repetitive, but melodious.

Discography (a summary)
+Album+
since (2006.10.25) - best collection
FOR INSTALLATION (2005.6.29)
Trace (2005.4.20)
or (2003.6.11)
Nanae (2002.11.10)
Spangle call Lilli line (2001.3.25)

+Single+
Nano (2003.4.12)

+DVD+
68 SCLL

I haven't sampled enough songs to pass further comments. My current favourite is 'Veek', 'Piano' and 'Nano'. Veek is my fav of fav. The entry music reminds me of the ending tune used in 'Paranoia Agent' (White Hill - Maromi's theme), that string pluckering sound mixed with electronica whistle foreshadows a free atmosphere. I was listening to it at midnight, walking alone on an empty street damp from a day's snow. Neon lights repaint everything. White snow, black asphalt, green shrubs, they all give up their colours for the night. And listening to Veek while watching the fading of a day is utterly comforting. I love Kana's voice.

Here're some tubies you can watch (not much to SEE, so just listen)

Nano


U-lite