If It's Too Loud...

Photo by Ken Sears I'm fairly new to the world of CHAI fandom, but I had been hearing great things about their live shows. Mainly that they're a blast, and this has been a year of going to see bands just for the fun factor, so I knew I had to check out CHAI when they swung through Boston on their current tour. Their music is much more pop oriented than I normally go to see, so I was unsure what to expect. What I got was an evening of unexpected pure joy. CHAI are a nearly impossible band to describe. They're a band of four Japanese women who wear matching outfits and do low key costume changes throughout the show (mostly something like removing a jacket or mask at the same time.) For some pop songs all four members were singing and dancing a choreographed routine, for others they were thrashing out on instruments in a punk frenzy. I've seen CHAI labelled indie rock, I've seen them labelled pop, but live they are this joyous amalgam of genres that should never be pla...

Photo by Yoshio Nakaiso For the singles off their upcoming album, Japanese quartet CHAI have been delving into the 80's. Their latest single, "GAME," keeps the trend going. "GAME" is a chilled out synth-heavy track that has an insane amount of groove throughout. As with any song from CHAI, the new song is beyond fun. It's about as stripped down as a song predominately tracked with synthesizers can be, and it lands somewhere between early New Wave and early hip hop can be. CHAI is always a fun band, and "GAME" somehow steps their typical level of fun up a few notches. MANA (vocals/keys) says of the new single: “Winning isn’t the goal, it’s the strategizing and challenge that matters♡ So it doesn’t matter if you lose. Take that loss and turn it into an even better strategy! Life’s a game! We made the video with our lovely friend Ginger Root♡ It’s fun and NEO KAWAII♡ As long as you’re living, you can play the game as many times as you want. Be honest ...

Photo by Kana Tarumi I'm so glad I got over myself and started appreciating the music of CHAI. The Japanese four piece has released a single that is just soaked in 80's goodness. "Neo Kawaii, K?" is just a joy to listen to. It's fun dance music that will remind you of an oddball 80's that looks kinda familiar to us, but none of us actually lived in. There are elements of pop, New Wave, hip hop, and maybe even some punk in "Neo Kawaii, K?" This is just fun, energetic music that is perfect to just let loose and allow yourself to fully enjoy. Mana (vocals, keys) says of the new song: “Everyone is NEO KAWAII! This is CHAI’s answer, this is a fact in this world! We can finally say what it really means to us♡ Everyone’s a bit weird. Everyone’s different. Everyone’s awkward, almost to a point that it’s hard to relate. But that’s what’s interesting! That’s what makes it beautiful. To everyone who’s pushed around by these notions, we want to tell you this! We...

Photo by Kana Tarumi I'm truly mad that it took so long for CHAI to click with me. The Japanese quartet have just released a new single, which is a tribute to the 90's dance craze in Japan. "Para Para" even sounds like a 90's R&B hit. Seriously, this could not sound more like something that was released in the 90's. It has that smooth jam feel you'd hear from artists like TLC and SWV. For a song that is meant to invoke 90's nostalgia, "Para Para" does its job perfectly. I implore you to drop your indie snobbery and just enjoy the absolute fun that CHAI will bring you. Vocalist/keyboardist Mana says of the band's new song: “There’s not a deep meaning to that song, it’s really just about the dance,” says Mana. “As long as you can feel the two-step, any dance is possible! Let your body just move to your dancing heart ♡ When your body moves to the beat of your heart, you’ll realize that the world is smaller than you think, and all your pr...

CHAI have been around for a while now, but they just haven't worked for me previously. But "We the Female!" suddenly makes everything click. I can't tell if this new song changes up the Japanese quartet's sound enough to appeal to a snobby middle aged man's taste, but probably not. I think their blend of anthemic dance jams finally clicked for me. Sometimes it just works that way, but "We the Female!" is a great song. It's definitely a pop song, and is so proudly. (We can call it alt-pop since it's not exactly a mainstream or Top 40 style sone, but it's pure pop.) I'm thrilled I was finally able to get over myself and have some major catching up to do with CHAI's back catalog.  Bassist/lyricist YUUKI says of the new song: “We are human and were born as female, but we have both female and male aspects in each of our souls, each with our own sense of balance.  We can't just label ourselves into clear-cut, simple categories anymo...