Let's Be Honest: Wasn't Western Music Totally Incomprehensible at First?

I want everyone to be honest for a second: wasn't Western music seriously incomprehensible?

When I became a second-year middle schooler, I dutifully developed 'chuunibyou' (8th-grade syndrome). I longed for an eye patch, walked sluggishly like L from Death Note, and started listening to Western music to act a bit more mature.

I still wonder if that classmate who suddenly showed up wearing an eye patch back then actually had an eye problem. They took it off three days later, and since their default way of speaking was the same as a character from Gintama, I'm still a bit suspicious.

Since my allowance was only 300 yen a week, I decided to borrow Western CDs from the local library. It felt great to reclaim some of the taxes I hadn't even paid yet.

I decided to start by borrowing bands whose names I had heard of, but I avoided The Beatles and The Carpenters because I'd heard them too much on variety shows and the impression was too strong. That's the trouble with overly famous songs. Even now, when I hear songs from 'Melody' (S.W.A.L.K.), images of Othello Matsushima and 'World Breakfast' pop into my head.

So, from the artists I knew, I picked up Radiohead's 'Amnesiac' and some U2 album. Considering it was in a library, it was probably their masterpiece 'The Joshua Tree'.

After returning home, I set the Radiohead CD in the player and pressed play with excitement. My honest impressions as a second-year middle schooler were:

'Wait, the intro is gross,' 'So dark,' 'Where's the chorus?', 'What are all these sounds?', 'This would definitely never be played at a sports day.'

Hey, Thom Yorke. Don't look at me with such a sad face.

Radiohead isn't exactly a band with easy-to-understand musicality to begin with, and I had managed to pick one of their most difficult albums.

If I were to recommend something to my past self now, I'd suggest 'Pablo Honey' or 'The Bends'. 'OK Computer' might be the limit for a masterpiece; I think 'Kid A' is way too difficult for a middle schooler.

Regarding U2, my impressions were similarly: 'Still dark,' 'I don't know how to listen to this,' 'It's all blurry,' 'I can't find it fun.' It was incredibly rude of me to say that about such a legendary album.

For someone like me who grew up in a local area listening to songs by Ai Otsuka, Shonan no Kaze, and the Hexagon Family—songs where you could clap along to your heart's content—Western music was just too esoteric.

Looking back, if it had been Avril Lavigne or Green Day, I probably would have adjusted quickly since they were often played on the FM radio in my parents' car. However, at the time, I had no idea who they were or what the songs were called. There were no smartphones, no Shazam, and no Google voice search. All I had was a fake Tamagotchi with a name like Gyaoppi.

Having failed my first contact with Western music, I didn't listen to it for a while after that.

When I became a high schooler, I started devouring Japanese music. That's when I encountered ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION and learned that the vocalist, Gotoh-san, liked a band called Weezer.

I immediately went to TSUTAYA and borrowed Weezer's 1st album and 3rd album. These two albums are called the 'Blue Album' and 'Green Album' based on their jacket colors, but honestly, I wish they wouldn't make things so complicated for us.

My impression after listening to these two albums was:

'I get it!!'

There were clear commonalities with the music I usually listened to, and it was easy on the ears.

However, whenever I tried listening to other Western music, my only impression remained 'I don't get it!' I wish I'd stop just saying I get it or don't get it and move on to the stage of judging whether it's good or bad. It's not like that mystery show where Osamu Hayashi just endures an hour based on whether he knows something or not.

By the time I became a university student, I got interested in Björk because of the movie 'Dancer in the Dark' starring her, leading to my third challenge with Western music.

However, the CD I went to the shop and bought was 'Biophilia', an album that had a pretty mixed reputation then and still does now. I think, 'You have a smartphone now, so look it up properly,' but I also think, 'Not looking it up is your charm.'

My impression after listening to this was:

'The sound is so sparse,' 'Great singing,' 'I still don't really get it,' 'But I might like the sparkly sound feeling a bit.'

It was a one-person debate ahead of its time. However, because I bought it new, I tried to get my money's worth by listening to it every night before bed, and gradually I grew to like it. If it were a streaming service, I definitely would have skipped it. The good thing about that era was that there were many things you grew to like out of the regret of having paid money for them.

That said, I didn't feel like actively listening to Western music on my own. I only properly listened to things recommended by artists I liked, such as Aphex Twin, Squarepusher, The Cribs, The Libertines, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, and My Bloody Valentine. It was all over the place.

By the way, I still listen to music in this rowdy way, so when asked what genre of music I like, I say 'everything.' From J-POP to the sound of someone punching a wire fence, as long as it makes a pleasant sound, I'm pretty much fine with anything.

I tried to listen using disc guides as a reference several times, but because they are usually listed in chronological order, I would listen to early rock 'n' roll every time and think, 'This all sounds like Yokohama Ginbae~' and give up on the curriculum. My resolution for music was as grainy as a photocopied image of Rina Ikoma's handwritten message.

Fans can tell what's written there.

And so, I continued to devour Japanese music as usual.

At the time, I used to record the titles of the albums I listened to on my blog, and I received many comments like 'You don't listen to Western music, do you? (lol)' and 'Such a typical subculture university student (lol),' for which I was truly grateful.

The music that someone was sneering at back then is what shaped me, and it has become my own unique personality. I'm really glad I didn't just listen to music that everyone else evaluated highly just to cozy up to someone.

Nowadays, thanks to illegal YouTube uploads and streaming, the Japanese music I listened to back then is starting to be appreciated overseas, and those people act like 'I've liked it since back then,' to which I officially say, 'Huh?'

While repeating 'I don't get it, let's stop listening for a while' and 'I might sort of get it, let's listen a bit more,' I eventually started listening to overseas music as a matter of course, and now I live a life where I buy about 100 CDs a month. To those who say 100 is a small amount: you can just win and go away somewhere.

However, I still don't think that makes me superior as a listener. I think I've just gotten used to genres that aren't very common in Japan, and it's become easier to listen to thanks to being reinforced by knowledge. In the first place, it's all just a hobby, so you should listen to what you like, how you like it.

I want everyone to be honest. Wasn't the Western music you first touched back then really hard to understand? In fact, because my view of prog-rock was so rigid, it took me until quite recently to understand Pink Floyd's 'The Dark Side of the Moon'. I'm sure everyone has something like this, so I want all music fans to talk about the masterpieces they didn't understand and have a big laugh.

https://x.com/natsui_tanoshi/status/2084995746663989321

https://x.com/natsui_tanoshi/status/2083491256915882202

*I've released an essay book about subculture, and I talk about things like this a lot! How convenient.

This essay was written specifically for promotion! I've been writing an insane amount of essays to promote the book I recently released! Please, just buy the book! Read my past articles too! This book contains 24 essays that I spent about 300 times more time writing than this one.

I also write simple essays about living alone, part-time jobs, and coffee, so you can have a good laugh!

I've made the subculture talk so that it doesn't require much prior knowledge! It recently went into a second printing, thanks to everyone! It was out of stock online until recently, so please get it soon! If the sales of this one grow further, there's a high possibility these articles can also be turned into a book!!

https://x.com/natsui_tanoshi/status/2089334755997417698

https://x.com/natsui_tanoshi/status/2087842128395444397

I recently spoke with my idol, Misato Ugaki. You can still listen to the archive of this person talking cheerfully.