Reviews
Osaka Popstar
Osaka Popstar and the American Legends of Punk
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Add to del.ico.us.Review Date: 2006-11-04
I live my life in constant disbelief at how little attention people have paid to Osaka Popstar and the American Legends of Punk’s release in 2006. When you can boast having Marky Ramone, Ivan Julien (Richard Hell and the Voidoids), Jerry Only (the Misfits) and Dez Cadena (Black Flag) involved in this project, you would think it might perk interest, especially in the punk scene. Maybe it is because the lead singer John Cafiero isn’t a name that anybody knows, but that is a bullshit excuse if I have ever heard one.
It would least make sense if Osaka Popstar didn’t have anything to offer or if they just flat-out sucked. Then again, sucking didn’t stop the masses from breaking their necks in an attempt to embrace Angels and Airwaves, who boasted less of a pedigree and whose album is a snoozefest in comparison. Maybe it isn’t punk to pay respect to your elders, even if they are the same elders who paved the way for whatever punk band you are listening to instead. Whatever the reason is, you have fucked up but at least now you’ll have an opportunity to rectify it.
The immediate reaction you will probably have when listening to Osaka is that this group of musicians just bleed authenticity. Covering “Sailor Moon” might not seem very punk but when they knock it out of the park without even a sense of self doubt -- and sound like they are having the greatest time of their life doing it -- you realize they just don’t give a fuck. They don’t need to make this album, but are doing it because they love music -- punk music in particular -- and want to have a good time recording. In a music scene that is heavy on posturing and style it is refreshing to hear a group like Osaka Popstar, who take this trend and spit in its proverbial face.
It gets even better on the next track which is a cover of “Man of Constant Sorrow” – which, in case you don’t know, is from Oh Brother Where Art Thou, the movie in which George Clooney plays the lead singer of the Soggy Bottom Boys, who record this hit song under disguise while on the run as fugitives. I won’t go further into the plot, but if you’ve seen that movie it is a song you will never forget and it also happens to be one of my favourite movies of all time. This rendition manages to turn it into a punk song while still keeping enough of the old-style country from the original that made it so great in the first place. Marky Ramone whales away on his drumkit and Dez Caden provides a simple but classic guitar accompaniment along the way.
The best original on the album is the lead single and opening track “Wicked World,” which might as well be used as a manual for aspiring punk bands on what a great punk single should have. The chorus “Cuz we’re the world the wicked world, we’re marching to hell/We know what we’re doing we’re marching to hell” isn’t going to win any awards for profound grammar but it gets the point across and begs you to join in and chant along. If you buy the album it comes with a bonus DVD that has the video for this and “Insects”; both are awesome and should have been all over the video stations. It is borderline criminal that it hasn’t happened.
They even take on the Richard Hell-penned classic “Blank Generation” without any hint of disaster. Usually I wouldn’t suggest doing a cover of a punk song on a punk album, much like I wouldn’t think covering a country song is wise for a country singer, but again Osaka flips off normalcy and thrives while doing it. It doesn’t sound like a carbon copy of Richard Hell’s version; instead, it sounds vital and completely current. Much of that credit goes to the vocal talent of John Cafiero -- and of course to Richard Hell, who penned this classic that stands the test of time.
Other playful topics covered are Shaolin Monkeys, a quirky anthem about the fear of having monsters in your closet, a hilarious song about the paralyzing fear that comes from being out of Captain Crunch and lest I forget, the ominous tongue-in-cheek, potentially life-saving warning to watch out for the bugs that are going to kill you on “Insects.”
I raise my glass and praise the boys of Osaka Popstar for their obvious love of music, and continuing to strive forward and make music that matters when it would be so easy to rest on their laurels. I can’t think of many other genres where authenticity is more crucial than punk music, and it is a concept that is grossly misunderstood by so many wannabe bands who are convinced wearing a Black Flag t-shirt and getting a bunch of piercings is the answer. And we’ll pray for them too.
Score: 8.2
- Dan