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Monday, November 29, 2021

Last Train to Tokyo and the idiosyncratic sonic hybridization of "Dropout"









"nothings guaranteed in this life..."


I have always had a fondness for three piece bands. Whether The Jam, Screaming Females or The Police (just to name a few), having only 3 musical legs is exquisitely artistically economical. I love the tendency to use space to build grooves and invariably each musician stretches a bit more than they would if there were more players. This is the case of Los Angeles based Last Train to Tokyo, not only are the puzzle pieces they craft complex but they fit together in magical ways. 

Listen to "Dropout" and the alt rock contains bits of a lot of shapes and flavors. The sound is full of "esques" like ska-esque downbeats, soul pop-esque flourishes, proto punk bits of angularities, avant garde experimental dips, blues rock progressive jams, indie rock ascensions, glam driven new wave cuts, funk rock breakdowns and (at the very beginning) I think I felt a nod to a 1940's Cotton Club-esque boogie amble. Incredibly, two brothers, Aki, Tatsuya, and drummer, Wes seem to coalesce all these musical shapes together quite effortlessly. Everything makes sense and flows, grooves together like a stirring improvisational, savantic session by musicians who know their shit.   

"Dropout" amid the oftentimes cookie cutter pop / indie rock world is a fucking heavenly gem. 

-Robb Donker Curtius   




THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM - PRESS NOTES:

https://www.facebook.com/lasttraintotokyo

https://twitter.com/lasttrain2tokyo

https://www.instagram.com/lasttraintotokyo/

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxDQ5n7hyNr_XaWX5pY1bDA

https://soundcloud.com/lasttraintotokyo

https://music.apple.com/us/artist/last-train-to-tokyo/1507816897


In 2015 two brothers, Aki, Tatsuya, and drummer, Wes, started out like any typical garage band in Fullerton, CA covering Japanese and American pop-punk songs. It's been anything but typical in the 5 years since as they began writing and self producing original music that incorporates a variety of different genres and sounds (Neo Soul, Jazz, Indie, Electronic, Pop, Rock).

Genre: Rock, Indie, Alternative, Shoegaze / Dream Pop, Bedroom / Lo-fi Pop

Influences / Sounds Like: Radiohead, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Asian Kung-Fu Generation, Arcade Fire, Grizzly Bear, Foster the People



Last Train to Tokyo, Los Angeles, Fullerton, 3 piece, hybrid rock, alternative rock, neo soul, jazz, indie, electronic, pop, rock, bedroom, indie rock, Japanese American, "Dropout", tightly would,

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