Throwback Thursday: Melt-Banana - Cell-Scape Review

What is there to say about the legendary Melt-Banana that hasn't already been said? One of the best punk bands of all time has been making some of most hyperactive and imaginative music since the early 90s, and the fact that they're so unknown should be a crime. Melt-Banana (or MxBx, as they often like to call themselves) has a ton of great albums, including 2013's magnum opus "Fetch", but I'm gonna talk about one a little older than that; ten years older to be exact. "Cell Scape" is an incredibly important noise rock album and I want to give it all the attention it deserves.

"Cell Scape" starts off with an unassuming instrumental intro "Phantasmagoria", but the harsh feedback kicks in for "Shield For Your Eyes, A Beast in the Well on Your Hand". The glitchy, screeching riff sounds almost computer-generated, but guitarist Ichirou Agata is doing this all with just his guitar and about a million pedals. Yasuko Onuki's high-pitched vocals come in and the song just slams into you with an incomparable force. This is what Melt-Banana is all about.

"A Dreamer Who is Too Weak to Face up to" is catchy, especially for a pre-Fetch Melt-Banana. There's a lot of noise, but it has an unmistakeable energy and sense of rhythm. On the subject of rhythm, there are no drums on this album; it's all done by drum machine. I, for one, couldn't tell. "Lost Parts Stinging Me So Cold" is one of my favorite classic Melt-Banana songs, a more familiarly-structured song even through the intense feedback and glitchy guitars. Yasuko's "so cooooooooold" isn't exactly "catchy", but somehow really infectious. "Chain-Shot to Have Some Fun" is another one of my favorites by the band, starting with an intensifying wall of sound that explodes into a pummelling thrash. The riff is one of the catchiest things here somehow and is just so unique and ear-splitting at the same time. I love how this band's songs go from the often bare(ish) verses to the often EXTREMELY heavy choruses. There are elements from punk rock, harsh noise, and even heavy metal swimming in the veins of every song.

"Like a White Bat in a Box, Dead Matters Go On" starts off with an ear-piercing screech, which becomes even more glitchy and noisy guitar sounds. Past all of that there are a lot of Polysics-esque elements here, plus some more traditional punk rock sounds. This is pure 90s punk in an early-2000s package that got dropped on the curb. At one point Yasuko is singing through what sounds like a broken vocoder and it's like writing a pop song with the sound of nails on a chalkboard. I absolutely hate that sound more than anything, but somehow this song is just... really catchy? I don't know why, but I like it a lot.

Next we get "Key is a Fact That a Cat Brings", which has a really awesomely heavy riff. The band jumps back and forth between pitches so high they can probably only be heard by dogs, to sludgy, Melvins-esque hardcore riffs. "A Hunter in the Rain to Cut the Neck Up in the Present Stage" is an absolute mess, which I love. It has barely any structure but it's just so much fun. It's about as hard to follow as its title is hard to remember. There are a lot of intricacies in the noise that are hard to pick out, but can also be rewarding if you do.

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The last real song on the album comes in the form of "If it is the Deep Sea, I Can See You There" which features one of the only instances ever of Yasuko actually singing, rather than yelping. Her voice is a bit wavering, but it fits the music perfectly. It's as noisy as any Melt-Banana song and it's great, I love it! This brings us to the closing track, "Outro for Cell-Scape". Back when I first saw this title, I thought it would be similar to "Phantasmagoria" on the other end of this album. Well, not quite. "Outro for Cell-Scape" is a ten-minute-long ambient electronic piece. It has no place on the album whatsoever, but I'm not complaining. It's calming, and maybe that's the point.

Cell-Scape may not be Melt-Banana's BEST album, but it is AMONG their best; definitely top 5, if nothing else. Top three, even. 13 years later, it's still just as surprising, experimental, and just absolutely insane as ever. Melt-Banana is a staple of Japanese underground music, and remains one of the best punk bands in the world to this day.

Favorites: Lost Parts Stinging Me So Cold, Chain-Shot to Have Some Fun, Like a White Bat..., Key is a Fact..., If is is the Deep Sea...

-Justin

Cell Scape:
01. Phantasmagoria
02. Shield for Your Eyes, a Beast in the Well on Your Hand
03. A Dreamer Who is Too Weak to Face Up to
04. Lost Parts Stinging Me So Cold
05. Chain-Shot to Have Some Fun
06. Like a White Bat in a Box, Dead Matters Go On
07. Key is a Fact That a Cat Brings
08. A Hunter in the Rain to Cut the Neck Up in the Present Stage
09. If it is the Deep Sea, I Can See You There
10. Outro for Cell-Scape

Melt-Banana Is:
Yasuko Onuki
Ichirou Agata

For More Information:
Website: http://www.melt-banana.net/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Melt-Banana/192954987398661
Twitter: https://twitter.com/melt_banana/