The Sleepy Strange

The Sleepy Strange Artist: Japancakes
Label: Kindercore Records
Category: Music


Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Media: Audio CD
Number Of Discs: 1


UPC: 675818005822
EAN: 0675818005822
ASIN: B000056MRN


Release Date: 2001-02-13

The Sleepy Strange


Related Categories:

General General
Categories | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music
Indie Rock Indie Rock
Categories | Indie & Lo-Fi | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music
Experimental Rock Experimental Rock
Categories | Rock | Alternative Styles | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music
General General
Categories | Rock | Styles | Music
Pop Rock Pop Rock
Categories | Pop | Styles | Music
Experimental Music Experimental Music
Categories | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

Tracks:

  1. Waiting
  2. Disconnect the Cables
  3. This Year's Beat
  4. Vanishing Point
  5. Soft N Ez
  6. Sleepy Strange
  7. Vinyl Fever

Similar Items:

  1. If I Could See Dallas
  2. Belmondo
  3. Waking Hours
  4. Down the Elements
  5. TNT

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars Country Music!!.......2006-09-08

Whats wrong with country?? Japancakes makes me want to sit on my stoop and drink a beer in the warm sun...pretending its a proper front porch somewhere outside of the city. Its deeply influenced by varied sources, ranging from shoegaze to country. And yes when you use the tools of a specific genre you are bound to hear mention of said genre...but whats wrong with that? Great band..great album!

4 out of 5 stars Country? No........2006-02-02

I'm intensley bothered by people who throw in the word "country" when trying to describe Japancakes' music--as if by simply using a pedal steel guitar one can transform any genre of music into "country" music. Do you refer to George Harrison's mid-sixties Beatles contributions as Indian music just because he uses a sitar? Or Uncle Tupelo's "Satan, Your Kingdom Must Come Down" as Greek because they use a bouzouki on the track? Of course not. So what about this music is even remotely country? Nothing, I tell you.

John Neff's pedal steel is prominent against the background of more traditional rock instruments, true--but Heather's cello is awesome, too--does that make this chamber music? Chamber music for rock quartet and pedal steel guitar, maybe?

Look, this is just lovely music played by wonderful musicians who take a motive or two and rework it for 10 minutes against a drone of one or two chords. Think of them as ragas, or variations on a theme. Neff should get credit for taking his instrument, the pedal steel, and stretching into a new sound world, proving how versatile the instrument REALLY is. Maybe country music has had a monopoly on the pedal steel for too long. (Not that Neff never uses it for country, because he does--see The Star Room Boys if you want to hear him go that route, and very competently.) Personally, I'm impressed with how intuitive this stuff sounds, how RIGHT it sounds, how much melody is in this stuff. Whether it turns you on or bores you silly, the fact is that this is great music regardless of your tastes.

Definitely not for everyone, but fans of instrumental music should at least explore this wonderfuly innovative take on post-rock.

5 out of 5 stars Sophomore slump? You must be kidding!.......2004-09-24

Following a superb first album, and follow-up EP, THE SLEEPY STRANGE is an outright masterpiece from Georgia post-rockers Japancakes. Combining elements of ambient pop, country, classical, and even a little funk, this album has a little bit of everything for instrumental music lovers: uplifting twang in "Soft N Ez," a smooth laidback extended groove in "Vinyl Fever," and absolutely beautiful and haunting cello and pedal steel work in "This Year's Beat." If you're a Tortoise fan, check out this group... you shouldn't be disappointed!

3 out of 5 stars S'okay..........2003-03-16

For there to be only 7 songs of instrumentals, I must say that this is really okay stuff. I didn't get into it too much so don't have too much to write. Besides there are no lyrics. But nevertheless, the music is fair, a bit too Country for my tastes though.

Best track (to me):
Vinyl Fever

Basically, if you like tripped out Country music, you just might like this.

5 out of 5 stars Beautiful country music from outer space........2003-01-10

I first heard "Soft N EZ" on Seattle's excellent local radio station, and bought the cd hoping that the rest of it would be just as lovely. I was not dissappointed. These songs are both ethereal and down-to-earth; if Martians had folk music, this would be it.

Music Album:

  1. Live in Nottingham ~ Sky
  2. Faintly Blowing ~ Kaleidoscope
  3. Hell's Half Acre ~ Jolene
  4. Just Like Blood ~ Tom McRae
  5. Sniff ~ The Legendary Jim Ruiz Group
  6. One Clear Voice ~ Peter Cetera
  7. Guitar World ~ Steve Howe
  8. Room Temperature : The Complete Two-Disc Set ~ Peter Hammill
  9. Thrills, Kills & Sunday Pills ~ Grinspoon
  10. Accordion Solo ~ Ten in the Swear Jar

Music Album

Music Album

Music CD

Hub-Tones ~ Freddie Hubbard

The Complete RCA-Victor Mid-Forties Recordings (1944-1946) ~ Duke Ellington

We the Boys Will Rock Ya! ~ Big 6

Soul Samba ~ Ike Quebec

Extra Pressure ~ Eric Person

Frastrated ~ Glay

Douce France ~ Charles Trenet

Yokono Nagoriduki ~ Yoko Nagayama

Chutney Party Mix

Shuji Terayama Project ~ Various Artists