Free Time (English Version)

Japan’s greatest punk-pop group, the all-female trio Shonen Knife, release their “English” album and it proves that language barriers are irrelevant. There is no change in attack. The melodies still come quickly and the beats are hard and nasty. The guitars are louder and slashing than many homegrown U.S. punk bands, while the vocals still turn sweet like candy when they grab the hook. “Perfect Freedom,” “Rock N Roll Cake” and “Economic Crisis” grab the crazy agitated power of their decades-old approach, while “An Old Stationary Shop” has a nostalgic mid-tempo working for it that isn’t far removed from the Jam at their most reflective. “Love Song” lacks only handclaps to make it the perfect “girl-group” move, as it adds seductive harmonies to all old-style soda-pop-shop teenaged love song. The album also includes the Japanese version of “Rock N Roll Cake” and a “techno” version of  “Capybara.” Shonen Knife may never reach beyond cult status, but they have one of the most well served cults in music today. These ladies rock.