nisennenmondai: n

Blast First Petite re-release Tokyo trio Nisennenmondai's fourth studio album, N. Nisennenmondai is the world's best-kept secret among noise rock enthusiasts. Since the Y2K bug of the band's Japanese-translation-namesake was still a thing (Nisennenmondai means "computer bug problem of 2000 year"), the instrumental trio has been spinning post-punk, no wave, and Krautrock influences into something fresh and surprisingly danceable. N's three tracks are as minimalist as their names ("A-1, "B-1″, and "B-2″) and the album title infer. The notion of songs, standout or otherwise, is irrelevant here, for N is a journey meant to be taken from start to finish and without detour. Nisennenmondai's latest trip begins with an urgent loop that is promptly joined by a tight, pounding rhythm, and soon the specter of guitar dissonance drifts in and out. Throughout the rest of N's 40 minutes, a series of clattering guitar textures enter the fold, as bass rhythms and drum patterns rise and fall with a subtle, yet irresistible, hypnotism. All the while, drummer Sayaka Himeno steadily maintains repetitions for impossible lengths of time, easing into progressively more rapid-fire rhythms. Nisennenmondai's arrangements spellbind the listener, the entire album unfolding as one piece, all without ever becoming tedious. N is a fascinating mass, repetition as concept becoming an unofficial fourth band member. The album consistently transitions into new, raw grooves, each instrument following the same pattern for several minutes before drifting seamlessly into a new one without interrupting the flow, the others drawing attention away at the appropriate time. Nisennenmondai master subtlety on N, reigning the chaos into a hypnotic drone. N was originally issued in 2013 on Japan label Bijin Record and previous Nisennenmondai releases have consisted of a live album and some singles that are impossible to track down. To date only one of their previous albums were freely available outside of their native Japan (2008's Destination Tokyo on Norwegian label Smalltown Supersound).