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Rating: Today I present to you a gem: a pure and simple hard rock album that could potentially be appreciated by a wide audience. "TMG 1" is not particularly easy to find in the Italian market, but it deserves a brief description in the hope that someone reads this and wants to seek it out. Personally, I am very proud to have it in its original format, and the cover beside me now shines in my hands. Artwork is often an important business card, and this one, so different from the usual covers, characterized by a skilled use of colors, leaves a mark. The katana held tightly might be the protagonist's Gibson: that Tak Matsumoto (from which the album's name TMG 1) leader of a band, B'z, which is idolized in their homeland. On a hypothetical Debaser.jap, there are probably dozens of reviews of them: exactly as it happens here for the Drim Tiater. Before writing what follows, I felt the need to listen to one of their albums randomly. Well packaged, but the Japanese singing is definitely not for me as I find it flat and not very passionate. Musically speaking, they are simple and extremely direct, proposing impactful hard rock that I do not find hard to believe achieves remarkable success.
But this is not the story of B'z, and if you want to delve into their knowledge, take a tour of the net: maybe you'll thank me. Tak, after the instrumental album Hana (extremely boring for anyone who is not a guitarist like me) in 2004 wanted to try to break through abroad, and for this, he hired a singer appealing also to the Western market named Eric Martin (Mr. Big). A fine lived and passionate voice, his, which excellently interpreted a top-level tracklist that perhaps has the flaw of being a bit too long, counting a good 14 tracks.
However, there are several chapters extremely successful, capable of showcasing Tak's talent in composing winning melodies and knowing how to play the guitar without overshadowing everything else. He hardly ever performs overly virtuosic solos but tries to enrich the sound with timely riffs, arpeggios for a varied, enjoyable work with a good melodic rate without falling into saccharine. You move from the funky rhythms of "My Alibi", to the engaging and easy ones of "Kings For A Day". It starts with a decisive attack in "Trapped" which shows Martin in great shape, to then let oneself go to the catchy "Greatest Show On Earth". The anthem of the opener "Japan, Our Time Is Now" rightfully energizes us with a clever use of keyboards, while completely different is the rock-tinged crescendo with sophisticated choruses of "Wish You Were Here". There are also the ballads (too many) crafted to perfection and, with all the clichés in the foreground, represent in my opinion the only weak point of an album to have.
"TMG 1" is most likely a unique work in the sense that I doubt Tak Matsumoto intends to have an experience of this kind again, having such wide popularity in his homeland. It leaves a bitter taste as it's rare, if not extremely rare, to hear CDs so varied and high-level in the rock-hard rock realm. All this makes the hunt for this album even more enticing, which personally, I consider the musical surprise of 2004.
Four stars would be more appropriate, but let's exaggerate hoping someone falls into my net.
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