KODO: Mondo Head

A Music Review

by Shad

I'm not good at explaining why I like certain music, I just know what I like. I suppose I have a good ear - that is not to say that I have a particularly great taste in music, I wouldn't call myself a critic or expert by any means - but I'm able to pick out certain single instruments, sounds, beats, or vocals in a song or melody or beat and focus on it, listening to the consistency (or inconsistency, whichever the case) in the timing and pitch, singling just one thing. Listening to a group like Kodo is great for that, because they throw tons of things into their music nowadays that it's rarely ever just Japanese drums.

Since the forming of the group in 1981, Kodo has strived to maintain traditional Japanese music in its most inspiring form; the Japanese taiko drums. Kodo has 25 albums in their discography, including last year's official anthem for the 2002 FIFA World Cup. I have several of their albums, including my favorite that was heavy with flutes - Ibkuki, and even a remix album Saiso, a techno-remixed album of some of Kodo's best tracks. I picked up Mondo Head at Borders one day, when I found it sitting at the front of the Japanese world music section. I wasn't even aware that a 2002 album had been released, but there it was.

The first thing I noticed upon shoving this CD into my car's player, was that the sound was unlike any of the other albums I've heard from Kodo before. The frist track, Berimbau Jam, is riddled with cymbals, moroccas, and Latin vocals, and is a very energentic and enthusiastic tune. A few tracks, such as Sange and Wataru, sound traditionally Japanese, but the majority of the CD is a medly of different musical cultures and influences, with possibly a hundred different instruments. The tracks Maracatu and Oya y Ogun both sound of African influence, while Psychopomp, Daraijin, and Kashira have sounds of a middle eastern or Indian nature. The third track, called Okesa Prayer, features a digeridoo. My favorite tracks are number 9 - Echo Bells, which has a strange melody of taiko drums, bells, and a harmonica - and number 11 - Ektal, the longest track on the CD at 7 minutes 16 seconds, featuring several instruments I'm not familiar with, but I tend to associate with India or Spain. At any rate, Ektal tends to remind me of some far-off distant world, like a fantasy island resembling ancient Rome. It's a strange tune, but about 3 minutes in, you can hear the taiko drums in the distance, first drumming deep beats, then drumming the side or rim of the drum, which creates a click-clacking sound that is unique to the traditional form of percussion.

Anyway, that's about all I can say about this album. I've never written a music review before, but I hope this gives the reader some insight as to what Kodo is all about. Not only is it about traditional Japanese music - which I find to be inspiring - but it's also about a feeling that spans across cultures, and across time. In the CD booklet, the producer writes: "Mondo Head is not merely a recording. There are many cultures and spirits involved in this work. We started with our spirits and were transformed through our drums. This is another spiritual wakening of Kodo".

Oh, and when Xero had found out that I bought this album, he jokingly asked me "Yeah? How are the drums?". By the way, the drums, they're great.