Just as I owe U2 for helping me discover the greatness that is Curtis Mayfield, I am in debt to Rajeev for insisting I go with him to see Yura Yura Teikoku live at Northsix earlier this month. Even though I went into the show with only vague memories of the one song I had heard from them, I had lofty expectations. I expected the band would serve only the finest in Japanese psych-rock, hand-crafted with care and delivered with mind-blowing power.

Did YYT measure up? I set my expectations too low.  Rajeev's description of the show is spot on: with minimal effort, YYT devastated the room with a precise set of monumental psychedelics.  As Other Music wrote back in the day, YYT are "bombastic and scorching, with fuzzed out guitars and droning freak-outs." They played the show of the year for me so far.

Adequately enthused, I sought out whatever YYT releases I could find. They may have nine albums out, but good luck trying to find any of these releases around here. Somehow I stumbled upon just the record I wanted to find, the trio's 2003 live disc Na.Ma.Shi.Be.Re.Na.Ma.Me.Ma.I. No seriously, that's the title. I knew a recording wouldn't recreate the experience of watching YYT "scorch" the room, but it would get me close.

I listened to the record that night after the show, trying to identify the songs that had just burned through my ears. Heading into the fifth track I stopped. What did I just hear? I skipped back to track four, an 11-minute odyssey titled "Nai!!" I played it again. Brilliance! What an amazing song! It begins with a simple bass-line, a melodic, rolling refrain that repeats over and over. Under all the noise and all the beautiful spires of guitars, you can still hear Kamekawa Chiyo's bass dancing in joyous circles. It carries the track, keeping it earthbound while Sakamoto Shintaro's guitar heroism makes you see stars.

If it's true that this song has more in common with Galaxie 500 than Acid Mothers Temple, as Other Music points out, then this is YYT's "23 Minutes in Toyko" (ok, I know that's a Luna song, but please indulge me), with a bullet train taking the place of Eurorail. Breath-taking!

Listen to Yura Yura Teikoku's "Nai!!" (MP3)

Bonus songs:

Daft Punk - "Da Funk (Live from Coachella, 2006)" (MP3)

A new single from The Rapture - "Get Myself Into It" (MP3)!