Fujiya and Miyagi
5/8/7
Opening up the second Peter Bjorn and John set was Brighton’s Fujiya & Miyagi who are not Japanese nor do they sound it. They’ve been getting some great press because of their 2006 album Transparent Things which I’m really not impressed by. It’s basically a chill out type of album with male whispering to accompany the beats (I’d rather hear Jarvis Cocker, thank you). Most of their songs seem to be based soley around the repetition of one main lyric with the use of drum machine samples, guitar and bass on stage.
On a positive note, the songs came off much better on live. There’s always a danger when you see more electronic bands that it’s going to be for the most part some guy playing his laptop in darkness (Kim Hiorthøy, Tim Hecker, Alog all fit this description) but it was more interesting with the guitar and the bass. The wispy vocals also came off as much less annoying and you could just feel a good flow and vibe to the songs overall that made them work much more than when you are listening at home (unless your home is a nightclub in which by all means, rush out and get Transparent Things quick! They also seem like really nice guys, though I’m mainly basing all of this on their seeming fondness towards the Empty Bottle cat, Radley.