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Plastic Tree - Nega to Poji Review

"Nega to poji" means "negative and positive." While you might think Plastic Tree named their latest album Nega to Poji because they wanted to draw attention to the weaknesses and strengths of their music, the title holds a deeper, more artistic meaning. Understated and mellow, with punctuated bursts of energy, the album explores the contrast between positive and negative musical space, stressing each sound as essential to the resulting compositions.

This is a bold move on Plastic Tree's part. Not every band can place the same importance on the non-vocal instruments as they do on the vocals. By making the melodies simple on such tracks as "Orenji" and "Fujunbutsu," the band is able to take focus off of Ryutarou's solemn voice and onto instruments that normally fade into the background. "Elegy" takes this even further by turning Ryutarou vocals into more of a percussive instrument, allowing Akira's minimalist guitar riffs to take center stage.

Turning a guitar into the melodic instrument is nothing new, but being able to bring the bass and especially the drums into the foreground is extremely difficult. The low drone of Tadashi's bass serves as the breath of life to songs like "Makka na Ito." It's constant presence makes the album feel incredibly organic. When drummer Hiroshi accentuates every third beat in "Kuroi Kasa," he shocks the song like a musical defibrillator. On later verses, Hiroshi finds a moment to tap out a brief but poignant drum solo that sounds like the fluttering of an animated heart.

Nega to Poji is not the first time Plastic Tree has experimented with placing different instruments in the limelight, nor are they the first group to do so. But with subtle and purposeful instrumentation, this band redefines what it takes to be a well-rounded, equal opportunity band.

- Sarah Dworken

Images courtesy of Universal Music Japan.