WRONG SCALE

The last month or so I have attempted to write blogs for several of my favourite artists. However, each time one of my fav bands comes up on shuffle, I open a new text doc and start writing about that one instead. Shows how much I like music and apparently how much I want to write about them! I settled for WRONG SCALE because I wrote down a longish list of good material that really relates to why I like them. Also, they are a new band to me, so while they are fresh in my mind...

I don't know that much about WRONG SCALE, except that, true to their name, the titles to their tracks are an odd mix of lower and upper case. They are not that well known, and being Japanese all the information about them is in Kanji. I do know they were a four-piece band together from 1999-2009. It didn't take me too long to get into them. The list I have applies to WRONG SCALE as a whole, but for concentration purposes I have chosen the album 'bed and board' as my WRONG SCALE example album (It is by FAR the best in my opinion).

Here is the track list for bed and board (2007):

1 melt down 2:44

2 calling 3:36

3 ACT 4:33

4 a lie 0:56

5 frames laid out 3:27

6 Car Chain 5:30

7 hold in your arms 3:04

8 Delete 3:30

9 Standing in the city lights 3:58

10 The day rain changes to the rainbow 2:51

11 erasing my memory 4:01

The first song I heard by WRONG SCALE was 'Trace of Grief', which is one of their catchiest songs by far in my opinion. And from that song, I had already started to get into WRONG SCALE's rhythm and style unique to them. I really connect with artists that have their unique approach to songwriting - as I mentioned in my Feeling Strangely Fine entry I am picky and impatient with music so when stuff that sounds different comes along my ears are suddenly alert. WRONG SCALE have a sound that is unmistakably them, and so this is a big musical turn-on for me. Fold Zandura is another great example of this in my collection - I have many examples but they are a great example, and I shall write about them sooner or later :)

Perhaps the second most noticeable aspect of WRONG SCALE are the vocals. Vocals are very important to me, and I love it when the vocalist's singing voice is part of the music and contributes to the song's melody. After all, the voice box is an instrument too, there's no doubt about it. The main vocalist sings a lot of the lyrics in English, which gives his voice a certain 'foreign accent' sound which really contributes to their unique sound. At least two of the band members alternate singing on a few songs, which is nice. Also, I really like the parts when they harmonise with each other (for example in frames laid out).

The guitar riffs of WRONG SCALE are very energetic and change often. I have always liked this. Sometimes the guitar doesn't even sound like a guitar. The drums are usually interesting to listen to as well as they seem to change nearly as often as the guitar! The vocals then come in and the style really gels together. There's no doubt about WRONG SCALE having a great rhythm. The progression and intros to some of their songs are so melodic and set you up liking the song instantly.

I'm not sure what it is (probably the fast-paced sound of their music), but when I listen to the album through from beginning to end the first half flies by quickly, and the second goes by a little slowly. All my favourite songs apart from erasing my memory are at the start of the album, and the second half has a few slow songs on. As I think I have mentioned before I am not so interested in slower songs. Anyhow, I have decided to cut down on discussing the songs and only talk about my favourites and things that are worth mentioning.

melt down is a nice start to the album. It starts energetic then gets more energetic! It is quite a short song and I think it is a nice intro to the album. The guitar and vocals compliment each other - when one picks up so does the other, then one changes riff / tone and so does the other. The song is as catchy as any WRONG SCALE song. Unfortunately, although a fair chunk of the lyrics are in English I can't really tell what they are singing. I never was good at picking words out.. Although, for now (until I learn Japanese), the lyrics are not one of the main reasons I like WRONG SCALE anyway.

calling might be my be my favourite song on the album. I love the chorus. I like the way the song makes me feel, and the way the instruments set an interesting mood. Then the chorus sets in and the mood is changed completely in an instant. It's almost quite melancholy at the start, but fast-paced. It's interesting to me how this song feels sad and happy at the same time. The song sounds almost like they are improvised at times with the guitar - in a good way. WRONG SCALE's signature sound is sort of a mish mash of sounds and feelings. I really like the vocals in this song as well they are expressive.

frames laid out is great at the start - so upbeat and it gets progressively more energetic. As I said earlier, I love the way the guys harmonise with each other in this song. It is quite easy to like this song it is so catchy because the riff changes so often.

At this point, I find myself about to repeat myself about why I like each song. These songs are quite similar.. I like WRONG SCALE because they are catchy, eclectic, different. Mostly because they have their own very distinctive style. Can you name a band similar to WRONG SCALE? I would say that this band sells itself...