Wicked Neat Music Videos: Fujiya & Miyagi

Rounding out a litany of periodics I wanted to start is the music video segment. No I am not from the East Coast, however, I would like to gainfully adopt the upper Northeast’s use of the word “wicked” and combine it with my annoying habit of using old-timey adjectives like “neat” and “swell” or outdated phrases like “what in tarnations” and “golly gee willikers”. Let’s just call it a “niche vocabulary”.

Speaking of a niche, the English band Fujiya & Miyagi might possibly be the poster-child for the “niche band” of the 21st Century. There are many reasons why this band hugs the fringes, most flagrantly due to the vocals. Somewhere between a yoga instructor’s coo and an asthma wheeze is David Best’s vocals. The backend of his words contain the slickest of British accents, but it’s the nonchalant speak-singing that ultimately give the vocals that cosmopolitan sheen. Whether you prefer your singing sung, find the vocals just a bit too exotic and poised, or just find the vocal-style really bitchin’ cool, I think we can all agree that a Fujiya & Miyagi song can be easily picked out of a lineup.

Maybe another reason the band can often come across as an acquired taste is the nebulousness of their sound. It’s hard to put a finger on a good description, other than to say they are a general electronica band that sounds a bit like arthouse rock with a smacking of krautrock. The rhythm section is usually carrying the pulsating, mathematical precision of krautrock pioneers while the vocals, sonic stylings, and song themes (often the theme is stream of consciousness lyrics or abstract subjects) seem to be very much rooted in the art rock canon. The sound is clean, never dirty, and the production is as speckless as the unnervingly clean vocals.

The sound is kind of polarizing, though I think I find myself in the middle despite most wanting to move towards either end of the spectrum of like/dislike. I like my music with a bit more emotion and grit, yet I find the squeaky clean sound really intriguing as well. Something else I like about these guys (hailing from Brighton, England, a seaside resort town south of London, which kind of explains the leisure in Best’s voice) is the artistic liberties they take in their music videos. Their videos are always novel, oddball, and right up the art rock alley. The video above for “Knickerbocker”, off of their third album Lightbulbs (2008), is an incredibly memorable music video. I saw it for the first time at least six or seven years ago and have never forgotten it. I thought it would be an excellent first entry for the “Wicked Neat Music Videos” category.

Fujiya & Miyagi, named after both a popular record player and the sage karate instructor from The Karate Kid (1984), have released a total of six albums and all of them contain their penchant style. Bands like Cake, Jethro Tull (that flute!), or the Dave Matthews Band have these unmistakable styles that are instantly recognizable, and I think Fujiya & Miyagi find themselves in the good company of other unique acts.