I’ve often found that doing a “concept” album often leads to artists taking themselves far too seriously (Red Sparowes, anyone?), as well as damaging the quality of the music contained within, as it is forced to fill gaps in the “concept” or “story” rather than being allowed to develop into the song (or album) it should have been. Too often, the grand aspiration (or pretension) of an artist gets in the way of the actual creation. So it is my pleasure to say that the second album from Japanese electro-classical act Motoro Faam, …and Water Cycles, is based upon what could be my favorite concept ever, and that the pitfalls of concept work are navigated with confidence and poise.

The success of the work stems partially from its concept – that of water cycles, the endless loop of transformation that water takes as it crosses the planet. Motoro Faam isn’t trying to lay down heavy-handed, didactic social commentary, nor are they trying to tell an overly-complicated, melodramatic story in less than an hour. They’re writing songs about something we see every day. The other reason the work is successful is the musicians themselves are extremely talented. Pianist Kato Ayumi and violinist Kobara Daisuke outshine anything their post rock competition can throw at them, and the sampling of Mizukami Ryuta is top-notch. Perhaps, more importantly, these classically-trained musicians don’t take themselves too seriously either. Some of the electronic programming is excessive, perhaps to the point of turning overly-critical listeners away from the album. The humor of the excess is intentional, however, with multiple listens strengthening its power, ultimately infusing the album with a warmth and vitality that so many other albums lack.

The album opens with “and Snowmelts,” which sends its initial melody literally crashing below the sea seconds after it begins. This process of emerging and submerging below the water is repeated over and over throughout the track, providing variations upon the main themes through the alternate elements through which we are to hear the music – air and water. “and Precipitation” and “and Infiltrations” constitute the energetic peak of the water cycle that is the album, with lovely piano melodies that often give themselves over to the aforementioned joyous electronic excesses. The album then moves into more sparse territory, culminating in “and Subsurface Flows,” which veers close to an ambient soundscape, the cycle slowly winding down. A mournful violin carries the majority of the track, eventually fading into an expanse of altered melody and samples of howling wind. Just when you think the cycle has ended, however, all sorts of electronic chimes and alarms wake you right back up, setting the stage for “and Snowmelts” to continue the endless cycle of water.

A comparison to World’s End Girlfriend is inevitable, given both the similarity of the works of the two electro-classical artists as well as their shared nationality, but Motoro Faam does a lot to separate themselves from this giant. The restraint they show and the concepts they use to focus their work allow them to stand side-by-side with the foremost members of their genre, rather than hiding in the impressive shadow cast by World’s End Girlfriend and merely imitating his body of work. The sky is the limit for these three young musicians, and with this sort of commitment to their craft, they may just reach it.

-Zach Mills