HALF JAPANESE - Fire In The Sky LP

RSD 2025

This 1993 recording from Jad Fair's Half Japanese is the album that pushed the group from the obscure fringe of the U.S. post-punk underground into a full-blown indie rock legend. Aided by the fact that Sonic Youth, Nirvana, and Teenage Fanclub were all singing praise for the group, it was now finally time for a wider public to grasp the concept of one of the greatest unsung heroes of American underground rock. The 1989 documentary film about the group, The Band That Would Be King, is a must-see that has the ability to make even the curious listener fall in love with the band. For Fire in the Sky, Jad Fair enlisted guitarist/producer Don Fleming, bassist Jason Willett, and longstanding drummer Gilles Rieder on what was the band's most straightforward pop album to date. "Eye of the Hurricane" is one of Fair's shining moments, which is utterly infectious, as is "Turn Your Life Around," which features a guest appearance from Yo La Tengo guitarist Ira Kaplan.