#815: Let It Go

“I was the one who talked about the other man,
I thought he was my friend but you had other plans!” – Loudness

 

 

GETTING MORE TALE #815: Let It Go

The first time I saw Loudness on the Pepsi Power Hour, I was hooked. I can remember being fascinated by Japanese culture for a long time, but Loudness made it deeper, because now I had Japanese heavy metal to be interested in.

“Rock and roll Crazy Nights!” sang the quartet.  “You are the hero, tonight!”  Sounded cool to me.  I was 13.

Minoru Niihara on MuchMusic, 1986

The Power Hour didn’t play a lot of Loudness, just two songs.  “Crazy Nights” was the first, but by 1986 the band were becoming more Americanized.  “Let It Go”, the only other video they played, was a real attempt to crack the US market.  I was an instant fan.  Contrived or not, “Let It Go” is one of the ultimate 80s rock anthems.

Some brief Loudness history is in order.  Akira Takasaki, lead guitar, is the Eddie Van Halen of Loudness.  He formed the band and is the only member to play on all the albums.  He and drummer Munetaka Higuchi came from an earlier band called Lazy, named after the Deep Purple single.  Lazy was far more pop rock and Takasaki, a true virtuoso, was dissatisfied.  Metal was growing in Japan.  Soon Masayoshi Yamashita had joined on bass, and the band just needed a singer.  Minoru Niihara of Earthshaker to the rescue.  Within months they had a debut album:  1981’s The Birthday Eve.

The band recorded four albums in Japanese.  But the fourth, Disillusion had an English version recorded as well.  This led to their breakthrough Thunder in the East, released on Atco in the US.  The opening track was “Crazy Nights”, which led to video play.  And that’s how I came on board.

“M-Z-A!”

“You, come to see the show, well we’re gonna rock and roll you!”  I never ask too much lyrically of any band whose second language is English.  Still, “Crazy Nights” was about as good as the American rock of the 80s.  Niihara’s accent is thick but this only adds to the appeal.  The music, compared to their earlier Japanese albums, is toned down, more mainstream.  But it’s still clearly heavy metal.  The emphasis is on the riff.

Also important is the image.  Despite the cultural differences, Loudness still looked cool to American audiences.  When everybody else (cough cough Iron Maiden) were wearing rising sun T-shirts, these guys were actually from the rising sun!  Their stage moves also translated perfectly.  And check out Takasaki’s metal-plated guitar.  He understood the kind of visual flash that he needed.  His outfit matched, but Vince Neil was not amused.  When Loudness opened for the Crue, Takasaki was ordered to wear a different top.  His was too similar to Shout-era Motley.

But what’s with that strange chant, “M-Z-A”?  According to Niihara, he didn’t have lyrics in place for that section, and on the guide vocal just sang random sounds, “M-Z-A”.  It made the album, and puzzled fans the world over!

Like Thunder in the East, the followup album Lightning Strikes was produced by Max Norman.  Under Norman, the band recorded “Let It Go”, their most commercial song yet and one that will stick with me for life.

In 1986 I had mono, and I was housebound for weeks and weeks on end, except for doctor’s appointments.  I sat in the basement recording MuchMusic videos, and “Let It Go” was early in that batch.  To me, Loudness had never looked or sounded cooler.  I thought Niihara was really slick in that suit jacket.  The image was clearly toned down to “hard rock” from “heavy metal”, but the new casual-looking Loudness also appeared more natural.  The video even showed the construction of a guitar (Takasaki’s), the likes of which I had never seen before.  When I was well enough, Bob came over and watched all the videos I taped.  He loved “Let It Go” too.

“It’s Godzilla!” 

I continued to love the song into adulthood, partly because of the lyrics.  They were almost autobiographical!

I was the one who talked about the other man,
I thought he was my friend, but you had other plans,
I just can’t take that chance,
There ain’t no looking back,
Just a victim of circumstance,
I helped you fall in love so, Let It Go!

That happened to me!  I did tell her about the other man.  They totally would not have met if it wasn’t for me.  Fuckin’ hell!  Niihara knew my pain before I even did!  What about the rest of the words?

Driving to the top of the city,
Drive until I reach the view,
Where we used to try and see,
Our dream come true.

There was this one location where you could park the car and just look down at the city.  I did this sometimes when I was feeling romantic, or alone and feeling down.

Stop the car, light a cigarette,
Fill the air with the radio,
And there’s nothing I can do,
But think of you.

I never smoked a cigarette in my life; I wish I could just delete that line!  Otherwise, everything so far is bang on.

When I dial your telephone number,
It’s like you’re never home,
But I know it isn’t true,
What’s he doing with you?

Oh man.  So many times.  So many times.

They almost could have called this “The Love Life of Young Mike”!  That’s one way a song you like can stick with you for life.  Today I just really like the music.  “Let It Go” has all the right stuff.  Brilliant riff, great verses and chorus, and a well-composed melodic guitar solo.  It’s literally the perfect hard rock song.

Loudness with Mike Vescera

What happened next to Loudness?  They made one more album with Niihara called Hurricane Eyes, with Eddie Kramer producing.  It failed to have an impact, and Takasaki was convinced to hire on an American vocalist.  It seemed to be the only option, to grab that brass ring of success.  After one more EP (Jealousy, released only in Japan), Minoru Niihara was let go.  He was replaced by Obsession’s Mike Vescera for two albums.  “You Shook Me” from 1989’s Soldier of Fortune gained some video play.   Ultimately though, Mike had to make a go of it with Yngwie Malmsteen, with whom he recorded the excellent Seventh Sign album.

Like many metal bands, in the 90s Loudness faced an identity crisis.  Bassist Yamashita departed, and Mike Vescera was replaced by former E-Z-O lead singer Masaki Yamada.  E-Z-O had two US-released albums, and some name recognition due to a Gene Simmons produced record.  Releasing albums in Japan, Loudness carried on after original drummer Munetaka Huguchi departed as well.  The band experimented musically and lyrically, with Eastern and nu-metal influences, like the song “Dogshit” from 1998’s Dragon.

Loudness with Masaki Yamada

Takasaki kept Loudness going while also taking care of a very busy solo career.  Through the 1990s, Loudness made five albums with Yamada singing, all released only in Japan.

Ultimately, though Yamada was an ideal replacement, he could never be the original.  He suggested that Loudness reunite their classic lineup for their 20th anniversary, and so it happened.  Akira Takasaki, Minoru Niihara, Masayoshi Yamashita and Munetaka Higuchi reformed the classic lineup, and proved it was not just a one-off.  They continued to crank out new albums starting with 2001’s Spiritual Canoe, losing no momentum.  The reunion seemed built to last, until Higuchi sadly succumbed to liver cancer in 2008.  The beloved drummer was replaced by Masayuki Suzuki the following year and Loudness carried on again.

It’s an inspiring tale of perseverance, talent, and determination.

Strangely enough I have only now bought my first Loudness album.  They no longer have a huge presence here and their CDs are very hard to find.  Lightning Strikes seemed the right one to go with.  It’s enjoyable.  Everybody knows that Takasaki is frighteningly good, but really the whole band is.  Quite a lot of fun, to hear a classic 80s metal album so long after it came out.  It’s a trip.  And I’m glad Loudness never “Let It Go”, and kept going on despite all the changes.  Time to get Thunder in the East next.  I love it Loud…ness.

 


“Let It Go” with friends at the memorial concert for Munetaka Higuchi

 

29 comments

  1. Awesome. This post is wicked. Great bio on the band. “Thunder in the East” was probably my favorite of the ones I’ve heard. They just weren’t the same when they got the U.S. singer for Soldier of Fortune.

    Good on you for never smoking. I smoked a handful of times when I was a young man, just to try it out. Mostly cigarrettes, and once a cigar. Sometimes out of nowhere I’ll dream about smoking and wake up craving a cigarette hardcore. Even after not thinking about it in a long time. Crazy how that stuff is, glad I barely smoked (maybe five times total). I don’t do anything now. No prescriptions, no booze, no smokes, not a thing. The only thing I get is caffeine in my Earl Grey, but I keep that to a once in a while status. Picard would be proud.

    Loudness was cool. Sick guitar tone as well, the two Max Norman ones sound perfect.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Picard has changed his order to Earl Grey, decaf in the new series :(

      I guess we all get older and have to ditch the caffeine. I guess.

      I just ordered Thunder in the East, and Disillusion!

      Like

      Reply

      1. Decaf? What the fuck?! What is this bullshit!?

        “LIKE HELL! I’M A GONNA ROCK YOU, LIKE HELL!!! I’M A GONNA SHOCK YOU, LIKE HELL!!!” – Loudness.

        I never drink caffeine unless it’s in tea, and I never drank it to get up in the morning, so I guess I’m okay.

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply

        1. Because of my anxiety disorder I only drink caffeinated coffee on the weekends. Which means I only drink coffee on the weekends. I don’t see the point without the caffeine.

          I do like a tea too but more herbal stuff. Caffeine isn’t the point for me when it’s tea.

          Like

  2. Oh damn. All these years in Crazy Nights I heard “hey hey hey” instead of “MZA”. Probably because here in the States Z is pronounced zee and not zed. I’ll be the first to admit that America does things differently than the rest of the world, and that most of the things we do differently are totally stupid (like not adopting the metric system), but I’ll argue that every change we made to the English language makes an assload more sense than the British version. Zee is much more in line with the rest of the alphabet than zed. All the extraneous “u’s” in color and favorite are better off gone, z’s get more to do because of words like realize, it’s just a superior form of the language! Aluminum>aluminium.

    Thanks, Mike. It never confounded me, because I just thought they were screaming “Hey!”, which is pretty typical in a rock song.

    Sorry I insulted your form of language Mr. Harrison. But we really did improve it over here.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. I have to disagree with you on aluminum vs aluminium. But I will agree that the Americans with their double l’s on things like distill and enroll (those are the American ways right?) are better than the Australian distil and enrol. Also the American double quotes (“) are so much better than the Australian single quotes (‘)

      Like

      Reply

      1. Yep, we use the double l’s in distill and enroll. I didn’t even know about that one. One “l” looks totally incomplete.

        You kangaroos don’t have double quotes? How do you dictate quotes within quotes?

        Like

        Reply

        1. Ok, we do use double quotations for quotes within quotes but that’s totally backwards. Double quotation marks look better and get the point across quicker and clearer. Single quotations resemble apostrophes and should be reserved for only where necessary, such as quotes within quotes. The Americans get a solid win on the quotation mark front. And yes, one “l” does look totally incomplete

          Like

    3. I can confirm, after re-watching live videos, that they DO say “EMM ZEE AY” in some versions. That’s the way Masaki sang it. I haven’t found any live versions with Vescera singing. Being American, I’m curious how he sang it. I would assume “EMM ZEE AY” but I need proof!

      Like

      Reply

      1. I thought by the wording that you were claiming to be American for a minute. It had me scratching my head, because the accent says otherwise.

        No self-respecting American would ever say ZED unless they were referring to Bobcat Goldthwait’s character in Police Lobotomy 2-4.

        In Canada do some people say ZEE or is it all ZED?

        Like

        Reply

  3. I have to concur with the above, great history lesson on Loudness. I remember listening to interviews with Minoru Nihara back in the 80s and he sang better in English than he spoke.

    Like

    Reply

  4. That is was awesome Mike. I have always wondered about this band. I remember them from the 80’s, but i don’t at the same time. When I am crate digging, I occasionally run across some of their albums and have been tempted to buy them, but hadn’t bit the bullet yet…maybe someday soon.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  7. I never knew Loudness, but Vow Wow caused quite a stir amongst us Welsh metal heads – their cassette with ‘Helter Skelter’ on it was much copied – mine was possibly about 9th generation.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

        1. I only remember them from Hit Parader. But I have been on a mad Loudness and EZO kick these last few weeks. I just got two Loudness CDs…before learning that they also have 35th Anniversary editions out. This is going to get expensive.

          I definitely want to check out the studio albums with Masaki singing. I love that he brought the EZO makeup into Loudness. I like his presence. They needed someone like Masaki to replace Niihara.

          Like

Rock a Reply