#1324 Album Theory 105 | Bonbai / BRAHMAN (2018)

With that said, the timetable for Jinmiraisai has been announced, and BRAHMAN is gaining momentum, but there are only two more albums left to introduce. So, today, five years after the previous album 'Chokoku', let's introduce their 6th album released in 2018,
'Bonbai'.

What is Bonbai?

Bonbai means 'in Buddhism, chanting sutras or the like with melody to praise the virtues of Buddha' and is a synonym for shomyo, referring to the singing and chanting methods used in Buddhist rituals.

It's such a Japanese-style title, but following the previous work, it's an album with a kanji title, and while there are many songs with kanji titles, there are also songs with English titles and songs with lyrics entirely in English, which feels a bit like a return to the past.

And this album also includes the pre-released singles 'Sono Gen', 'Fugutaiten', and 'Konya', and even includes their c/w tracks 'Doto no Kanata' and 'Naminoutage', and I think 'Shuhari' and 'Tenma Kuu wo Yuku' were also previously released songs, so the fact that most of the songs on the album were previously released gave the impression that it was a bit lacking in listening value.

With that said, honestly, I listened to it when it was released, but to be honest, I didn't listen to it that thoroughly. Still, listening to it now that I'm this age, there are some songs that really sink in... and now I evaluate it as
a really great album, that's the kind of album it is.

Bonbai: A Soulful Track-by-Track Commentary

1. Shinzenbi

I have the impression that the first tracks on previous BRAHMAN albums have been quite powerful songs.
That's All is relatively prologue-like, and there's a feeling that it's one song paired with the next, 'There's...', but subsequent tracks like For One's Life,, The Void,, The only way,, and 'Shoki Shodo' include songs that get the crowd going at live shows.

And this 'Shinzenbi' feels more like a 'That's All' type of track. The lyrics tell the story.

It's truly the first track that starts the world of the album, and it's also a song that gets the crowd excited as the first song of a live show. By the way, the meaning of 'Shinzenbi' is literally 'Truth, Goodness, and Beauty as the highest values of humanity' haha.

2. Raidou

This 'Raidou' is a song that starts with an intro where a fast rhythm and Beyond The Mountain, 'The Void', or 'Box' from the past, along with KOHKI's impressive ethnic guitar solo resonate nicely, making it a 'BRAHMAN-esque' song.

In this song, the interplay of KOHKI and MAKOTO's choruses is extremely intense and cool, and it's a song that gets the crowd going as if they were demons singing along at a live show.

This 'Raidou' refers to the 'Raidou' in 'Fuwa Raidou' (blindly following others). It's a hardcore punk song that says NO to the masses who follow the loudest voice without thinking, and it's the kind of song that is the essence of BRAHMAN that I like the most.

3. EVERMORE FOREVER MORE

Following Raido, the album continues with edgy songs that shine in a live setting.
In that sense, it's been a while since a song with all-English lyrics but it's a song that feels like "melocore" with a fast BPM, and it has a feeling of returning after quite some time.

When it comes to such a straightforward, all-English, melocore-style song, it reminds me of their 'box' era.
It might be that they just wanted to play this kind of song again after a long time, but it's proof that we can still do songs like this!
It's a cool song in that sense.

4. AFTER-SENSATION

This is a song for which a music video was also made as the lead track of this album.
The title of this song is in English, but the lyrics are in Japanese, and it's impressive that the Japanese used is more casual than ever before.
"That's right" or "I'm going to walk on" are words not seen in TOSHI-LOW's lyrics until now, which was quite sensational, and it really felt like exactly After Sensation.

The tempo of this song is just crazy, and I feel a groove similar to Sai no Kawara, but it's a song that is quite difficult to cover as a band.

5. Shugen

I believe this is their 6th single.
It is the theme song for the documentary film "BRAHMAN" which traces BRAHMAN's history to date, and it is read as "Sore-kiri".
Since the film itself seemed to be about looking back on BRAHMAN's 20 years, it was made as its theme song, so it seems to be a song made with a sense of a milestone for BRAHMAN as well.
Honestly, it's not a song that stays in my heart personally, but... the lyrics are quite deep.

6. Konya

This song is my favorite song among BRAHMAN's recent tracks.

Until now, I only had the impression that it was just one song on the album, but the version they performed at BAD FOOD STUFF in January 2024 was incredibly good. It's an acoustic-style song, but it's mellow, gentle... it's a song that contradicts the BRAHMAN I used to like, but it's a wonderful song nonetheless.

Like the After-Sensation introduced above, these are lyrics not found in previous BRAHMAN songs, but I can feel the band's evolution.
It's wonderful to see them evolve like this after the earthquake disaster.
There was a time when I felt uncomfortable with it, but listening to it now, it's a song that resonates very clearly in my chest.

And perhaps it was because of their trip to Hokkaido for this year's RISING SUN.
TOSHI-LOW sang this song during the match, and it was really good. SLANG's KO and TBH's BOSS have performed with them, so that connection might be the reason.

And the official Sapporo account has also made a stylish video like this.
I'm happy to see a collaboration between things I love, but Consadole needs to try a little harder (omitted

7. Shuhari feat. KO (SLANG)

In that sense, it's a collaboration song with SLANG's KO, and it also became the theme song for the kickboxing event "Knock Out".
Knock Out is also called K.O., so KO must have been the perfect fit.

Shuhari is a term I recall originating from Kabuki, but it's also used quite often in business settings. First, you follow the rules you've been taught, then once you've mastered them to a certain extent, you break the traditional rules to find the optimal method, and finally, you move beyond them—this is something that applies to every world. The tattoo artist Ken Yokoyama respects also uses this song as a motto, and there is even a BBQ CHICKENS song called "SHU HA RI" borrowed from that.BBQ CHICKENS song as well.

Anyway, this song is super short and ends in about a minute and a half, and despite being a featuring track, KO's part is super short too... lol. Regardless, it's a great-sounding hardcore track and it's cool. The "K.O." that KO sings is very intense.

K.O. is very intense.

And while it ends simply, it couldn't be a better opening for a martial arts event. It's a super intense song.

8. Beyond the Raging Waves

This song is also one not seen in BRAHMAN's previous work. When it was originally included as a c/w track on the Fukutaiten single, it was a normal version, but this album version includes a
horn section. It's amazing that they even had Skapara play on it.

I thought maybe horns wouldn't really fit BRAHMAN, but that wasn't the case at all; it was more natural than I expected. This was another song that showed a new worldview, or rather, a new drawer of theirs.

9. Fukutaiten

Fukutaiten means having such strong resentment or hatred that you cannot live together under the same sky, and you hear people say things like "a fukutaiten enemy." Since the theme is anger, it's quite a
hardcore song. This is another song filled with a straightforward anger not seen in BRAHMAN before, but the progression is simple and cool.

The A-melody still features KOHKI and MAKOTO's thick backing vocals, but in the B-melody, TOSHI-LOW doesn't rap, but rather speaks in a monologue—or rather, with intense momentum—and it ends with "Fu! Ku! Tai! Ten!", and the music video is cool too.

It seems to be a message directed at organizations like the mass media...

10. Naminoutage

This song is the c/w for Konya, or rather, it's a double A-side single. This "nami" refers to waves, and it's presumed to be about the 3.11 tsunami, but like the title track Konya, it is
a song that is just gentle, mellow, and touching. Compared to the era of Result of Next and such, the band's expression has clearly changed, but this side of BRAHMAN isn't bad either. The
music video, which evokes various implications, is also excellent
.

11. Tenba Kuu wo Yuku

This song is a digital-only single. Like Naminoutage, it starts with a mellow melody, but this song develops intensely, true to the name of the Tenba, or
Pegasus. Speaking of Pegasus, it's Falchion. It builds up like that at the end and moves toward the ending.

12. Mangetsu no Yuube

And for the finale, they brought in their customary cover song.
The song selected this time is called "Mangetsu no Yuube" (Evening of the Full Moon), a track co-written by Takashi Nakagawa of Soul Flower Union and Hiroshi Yamaguchi of Heatwave, which was released in 1995 as a support song for the Great Hanshin Earthquake.

After that, Gagaga SP covered it, and that's how I learned of its existence. From there, after the Great East Japan Earthquake, it feels like BRAHMAN poured their own feelings into this song. It's a cover that's relatively faithful to the original, incorporating the sanshin and the "aiya-iya-sa-sa" chant, and both Takashi Nakagawa and Hiroshi Yamaguchi actually participated in it.

And what personally resonated with me was the 2024 B.F.S., but because the Noto Peninsula Earthquake occurred on New Year's Day that year, it had an impact, and the fact that they declared they would perform this song on short notice and sang it really struck a chord.

This is the first time I've put a cover at the end, but it feels the most natural in this position.

Summary

With that said, you can learn about the various histories of BRAHMAN through this one album, which includes punk songs, hardcore songs, tracks with horns, and songs that are more healing or meant for listening.

As I mentioned at the beginning, it wasn't an album I listened to that much in the past, but after listening to it like this, I realized it was a very well-balanced and excellent album.

With that, next time will finally be the last of BRAHMAN!
For the finale, let's introduce their recent 7th album, "viraha."