If you hail from any country west of Japan, chances are you’re reading this right now and asking yourself, “Who on earth is Murasaki?” Allow me to enlighten you (as I so often do). Contrary to popular American belief, Loudness was NOT the first Japanese metal band. Shocking, I know. In fact, back in the ’70s, Japan was rife with early metal bands. Among these bands were Flower Travellin’ Band, Blues Creation, Speed Glue & Shinki, Flied Egg, Bow Wow, Nokemono, Lazy, Silver Stars, and the subject of today’s review, Murasaki (pardon me if I accidentally excluded your favorite obscure heavy ’70s Japanese band).
The name “Murasaki” translates in English to “Purple”. Knowing that, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out which English metal band Murasaki drew heavy influence from. No doubt, their first two albums, Murasaki (1976) and Impact (1977) genuflect at the altar of Deep Purple in Rock (1970), Fireball (1971), and Machine Head (1972). This is jam-centric early metal done right, with emphasis on powerful organs, ripping guitars, and unique melodies, all unleashed with an exotic Japanese twist. This formula remains prevalent as ever on Murasaki’s latest outing, Timeless. It’s a rather appropriate title, considering despite forming 53 years ago, Murasaki sounds the exact same now as they did then.
All areas of the ’70s metal spectrum are explored on this monstrous album, with the opening “Raise Your Voice” laying down the law in ripping, proto-speed metal fashion. Kicking things off with such an over the top number is a dangerous move for most, but Murasaki are true pros, keeping the ball rolling with the groovy “The Fire is Burnin'” and hypnotic “Free Your Soul and Let It Be”. It’s on songs of this nature where we’re treated to Murasaki’s specialty, and that’s jamming. The interplay between keyboardist George Murasaki and guitarists GG and Kiyomasa Higa are on par with the finest duels of Jon Lord and Ritchie Blackmore, and I don’t say that lightly.
Even the outliers on here are strong and don’t derail the overall mood. AOR bands can take a lesson from the power ballad “Younger Days”, which boasts an atmosphere reminiscent of city pop, a Japanese phenomenon for you westerners out there. Meanwhile, “Don’t Look Back!” channels the doom and gloom of classic Sabbath with its trudging tempos and morose riffage. It isn’t something I’d expect of this band, but they nail it. Rounding it all out is the one-two punch of “Starship Rock ‘n’ Rollers” and “Double Dealing Woman”. Both songs date back to the band’s initial ’70s run, re-recorded here for a whole new generation of headbangers to discover. Guest guitar solos from Japanese guitar heroes Char and Kyoji Yamamoto, the latter of Bow Wow fame, on “Double Dealing Woman” are the figurative icing on the cake.
In the scope of Murasaki’s post-reunion output, it’s hard to rank Timeless among Quasar (2016) and Purplessence (2010), as all three are excellent releases. I can’t help but think the ’70s revival of nearly 15 years ago now has worked in Murasaki’s favor, as these new albums fit comfortably alongside current revivalists like Lucifer, Ruby the Hatchet, Admiral Sir Cloudesley Shovell, and so forth. The only difference is these guys actually go back to the ’70s. Having already witnessed the resurgence of Pentagram and Bang, consider this review to be a call for the collective American rediscovery (or in many cases, discovery) or Murasaki!
8 out of 10
Label: Independent
Genre: Heavy Metal/Hard Rock
For fans of: Deep Purple, Rainbow, Uriah Heep