Aunt Sally Featuring Phew＜限定盤/Colored Vinyl＞

Osaka, Japans Aunt Sally lasted little more than two years, but that was long enough for them to create their fiercely individualistic self-titled debut. Reissued several times after its initial release on Vanity Records in 1979 -- including a 2021 edition on New Yorks Mesh-Key label -- Aunt Sally is a cult favorite that offers a snapshot of post-punk at its most freewheeling. The bands leader, Phew, was so inspired by the Sex Pistols that at age 17, she traveled from Osaka to London to see them play; when she returned, she was determined to put her own stamp on punk music. In the beginning, Aunt Sally played the Who and Ramones covers many up-and-coming punk bands cut their jagged teeth on, but this wasnt enough for Phew. The group started writing their own songs, and Aunt Sally shows they were much wilder and more inventive than the work of the acts that spurred Phew to form a band in the first place. Occasionally, the album resembles more traditional notions of punk: The garagey organ and social commentary of "Subete Urimono" (which roughly translates to "everythings for sale") and spiky stylings of "Frank Ni" show the band has a thorough understanding of the genres fundamentals. More often, though, they use punks D.I.Y. attitude to take more daring creative leaps. On "Aunt Sally," guitarist Bikkes atonal attack zig-zags around Phews alto wails, and the way the song seems to tear itself apart is both fearsome and mesmerizing. Its followed by "Kagami," a playful deconstruction of the standard "Heart and Soul" that suggests just about anything is possible in Aunt Sallys world. That includes an unnerving version of "Frere Jacques," which emerges from the winding melodic paths that Bikke, Phew, and keyboardist Mayu take on the albums closing track "Loreley." Mayus keyboards are the bands secret weapon on Aunt Sally, allowing them to craft haunting waltzes like "Sameta Kajiba De" or breathy piano pop such as "Tenki." These wild shifts in mood and sound reflect a band unable to confine themselves to a genre as seemingly anarchic as punk, and foreshadow just how shape-shifting Phews career as a solo artist would be. Aunt Sally disbanded just a few months after the albums release, but Aunt Sally remains a bracing dispatch from a band that introduced one of the Japanese undergrounds most restless talents. ~ Heather Phares