the pillows 35th Anniversary
About A Rock 'n' Roll Band
Today is the 16th of September, which would mark the 35th anniversary of the formation of the band the pillows!
the pillows are one of the most influential band for me, which I have continue to listen to even with my – and their – changing of taste and interests. Listening to their discography again in preparation of this year, it was obvious to me that they’ve went through quite a lot of changes over the years. Even when they reach a certain point where it feels that they’re quite comfortable with settling down with their sound and image, there’s still variations one can find amongst the songs released in their albums.
I was earlier tempted to just come up with my top 35 songs from the band… But it felt like it would be too concentrated amongst certain period of album releases from them! So in an effort to push myself out of listening to the few selected albums for the hundredth time, I decided to come up with 35 song picks across their difference releases. And of course, draw a bit while I’m at it!
[YouTube playlist of the songs in this post]
(stay around ‘til the end to see a small video recording of the drawings!)
Stand Up And Go
From: Pantomime (21 May 1990)
Cool bass parts. Good energy for intro to the album. Stand up and go! Show us your resistance!
I'm A Broken Piece (ぼくはかけら)
From: 90's My Life (25 October 1990)
This song makes me feel like dancing! Such a short song that doesn’t waste its time
If You Sing In The Rain (雨にうたえば)
From: Moon Gold (21 June 1991)
An upbeat song that capture the feeling of running through a light drizzle on a lazy afternoon
Right Here Like This (このままここで)
From: White Incarnation (21 May 1992)
Dreamy feel throughout the song, fantastic guitar solo that just seamlessly transition and give you the feeling that you’re soaring above it all. Great vocal parts before the outro too
Together With You (キミと二人)
From: The Pillows Presents Special CD (18 October 1993)
the pillows going for a more jazzy/bossa nova feel in their song, signifying their 2nd movement time period
Naked Shuffle
From: Kool Spice (2 July 1994)
This song hits HARD. Just listen to Sawao going crazy on this song, especially near the outro!
Climbing To The Roof (屋上に昇って)
From: Living Field (24 March 1995)
The song builds and build… and then get released with that sweet, sweet solo
Tiny Boat
From: Tiny Boat Single (24 January 1996)
Such a chill song, with cute lyrics. The music sounds fitting for a date down the riverside… in a cute, tiny boat
Swanky Street
From: Please Mr. Lostman (22 January 22 1997)
The lyrics is so resigned and sad, yet the song feels so… soaring [perhaps given the lyric content, one could instead say ‘speeding at breakneck speed’?] The song ends just as it begins – DUN DUNDUN. Perhaps it’s poetic, seeing as the song reference to crashing a car… This song would’ve been perfect if it’s the album closer, I think!
Blues Drive Monster
From: Little Busters (2 February 1998)
This song has such a high energy, it makes me feel that I can do (almost) anything! Its placement in FLCL is so fitting and immaculate
Let's See, If That's True or Not (確かめに行こう)
From: Runners High (22 January 1999)
I always thought this song was a really odd placement as an album closer… but when looking at the lyrics – filled with a lot of anguish and self loathing – it felt like it’s the ‘coming down to earth’ moment after the manic energy o the preceding title track of the album. And yet, there’s just a hint of optimism… Let’s see if that’s true or not
Funny Bunny
From: Happy Bivouac (2 December 2 1999)
This song always manage to put a smile on my face. It’s a cute song. If I hear this song anywhere, you bet that I’m going to sing along to the chorus!
Ride On Shooting Star
From: Fool on the Planet (7 February 2001)
What a ridiculous, fun song. What does an orange slide got to do with a sponge’s pride? Or a grunge hamster with a revenge lobster? I have not the slightest clue. YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAH
Smile
From: Smile (31 October 2001)
One of the longer songs from the band – clocking well over six minutes. That shift in mood… It’s honestly put me at unease, with Sawao going increasingly mad as the song goes on… And then we get with another shift, which always gave me the feeling that the song soars upward from all the darkness and the craziness that we were just subjected to
Thank You, My Twilight
From: Thank You, My Twilight (23 October 2002)
That synthesizer riff is just so memorable. A melancholic song with a huge expansive chorus nearing the end. I remember reading someone saying how the English phrasing is awkward and kinda goofy… but when it’s delivered with such an earnestness, it hits you, you know?
Sleepy Head
From: Another Morning, Another Pillows (23 October 2002)
What a cool driving bass line. It feels like the wheels are barely holding on to the song as it goes – in a good, thrill ride kind of way
Freebee Honey
From: Penalty Life (6 November 2003)
The lyrics seems to paint a picture of mania while in a game show – and the overall instrument of the song gives that impression, with the whole thing feeling frantic and always on edge. You’ve got plenty of yeahs and oh yeahs from Sawao too near the end – that’s always nice
I Can Hear Jingle Bells (ジングル・ベルが聞こえる)
From: 90’s My Life Returns (8 March 2004)
the pillows does Christmas!
Liberty
From: Turn Back (3 June 2004)
Pretty fun and upbeat song with some horns part!
Walkin' On The Spiral
From: Good Dreams (3 November 2004)
This song is pretty fun. That’s good enough reason for me to pick this song off the album. Whoo ooh! Ah ha ha
Sayonara Universe (さよならユニバース)
From: My Foot (12 January 2006)
Those strings… gives me goosebumps. This song really have a sense of finality to it… What a beautiful song. I’m going to quote from a YouTube comment that say it better than I could: [@panconketchupymermelada5475] “If I'm lucky enough to die sorrounded by the people that loves me i want their faces and this song to be the last thing I'll remember of this world” Farewell…
Century Creepers (Voice of the Proteus)
From: Wake Up! Wake Up! Wake Up! (2 May 2007)
Being the penultimate track on the album this song hits pretty hard. Don’t really have much to say other than I just really like the song
Ladybird Girl
From: Pied Piper (25 June 2008)
What a cute song! Always put a smile on my face when I listen to it
Strange Chameleon (Rock Stock Version) (ストレンジ カメレオン)
From: Rock Stock & Too Smoking the Pillows (3 June 3 2009)
I actually think the original version of the song is generally superior, but… the vocal parts in the outro? I have a memory of cycling in the rain, listening to the song through earphones, and singing along to the part… It felt so cathartic
FLAG STAR
From: Once Upon a Time in the Pillows (3 June 2009)
Kinda anguish and sad song with Sawao singing so earnestly
Hybrid Rainbow After The Rain (雨上がりに見た幻)
From: OOPArts (14 October 2009)
Feel like the song is about growing old: looking back on the decision to head towards an uncharted path, all the difficulty that was faced, and thinking of the proof that this was a chosen decision with their partner… that ‘our footprints will surely be left behind’. The proof of their existence…
Sad Fad Love
From: Horn Again (26 January 2011)
Lyrics paint very clearly the pain of one-sided love. The swelling guitar parts throughout the song positively feels like the sound of a quiet weeping
Revival
From: Trial (18 January 2012)
Intro to the album doesn’t waste any time. Wham bam thank you next!
Flash Candy
From: Bootleg the Pillows 1992-1993 (4 October 2014)
That bass line and horns part! So funky
About A Rock 'n' Roll Band
From: Moondust (22 October 2014)
This was one of the few the pillows songs that were available at our local karaoke – the others being Strange Chameleon, Hybrid Rainbow, Funny Bunny – so I’ve come to eventually appreciate the song purely because of exposure lol. This song is… about a rock’n’roll band, nuff said
Blockhead (In April)
From: Across the Metropolis (2 March 2016)
“I also sing today/That's for myself as before/I'm still a blockhead/I'm not useful” As an artist – even with a different medium – these words are so relatable…
Blagodarnost (ブラゴダルノスト)
From: Stroll and Roll (6 April 2016)
This song gives me the feeling of walking down the street on a late night… It’s fitting then that the lyrics contain imagery of middle of the night, starry sky, and falling asleep
Perfect Idea (パーフェクト・アイディア)
From: Nook in the Brain(8 March 2017)
The main guitar part with the accompanying bass lines is quite fun!
Star Overhead
From: FooL on CooL generation (5 September 2018)
The bass lines keep the song moving and bopping. Incidentally the second song they composed for FLCL with the word star in the title, hmm
Before Going To Bed
From: Rebroadcast (19 September 2018)
This song is pretty much autobiographical, with indicative lines like “I had rock music/I could move ahead only with that”. As this is currently the last song from their published [long form] albums, it feel like a proper closer to their current body of work… OH YEAH
Happy birthday the pillows… And thank you Busters