Why you'll love it: Honest and unironic happy pop music
Why you'll hate it: Just about the least cool thing in the world
Nothing warms my heart more than the annual reminder that Hideki Kaji is still making music. Since the mid-90s, he's been a faucet of simple and sweet rock-n-roll pop. No amount of terror or tragedy in the world has been able to shake this man. If you need your fix of music so positive and corny it would make Brian Wilson roll his eyes, Kaji's your man.
Quality-wise, Kaji's never written anything that transcends surface level "this is cute and fun". He's been a solid run for the last 7 years, with only last year's Sweet Swedish Winter being his only serious misstep. While the music itself is not terribly creative, he still feels fresh and delightful. Ice Cream Man hits all of Kaji's strengths. Songs like "Tropical Girl", "Happy Manchester" and "Jam & Butter Song" bop along at a fun pace; with only the album's title track taking his saccharine attitude a step too far. The ballads are spiced up with keyboards to stay interesting. My favorite being the synth-pop influenced "Summer Camp", and the only dud being the minimalist "Pool Side Calling".
As you can tell by the song titles, Hideki Kaji is for real about this pop thing. Clearly, his style is not something that many people can stomach. I really do love this guy's material though. It's all too straightforward and lacking a creative twist for me to praise it as "pop music's best kept secret!", but Kaji's honesty and dedication has always charmed me. Ice Cream Man is no standout album in 2014, but it's Kaji being as good as ever. Anyone who drives around town blasting this gets a gold star in just not giving a fuck.
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