Anzen Chitai -- Tooku e（遠くへ）/Miss Miss Kiss

Larry and I have decided to go with the twin article treatment of Anzen Chitai（安全地帯）starting with his tribute to "Tsuki ni Nureta Futari"（月に濡れた二人）last night, one of my favourite tracks from "Anzen Chitai VI". Back on Tuesday, we had lunch at Kingyo, and we were both talking about the band and the fact that we would be presenting our articles fairly soon. Larry mentioned that there has been a special affinity between this group from the northernmost prefecture of Japan and Hong Kong, and I can believe it. I told him this as well, but when I think of Anzen Chitai and places, I don't think of Asahikawa which is where the band got started, or Tokyo. I always think of Hong Kong. For whatever reason, their music and the metropolis there seem to fit hand-in-glove.

Now, I've devoted an article to Anzen Chitai's "V" album from December 1986, and there are songs from the album that I've given single coverage before and after this article. With 36 tracks, there is plenty to chew on. So this time, I'm gonna work with the first two tracks, "Tooku e" (In The Distance) and "Miss Miss Kiss". Both songs were written by Goro Matsui（松井五郎）and composed by vocalist Koji Tamaki（玉置浩二）.

I wanted to bring both songs here into this one article since there is something to compare here. For one thing, "Tooku e" has that arrangement of what I remembered first about Anzen Chitai's music, and that is that dark but attractive sound that they first became known for in the early 1980s, starting with "Wine Red no Kokoro"（ワインレッドの心）.

Specifically with "Tooku e", I get that image of walking in a fog, literally and figuratively, at night in the big city, whether it be Sapporo or Tokyo or Hong Kong. The protagonist could be walking surrounded by millions of Friday night carousers and yet be utterly alone due to some sort of existential crisis. Isolation can sound pretty cool here. Very atmospheric and an introduction to "V" that could signify "Yes, this is a big album this time but we're still Anzen Chitai".

Then, with "Miss Miss Kiss", there is that infusion of difference with the inclusion of that horn section. And to quote John Cleese, "And now for something completely different". Well, not completely different since the Anzen Chitai sound is still recognizable but all those horns provided by Katsu Hoshi（星勝）and Jerry Hey kinda show that the band is hinting at something new.

My imagination here has a fellow enjoying some good times in a few of the less sleazy places in Tokyo's infamous Kabukicho (I've heard though that it's been getting cleaned up over the last few years like Times Square in New York), with that guitar representing a very slinky young lady threading through the excitement provided by the horns. I was surprised that it was quite a short number at barely over two-and-a-half minutes, but doesn't time fly rather quickly when one is having a lot of fun?