OUTBURST

OUTBURST is a fulfilling mini-album on which Blindman condensed new songs and re-recordings of past songs into five tracks, showing its sure present standing in its 25th-anniversary period. While keeping melodious hard rock as its unshakable core, the guitar’s rich expression, thick, beautiful keyboards and soaring vocals draw a different, vivid scenery in each song. A short but dense record. From the powerful drive of the opener “A Man in Wonderland” and the drama of “Destiny” to a cut like “Diamond Dust,” every song is engaging, while “The Bed of Nails” and “Living a Lie,” re-recordings of past classics, convey the work’s fullness. Tatsuya Nakamura’s fluid, lyrical guitar is powerfully in sharp form throughout. A record on which the re-recording of past songs is by no means mere nostalgia; through the present members’ outstanding playing and updated sound, the songs powerfully revive with the present band’s sure intensity. And the new songs show a sure future on that extension, richly conveying a breadth of time despite the short work. An engaging record letting you savor Blindman’s long history and its will to powerfully advance in compact form — a record where the band’s present standing shines.