In recent years, more and more rock bands have tried coming up with a line-up other than the standard bass, drums and one or two guitars format. Ditching the bassist seems to be popular, but Japanese bass virtuoso Kiyoshi does the opposite, making her records with only drummer Eiji Mitsuzono backing her. Often, settings like these result in productions that feel like they lack something, but Kiyoshi cleverly avoids this and not just with the sonic choices she makes. Sure, there are some octavers and distortion pedals pushing her sound beyond what basses conventionally sound like, but it’s the songwriting that makes ‘Kiyoshi5’ a joy to listen to.

Describing Kiyoshi’s style is not an easy feat. Despite frequently playing chords on her bass, she doesn’t really approach playing bass as playing the guitar and she slaps a lot, but her style is far too aggressive to compare her to the likes of Larry Graham. The way she weaves these nice melodic runs into her songs occasionally reminds me of Victor Wooten, but in a far more rocky context. In essence, all of Kiyoshi’s songs are rock songs, frequently quite poppy ones too, but the completely different line-up of musicians makes it sound unlike any rock that is on the market even in her native Japan.

To some, the bass may seem a limited instrument in a limited sense, but Kiyoshi proves that most of that is just based on convention. None of the ten songs on ‘Kiyoshi5’ sounds alike, despite obviously some stylistic characteristics that keep the album feeling consistent. It certainly helps that every song has a few standout melodies that Kiyoshi’s voice can carry, but the ease with which she and Mitsuzono move from the jumpy, suprisingly aggressive funk rock of ‘Happy End’ to the almost modern metal-sounding bass riffs of ‘I’m So Sick’ and the lighter, almost breezy pop rock of ‘On Your Mark’ without ever sounding disjointed is nothing less than admirable.

When Kiyoshi opts for a semi-progressive, multi-faceted approach, she transcends the already great level of the rest of the album. ‘No Words’ in particular is a true highlight. The way that song builds from a fairly introspective ballad to heavier transitions reminiscent of stoner rock is simply brilliant. In a different arrangement, it could have been one of Gargoyle’s ballads, though Kiyoshi’s voice of course sounds a million times cleaner than Kiba’s. Closing track ‘Life Goes On’ starts out sounding like it will be a simple, upbeat rocker, but its dreamy chorus makes it another pleasantly surprising multi-layered song. This all fits nicely along simpler rockers like ‘Sorry’ and ‘Dance Darling Dance’.

Realizing that Kiyoshi is a fantastic bassist should not take longer than a few seconds of hearing her play. It takes a good songwriter, however, to make an album as good as ‘Kiyoshi5’. Where many virtuosos of equal skill would lose themselves in attempts to prove how good they are as musicians, Kiyoshi simply uses het skills to create a memorable musical statement that just happens to be built on a fundament of incredible bass playing. In fact, she knows exactly when to keep it simple as well. After hearing ‘Kiyoshi5’, its melodic sensibilities will stick, which could vary from one of the many excellent choruses to the delightfully teasing bass line of ‘Guys’.

Recommended tracks: ‘No Words’, ‘Happy End’, ‘I’m So Sick’