BABYMETAL

The Other One (Cooking Vinyl)

There have been many cryptic messages from the Babymetal camp over the last few years that have hinted of the band’s demise – but the Japanese fusion group are still here and return for this, their fourth album. They may play kawaii (cute) metal but don’t let that fool you. While the vocals are light and sweet, the music is heavy, bordering on symph-rock.

The Other One is a concept album with 10 newly-penned songs that delve into themes such as reality and the passage of time. Each track has something different to offer but the lyrics, which are in English and Japanese, are often overshadowed by bass, drums and a lot of echo. Metalizm, which has the clearest vocals, has an Indian classical sound and you may spot the ghost of Eric Clapton’s Bad Love in the single Monochrome. The album shows a side of Babymetal audiences haven’t heard before and it’s so well polished it shines.

words LYNDA NASH