Sometimes just doing your work is enough.

Sou, Acidman's debut album reissued in 2008, is not as showy as a typical J-rock record, including their own later output, but it's very good punk-emo stuff, and it only benefits from its lack of pretentiousness.

Punk is how the band was initially branded, and Acidman take care to justify that label with a couple of speedy ditties framing the album, but it seems more of a marketing trick, designed to allow sage pegging: in reality, Acidman rather fit the scene of Sunny Day Real Estate and the likes of Braid -- they're not totally at home there, maybe, but they're definitely welcome.

A melancholic vibe prevails on Sou, although the band never overdramatizes things and does give the tunes plenty of energy, shifting from bursts of guitar noise to moodier segments.

The bass is prominent -- on the opener, it's worthy of Fullarmor -- but most of the time the punk spirit helps the guys to keep things simple, which works very well: too many emo bands flopped while trying to find original ways to express straightforward emotions, ending up in a quagmire of forced riffage and cumbersome rhythms.

Acidman have the knack to realize that honesty doesn't need to be complex or polished: their raw melodies and Ooki Nobuo's slightly wavering, but never faltering voice conveys the desired feeling perfectly.

Sou doesn't scream for attention, but the songs grow on the listener, making the record a little treasure of J-rock -- too much against the grain to fit within the genre at large, but worth the time of any Straightener fan or more discriminating emo devotee.