Part remixes and part “drama,” or scenes of dialogue accompanied by sound effects and mood-inducing music, “The Errors of Their Youth” is a collection of heavily Eastern-influenced vocal tracks. Non-Japanese-speaking fans of Persona won’t find much value in the 19-track album. Only the most tolerant listeners will find the few tracks of actual music worthwhile. Others, myself included, only find a batch of heartless, synthetic dance tunes.
The first remix on the album, “Open your heart,” is a mess of repetitive vocals, although to call them vocals would almost be a mistake. Instead of a series of coherent lyrics, the majority of the song features the repetition of high-pitched sounds. Following another drama, the next track, “Luv beam,” plays out its uninspired electronica and muddled vocals, this time done by a different singer, although the voice is undoubtedly filtered through a vocoder, making the resulting music even less soulful. “China luv” is similar to the first two selections in its effectiveness in conjuring a particular emotion or state of mind. Once again, unless dancing is the listener’s only motive, this track will repeatedly beat you into a stupor with its utter lack of passion, but don’t worry: you won’t feel a thing.
“X trip” is a less danceable tune, yet no less irritating. Its repetitive beats and synth undercurrents provide a less-than-spectacular backdrop for a few lines of poorly delivered lyrics. The following two musical tracks, “I’m in you” and “Truth I need,” possess slightly slower tempos as well, yet boast even worse vocals, especially the cheesy male vocalist on the latter. Add in the yelping backing vocals, and you can count me out of another playthrough. The final non-drama track, “Persona Mamba,” is a return to the upbeat style of the first few songs. Perhaps not as laughably awful as the others, and slightly more catchy, “Persona Mamba” deserves no more praise; it’s still bad music.
Unless you can understand Japanese and wish to listen to the dramas, or you just can’t get enough J-Pop dance music, keep “The Errors of Their Youth” at the far end of your trusty 10-foot pole. Any closer and it might start to suck some of your soul away.
