Going Steady

I first heard Going Steady around the summer of 2000. I used to download Japanese punk rock bands from Napster based on how interesting or weird their names sounded, and I guess Going Steady was an interesting enough name. Considering the other oddly named bands out there (Duck Missile, Pez Stomp, School Jackets) Going Steady was a rather normal name. I downloaded their first album Boys & Girls and thoroughly enjoyed it. At the young age of 17 I had yet to acquire my driver's license, so I took the train and bus to work, and I clearly remember a CD I had made for myself with the song "Universal" on it. That was pretty much my official song for the winter of 2000-2001 to accompany my lonely commutes.

I really liked Going Steady, much more so than their first album warranted. I liked them enough to keep track of their newer material which would trickle out over the next couple years. Their second album Sakura no Uta was more slick, yet more crazy at times, and I just ate it all up. However, it wasn't until I heard "Kakenukete Seishun" from their split CD with the HOLiDAYS that I started to think of Going Steady as my favorite band. What continues to boggle my mind to this day is that Going Steady only continued to get better from there.

Going Steady never managed to release a third album before breaking up, but their final three singles cemented them as my favorite band. The songs on Doutei So Young, Wakamonotachi, and Seishun Jidai were almost all 5+ minutes in length, yet they were able to match and sustain the energy and catharsis of the fastest, most wild, minute long song.

If anyone asked me about Going Steady, I would always recommend that they listen to these last few singles. Nobody alive can listen to "Wakamonotachi" and deny that it's amazing. The funny thing was that I never felt like either of their albums was good enough to be recommended as a whole, but these singles were so good that they could carry the weight of a horrible discography on their shoulders. Of course, Going Steady's discography wasn't horrible in the least, but rather very good.

So here I am today listening to Boys & Girls and Sakura no Uta again after a year or so of neglect, and I feel so happy, just like I did when I was 17. Cheers to "Universal" and "Ginga Tetsudou no Yoru".

There's a band now called the Ging Nang Boyz who are the remnants and successors of Going Steady's legacy. Both of the Ging Nang Boyz albums completely outshine Going Steady's. I'm still in awe of this band that only gets better. It feels pretty great when your favorite band is likely never to disappoint you.