Jika-tabi shoes in some industries, many workers prefer them for the softness of their soles. This gives wearers tactile contact with the ground, and the concomitant gripping ability lets them use their feet more agilely than rigid-soled shoes allow. This is useful for workers who traverse girders on construction sites and need to be sure what is under their feet. Carpenters and gardeners wearing these boots can, if they wish, use their feet as an extra pair of hands, for example to hold objects in place. There is also a line of knee-high all-rubber jika-tabi that is used by workers in
Worn Me Down in Germany. It was one of two songs on the EP that were re-recorded for her full-length album "Happenstance" and by comparison, the re-arranged version of the song had a more produced sound, featured edgier electric guitars and drums, and a dominant orchestration. The melody has been called "straight-forward", and Yamagata's voice as being mature, highly emotional, and raspy. Her vocal style on "Worn Me Down" has been compared to that of Tori Amos, P.J. Harvey and KT Tunstall. Prior to the album's release, several critics believed that "Worn Me Down" would be the first single Yamagata would put out