Kindan No Tasuketsu is pretty darn prolific…she’s released a bunch of great music in 2013, and now she’s back with another song AND a really cool video. “Sun Comes Up” is a bouncy bit of electro-pop, maybe the most straightforward pop song she’s made so far this year. It features a really lovely chorus complete with big ol’ uplifting backing vocals. Great stuff with a neat stop-motion video in tow. Watch above.
Category Archives: Music @ja
New Music Round-Up: Seiho, Madegg, Magical Mistakes, yyioy, Cosmosman And may.e
Go away for one weekend, and suddenly the Internet is full of great new music from Japan. First up, a new track from Osaka’s Seiho, who is having another great year. “Wet Asphalt” is actually one of his more linked-up tracks in quite a while – his music usually sounds like it’s snapping and popping into place, everything hitting at just the right time. This one features a pretty sturdy beat for Seiho to mess around with vocals.
Let’s stick in Kansai and check in with Kyoto wonderkid Madegg. This week, he’s showing off his ability to craft delicate long-playing songs with “Summer Snow/U Know (Slow Ver.)” It’s a well-constructed song going through several segments, Madegg making it never feel too long.
And last, Magical Mistakes, who contributed a track to Portland collective Blankstairs’ first compilation. It’s a suffocating track…those buzzy synths!…but also one tempered by some prettier notes.
Stepping away from INNIT…yyioy caught our ears last week with his head-rattling remix of Ariana Grande’s “The Way.” Well, he’s at it again with new song “We Can Do It Anywhere,” which might be a topsy-turvy remix of 112’s 1999 song “Anywhere.” It definitely lifts the titular phrase from that one…and it’s rad.
Meanwhile, if you want some electronic music that’s a bit more dramatic…and has some neat digi-voices…check out “Splash Garden” from Kobe’s Cosmosman.
And last…something that isn’t electronic at all. It’s a new song from may.e, who just keeps releasing these haunting songs featuring nothing but her voice and guitar playing. “Souvenir” is all in Japanese, but the way she subtly layers her voice results in some entrancing sounds.
New Metoronori: Mail
I have just gotten back to Tokyo after going to the Fuji Rock Festival for four days. It was a hectic (albeit fun!) event, that involved a lot of running between stages and working areas, many times in the middle of rain. It was not particularly easy to focus on music at this music festival, save for a few extended breaks. And now I’m back in Tokyo, and city where stopping for even a second seems like an impossible task. I’ve been off the bus for one hour and I’m in a Starbucks in Shibuya…which is where bedroom-recording artist Metoronori calls home (Shibuya, not the Starbucks)…already typing away, surrounded by couples chatting, English lessons and Bob Marley blaring on the in-store speakers. I’m listening to Metoronori’s new album Mail.
I wonder if Metoronori feels the same sense of overwhelming stimuli at times, and uses her music as an escape from the rush of Shibuya. Because Mail is filled with great details that could easily be missed. The very first song on this is an atmospheric intro, but listen closely and all sorts of stray sounds start popping up. A stray click, some xylophone twinkles, what sounds like a TV broadcast. All of these get wrapped up in sweet synth washes. Metoronori’s voice has always been her strongest instrument, often muffled and mousey, but she’s unafraid to use it strangely. Sometimes she just talks, other times she sings like she’s looking for an entirely different song. It works in her homemade songs, adding both playfulness and a bit of mystery. And of course, she also has a great ear for pop melodies, as on highlights “Hi” and “Meto (Shibire).” It seems weird to try to tell someone HOW they should listen to music…but Mail sounds best when you block out the world around and just zero in on it. Get it here, or listen below.
New Sotaisei Riron: “You & Idol”
Privacy-loving outfit Sotaisei Riron released a new album last week, Town Age, which I have a feeling will be landing on our top albums of 2013 list when that time comes. More on that later…but here is the new video for Town Age highlight “You & Idol.” Watch above.
Disconnect The Dots: OBUTSUDAN-SUMINO’s “Kaerou”
Here’s pop reduced to some very, very basic elements. Osaka’s OBUTSUDAN-SUMINO constructs something that’s both aching and catchy using a lot of space – the bulk of “Kaerou” is just him singing over a barely-there beat and some chilly synth splashes. At times the song whirrs and whoozes, but the bulk here is about space. A lot of the appeal here lies in OBUTSUDAN-SUMINO’s singing, never in a rush and focused on squeezing out every bit of emotional sweat from every syllable. The whole song picks up in tempo late, turning into an upbeat little ditty, but the vocals still give this portion a sadder edge. Listen below.