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Category Archives: Music

Loud And Clear: Memoryhook’s I Whisper It

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Nagoya duo Memoryhook deal in small moments that feel big. The new group — founded this year, going off of social media — crafts heart-on-sleeve indie-pop that refuses to be fragile. They have too much energy spread out across debut release I Whisper It to warrant that adjective. Just listen to the bounce of “My Heart,” which conceals ennui under a chipper tempo and lovely backing “ahhhhhs.” The slower “To You” still waltzes ahead, building up to a shivery wordless stretch that ends the album on a high note, while only opener “Why” moves at half speed. That one is followed up by a slinky cover of Men I Trust’s “Lauren,” a nod to their influences. One to keep close tabs on. Get it here, or listen below.

Historic Listen: Hello, Wendy!’s “Revolution”

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Nostalgia comes up a lot in discussions of music around these parts, because looking back and drawing (or straight-up using) the past has felt pretty central to a lot of music / culture globally in recent times. Synth-pop quartet Hello, Wendy! offer up something closer to a history lesson. At least partially the idea of Buffalo Daughter’s Yumiko Ohno, the idea of this project sits right in the name — this is early synth music celebration. “Revolution” is less of a Powerpoint lesson than previous covers of “Computer Love” and various classical compositions (not to mention the original breakthrough in voice synthesis) but rather an original composition showing the group’s ability to create compelling music from synths. Check the moments where all the voices blur together, and the extended jamming later on. Listen above.

New Suiyoubi No Campanella (Wednesday Campanella) And Moodoïd: “Matryoshka”

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“Matryoshka” features the most jarring moment yet in Suiyoubi No Campanella’s career to date. It comes early, when a voice that isn’t KOM_I’s enters, stage right. It comes courtesy of Pablo Padovani of French group Moodoïd (and…I didn’t know this until the video dropped…was part of Melody’s Echo Chamber). But it could have been Hatsune Miku and I’d still be caught off guard…the world Suiyoubi No Campanella has created finds KOM_I playing the role of narrator, zipping and zooming around the landscape like a future bass version of Puck. “Matryoshka” lets someone else in, and it also explores space more than anything on last year’s triumphant Superman. The two share verses and come together over light percussion and some synth washes — this project has always treated voices like another instrument, but it might actually be more true here than ever before, unison singing stretched out and Padovani’s French sweet-nothings dripping like eye medication. And in one last twist, the final stretch features a heavy amount of backtracking, warping everything and turning the song into a head trip. It’s intriguing on its own but ultimately more appropriate in the context of their new EP, which (spoiler alert) finds Suiyoubi No Campanella exploring space more than they ever have before, revealing a whole new angle to their sound that’ just as exciting. Listen above.

Sloshed: Japanese Summer Orange’s “Let Me Get You Some Beers”

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This current wave of slacked-out indie-rock in Japan gets the chilled-out, enjoying-life part down pretty well…but everything always seems a touch too neat. All these bands that found Mac DeMarco, bought a beanie and picked up guitars sing about eating pancakes, walking around the town or just being vaguely optimistic about the future. Too responsible! Japanese Summer Orange takes this attitude to a far more believable end with “Let Me Get You Some Beers,” a hobbling number that embraces escapism via booze. Which…not here to up a lifestyle (don’t drink beers to complete work!), but works wonders when paired with the guitar playing and the way Japanese Summer Orange slurs out every line. Here’s sloppiness made fun, and a nice roll in the dirt after months of sun-dappled indie-rock. Listen above.

New Taichi Mukai: “Siren”

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There’s probably a timeline where tofubeats spends the majority of his career working behind the scenes to create top-notch J-pop, while also having a lesser-known solo thing too. Plenty of folks have done that in history! But he’s starting to go down a path closer to Tetsuya Komuro, wherein his own projects get the spotlight but stepping in to work with others results in said artists most interesting moments. tofubeats tackles the music for young artist Taichi Mukai’s new song “Siren,” and it’s a stand-out number for the youngster. Few acts require great producers quite like Mukai —- seek out his collab with Pa’s Lam System for another gem, or opt to check out his cheesy forgettable side — and tofubeats makes for a good partner. Bits of his solo work come through via the buzzier details and digitally filtered vocals that pop up every once in awhile, but like a good behind-the-scenes guy, tofubeats doesn’t turn this into a tofubeats’ song. Rather, it’s a shuffling pop cut allowing Mukai enough space to show off his skills…with a little left-of-center worked in. Listen above.