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Category Archives: Music

New Le Makeup: End Roll

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This narrative writes itself, practically. Le Makeup’s voice had long been buried in his music, then in 2018 it started creeping closer and closer, and now comes End Roll wherein it is the most important element of each song. The three songs here are some of the most straightforward ones Le Makeup has created, with the title track nearly tipping over into piano-guided ballad territory. The Osaka artist is able to avoid the usual trappings of this style by keeping a persistent beat (vital on opener “Spotlight”) or at least letting synthesizer wooze off to give it a seasick vibe (see “Mienai”). But this still marks the most direct Le Makeup has been, and shows what the project would be like in more traditional forms. Get it here, or listen below.

New AAAMYYY: “Over My Dead Body”

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“Unnerving” isn’t quite the right words to describe “Over My Dead Body.” It comes close — and boy, do we love using that one whenever we can — but AAAMYYY’s latest ahead of her debut album Body does much more than just make us feel slightly uneasy while looking at the computer screen. While the edges blur, AAAMYYY focuses the song so it follows a clear build, going from sparse to busy by the time the chorus hits. And she’s splitting the difference between using her own voice as another layer and as something raising above the whole song. When she lets them slowly unfurl on the verses and at the end of the hook, it functions as another instrument, but for the heart of “Over My Dead Body” the vocals jump out and offer something solid to grab on to. Maybe everything feels off balance, but there’s one place to seek shelter. Listen above.

New Chai: “Fashionista”

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Chai can lock in just as well as they can get wild. The quartet’s biggest online hits thus far have been nervy rock numbers that see them zipping from idea to idea, unafraid of a jarring shift. “Fashionista,” from upcoming album Punk, shows off the other side, the one grounded in repetition and gradual change. “Fashionista” revolves around a Blondie-esque funk melody that stomps ahead alongside some vocal scatting and a slightly muffled lead vocal. You get a nice hook, and then go back and…then everything gets a little more hurried. Voices topple over one another, and then everything gets a little looser as guitars and drums get a bit more wobbly as well, leading to a blown-out final segment. Yet despite everything coming to near collapse, “Fashionista” stays upright thanks to a solid grounding. Listen above.

Softer Still: Intend’s “Kyu Ji”

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Intend keeps things soft on “Kyu Ji,” but doesn’t get too quiet over the course of the song. This number, featuring a sparse piano-accented beat, approaches whisper rap, but the MC at the center of it makes sure to prop up her words with a blast of energy to avoid letting it get overly sleepy. While the space afforded by the production goes a long way to making the song work, it’s the energetic but not over-the-top delivery that really seals it. Listen above.

New Metoronori: “Yoru No Hitobito”

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Metoronori is back with a new song, her first of 2019 and a welcome return to the off-kilter pop world she has been constructing this decade. “Yoru No Hitobito” strikes a good balance between the unsteady and the hooky, opening (and weaving in throughout) with samples of what sounds like Italian set against synth starburst and some electronic squiggles. Metoronori’s own voice sneaks in soon after, trying to find space among all the conflicting elements. But, as she often does, she crafts some catchy vocal melodies from all of this. Listen above.