Drawing In: QQIQ (Plus Yuki Yoshida Remix)

Trying to figure out what QQIQ’s deal is has proven to be tougher than I thought. From a bit of Google scouring (potentially not good Google scouring), they appear to be a band of college students. They upload music to a YouTube channel, ranging from guitar covers of various Japanese songs (and Elliot Smith), to original numbers. Those are just as elusive, as QQIQ aren’t afraid to change styles up from track to track, going from the skippy acoustic-hop of “Mother” to rap. They don’t always hit – that rap song, yeeesh – but they do have a knack for some of these styles. “Neoteny” embraces a fizzy chiptune background, but the band turn that into a perfectly bouncy pop song, while “Saori” is a great, clanging number, hinting at an appreciation for Sōtaisei Riron. The best yet, though, is the one at the top, “Daydream.” Everything gets hazed out just a little, the vocals drifting so far back into the mix that the whole thing becomes dreamlike. QQIQ’s most mesmerizing song out in the wild now.

On top of that, Yuki Yoshida (who has appeared on this corner of the ‘net as YYSHIDD) remixed “Daydream” into (somehow) an even sparser thing, slowing the whole thing down to syrup and pushing the vocals up louder. It’s a beaut too. Listen below.