Happy To Have You: Dustin Wong And Takako Minekawa’s “Party On A Floating Cake”

Dustin Wong – formerly of frantic Baltimore outfit Ponytail and also Ecstatic Sunshine, and currently operating as a solo artist signed to American label Thrill Jockey – recently moved to Tokyo. Which means…he’s fair game for us at Make Believe Melodies! His first bit of new material since relocating in Japan’s capital comes as part of a special collaboration with longstanding artist Takako Minekawa, which has resulted in an album due out in May. “Party On A Floating Cake” is the first hint of what to expect, and it’s predictably pretty (and mesmerizing, like the above video). Wong himself operates much as he does on his solo albums, creating whimsical yet precise guitar loops and slowly expanding them. What’s new for him is the inclusion of a voice other than his own, here provided by Minekawa. She drifts through the fantastical music, her words hanging between the notes and adding an extra dreamy layer to the song. Listen above.