Canadian cassette label Memory No. 36 Recordings is no stranger to showcasing great Japanese music flying under the radar. They released Elen Never Sleeps dreamy Silver EP earlier this year, and are working with Boyish on a new tape due sometime in the near future. They are releasing their first compilation this Friday (April 19 if you don’t have a calendar handy), and this 31-track beauty features two cuts from Kansai bands that we happen to dig too. The Paellas continue to sound like the ideal band to take up residency at an aging seaside lounge with the track “Candy Eyes,” one of their slower numbers to date. The music offers up plenty of space for the group’s greatest draw, the vocals, which sound eternally lost (aided by the aged-mic sound that is their trademark). Yet this one hides some hope – see the chorus, “there is candy in your eyes,” which sounds oddly sweet. More blatantly upbeat (sorta) is Osaka’s Wallflower, who channel Sarah Records’ glory days on “Summer’s End Getaway.” Like most of their existing catalog – and like 90 percent of what that twee English label used to put out – this does conceal a hint of melancholy that’s easy to miss over the guitar and drums skip. Listen to both below.
And hey, you should get this compilation for some non-Japanese groups too! Friends of Make Believe Melodies Kero Kero Bonito contribute two songs, and vaporwave survivor Saint Pepsi does the microgenre proud with “Serious.” My favorite discovery, though, is LA’s spazzkid. Listen to all of it now.