Indie-rock project Figure has always been just outside of any indie-pop community in Japan, their music being too claustrophobic and darker-tinged to really slide in next to the various Sarah Records devotees across the country. After what felt like an extended break, Figure has a new album out in September via Sauna Cool, and has shared two songs that further set them apart. “Christmas Eve Of 1992” is the slower of the two and approaches ballad territory, but the bedroom sound and melancholy sigh of a vocal give this that Figure feel, as does the gradual build from soft to rumbling. Listen above.
“Daylight” is more traditionally in line with the Figure of the recent past, taking a familiar indie-pop melody and encasing it in distortion to give it a more crushing feel. Between these two songs, the forthcoming album might be as full a statement from Figure as you could hope for. Listen below.