The first three songs on For Tracy Hyde’s All About Ivy are lovely indie-pop numbers. They continue the sound the group has been mostly working with over the past year, guitar-pop topped off by vocals sung in Japanese. There are individual elements in each song that jump out as especially impressive – the drumming in “World Noise Watch,” the plinky-plonky keyboard on “Portable Parade” – but overall those first trio of songs are just overall lovely indie-pop songs, more thought out than a lot of twee-leaning stuff in Japan this year. Those three songs would warrant a download (free!) all their own.
But then, “Halation.” To close out the All About Ivy EP, For Tracy Hyde has put together a dazzling number that doesn’t rely on stylistic departures (like the chillwave-flavored swirl of “Shady Lane Sherbet” and “Short Silent Sunset Film” or the rapping of “Summered Away”) that has marked the group’s highlights thus far in their career. “Halation” is just a tight indie-pop song – it features woozy moments (see the misty midpoint, or the shimmering part near the end), but those are just brief turns for a song otherwise powered by a rollicking drive and lead singer Azusa Suga’s “whoa-oh-ohs.” Watch the promotional video for it below.