New Lullatone: Summer Songs

When someone wonders “what the song of the summer” is going to be, what comes to mind? That’s usually code for wondering what’s going to be the most popular single of the season, what one will hear blaring from passing cars and at outdoor BBQs. It’s gonna be energetic and upbeat. And those are all fantastic qualities – summer is all about having a big ol’ good time, and it deserves a big ol’ killer song to go with.

Still, Nagoya duo Lullaton have probably gone and made the summer album of the year, if you consider putting the warmer months under a microscope worthy of that title. Summer Songs – see, look at the title! – does what every Lullatone album ever has done, which is zero in on small details of something and celebrate the simplest parts of life with cute, let’s-skip-down-the-road-together music. Song titles include “Hot Sand,” “Grocery Shopping For A BBQ,” “Secretly Loving The Smell Of Suntan Oil” and “Splitting A Banana Split” – all instances that wouldn’t define a summer, but still make up the fabric of those sweat-soaked days. Accordingly, Lullatone’s music here doesn’t try to be big, but rather simple and fun. Opener “Cannonball Splash” serves as bit of an about-face for the duo – it prominently features surf-rock guitar, and subsequently a fuzzier edge to a group that, as of late, has been playroom-clean. It’s great. Save for the hyper-cute “Splitting A Banana Split” – all doo-wop stylings about eating ice cream and sharing said treats, geez stupidly adorable – these tracks are instrument-focused memories. “Hot Sand” is a bunch of toy instruments lizard-skipping in a way that would make Shugo Tokumaru proud, while “Driving Home With A Towel On The Sweet” swelters. Oh heck, back to the cuddly stuff – the final track, “Still Feeling The Waves When You Go To Bed” features water sounds, birds and Yoshiko Tomida (Lullatone member Yoshimi Seymour’s mother) providing very faint singing. Lullatone are an outfit that long ago figured out what they were all about – capturing teeny tiny moments sonically – and Summer Songs is another strong collection of tunes from the two. It won’t be blasting out of stereos, but it’s as summery as it gets. Get it here or listen below.