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Something In There: The Neon City

The moment where Osaka project The Neon City leaves an impression comes a bit later on “Wonder Of The Unknown” (above). Until that point, the song is a fine albeit relatively straightforward bit of indie-pop shrouded in darkness — it rattles forward, the vocals coming from a room away. This sort of thing has been done, and done better, but it is serviceable. Then the song starts cracking apart, the singer’s voice drifting further back and new waves of sound drifting over “Unknown.” It turns into a shadowy mush, voices zipping all over and becoming far creepier than expected. It is a great ending, and an intriguing one at that.

Seemingly the project of Seina Ida, the rest of The Neon City’s output is a bit more hit or miss. Recent song “Have No Time” is a solid bit of indie-pop, but a little too relaxed with itself. The more electric The Neon City gets, the better — “Call Me” stands out thanks to its hop, while “Under Ground 2015” is goofy in the best way possible. Yet it’s the unnerving “Unknown” piquing my interesting in The Neon City.