As spring gradually shifts into the early days of summer, TENDRE (a.k.a 河原 太朗 Kawahara Taro) is riding the transition as well with their new summery, radio-blasting tune ‘RIDE’. The new song comes after only five months since he released his debut EP, but one must marvel at his confidence and creative mind that churned out this anthemic number. With TENDRE driving the musical convertible with his sleek vocals, the track collages an infectious mix of groovy bass lines, a spectrum of instrumental colours enough to paint a rainbow, and pounding beats to keep the body moving.
Other Info
TENDRE’s new digital single SOFTLY – RIDE will be released on May 23rd. More info is available on his website.
With the initial idea of creating a “small series of ballads”, LAMP’s new album 彼女の時計 Kanojo no Tokei is a breath of fresh nostalgia. At the heart of the trio’s sound lies a sweet and sumptuous blend of 80s brazilian colours and retro city-pop vibes that wind the clock back a further few decades, musical elements that are vividly evoked in the wistful melodies, synth colours and harmonic progressions of ‘1998′, one of eight tracks in their new album. The song is in no way an inferior pastiche of the past, but injects a new and cool lease of life that makes this sound current.
Other Info
LAMP’s new album Kanojo no Tokei will be released on May 15th, and is available to buy through their website.
Reflective and modestly pulsing in equal measure, ‘Songbirds’ by Homecomings is a breath of fresh air fit for the relaxed spring period. The theme song for the film リズと青い鳥 Liz and the Bluebird, the Kyoto-based four-piece shimmers a delicate and radiant mid-tempo vibe with comforting harmonies, cradle-rocking beats and pulse, floating guitars full of lustre and 畳野彩加 Tatamino Ayaka’s purifying vocals. So simple yet so perfect.
Other Info
Homecomings’ new single ‘Songbirds’ was released on April 25th. More info is on their website.
Listen to more music by Homecomings on my blog post here.
A short spell of summer has arrived in London, so it makes sense to blast a voltage-induced sunny rock number while soaking in the sunshine. Much to one’s delight, a new tune by Kensei Ogata cropped up out of the blue. ‘Someone Will Love You’ marks a coming of age in two ways – it’s the first song Ogata released as a band line-up, and musically diverts into new stylistic territory. In contrast to much of the spellbinding synth-led songs in his album Her Paperback (released in 2012 under Dead Funny Records), Ogata unleashes powerful rays of post-rock energy with an infectious rhythmic and harmonic motor that throws back the days to the teenage rock generation.
ベッドサイドミュージック ‘Bedside Music’ has a special place in the heart of the band フレンズ Friends. This gentle rock tune kickstarted their life as a quintet, and they now relish the experience of driving the roads of Japan and showcasing their charming and eloquent music and personality.
Musically, the song rides the same waves as the 80s city-pop trend that flowed through the veins of the Japanese music scene then, with its light and mellow adult-rock vibes, cute and sophisticated vocal melodies, and luxurious instrumental colours with a touch of soul glittering throughout. Whether you’re walking down the street with your earphones, or literally lying on your bed or sofa, Friends are one from today’s generation of artists to hear out for.
Other Info
Friends’ new EP Bedside Music will be released on March 21st, and is available to buy and stream here.
In a sonic universe where the hypnotic minimal pop of The XX, ambient music and psychedelic grooves orbit around each other, D.A.N. continue to transfix listeners with their mesmerising musical palette and their new single ‘Chance’. The alt-pop trio concocts a perpetual spell of post-minimal richness, but continually expands the kaleidoscope of sounds from the spectral vocals of 桜木大悟 Sakuragi Daigo to the perennial guitar riffs and synth colours that waver with subtle unpredictability. My personal highlight has to be the blissful ending, enriched by the voltage-boosted guitar solo and clamorous drums in the back.
Other Info
D.A.N.’s new single ‘Chance’ is available to download on their website here.
‘Sunshine’ by Kobe-born trio FIVE NEW OLD is the perfect musical antidote for the winter chills and flu-riddled season. The band first made their mark on the music scene with their likeable and fresh sound that kindles a new lease of life for 80s old-school urban vibes with an infectious alt-rock drive. ‘Sunshine’ embodies their appealing summery and youthful sound, and surfs the waves with a gorgeous mix of seductive vocal melodies, bubbly riffs and enticing beats and harmonies.
Other Info
FIVE NEW OLD’s new album Too Much Is Never Enough will be released on January 31st, and will be available to download/stream.
2018 is a milestone year for youthful rock duo Polta, as it marks 10 years since they first formed and pleased audiences with their down-to-earth pop-rock sound. After listening to glimpses of their previous EP HELLO AGAIN, their latest energetic tune 土星少年 ‘Dosei Shounen’ (‘Saturn Boy’) provides the fuel for a new angle to their musical palette.This tune mixes much of the ingredients for an attention-grabbing song – a cool guitar riff in the introduction to invite me into their sound world, 尾苗愛 Onae Ai’s vocals that both radiates energy and soothes the ear drum, and a voltage-piercing guitar solo that looks to blast the speakers.
Other Info
POLTA’s new album LOVE TO DIE will be released on January 17th, and will be available to buy on their website.
Despite having only spent just over two years as a band, RAMMELLS have already garnered a reputation for their amiable soul, funk and indie rock vibes. Their debut album Authentic showcases their beautifully nostalgic yet refreshing musical personality, including the track ‘Cherry‘. The song, led by 黒田秋子 Kuroda Akiko’s charming vocals, blends a soulful cosmos of polished harmonies, river-like melodies and gentle heart-beating rhythms that is perfect to swirl around the living room stereo with a cup of coffee in one’s hands.
RAMMELLS’s debut album Authentic was released in December 2017. Find out more about RAMMELLS on their website.
PAELLAS – ‘Shooting Star’
The intoxicating and nocturnal sound world of ‘Shooting Star’ by four-piece PAELLAS typify why growing audiences are so excited by this Tokyo-based band. Reminiscent of the vibes of Daft Punk, the sweet scent of MATTON’s delicate and transient vocals twines around the song like vines on a brick wall, an array of synths swirl throughout to evoke the melancholic and hypnotic, and infectious riffs and chords on the guitar and electric piano kicks in an irresistible pulse that can’t help the listener groove along with the beat.
PAELLAS’s EP D.R.E.A.M was released in September 2017, and is available on their website. Find out more about PAELLAS on my blog post here.
Polaris – ‘SEASON’
Rhythmically snappy and melodically sentimental, ‘SEASON’ by rock duo POLARIS brings the best of both polarities in the musical spectrum. On one hand, the track drives through with dynamism in the drums and grooving bass line. On the other, serpentine vocals and coiling guitars concoct an air of melancholy and meditation. Personally, the song serves as the perfect antidote for my senses, dispelling all the city-life noise from my ear drums and cocooning them with dreamy indie rock.
Polaris’s album Hashiru was released in November 2017, and is available on their website.
With the freak snow trapping much of the sounds of my surroundings, I was craving an up-tempo tune to break through the bed of white snow and quiet air. Upcoming rock trio Half Time Old woke me up with their pulsating new number アウトフォーカス ‘Out Focus’, which features on their latest album 発見と疑問 Hakken to Gimon. Thunder-bolting guitar riffs, ground-pounding drums and 鬼頭大晴 Kitou Masaharu’s razor-sharp vocals inject the fuel to the track’s sonic engine, which drives through with great conviction and dynamism.
Other Info
Half Time Old’s new album Hakken to Gimon was released on December 6th.
J-pop Through My Looking Glass 
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