It's been a pretty easy work day truthfully and currently, I'm moving through empty warehouses resetting bait stations in the dark ...
But that doesn't mean things can't be lively, so keeping things upbeat for me while I move and groove through dark rat-infested storage spaces is this Jubilee album by Japanese Breakfast.
This is a completely new band for me, and one that seems to come highly recommended on most people's "Best of" lists for albums last year, so I figured I'd finally get around and listen to it today ... as belated to the party as I am.
Singer and songwriter Michelle Zauner, aka Japanese Breakfast, had a huge year last year apparently. She released her first book, Crying in H Mart: A Memoir, which found her exploring her Korean heritage in the wake of her mother's death from cancer. The book reached number two on the New York Times nonfiction best-seller list and paved the way for her third solo album, Jubilee. Released several months after Crying in H Mart, Jubilee works as a beautiful companion piece to her memoir, showcasing Zauner's poignant indie rock that manages to deliver big 80's-style pop hooks while still feeling rooted in her personal experiences.
Okay, so I might have liked to have known that before hand, but whatever ...
You don't need to read Crying in H Mart to vibe with Jubilee though, but I bet it's nice to think that both the book and the album help to illuminate Zauner's artistic point of view. As Japanese Breakfast, Zauner has always written songs that feel intimate, yet sonically expansive, but where her early work was more lo-fi (she initially started recording at home while taking care of her mother), over the years she's expanded her approach and become more confident in fleshing out her arrangements. On
Jubilee, she takes this expansion even farther, crafting sweetly attenuated anthems that balance her love of tropical 80's synth pop and 90's shoegaze with a sophisticated adult contemporary aesthetic. It's an attractive mix, rife with slippery bass grooves, Day-Glo synths, and icicle-crisp guitar riffs. But while her melodies are catchy, her lyrics remain as introspective as ever.
It's catchy, and I dig it.
I'm not doing somersaults over it, but I bet Kelly will like this.
Not part of my personal Best of 2021 list, but a fun Bug Music listen nevertheless.
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