SPOOL - cyan / amber (2020)

I've always been reluctant to say there's something like Japanese dream pop/shoegaze subgenre, but in fact, the bands playing ethereal pop from Japan and the Orient tend to have their unique sound. The Japanese SPOOL are great example here and as the all-female band released their second album called cyan / amber, I am more and more convinced.

It is sung in Japanese and maybe it's part of the unique vibes, together with the rather high-pitched, Anime-like (sorry for narrow cultural perspective) vocals provided by Ayumi Kobayashi, that, at the beginning at least, are more lively and carefree than moody and atmospheric. But that's not a problem with the tweepop, lo-fi dream pop guitar arrangements that, together with the omnipresent ethereal backing vocals, take care of the dreamy part of the project. When also vocals get to this level of ethereality, as in Suicide Girl or in my favourite ghost, the dream pop-ish ecstatic state is way closer and it feels so great. 

ghost is actually special as, being the longest one, shows how well the musicians handle the mesmerizing, psychedelic passages if they give themselves a bit more time and space in a track. The whole album makes an almost-40-minutes-long dreamy trip lead by the beautiful and chic vocals, cute and catchy.

cyan / amber costs ¥2,100 (17 EUR).

Check: ghost

Country: Japan

Genre: Asian dream pop

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