Mei Semones’s third EP (and first physical release on CD and cassette), Kabutomushi welcomes you like a comfortable old sofa that lets your soul rest and mind refresh. The five tracks on the record continues Mei’s unique approach of combining subtle math rock meters, Brazilian music rhythms married with an intimate chamber pop aesthetic.
The mix and feeling of Tegami is soothing especially with Mei’s relaxed vocals over her intricate guitar part.
Wakare No Kotoba builds up next with the same kind of arrangement textures. There’s a nice mix of clean jazz-tinged lines and well written string arrangements.
And then something different appears with Takaramono with a more old school jazz chord melody intro and nolstalgic viola and violin before her vocals come in. She sings in Japanese but it’s not just the lyrics are Japanese but there are also Japanese type of harmonic movements mixed with his distinctive style. There’s enough odd time fun to make it unpredictable but enough unity to keep this a fun listen to non-music geeks. The arrangement also develops in a beautiful way and lead into English lyrics that seep into the final part of the song. There’s a lot happening in the song but everything feels together.
Inaka is the fourth song on the EP and this one that I’ve had on repeat as a single for awhile now. The playing on this is lovely and the mix of English and Japanese lyrics is sublime. A highlight is the interlude that comes in around 1:20. This is kind of like what I imagine if Polyphia and Shogu Tokumaru had a kid that played around in a small playground in a quieter neighbourhood in Osaka or Tokyo. The ending also reprises the guitar part which is a nice bookend!
Closing the EP is Kabutomushi, which make start counting the time for a bit before I just started enjoying it for what it is. The pizzicato string part is really neat. And… I love the guitar part throughout on this song. The vocal part that is harmonized by the strings is a special kind of ear candy that lingers in your ears long after the EP is over. And the lyrics… this song in particular is probably the best example I’ve heard of saudade but in Japanese and English lyrics. Such delicate writing from Mei.
What a beautiful record. Thanks Mei for the music.
Go listen now.
Read my previous reviews of Mei’s music here:
Music Review: Tsukino (EP) by Mei Semones
Music Review: Sukikirai 好き嫌い (EP) by Mei Semones
Music Review: Okashi by Mei Semones
credits:
released April 5, 2024
Guitar, vocals, songwriting – Mei Semones
Noah Leong on viola
Claudius Agrippa on violin
Jaden Raso on bass
Ransom McCafferty on drums
Produced, recorded, mixed, and mastered by Kai Tsao
Additional recording by Micah Rubin, Noah Leong, Simon Aber
Illustration & design by Seiko Semones
Rating: 5/5
Find more information about Mei & where you can stream, purchase & download her music on her official website here: https://www.meisemones.com/
About Mei Semones:
Mei Semones’ sweetly evocative blend of jazz, bossa nova and math-y indie rock is not only a way for her to find solace in her favorite genres, but is an intuitive means of catharsis. “Blending everything that I like together and trying to make something new – that’s what feels most natural to me,” says the 23-year-old Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter and guitarist. “It’s what feels most true to who I am as an artist.”
On her newest EP and Bayonet Records debut Kabutomushi, Mei’s diverse sonic palette adds depth to her experiences of the complexities of love. Through the EP’s five songs, she chronicles infatuation, devotion, vulnerability, and saying goodbye in some of her closest relationships, complete with sweeping strings, virtuosic guitar-playing and heartfelt lyrics sung in both English and Japanese.
Originally from Ann Arbor, Michigan, Semones began playing music at a young age, starting out on piano at age four before moving to electric guitar at age eleven. After playing jazz guitar in high school, she went on to study guitar performance with a jazz focus at Berklee College of Music. College is where she met her current bandmates, including string players Noah Leong and Claudius Agrippa, whose respective viola and violin add softness and multidimensionality to Mei’s intricate guitar work. After releasing a slew of singles and an EP in 2022, coinciding with her move to New York City, Mei and her band have since gone on to collaborate with post-bossa balladeer John Roseboro and embark on their first-ever tour with the melodic rock outfit Raavi.
The Kabutomushi EP encapsulates Semones’ sonic trademarks: ornately catchy, genre-fusing compositions serving as the backdrop to tender lyrics touching on the universalities of human emotion.
– Margeaux Labat
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