The Japanese House is essentially Amber Mary Bain who releases a new album `In The End It Always Does` this month four years after her debut `Good At Falling`. This album sees Bain lean even further into the pop realm with help from Matty Healy and George Daniel from The 1975, Katie Gavin from MUNA and Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon, among others. This singer songwriter has said that much of the album lives in the contradictory: beginnings and endings; obsession and mundanity; falling in love and falling apart.
It opens with `Spot Dog` with tinkled piano keys followed by a mix match of sounds akin to a tape loop running backwards with gently shared vocals atop and around. It had to me a kind of film noir feel at times. We have in `Touching Yourself` a mid paced slice of dream pop which appears to be about missing that certain someone.
`Sad to Breathe` begins as a ballad before an electronic beat joins and moves it along at a much faster pace. The song speaks about the emotional pain and longing of someone who is struggling with the end of a relationship. There`s a more ethereal vibe to `Over There` where the vocals become fairly expressive.
`Morning Pages` is a further fragile composition that lulls you into a fairly mesmeric state. The artist has said that `Boyhood` speaks of a sense of self-discovery and self-realisation and a desire for acceptance, both from oneself and from others, and the need to find one’s true identity while navigating the challenges of life. It`s an upbeat fairly trippy electronic meditative submission.
The oddly titled `Indexical Reminder Of A Morning Well Spent` was a track that I have to say I took to instantly with vocals that were delightfully enticing shared over an absorbing musical backdrop. To me `Friends` seemed a little busy and lacked a kind of focus.
I read that `Sunshine Baby` explores themes of longing, confusion, reflecting, and the search for consolation and meaning in relationships and experiences while capturing a sense of vulnerability and a longing for resolution in the midst of personal struggles. It`s another tranquil number with Matty Healy from The 1975 contributing vocals. We have a similar texture to `Baby Goes Again`.
`You Always Get What You Want` flows along with a softly shared vocal over an ambient soundscape. The album closes out with the introspective `One For Sorrow, Two For Joni Jones` where the lyrics find the singer dealing with her own identity, the significance of her connection with a previous partner, and the impact of her actions on others. A stripped back number which adds to the poignancy of the track.
Amber Mary Bain has a wonderfully rich and varied vocal range and writes lyrics that are pretty raw and at times deeply personal. `In The End It Always Does` will need a few listens as many of the numbers are petty overwhelming to listen to first time around. I`m sure this was a really cathartic album to compose and produce and you have to admire somebody who is prepared to bare their soul.
Rating 7.5 /10
