final weekly music roundup! (weeks 3 and 4)

ok so my phone broke during work while it was raining like crazy last week, hence why i haven't written until now. since i have all my music saved locally i can't see what i listened to last week, so i'll just talk about the stuff I've managed to remember as well as some stuff i listened to this week.

also, yesterday was my last day! i now have about two weeks to relax before i start goin to college!! (wish me luck)

Kabanagu - Hoboyume

this is a pretty neat little album. it combines chill animal crossing-esque synths with jpop vocals and occasional sudden bursts of dubstep leads, breakcore drums and at one point even some good ol screaming. hoboyume is definitely my kinda album- it tickles my adhd-riddled brain to the fullest. i think it might be a love-it-or-hate-it type of album. i can imagine some of my friends finding the in your face weird parts kinda tryhard, but i've been a tryhard since birth baybeeeeee so i dont mind

you c - This January Day

i love me some avant folk. i also love me some weird ass children's music. this is both of those things and thus i am very happy :3 i found this artist on bandcamp the same day i listened to the album and i honestly think it might be one of the best things i've randomly stumbled upon there. all the arrangements are quirky and playful, the vocals fit the style and emotion of the songs perfectly, and overall it's hard to really find any complaints with this thing, other than that i wish it was a bit longer.

Applehead - ILCQ

this album was hard to track down. it's up on itunes but since im a dirty pirate who screams, cries and vomits at the thought of paying for a streaming service, i was kinda out of luck- this album didn't seem to be available anywhere!!! i checked soulseek, i checked jpopsuki, youtube only had some album trailers. in the end i bought the cd on discogs. so, was the purchase worth it? HELL YEAH IT WAS! i kinda really like this album a lot. it's my favorite kind of hyperactive, almost manic kind of jpop. cutesy vocals with over the top electropop production mixed in with distorted guitars- what's not to love?
my only complaint is that a lot of the songs sound pretty similar to eachother and i have trouble remembering specific tracks, but i know that the experience as a whole was more than worth the price.

Your Arms Are My Cocoon - Self titled

this ep/album/whatever is kind of regarded as a modern classic in some screamo circles. and since it's got really dope cover art, and i proudly judge books by their covers, i felt like i should check it out. i actually listened to this whole album on the bus a couple years ago and really didn't enjoy it, but nowadays my music tastes are a lot wider so i felt like i might "get it" this time.
in the end i found most of it pretty boring and same-y, the one exception to that is the track "metamorphosis" which is a beautiful indie folk ballad with great combinations of instruments and an incredibly catchy melody. the clean vocals with screamed vocals quietly layered on top of em in the background really works for the track and is something i'm definitely gonna try to do in my own music.

November Suite - The Grass Will Grow Again Someday

i might act like a music snob with my head really deep up my own ass (it do be stinky in here), sometimes all you really need is some good old sad indie folk tunes and that's that this november suite album delivers! this is one of those cases where the album sounds exactly like what the cover art looks like- and the cover art is beautiful in its' simplicity and almost naive art style. just like the album! the first track, "drones of chicago" perfectly sets the tone for the album. it's also one of my favorite tracks, though it's hard to decide on a favorite since most of them are so good. there's really only one dud on the album for me, and that's the track "bones dog". it feels like a rough sketch of a verse that could've been put into a more finished-sounding piece.
if i had to pick a favorite track it'd probably be "these antlers aren't for show". the melody in that song wanders into my head rent free, without even knocking, almost every day and i love how the other instruments join the guitar (or is it a ukulele???) in the chorus, feels so damn satisfying!

Nishimura Naoaki - Music for Acoustic Sines

i think this is the first fully instrumental project i've covered here! normally i'm not hugely into instrumental music, at least not for active listening, but this ep is different for me. something about this thing is just so calming, cosy and [insert synonym for calming and cosy]! most of the tracks here consist of sine wave synths playing simple, sleepy melodies with field recordings of insects, radios or just people talking playing in the background- sometimes joined by a secondary instrument like a piano or acoustic guitar. the last track "air check" is my absolute favorite. that track makes every muscle in my body go into "mimimimi honk schnooo" mood immediately. fantastic ep all around.