Yuko Kanai - Écran Review

PIROUETTING PARASOLS UNDER CHERRY BLOSSOMS

How'd one even stumble on an obscure 80's City Pop record, you might ask? RateYourMusic's randomized generator of course (https://rateyourmusic.com/misc/random), a gem of programming that allows for my Grab Bag series to exist. Yuko Kanai's 'I'm In Love With You' appeared, draped in archetypal Twee Pop, reminiscent of New Zealand's Dunedin Sound (The Clean) and U.K.'s own burgeoning scene (Tallulah Gosh). Marry those shimmering guitars and effervescent spirit with the saccharine youthfulness of Japanese Pop and this is what you get. Brilliant, self-contained, and entirely wholesome. The rest of Écran, surprisingly, expands outward, localizing a myriad of trendy sounds for Japan's lively boom. The primary culprit is Kate Bush, whose over-the-top theatrics flourish on 'Shitsuren Story' or 'Hashire Usagi,' while her weeping melodrama bookends Écran with 'Umi (Onna) - Sora (Otoko)' and 'Ginmaku No Koibito.'

Apart from 'I'm In Love With You,' which still reigns supreme here, a close competitor emerges in 'Wait My Darling.' Which, for all those whose minds immediately wander to New Wave when discussing early 80's Pop, will be happy to know is doused entirely in Blondie's mannerisms. Almost to the point of parody. The bridge is as catchy as the chorus, as both soar through post-ABBA piano whacks. The whole album's filled with this playful spirit, which is why the dolefulness of the intro and outro feel out-of-touch. 'J's Bar' is prime Techno Kayō, with unorthodox instrumentation brazenly bastardizing every surface it touches, like a Free Jazz blowout. Yellow Magic Orchestra inspiration here for sure. Though Kanai's personality rarely reveals itself due to the overabundance of outside help, there's no discrediting the sheer vehemence proudly on display. This is pure, no-frills, adolescent City Pop. Or, for someone like myself born a decade later on the other side of the world, what I'd imagine it to be.