01 Jun 2012 — Henning Lahmann
With groups like
Hotel Mexico or
Jesse Ruins, Japanese underground pop received some well-deserved exposure in the last two years, with some remarkable internet attention and subsequent signings by US and UK labels. Before the latter took notice, Tokyo imprint
Cuz Me Pain served both as nucleus and focal point of the emerging scene, with a roster that includes not only Jesse Ruins, now taken care of by
Captured Tracks, but also other exponents of a distinctly Japanese approach to pop such as
Atlas Young,
Masculin, or
Nites. One of the most interesting of the lot however is
Faron Square, the main project of label founder Yokke. The outfit’s knack for glaring, overstated indie pop is not unlike that of the first bands mentioned above, with blurry, mostly unintelligible lyrics that are drowned under washes of fuzzy and distorted synths and guitars, at times slightly irritating for Western ears yet consistently amazing. Listen to “Echoes of Love”, the first single off Faron Square’s latest full-length
Willys Heartbeat.
Willys Heartbeat is out now on
Cuz Me Pain.
