I work at a record store and was putting out a heap of CDs one day. It was before noon, so I was still a shell of a person in a morning daze waiting for the coffee to kick in, but this album caught my eye. Japanese Breakfast is a cool-as-heck band name.

I took one copy out of the pile of CDs and put one on hold for myself, because, yes, I am 24 years old and still live my life paycheque to paycheque.

This album is now one of my all-time faves. It’s really chill music, but chill with a punch and dynamics. It’s like when you’re eating really good pasta, but you add Frank’s Red Hot on, just because it makes it EVEN better. It stands out from other bands of the same genre.

As a whole, the record is badass, fun, but also heartbreaking. Most of the album sounds uplifting melody-wise, but if you really listen to the lyrics, they’re very poetic and sound like a person struggling through a tough one.

One of my favourite songs on the album is “The Body Is A Blade.” I love the guitar part in the beginning – it made me think of Pavement-esque style guitar. “Calling it off, our hoax of trying. What’s this place if you’re not here? Emptied the house and staged it for buying.”

Another one of my fave songs on the record is the second-last song. I’m just a total sucker for sad songs. Remember that old music app called Songza? There was a playlist on there called “Cry Yourself To Sleep.” This song totally could have been on that playlist. Ultimate album-ender. It feels sad, but somewhat hopeful. The song embodies the feeling of closure.

It’s a great album to have as a friend in such a lonely era.

- Bailee Woods

Published in Volume 72, Number 7 of The Uniter (October 26, 2017)