grunge

Yanakoto Sotto Mute Get Retrospective While Unveiling the Future in “Layline” MV

/ DAEMON

In a last ditch effort to demonstrate that we deserve good things in 2019, Yanakoto Sotto Mute are ending the year with an MV for Layline, #3 in their “NINE” series of singles.

Scholars of Yanamute will notice the settings of past MVs Lily, Any, Holy Grail, Awake and Morning pelting by accompanied by flashes of the imagery from “Bubble” and “Mirrors”. This 4:44 MV pays homage to virtually all of the motifs of the past while incrementally constructing a vision of Yanamute’s future. The end finds the trio back on the set of Horoscope, Yanakoto Sotto Mute’s very first MV, as they are joined by their newest member and finally head to the stage as a quartet once again.  For fans, this MV is a seismic landmark and it helps that Layline is one of the best of the “NINE” tracks YSM has been quietly releasing over the past few months. 

The MV though is in danger of being upstaged by the group’s big reveal. You recall a couple weeks ago when Yanamute dropped a teaser trailer on us without even enough info to know how to spell their new member’s name? Now we finally got the deets:

Meet Rin Tsukasa. She would like you to call her, “Tsukasa”.

Continue reading →

Yanakoto Sotto Mute Somehow Continues to Only Get Better

/ Homicidol Maniac

The only good thing about the end of daylight saving in the parts of the United States that are especially insane for doing it in the first place? There’s a brief window in autumn when you’re awake extra-early because dawn comes at an obscene hour, and that time is surprisingly useful. Like when your favorite idols release stuff!

For instance, Yanamyu, whose every tweet carries with it the potential for me to wet myself with glee. Here’s the very aptly named “HOLY GRAiL”:


That is, if a perfect idol unit is your holy grail …

This is one of the tracks from the single (like, double A-side?) that they’re releasing at their big one-man next month. I love the point at it’s coming for them, like 1.5 years, and they’re so much more than The Nadeshiko Show now (though Nadeshiko remains one of the least appreciated greats in this whole business). Mani obviously deserves a ton of credit for emerging in her own right, but I feel like Ichika has made huge strides over the last couple of releases, too. A group may only be as strong as its leader, but a great leader can only take a group so far on her own, and Yanamyu’s in such good shape for … for, well, what we’re going to do the Fun about later!

The songwriting here’s off the damn chain, too. Did you hear that bridge? It’s a good thing that it’s so short; somebody might get hurt. YSM isn’t the only unit doing grunge/post-grunge/SEATTLE out there, though they are the best at it by a mile, and a big part of that is the serious commitment to getting the whole shebang down pat. Jeff Ament recently hosted this “Origin of the Seattle Sound” segment on Lithium, and among the topics covered was the real birth point of that insta-recognition guitar tone and halfway-distant sound in production — Yanamyu gets that stuff so right.

Lest we forget, too, that BUBBLE is easily one of the top releases this year, and I will now also take the opportunity to remind you that Yanakoto Sotto Mute are just about my favorite damn thing and I will fight you if you so much as suggest a negative in their direction.1

Yanakoto Sotto Mute Sustains My Very Existence, I Swear It

/ Homicidol Maniac / 4 Comments

It’s safe to say that I didn’t figure on waking up to a Yanakoto Sotto Mute EP announcement this morning, but that’s what happened!

The digital pre-release is just a week away! What! Continue reading →

Oh, You Guys, There’s New Dots and It’s Lovely

/ Homicidol Maniac / 2 Comments

Dots, the enigmatic shoegaze idol newcomers, have become an object of fascination for some in our little community. Well, like me and Brian and Justin and probably a few less vocal proponents. But still! Full of mystery as to who they are, what they’re about and even where they come from, they’re hard to not pay attention to.

They post video constantly, but very little of that video is of performance; see the other side of the jump for some of the typical video that shows up on their channel. Whoever’s in charge has a wicked sense of humor and ginning up interest. But when you see a stage and Dots members on it, you should probably pay attention.


Oh, that’s just cruel

Continue reading →