Monthly Listening: April 2022
This month's round-up of great new Japanese releases from Fujii Kaze, Hitsujibungaku, lyrical school, and more
Hi! This is April’s Monthly Listening list, a quick rundown of new Japanese albums I checked out this month that I enjoyed. You can browse past Monthly Listenings in the archives.
Few weeks of my April was spent watching the 2019 TV series Kinou Nani Tabeta?, or What Did You Eat Yesterday? A film adaptation came out last November (it’s originally a manga) so I figured it’s perfect time to put it on after having it in my queue for so long. It initially felt jarring to see Hidetoshi Nishijima as an emotionally reserved, gay lawyer cooking for his boyfriend—an extremely opposite role in comparison to his appearance in Drive My Car, the most recent film of his that I saw last. But the relationship between him and his on-screen romantic partner, Seiyo Uchino’s Kenji, made for such a lovely watch. I can’t wait to see the movie, whenever it becomes available to me.
Maybe one of these days, I will share a watch list. Until then, here is my listening list for April. Here is this month’s Spotify playlist with the newsletter’s top 40 selection of new singles. Happy listening!
Queendom by Awich
rap / hip hop | ► “Link Up” ft. KEIJU, Yellow Bucks
sins by cinder-ella
metal / idol | ► “Pride”
circle by Crossnoesis
synth pop / idol | ► “muse”
LOVE ALL SERVE ALL by Fujii Kaze
pop / R&B | ► “Matsuri”
our hope by Hitsujibungaku
indie rock | ► “Hikarutoki”
Explode by JUBEE
hip hop / drum ‘n’ bass | ► “Mess” ft. HIYADAM
terzo by Juice=Juice
R&B / idol | ► “Hitori De Ikiraresoutte Sorettene, Homete Iruno?”
Opto4:Utae by Koh-Gaku
electronic / R&B | ► “Yubisaki”
L.S. by lyrical school
hip hop / idol | ► “The Light”
Adapt by sakanaction
rock / new wave | ► “Plateau”
Korekara by So Shibano
indie rock | ► “Ai Wo Oranaide”
Force to Forth by SUPER DRAGON
pop / idol | ► “love or like (Tokyo)” ft. Anatomy Rabbit
Lululu No Sonosaki by Towa Mafune
indie rock / folk | ►”Hajimaru”
fruitful days by Tomoyo Harada
pop | ► “Violet”
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