One of the nicest surprises of 2024 was the first album from Ålborg, a fairly new group from Yokohama. They are active since 2022 and I came across their music sometime early 2024 when I was browsing through one of Spotify’s “new music from Japan” sort of lists. And amidst the flood of generic pop-rock that usually fill these lists all the time, they instantly captured my attention with their distinctively different sound. Aetheral, somewhat folk inspired, with sweet and soothing female vocals. The song in that list was Window, the then-newest one in a line of equally enchanting tunes, released as digital singles and, as it turned out, together with Blend, which was released a few weeks later, it was actually leading up to their first full-length, The Way I See You, which came out mid-summer.

And the album itself turned out to be just as charming and flawless as their singles. The music is a unique mixture of dream pop, indie-rock / indie-pop, singer-songwriter kind of tunes, some folk/folk-rock influences and a touch of typical Scandinavian pop music (maybe that’s why they borrowed the name of a city in Danmark as their band name?). The closest thing I could think of is probably Danielle Stech-Homsy‘s mesmerizing Rio En Medio project, but while there might be similar acts, Ålborg creates a truly distinctivy sound, that includes prominent use of trombone, exceptional songwriting and the one-of-a-kind voice of their singer, Miya. It is the kind of music that just pulls you into its own little universe: with its slow tempo, sweet, melancholic sound and chill, laid-back atmosphere The Way I See You creates a world, where everything is peaceful and quiet and all you want to do is curl up in a blanket, with a tea and watch as the leaves slowly fall outside.

But what makes the album a really great listen that you will return to again and again is its diversity, that while sticking to their chosen musical direction, each and every song is different in its own ways: Somebody, Somewhere brings the groovy steel guitar sound to the front, I Wish is a surprisingly upbeat and happy little tune, the slowly flowing Waiting sticks out thanks to a very memorable bassline, while the title track ends in a surprisingly cacophonous way. Besides Window and Blend, the album also features newly recorded takes of their first two songs, originally released back in 2022, but excludes all three of their tracks from 2023: Lemon Cake, Memory and Change, but those are also absolutely worth to check out. The Way I See You was released by indie label Kakubarhythm and besides being available digitally, it is also out on CD and vinyl.

Ålborg: The Way I See You
2024.07.17 / Kakubarhythm
digital, cd, vinyl
01.Same Page
02.I Wish
03.Somebody, Somewhere
04.Window
05.Blend
06.Stray Cat (alternative version)
07.Girl (alternative version)
08.Waiting
09.The Way I See
10.Same Page!