There were many excellent releases coming out of Japan in 2025, but if I had to pick one as the absolute favorite… I would probably pick this one. The debut album of Palastleben, which, while takes all its cues from the ’80s and ’90s, still manages to sound refreshing, with no weak tracks anywhere in sight. While the band is (relatively) new, it was formed in late 2020 by two more than familiar faces: Kinoco Hotel‘s leader Marianne Shinonome on vocals, synths and violin and Shinpei Mörishige (formerly of Foxpill Cult) on guitar. They were joined by Suzuna Hasegawa on bass and Shintaro on drums (and also featured a saxophonist up til mid-2024) and were off to a kinda slow start: they played live on a regular basis, but their first single was only released Spring 2022 and while it was followed by several others in 2022 / 2023, they stopped after that, saving up all new material for their first full album, Manufacture, which features all new songs and hit the stores in October 2025. So, they took their time with it, but man, was it worth the wait!

Palastleben is rather difficult to categorize as their music is a mixture of many different genres from that aforementioned era, with the emphasis on a different one for pretty much each and every track. And for the most part, it is all new ground for both of the group’s leaders. Kinoco Hotel is mostly inspired by the music of the ’60s and ’70, eras that do not really pop their heads up here.  And while Mörishige’s previous band, the now defunct Foxpill Cult was heavily inspired by new wave, that band’s wild and quirky take on the genre was drastically different from the more subtle new wave influences found here. But still, his guitar playing recalls memories of his Foxpill days, while Marianne Shinonome’s crazy, trademark synths are all over the place along with her instantly recognizable voice, so even if the music is very different here, their musical background did leave its mark on Palastleben afterall.

The opening Confrontation is the wildest piece of the album and also, this is where we get closest to the typical Kinoco Hotel sound, with Marianne’s husky voice at full blast, with the synths taking center stage at the start, and with that nice little detour in favour of a surf-rockish guitar solo later on. Negative Capability on the other hand, with its driving, synth-heavy rock sound (is it indie-rock? or art rock? or both?) makes it obvious that this is not at all a Kinoco album, and we drift even further away with Kalimantan, which goes for a softer, alternative rock inspired sound and at points even has a slight ’50’s pop-rock feel. In that song you can already feel some slight dream pop and shoegaze vibes, but really, only as a side-note, however in Everlasting Rest they are at full display and the soft and soothing song takes us back to the early / mid ’90s when bands like Lush dominated the indie charts. This one is easily one of the best songs here, charming and beautiful and the following Missing From A Distance is quite similar in style, while still going for a slightly different direction. Then however we return to the more edgy side of Palastleben with Vanity, a genius, somewhat hysterical cross between menacing post-punk and funky new wave, before they wrap up the album with the bass-driven Cloustrophobia, which is even more of a genre-crosser than any of the other songs, changing directions several times, while maintaining an overall ’90s indie-rock feel.

It is not a long album by any means, but due to its diversity and its constant high quality, we do not at all feel that it lacks in any ways. And it is built up so well, it takes us an a trip, both musically and emotionally, and that is what makes it a lot more than just a collection of good songs. It is a really masterfully crafted album, with nothing missing and no “oh, but there could be more!” feeling. Very highly recommended. And if you liked it, it is also worth to dig into the band’s pre-album singles, as even though the quality there is not as consistent as here, there are still some gems to find.

Foxpill Cult and Kinoco Hotel live reports from Tokyo, 2016.

Palastleben: Manufacture
2025.10.08. / Sekt
cd, digital
01.Confrontation
02.Negative Capability
03.Kalimantan
04.Everlasting Rest
05.Missing From A Distance
06.Vanity
07.Cloustrophobia