SATO MOKA - Glints
Featuring in-demand producers and a full band, SATO MOKA’s third full album “Glints” is more ambitious and greater in scale than her previous works, and not only is it a fun summer album, it fully realizes her potential as a creative musical force.
To be honest, I am surprised/not surprised at how far she’s come since first writing about her first album Lukewarm. There was always something special about her, something different, and in the past few years more and more people have been taking notice. She’s been working with artists like SUKISHA, NF ZESSHO, as well as TOSHIKI HAYASHI (%C) and maco marets as part of supergroup Hotel Donuts, demonstrating how much respect and admiration she has among peers.
While her first two albums felt like they were made in tiny rooms making the most out of her imagination, “Glints” is a more conventional summer album, which means romance, creating memories, hanging with friends, eating ice cream, break-ups. While this makes it much more relatable, it is never boring or predictable, at this stage she has the confidence and creative license to do whatever she wants - singer songwriter, blues, folk rock, 50’s rock, mambo, Shibuya-kei, ballad, alt pop, indie rock, somehow its all in here. That does mean there’s a bit of a novelty/kitschy aspect to it and you may not like every single song, but the odds are pretty high that you will love quite a few.
The most likely favourite would be the title track “Glints”, produced by the man with the Midas touch TENDRE. Setting the tone in 20 seconds, together they bring out the sunshine, blue skies and billowing cumulonimbus clouds as Sato Moka professes her love of summer and all that comes with it - night time convenience store runs, unexpected fireworks, movies, drives, the beach. Most TENDRE collabs are solid gold, but because this is Sato Moka it gets an even greater lift from her unique delivery, romantic vocal harmonies and innocent cheerfulness.
The other standout is “Poolside”, produced by SPENSR, and it shows off Sato Moka’s versatility in being able to smoothly handle modern urban pop - the key lies in the stacking of her voice in harmony to match the digital production. It’s a lot more moody/melancholy than her usual songs, and it’s a more realistic fit for your typical youth struggles with love and relationships (especially those tragic summer flings).
But despite the presence of these super producers, this is first and foremost a Sato Moka album, with all sorts of crazy twists and genre jumps. It’s a bit like a carnival, and our star constantly switches costumes and backdrops. That’s why you get spectacular stereophonic tunes and magic musical flourishes all over the place. You even get baseball (which actually is an integral part of Japanese summer) with the wacky “Strawberry Milk Ships” as well as classic mambo with “アイスのマンボ”. Funnily enough, hearing mambo and French pop/Shibuya-kei from her is actually less of a surprise than blues or indie rock.
I once expressed doubt about her ability to front a band, I am happy to be proven wrong - see the beautifully tragic “ラムネにシガレット” driven by emotional electric guitar. It’s telling that the music is performed by what is called the Sato Moka Band, clearly showing she is the key personality and driving force around which everything revolves.
At this stage it feels like there are now two kinds of Sato Moka songs, the original, whimsical kind with bells and whistles, and now a more mature kind that is grounded in reality and personal relationships. It’s probably a part of growing up. So as Sato Moka experiences more of the world over time, will we get mixed albums like “Glints”, double albums or will there be a unified sound somehow? With all the well- deserved acclaim and attention, there’s no hiding from the spotlight now.
More Sato Moka: Lukewarm, Merry-go-round
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