On her jazzy, subtle, and lush solo debut, acclaimed vocalist and Little Dragon singer Yukimi gets personal to find connection.
A longtime band member going solo to share more personal stories is a bit of a music industry trope. And although For You does contain multiple unique to Yukimi songs about her son, her husband and her mental health, the singer's goal with the album is to connect, not to simply get things off her chest.
She lays it out on the spoken word opening track "Prelude For You," stating:
When you write from a place that feels deeply personal, it all becomes very human/ And that's why I'm calling this album For You, because, even though it's about me, it's equally about you/ And here we are, spinning on a planet together/ All I really really wish for, is that we remember to be connected.
From there, the album proper begins with "Make Me Whole," a song about yearning to fill empty spaces within, but equally a warning against the countless things that are sold to us to make us feel better.
Yukimi Nagano co-founded acclaimed electronic group Little Dragon in 1996 in Gothenburg, Sweden, and bandmate Eric Bodin helped to produce For You, giving ample space for the singer's voice and lyrics to shine. Given the connections, it will sound familiar to those familiar with Little Dragon, but leans more organic, gentle and jazzy than much of the band's work.
When you write from a place that feels deeply personal, it all becomes very human.
And that's why I'm calling this album For You, because, even though it's about me, it's equally about you.
And here we are, spinning on a planet together.
All I really really wish for, is that we remember to be connected.
"Make Me Whole" introduces the downtempo R&B and lush production that carries through much of the album.
Lead single "Break Me Down," an emphatic declaration of individuality and perseverance, is one of the album's highpoints and most energetic moment. It was co-written with Lianne La Havas and features guitar from the British singer.
Built around a simple rising and falling bassline, "Elinam" radiates with neo-soul warmth and a mother's love for her child, featuring verses like:
You arrived early, December morning/ We locked eyes/ You'd been here before, for sure, so many times before.
and:
Never lose that Sunday morning/ Your skin soft against my breast, my love.
The chorus is one of those beautiful musical moments of sound matching message, as Yukimi's voice soars away from the gentle reverie of those "special moments with a newborn" verses, singing of the day her child will spread their wings and soar away in their own life.
On "Sad Makeup," the singer bares her emotions for the world, not shying away from honest and intense descriptions of depression. Again, they perfectly match instrumentation, with simple and melancholic guitar riff that recalls Play era Moby.
For You is rooted in Yukimi's home country of Sweden (the above music video for "Break Me Down" recreates a scene from legendary Swedish director Ingmar Bergman's Seventh Seal), particular the long dark winters that many of us here in Northern Minnesota will resonate with. That balance of cold beauty with the winter blues is explored in depth on the album's most experimental piece.
"Winter Is Not Dead" is a chilly, pastoral, folk-R&B ballad that sings of the winter's cold embrace while also highlighting the ground teaming with life under the frostline. She sings of holding on to a spark through the dark months that will explode in the summer. It's a song for anyone who reveres and fears the winter months in equal measure.
Fittingly, For You was released right at the end March, when we are often reminded that winter, is in fact, not dead. The perfect mix of warmth and cold, it's our Album of the Week at KAXE.
Must listens
- "Make Me Whole"
- "Break Me Down"
- "Elinam"
- "Sad Makeup"
- "Peace Reign"
- "Winter Is Not Dead"
