Penny Rabbit and Summer Bear the opening track of Seattle, Washington musician's new record Omoiyari is a quite beautifully graceful song. Occupying a space somewhere between Nilsson, The Shins and John Grant's similarly titled TC & Honey Bear, it lays down an impressive marker for the rest of the album to live up to.
It proceeds to do just that. A concept record with real orchestral sweep about the Japanese internment camps in the States in World War II, Omoiyari proceeds with stately poise. The influence of James Mercer and Sufjan Stevens in particular on Bashi's songwriting seemed evident to me but they're excellent points of origin, both being artists who specialise in the realm of memory and its poignancy and resonance, there are ten tracks here and they all share a delicacy and wonder that is altogether compelling. Bashi embroiders his songs with a beauty that is utterly stark when set against the unerringly tough subject matter of its lyrical content.
A Japanese American, Bashi stitches together a haunting and evocative memorial to a moment long gone that need not be forgotten. Least of all in the political space we find ourselves in right now. Love and tenderness are the most abiding emotional sentiments here, how personal experience and the budding and blossoming of relationships come to establish a stark resonance when set against the harrowing and irrational boot print of world events.
There's a narrative here should you wish to piece it together. That's not always necessary with music though. Omoiyari's tale is clear as day. Well worth experiencing at a single sitting, Omoiyari is a moving and powerful document indeed.
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