Soft Sounds from Another Planet is the second studio album by American indie pop band Japanese Breakfast. The album was released by Dead Oceans on July 14, 2017.
Primarily described as an indie rock and shoegaze album, Soft Sounds from Another Planet also incorporates elements of electronic dance music, synth-pop, space pop, electropop, lo-fi, progressive rock, experimental pop and chamber pop. It primarily deals with themes of loss, science fiction and perseverance.
The album received critical acclaim from critics who commended it for its eclectic and experimental production and exploration of grief and love although some believed it to be uneven. The album became Japanese Breakfast's first to chart, reaching the top 20 of the Billboard Heatseekers and Independent charts in the US and the New Zealand Heatseekers Albums chart.
Background In 2014, Michelle Zauner left the Philadelphia-based emo band Little Big League to care for her terminally ill mother in her hometown of Eugene, Oregon. Songs she wrote to cope with her grief about her mother's death became part of Psychopomp (2016), Japanese Breakfast's debut studio album. Psychopomp received unexpected critical and commercial success, rejuvenating Zauner's efforts to make music a career and leading her to sign with Dead Oceans. However, she found herself "reliving traumatic memories" when giving interviews about the album. Zauner said she began writing Soft Sounds from Another Planet to help leave her trauma behind.
Zauner envisioned it as a concept album, a "sci-fi musical" that would tackle different themes than its predecessor. The first song she wrote for the new album was "Machinist." She found that she disliked the songs she was creating at the time. Zauner also hoped to create a "hi fi" album in contrast to Psychopomp's lo-fi palette that also maintained its predecessor's experimental and playful nature. She attributed the latter to having recently signed to Dead Oceans and consequently feeling pressured due to the budget and deadlines the label assigned her. To produce the album, Zauner contacted Craig Hendrix and the two recorded the album over a month long period in their Philadelphia studio.
Release and promotion
Singles On May 4, 2017, Japanese Breakfast released the album's lead single, "Machinist" to positive critical reviews. It debuted alongside a music video depicting a woman who dismantles her spaceship when she tries to build a body for her robot lover. The video was directed by Zauner and Adam Kolodny. A second single, "Boyish", was released on June 7, 2017, followed by its own video on February 13, 2018, which Zauner later described as her "magnum opus". A third and final single, "Road Head", was released on July 6, 2017, alongside another music video directed by Zauner, who drew inspiration from Hong Kong film director Wong Kar-wai's film Fallen Angels and television series Twin Peaks.
Video game To promote the album, Japanese Breakfast released a video game, "Japanese BreakQuest". Players guide "J-Brekkie", a character named for the band's Twitter handle, to gather a band and fight an alien invasion. It was developed by Zauner and video game developer Elaine Fath and features songs from the album as 8-bit MIDI tracks by Peter Bradley.
Tour Japanese Breakfast toured in support of the album from July 15, 2017, until November 24, 2019. Supporting acts during the tour included American singers Yohuna, Jay Som, and Half Waif; and American bands Mannequin Pussy, The Spirit of the Beehive, LVL UP, Radiator Hospital, Mothers, and Ought.
+ Tour dates and venuesDateCityCountryVenueOpening Act(s)North AmericaJuly 15, 2017New York CityUnited StatesUnion PoolYohunaSeptember 7, 2017Washington, D.C.Black CatMannequin Pussy & The Spirit of the BeehiveSeptember 8, 2017RichmondStranger MatterSeptember 9, 2017RaleighHopscotch Music FestivalSeptember 10, 2017AtlantaThe MasqueradeSeptember 11, 2017OrlandoWill's PubSeptember 12, 2017TampaCrowbarSeptember 13, 2017New OrleansHi Ho LoungeSeptember 14, 2017HoustonWalter'sSeptember 15, 2017AustinBarracudaSeptember 16, 2017DallasRBCSeptember 18, 2017PhoenixValley BarSeptember 20, 2017Los AngelesThe EchoSeptember 21, 2017San FranciscoSwedish American HallSeptember 22, 2017OaklandStarline Social ClubSeptember 23, 2017EugeneHiFiSeptember 25, 2017PortlandHoloceneSeptember 26, 2017VancouverCanadaFox CabaretSeptember 27, 2017SeattleUnited StatesThe CrocodileSeptember 28, 2017BoiseNeuroluxSeptember 29, 2017Salt Lake CityKilby CourtSeptember 30, 2017DenverLarimer LoungeOctober 2, 2017MinneapolisThe Triple RockOctober 4, 2017ChicagoSubterraneanOctober 5, 2017BloomingtonThe BishopOctober 6, 2017DetroitUFO FactoryOctober 7, 2017TorontoCanadaThe GarrisonOctober 8, 2017MontrealBar Le RitzOctober 11, 2017CambridgeUnited StatesThe SinclairOctober 12, 2017New York CityMusic Hall of WilliamsburgEuropeOctober 21, 2017BristolEnglandSimple Things FestivalN/AOctober 23, 2017CologneGermanyBlue ShellOctober 24, 2017HamburgHakkenOctober 25, 2017BerlinBadenhouseOctober 26, 2017ParisFrancePop Up Du LabelOctober 27, 2017GhentBelgiumNESTOctober 28, 2017AmsterdamNetherlandsParadisoNovember 2, 2017BrightonEnglandThe JokerNovember 3, 2017ManchesterSoup KitchenNovember 4, 2017EdinburghScotlandThe Mash HouseNovember 5, 2017GlasgowThe Hug and PaintNovember 6, 2017LeedsEnglandHeadrow HouseNovember 7, 2017LondonThe Dome Tufnell ParkAsiaNovember 28, 2017Hong KongMusic ZoneN/ANovember 30, 2017TaipeiTaiwanThe WallDecember 1, 2017BeijingChinaModern Sky FestivalDecember 3, 2017ShanghaiYuyintangDecember 4, 2017BangkokThailandRockademyOceaniaDecember 8, 2017BerryAustraliaFairgrounds FestivalN/ADecember 9, 2017MelbourneThe John Curtin HotelDecember 10, 2017Supernatural AmphitheatreAsiaDecember 11, 2017TokyoJapanDaikanyama UnitN/ADecember 12, 2017OsakaConpassDecember 14, 2017SeoulSouth KoreaHanatour V-HallNorth AmericaFebruary 15, 2018SeattleUnited StatesNeumosJay Som & Hand HabitsFebruary 16, 2018VancouverCanadaBiltmoreFebruary 17, 2018PortlandUnited StatesCrystal BallroomFebruary 19, 2018RenoThe Holland ProjectFebruary 21, 2018San JoseThe RitzFebruary 22, 2018San FranciscoGray TheaterFebruary 23, 2018FresnoStrummer'sFebruary 24, 2018PomonaThe Glass HouseApril 2, 2018BaltimoreThe OttobarN/AApril 3, 2018DurhamMotorco Music HallApril 4, 2018Athens40 Watt ClubSnail MailApril 5, 2018BirminghamSaturnApril 6, 2018OrlandoWill's PubApril 7, 2018TampaCrowbarApril 9, 2018HoustonWalter'sN/AApril 10, 2018AustinThe Scoot InnSnail MailApril 11, 2018San AntonioPaper TigerApril 13, 2018Tucson191 TooleApril 15, 2018IndioEmpire Polo ClubN/AApril 18, 2018San Luis ObispoSLO BrewSnail MailApril 22, 2018IndioEmpire Polo ClubN/AApril 23, 2018FlagstaffThe Green RoomSnail MailApril 24, 2018Santa FeMeow WolfApril 26, 2018NormanNorman Music FestivalN/AApril 27, 2018Little RockStickyzSnail MailApril 28, 2018NashvilleExit/InApril 29, 2018ColumbusAce of CupsN/AMay 30, 2018Washington D.C.9:30 ClubLVL UP, Radiator HospitalMay 31, 2018New York CityWarsawRadiator HospitalJune 2, 2018CambridgeThe SinclairLVL UP, Radiator HospitalJune 3, 2018PhiladelphiaUnion TransferJune 6, 2018RichmondThe BroadberryN/AJune 7, 2018ManchesterGreat Stage ParkJune 8, 2018June 9, 2018CharlotteNeighborhood TheatreJune 10, 2018ManchesterGreat Stage ParkJune 14, 2018PittsburghSpiritHalf WaifJune 15, 2018CincinnatiTaft TheatreJune 16, 2018St. LouisThe Ready RoomJune 17, 2018Kansas CityThe Record BarJune 21, 2018Las VegasThe BunkhouseN/AJune 23, 2018PomonaThe Glass HouseJune 26, 2018OaklandFox Oakland TheatreJuly 12, 2018DennisCape CinemaJuly 13, 2018BurlingtonArtsRiotJuly 14, 2018Portsmouth3S ArtSpaceJuly 15, 2018KingstonBSP KingstonJuly 16, 2018RochesterThe Bug JarMothersJuly 18, 2018TorontoCanadaThe PhoenixJuly 19, 2018Grand RapidsUnited StatesThe Pyramid SchemeJuly 20, 2018MilwaukeeTurner HallJuly 22, 2018ChicagoUnion ParkN/AJuly 24, 2018ClevelandThe Beachland BallroomMothersJuly 28, 2018New York CityRandalls IslandN/AAugust 11, 2018WaynesvilleRenaissance ParkSeptember 12, 2018ColumbusSkully'sOughtSeptember 13, 2018BloomingtonThe BishopSeptember 14, 2018DeKalbThe House CafeSeptember 16, 2018MadisonMajestic TheatreSeptember 18, 2018MinneapolisFine LineSeptember 19, 2018Iowa CityThe MillSeptember 20, 2018LincolnLincoln CallingN/ASeptember 21, 2018September 22, 2018September 23, 2018BoiseNeuroluxOughtSeptember 25, 2018SeattleNeptune TheatreOctober 2, 2018Los AngelesThe Fonda TheatreOctober 3, 2018MesaThe NileOctober 5, 2018AustinZilker ParkN/AOctober 6, 2018October 7, 2018October 12, 2018October 13, 2018October 14, 2018March 14, 2019Austin Convention CenterMay 4, 2019AtlantaCentral ParkMay 10, 2019ArcosantiFORMMay 11, 2019May 12, 2019AsiaMay 13, 2019SingaporeEsplanade Annexe StudioSobsMay 15, 2019JakartaIndonesiaRossi MusikN/AMay 16, 2019BangkokThailandRockademyMay 18, 2019ManilaPhilippinesCircuit MakatiMay 22, 2019TokyoJapanWWW XMay 24, 2019TaipeiTaiwanThe WallMay 27, 2019SeoulSouth KoreaMUV-HallNorth AmericaJune 19, 2019CalgaryCanadaRoyal Canadian LegionN/AJune 23, 2019San FranciscoUnited StatesBill Graham Civic AuditoriumJune 24, 2019New York CityRumsey PlayfieldHatchieJuly 26, 2019CamdenBB&T PavilionN/AAugust 2, 2019ChicagoGrant ParkLincoln HallAugust 23, 2019PortlandCrystal BallroomAugust 24, 2019Port TownsendFort WordenAugust 25, 2019October 24, 2019HalifaxCanadaMarquee BallroomOctober 25, 2019New OrleansUnited StatesCity ParkOctober 26, 2019October 27, 2019November 22, 2019San DiegoWonderfront Music & Arts FestivalNovember 23, 2019November 24, 2019
Critical reception
Soft Sounds from Another Planet received widespread acclaim from music critics who praised its experimental production, eclectic range of genres and subject matter of grief and love. It received a weighted score of 83 out of 100 from review aggregate website Metacritic, indicating "universal acclaim", based on 20 reviews from music critics.
Reviewers lauded Zauner's vocals and the album's expanded sonic palette in comparison to Psychopomp. Nathan Reese of Pitchfork deemed the album's lead single, "Machinist" the band's "biggest leap forward in terms of sound" and favorably compared Zauner's vocals to shoegaze band Slowdive. No Ripcord's Juan Edgardo Rodriguez also complimented the eclectic range of genres on the album and opined Zauner to be "at her best when she builds upon her aching vocal delivery". Tim Sendra of AllMusic considered the album an improvement over Psychopomp and praised the songs', "spacious, expansive sound that envelops the listener in warmth (even when the synths get a little chilly.)"Sendra, Tim.
Under the Radar's Stephen Mayne praised the album's nuanced perspective on romance and suggested that audiences "looking for something more beautiful need look no farther than what Zauner is already offering." The Quietus' Veronica Irwin praised the album for retaining the "heartfelt intensity" of its predecessor and Japanese Breakfast's relatable lyrics while expressing surprise at the record's sonic experimentation.
Some reviewers meanwhile criticized the album's perceived unevenness. Brian Shultz of The A.V. Club said, "And while everything on Japanese Breakfast's proper sophomore effort isn't entirely fresh, and its structure is somewhat loose, there's a confidence and crispness to Soft Sounds that shows just how fully realized Zauner's formerly homemade experiments have become." Exclaim!s Ian Gormely noted the album's lack of focus but wrote, "In trying to put a wall between herself and her audience, she's opened a new, far more revealing side to her music and herself."
Accolades Publication Accolade Rank Under the Radar The 100 Best Albums of 2017 Uproxx The 50 Best Albums of 2017 Stereogum The 50 Best Albums of 2017 Paste The 50 Best Albums of 2017 Rolling Stone The 50 Best Albums of 2017
Track listing
Personnel Adapted from AllMusic. David Bartler – saxophone Asher Brooks – trumpet Jorge Elbrecht – mixing David Hartley – engineer