Jewel - Perfectly Clear

From the young girl who debuted with a stunningly raw folksy rocksy piece of Pieces of You, Jewel certainly has experimented along her way (though sometimes to shocking results--I still abhor the neon terror that is 0304!) and now she has come full circle, sort of, to her folk/country roots. Opinions are divided here--I find it quite a strong, welcome return and zhu says meh. But/and we agree that both of us miss the emotional rawness, that bleeding, searing heartrenchingness of her early work. (Something only a young girl and young love could produce, probably, and clearly she can't be in that place for ever.)

Either way, we'll let you be the judge =) Download it here and tell us what you think! (Thanks to zhu for the upload!)

Tomiko Van - Tokyo Biyori

After doing 2 cover albums, Tomiko's finally releasing something original. New single 'Tokyo Biyori'(東京日和) is out June 18! It's a lovely ballad that reminds you of warm sunlight on an ordinary day. What a happy voice. Great job, ban-chan!



After watching the PV, I can't help drawing a parallel between this and 'Baby don't cry' by Namie Amuro.

柴田淳 - ふたり

Languid web-wandering on gloomy Sunday afternoon leads me to this...Futari ('Two People') by Jun Shibata. Love the calm piano and the clear, rich flow of her voice in it!