(2021) yumbo - The Fruit of Errata


Review:
The Japanese group Yumbo delivered a steady dose of gently experimental and happily twee chamber pop to those lucky enough to hear the music in the 2000s and 2010’s. Morr Music have done fans of the band and those who weren’t lucky enough to follow their progression a service with the release of 2021’s The Fruit of Errata. It collects songs from their four albums released over that span along with some single and EP tracks. Under the steady hands of band leader/visionary Koji Shibuya the band started off as a bedroom pop project, recording their simple and melodic songs using bells, toy percussion, the occasional guitar and Shibuya’s piano. They come across like Tenniscoats more rambunctious younger siblings, capturing that band’s outsider pop style while adding more melody, more structure and even some trad jazz around the edges. Tracks like “A House” with its rambling and sweet melody that sounds lifted from a Left Banke B-side or the lovely piano ballad “Storm” overcome their spare surroundings to come across like lost treasures from some time when fragile beauty was rewarded with massive record sales. The collection presents the band’s songs in chronological order and it’s fascinating to hear their sound deepenn and ripen after starting off almost perfectly. As they began to work in studios and add fuller arrangements, it allowed the music to flower in even more beautiful fashion. By the time of their third album, 2011’s That’s Reality, the band were making music on par with bands like Ladybug Transistor and the Pastels. One example of their brilliance is the effortlessly lovely “Since a Certain Day, Others”, which features Ayuko Takaynagi’s tender vocals, a full horn section, warm synths, and enough twists in the melody to fill a display case in a bakery. The had really hit on something magical and they played with it by stripping back the sound, adding more to it, or adding guests (like members of LAKE on “The Devil Song.”) The band’s masterpiece is their 2016’s album Onibi and it’s represented well here with many songs that show just how adept a songwriter and arranger Shibuya had become. By now the band wasn’t just up to par, they were making music that should have been hailed as genius. It wasn’t at the time, but there’s no reason it shouldn’t be now. The Fruit of Errata is full of songs that tug at heartstrings, stir waves of sonic pleasure, and prove that music doesn’t have to reach for the stars to achieve greatness. Yumbo is a band to be treasured and is a perfect jumping off point for discovery.





Track Listing:
01 - September Song 九月の歌
02 - A House 家
03 - The Fruit of Errata 間違いの実
04 - Storm 強い風
05 - Cake ケーキ
06 - Lonely さみしい
07 - Since A Certain Day, Others ある日以降、その他
08 - The Sweetest Mass 甘い塊
09 - That's Reality これが現実だ
10 - Come Away, Death 来たれ、死よ
11 - Raining Stones 石が降る
12 - Onibi 鬼火
13 - The Devil Song (12'Edit) 悪魔の歌
14 - Umbrella People 人々の傘
15 - The World Exists 実在する世の中


Media Report:
Genre: chamber pop, indie-pop, lo-fi
Format: FLAC
Format/Info: Free Lossless Audio Codec, 16-bit PCM
Bit rate mode: Variable
Channel(s): 2 channels
Sampling rate: 44.1 KHz
Bit depth: 16 bits