Japanese Breakfast Album Reviews

Michelle Zauner was born in South Korea and started her music career with Philadelphia emo band Little Big League. She took a hiatus from Little Big League to care for her terminally ill mother and wrote songs as therapy. She recorded the songs as Japanese Breakfast, eventually recruiting a band with her husband Peter Bradley on guitar, Deven Craige on bass, and Craig Hendrix on drums.

Zauner is a fascinating songwriter – her albums are succinct, and her songs initially seem uneventful. But repeat listens reveal depth. Her indie-pop is diverse, taking in shoegaze and country influences.

Japanese Breakfast Album Reviews

Psychopomp

2016, 7.5/10
After her mother was diagnosed with cancer, Michelle Zauner returned to her hometown of Eugene, Oregon, to care for her family. She left her band, Little Big League, and started recording solo music.

Psychopomp, Japanese Breakfast’s debut, documents Zauner’s life-changing events during this time. She married just before her mother’s passing. The first two songs are titled ‘In Heaven’ and ‘The Woman Who Loves You’.

It’s perhaps unsurprising given Zauner’s previous experience, but Psychopomp is a confident, accomplished debut. It’s concise and packed with ideas like everything in Japanese Breakfast’s discography.

Sometimes slow, emotional songs like ‘Jane Cum’ outstay their welcome. My favourites are the energetic songs. ‘Heft’ is angst-ridden and punchy, with the memorable opening line “I wanna churn like Amish butter”. ‘The Woman Who Loves You’ ventures close to 1980s synth pop.

I’d probably appreciate Psychopomp even more if I’d heard it before Zauner’s later efforts, but it’s a strong debut.

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Soft Sounds From Another Planet

2017, 8/10
Zauner struggled with the interview cycle for Psychopomp, wanting to leave the intensity of that period behind. She approached her second album differently, envisioning a sci-fi concept album. She recorded Soft Sounds From Another Planet with her live drummer Craig Hendrix in their Philadelphia studio – the pair played all the instruments.

Soft Sounds From Another Planet is more expansive than Japanese Breakfast’s debut. It opens with the six-minute shoegaze track ‘Diving Woman’, enticing and intoxicating. My other favourite is ‘Till Death’, an emotive ballad where Zauner’s raw vocals add heft. ‘Body is a Blade’ sounds like a Mitski song title and track, even though Zauner’s voice is distinctive.

Zauner’s change away from the personal works on her sophomore album, and the best bits are very strong.

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Jubilee

2021, 8.5/10
Jubilee is Japanese Breakfast’s third album, released shortly after Zauner’s memoir Crying in H Mart. Like Japanese Breakfast’s debut, Crying In H Mart is about the loss of Zauner’s mother.

In comparison, Zaumer describes Jubilee as an album about joy. It’s surprisingly diverse, with everything from the horns of opener ‘Paprika’ to the lengthy, ruminative closer ‘Posing For Cars’. The moody electronic shimmer of ‘Posing in Bondage’ contrasts with the chirpy ‘Savage Good Boy’. The obvious single is ‘Be Sweet’, a sophisticated 1980s-flavoured pop song with a killer chorus.

Zaumer has so many ideas that Jubilee sometimes feels incoherent, but it’s evidence of a bright future with many directions to explore.

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For Melancholy Brunettes (and Sad Women)

2025, 8.5/10
As the title of her new record indicates, Zauner’s back to writing sad songs. She told NPR “All of these characters succumb to some sort of temptation or disrupt a balance in their lives and are then grappling with the consequences or regrets of that decision-making.”

For Melancholy Women is often stripped back and sad. The dominant style is mournful and contemplative, with acoustic pieces like ‘Here is Someone’ and ‘Leda’. My favourite is the country-tinged ‘Men in Bars’, in which Jeff Bridges (better known as an actor) duets with Zauner. The 1990s alt-rock style ‘Honey Water’ is another favourite, while the woozy pop of ‘Mega Circuit’ is surprisingly hooky.

For Melancholy Brunettes (and Sad Women) is unassuming at first, but plenty is happening below the surface.

10 Best Japanese Breakfast Songs

Be Sweet
Diving Woman
Men In Bars
Paprika
Mega Circuit
Heft
Till Death
Honey Water
The Woman Who Loves You
Posing For Cars