EMI MARIA - Euphoria

From one of the most creative scenes in the world to a pale photocopy of an equally pale photocopy: it really didn't take much for the Japanese urban universe to plunge into the abyss of self-recycling and parody, closing ranks around the same worn-out expressive formulas and rejecting, one might say with absolute contempt, almost any inclination toward renewal. Despite everything, the market seems to be holding its own, and the few black sheep willing to take a risk fail to gain enough traction to change the fortunes of the genre, as if modeling oneself on Hikaru Utada, MISIA or Kumi Koda were the categorical imperative to abide by. Among these fine hopes doomed to general incomprehension, Emi Maria (her usual stylized nom de plume, all in capitals) is the brightest and most energetic, undoubtedly the first to have forcefully explored the fine innovations in r&b and related fields, and to have transplanted them wholesale into her own country, contextualizing and readapting them with due clarity to the need for change in a scene that had been left high and dry, starved of any real jolt.

"Euphoria", the fifth album in a career pursued with total dedication, becomes the vehicle for this impulse, a clear step forward that, with the right promotion, could have marked a definitive before-and-after in bold letters, but which, despite everything, in a 2015 that was downright bleak for Japanese music, stands out as a release of absolute significance. Regardless of its impact, whatever follows this work will inevitably be measured against it.

Sharp, imaginative beats, razor-sharp and meticulous production, wide-ranging vocals: the approach to now-authentic protégées of international critics such as Tinashe and FKA Twigs is evident, but the connection that emerges is more spiritual than anything else, since Emi Maria's reading of the new r&b wave is quite different, and ultimately far more thought-provoking. Taking nothing away from the relevance of the two leading ladies of nu-r&b, however expansive one considers that term to be, the work of this Japanese singer-songwriter and producer (of Papuan descent) pushes into a bolder experiment, attempting to marry the genre's characteristic timbres with the melodic peculiarities of j-pop and j-urban, thereby identifying possible points of exchange and encounter.

What emerges, in short, is a compelling fusion handled by the artist with just the right weight, with results that only rarely slip into cliché or messy fumbling; when the perfect combination clicks into place, the resulting alchemy reaches genuinely remarkable heights. The opening pairing, "One Of Them"-"I Am Water" (the plot twists in this track are striking), with its submerged beats, liquid atmosphere and vocal contributions splintered across a wide range of interpretations, lays out this cross-pollination in rich detail, updating the possibilities of Japanese r&b in a way that until now had seemed beyond anyone's reach.

The fluidity in the shaping of the songs ends up pervading pretty much the whole record, even in those episodes where arrangement and melody might have called for more stability: thus, even a sprightly dance-pop number like "Perfect Girls" vibrates with a layered, nimble production that stacks funky basslines, electro digressions and hypnotic, romantically-tinged softness with real taste on top of its basic rhythmic bed. Here, condensed into a single song, is everything that so many would-be j-pop divas have lacked in recent years, and not just the younger ones.

Then there's room for the predictable confessional-toned ballad ("In Your T Shirt") and a somewhat odd electronic take on reggae ("Island Girl"), but it takes little to restore the hypnosis and set things straight again, exploiting the full malleability of the production and the qualities of a voice that makes profitable use of every inflection. From the sugar-free romanticism of "Sleep No More" to the hazy, dreamlike atmospheres of "91", Emi Maria manages to pack a wide range of registers into a caressing, beguiling mood, handled with a sensibility that claims them with disarming ease.

Likewise, the retro cut of the beats on "Tokyo", unmistakably 90s in origin, avoids feeling dated thanks to a smooth, progressive treatment that softens its rough edges into a pattern of sensual sophistication. "Tonight", on the other hand, built on a sonic palette that looks to house and electro, reveals the artist as a capable dance vocalist too, making a solid case for yet another reinvention of her career.

Will others follow in her footsteps? Or will "Euphoria" remain an isolated one-off, blithely ignored by a scene that's none too receptive to new ideas? The pebble has certainly been thrown: let's hope it soon turns into a boulder.

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17/01/2016