BETCOVER!! - Yuki

Shōwa night, jazz-rock nerves, prog architecture: “勇気 [Yuki]” isn't chasing a theatrical twist, it builds tension one step at a time. Betcover!! turn the kayō mood into a stance, pushing it into a writing style that grows in blocks, where each section adds weight, breath, direction.

A tokyota project led by singer-guitarist Jiro Yanase, the group was born in the second half of the 2010s, growing through art-rock surges, jazz detours and an increasingly pronounced theatricality. After “Tamago” (2022) and “Uma” (2023), “勇気” (“Yuki”), released as a surprise digital-only drop on June 11, 2025, marks a shift towards a more intimate, nocturnal form: a journey-album in which the tracks serve one another rather than compete for the spotlight, letting an underlying narrative cohesion emerge. The aesthetic compass is the kayō mood, but here that stance dialogues with an engine that's explicitly jazz-rock and progressive rock: elastic meters, interlocking rhythm section and horns, instrumental passages that work through development rather than verse/chorus structure, and writing that favors modular growth.

Calling in Jim O'Rourke for recording and mastering isn't a mere flourish but a statement of intent: it favours dynamics and clarity – no invasive compression, instruments kept separate and in focus, crisp drum and piano attacks, horns with body and breath. The result is a live-in-studio feel, letting the new six-piece lineup (Yanase, Riki Hidaka on guitar, Falconman on bass, Kai Ōgimi on drums, Gen Shirase on keyboards and Kei Matsumaru on sax) interlock both the piano voicings and the sax phrases with the rougher guitar pushes, all with striking clarity.

The opener “忘れる女 / Wasureru onna” sets pace and language right away: Falconman's bass holds the line and pulls the threads over a restrained midtempo, low-lit piano, Kei Matsumaru's sax entering and withdrawing like a neon sign in the rain, and lyrics that crack the surface with images of disorientation; already here, beneath the kayō skin, you can hear a jazz-rock weave ready to expand. “ミー子のコンサート / Miiko no concert” showcases a light swing and an instantly catchy retro melody, entrusted to voice and piano that seek each other out and dodge one another, in an intimate, almost combo-like setting, with the sax cutting in at an angle.

“ゴーゴースチーム / Go Go Steam” kicks off like a sleek heist movie (some will think of “Mission: Impossible”): a dry groove, a nervous snare, guitar and sax trading short, cinematic volleys, building to a brief instrumental sprint that reveals the ensemble's jazz-rock heart.

"サマーランド / Summerland" defies the promise of its title and builds into something menacing: repeated motifs thicken, entries and subtractions pile up in layers, tension swells in waves – a compressed suite where the progressive rock component emerges without ever tipping into virtuosic excess. "野獣 / Yaen" is the most divisive stop: between spoken passages, free-session offcuts and flashes of surreal pop, it plays as a pivot that opens onto an almost avant-prog dimension, wrong-footing anyone who had settled into the sweeter mood that came before; here the interplay of registers is explicit, and the band risks friction to widen its field of vision.

"ステイウィズミー / StayWith Me" is the moment of relief: a small love song murmured under a clear sky, where piano and brushes bring the pulse back to the center before the farewell. "銀河ゴールデンボーイ / Ginga Golden Boy" closes the record by refocusing on the theme of courage and the drive to "live without hesitation": a progressive build with layered instrumental entries, thematic reprises, a choral coda that binds the ensemble together – here the writing in tableaux comes together into a single canvas, making clear just how much the album is conceived as a journey rather than a collection of songs.

Back home, the surprise release was picked up by the leading outlets (Mikiki, OTOTOY, Music Natalie, Billboard JAPAN etc.), who praised the greater presence of jazz/latin elements and mood kayō, along with the overall depth of the record; at the same time, the announcement of an extended tour culminating at Zepp DiverCity signals a real foothold – albeit a niche one – in the Japanese market too, confirming that this is not merely an export phenomenon. Within their discography, "Yuki" doesn't dial down the intensity: it refocuses it – less frontal impact, more structural persuasion; fewer isolated climaxes, more continuity of development – and it stands as the record where their hybrid of song, jazz-rock and progressive rock becomes a fully realized identity: arguably their most focused work to date.

(*) Note — mood kayō (ムード歌謡): a strand of Japanese Shōwa-era song that took shape between the late '50s and the 60s; a "night club" style of pop that weaves sentimental melodies together with jazz/latin harmonies and rhythms (beguine, rumba, slow-fox), soft orchestration and crooner-style vocals. It is distinguished from enka (more traditional and declamatory) by its lounge/urban posture, and acts as a bridge toward the city pop of the following decade, the Seventies.

Ride the wave of great music

Add OndaRock to your favorite sources on Google Discover. Don't miss our reviews, milestones and latest news straight in your feed.

Follow on Google

22/09/2025