Evelin Mercedes
The Japanese House dropped her most anticipated album Good At Falling this Friday, March 1 after premiering the “Maybe You’re The Reason” music video.
Released in January, “Maybe You’re The Reason” follows the releases of her first two album singles “Lilo” and “Follow My Girl.” Here, she’s allowing herself to figure out herself while being exhausted of her toxic projections.
“Now tell me something/ Is there a point to this?/ Or are we living for the/ Feeling when we look back on what we did and reminisce?” the lyrics of the anticipated third single of Good At Falling begin. Once the video starts, Amber Bain aka The Japanese House is seen on a balcony then by herself in a dark room with blue and orange hues of colors spread out throughout the scenes.
“Every time I try to figure it out/ You’re the only thing I can think about (Maybe you’re the reason)/ I think I’m dying/ cause this can’t be living,” she ponders as she looks at herself as a clone in the opposite side of the mirror wondering when things started to go wrong. Bain, who grapples with depression and finding the eternal meaning of life, details the feelings of loneliness and fighting with herself in “Maybe You’re The Reason.”
By the end, Amber Bain is outside with herself and they hug each other to let her know everything will be okay. The flashbacks in between the scenes seem to disappear as she stands alone, in the end, hugging herself and facing reality.
The entire album Good At Falling is filled with the same sense of emotion. The Japanese House has let herself figure out her failed relationships, different kinds of pain, and who she’s become as a person.
Bains’ relationship with musician Marika Hackman is seen in different songs throughout the album. The second released single, “Lilo,” features Marika in the video which serves as a reminder that she can survive falling in love and it not working out. “I’m good at falling,” Bains states. She began writing this song with the image of a lilo floating across a swimming pool before their relationship ended and finished it after it did.
In “Marika Is Sleeping” she sings about watching Marika sleep and contemplating is she was still in love with her. This slowly tuned introduction offers a gentle touch to the rest of the song with few instruments in the background.
“We Talk All The Time” is about noticing a relationship change, described in a more upbeat tempo. “It was one of those weird, prophetic songs, where I write it down, and then it happens in real life,” Bains said. Other singles like “F a r a w a y,” which blends electro-pop synths with chill harmonies as Bain explains the desire to be back home with her love, depict happiness through a sense of wishing things were different.
As you listen to Good at Falling, you may realize this is one of the most “human” albums released this year filled with tons of emotion and understanding one can easily find relatable.
Are you excited for The Japaneses House’s album Good At Falling? Let us know on Twiter @CelebMix.
