TOTT 2015 #2: THE JAPANESE HOUSE

At #2 is The Japanese House

Given the whirr of excitement that crackled and fizzed across the internet and beyond when The Japanese House debuted as Zane Lowe’s last ever ‘Hottest Record’ for Radio One, it’s perhaps a surprise that she didn’t make her way on to The Tipping Point until her second EP was about to be released. We expect the reason Amber Bain’s project took a while to make it to our pages was that not a lot was known about her at the beginning and that our tippers were so taken aback by the remarkable tingling of their senses, they couldn’t think straight.

Thankfully this oversight has been corrected as our esteemed network has not only voted The Japanese House into our Top ten tips from 2015, she’s in the Top Two!

Intricate layers of electronic production, melody and rhythm have been interwoven into a tapestry of exquisite beauty. Harmonies are layered to give a disarmingly wonderful androgynous and distorted quality to the vocal amongst digital glitches and swoops. Across her two EPs, Bain plays with our heart as well as the aural thermostat.

She can be ethereal and aloof as stark beats crunch in the snow of this tundral soundscape of emotional ruin she has crafted. A cryogenic lab of dry ice melody and ice crystal covered vocals. Yet the music is also warm and welcoming, swirls of colour abound and burst into a dream of cascading light and happiness.

With that Zane Lowe endorsed debut and two highly acclaimed EPs, ‘Pools to Bathe In‘ and ‘Clean‘, under her belt, as well as a place on the Dirty Hit roster and The 1975 on production duties; the stars feel aligned for Bain to take things to the next level in 2016. Her live show has gone over well and with plenty of material being refined there is talk of a debut album next year. If it reaches the standards she has set so far, stellar things surely await.

Words by Adam Hill at alphabetbands and Tip by Joe Schiavon from Global

C Duncan was originally featured on September 30th with words from Joe Allan

View the full TOTT2015 longlist, playlist and countdown HERE