Japanese Breakfast - For Melancholy Brunettes (& sad women)
The atmospheric, airy, and romantic fourth album from Michelle Zauner feels like a warm hug from an old friend: at once familiar and distant.
Japanese Breakfast’s journey began in 2016 with the release of Psychopomp, a debut album blending indie rock with equal parts shoegaze classics and synth-pop anthems. Over the years, Michelle Zauner experimented with her sound, refining and reshaping it. In 2021, she hit a perfect pop stride with her breakout record, Jubilee, earning her first Grammy nominations. Now, on her fourth album, For Melancholy Brunettes (& sad women), Zauner brings together her finest methods of storytelling and songwriting, delivering a profoundly emotional work that bridges pop anthems with intimate folk sketches.
The album immediately pulls listeners into a reflective and melancholic headspace. Opening track “Here Is Someone” sets the tone with a quiet, tender voice as Zauner sings, “Life is sad, but here is someone”. It's a sentiment that could easily feel trite or overused, but within the context of Melancholy Brunettes, it morphs into something delicate and deeply hopeful—less like a hollow platitude from a well-meaning friend, and more like a wisdom you’ve been searching for all along.
The cinematic “Orlando in Love” might be the record’s most overt literary reference. While some might dismiss such imagery as too obvious, Zauner’s delivery is so endearing that it’s impossible not to melt into a warm wave of affection and nostalgia when listening.
Produced by Blake Mills, known for his work with Fiona Apple and Bob Dylan, Melancholy Brunettes features tracks like “Mega Circuit” and “Little Girl” that could easily hold their own among Big Thief’s finest songs. Though not every song on the album feels autobiographical, there’s an urge to trace the themes back to their roots—a moment Taylor Swift evoked with her 2020 opus folklore.
Still, Zauner’s moments of vulnerability crystallize the album’s heart. On “Winter in LA”, she ponders the meaning of happiness and why it seems out of reach, while “Picture Window” strikes like a thunderbolt, reminding us of life’s fleeting nature and the inevitability of confronting our mortality.
Michelle Zauner has always been an artist with something to say. From reflecting on the loss of her mother and navigating identity in a foreign culture, to exploring love through literary classics and ancient myths, she crafts narratives with a deep emotional resonance. And while For Melancholy Brunettes (& sad women) may feel brief at just 32 minutes, its haunting power lingers, inviting listeners to wrestle with its themes long after the last notes fade.
The lyrical quest for answers to life’s eternal questions culminates in a radiant and breathtaking portrait—a vision of a pink sunset over a field of blooms at summer’s end. It was beautiful while it lasted, but something new is already on the horizon.
8.3/10
