NPR Music Tiny Desk Concerts

The Japanese House (2024x4)

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The Japanese House, a.k.a. the recording project of U.K. singer-songwriter Amber Bain, put out my favorite album of 2023: In the End It Always Does is an irresistible electro-pop record full of warmly relatable songs about desire, regret and the fear that no one will ever love you as much as the dog nestled in your lap. It's a wonderful record that's buoyed by impeccably chosen guests — MUNA's Katie Gavin, Bon Iver's Justin Vernon, two members of The 1975 — and a pervasive mood of low-key dreaminess. At the Tiny Desk, Bain recasts four of In the End It Always Does' songs in fresh arrangements that swap out the synths while highlighting the more organic sounds of brushed drums, a violin, a spare piano and the occasional baritone sax. And, though she closes with the album's effervescent lead single "Boyhood," Bain also uses her set to center the album's softer material — particularly the lush gem "Baby Goes Again," which has no business languishing as a deep cut.