Given the musical influences they cite, it’s no surprise that Danish indiepop/electronica band GimmiJapan are favorites of ours. That the band draws inspiration from amongst others the Cocteau Twins, My Bloody Valentine, Yo La Tengo, Elbow and Björk is clear from their unique sound – a distinctive mix of ambient melodies, rhythmic (sometimes noisy) samples topped by beautiful and naïve lead vocals. Try to imagine Björk backed by the Cocteau Twins (no disrespect to the wonderful Elizabeth Frazer intended) and you'll begin to get the idea. Take a listen to a track from GimmiJapan below and you'll hopefully understand what we mean.
Sadly their original lead singer Theresa left the band earlier this year but the remaining members, Ruben Ben-Yedidia, Casper Bach Hegstrup & Morten Sandvall Svendsen have managed to enlist the help of the equally talented Tilde.
Seemingly not happy simply to create seductive melodies for GimmiJapan, the band are also involved in a number of other musical projects. Casper has an equally interesting band called Good Luck Casper (in which Ruben and Morten also play), Tilde is a credible solo artist in her own right and Ruben somehow still manages to find time to play bass and sings backing vocal for the Danish band Into Rust.
Take a listen to Surprising Chills from GimmiJapan and visit the band’s pages on MySpace to hear additional tracks.
Comments