Tashaki Miyaki

Tashaki Miyaki sounds like the soundtrack to a film that was never finished, shot on grainy 16mm film in the heart of Los Angeles. Their music is a lush, reverb-drenched wash of sound where the vocals feel like a secret whispered from across a crowded, smoky room. It carries the DNA of 1960s girl groups and surf rock, but slowed down to a hypnotic, narcotic crawl that feels both comforting and slightly eerie.

What sets them apart is their commitment to a specific cinematic mood, heavily influenced by the collaboration between David Lynch and Angelo Badalamenti. There is a deliberate murkiness to their production; the drums are often muffled and the guitars shimmer with a dark, tremolo-heavy glow. It is music that prioritizes texture and feeling over sharp edges, creating a sonic cocoon that feels entirely detached from the modern world.

Start with their debut album, The Dream. It perfectly encapsulates their ability to blend the sweetness of a pop melody with the heavy, melancholic weight of shoegaze. If you find yourself drawn to the more stripped-back, haunting side of their sound, their covers of the Everly Brothers offer a fascinating look at how they can transform classic Americana into something ghostly and new.