scrmbl contributor Patrick St. Michel runs an email newsletter called Make Believe Mailer, an offshoot of his long-running blog Make Believe Melodies. Every week, he shares essays and round-ups of new Japanese music, from J-pop to independent releases, including albums that might have flown under listeners' radar. Here are some of the highlights from the past month, shared with readers of scrmbl.

newfn — newfn

The sleepier neighborhoods along the Seibu-Ikebukuro line serve as artistic base for the trio of Yui Hayama, Natsume Kanda and Fuu Tange’s project newfn. They’ve self-created a genre dubbed “Sakura-kei,” a riff on the genre-bricolage of Shibuya-kei but placed in the ho-hum space around Sakuradai station. While that nods to the ‘90s, newfn draws from the neo-Shibuya-kei giddiness of the 2000s, with breaks punctuating Technicolor pop maximalism in the mold of EeL or Macdonald Duck Eclair. “Nandemo Ari!!!” serves as the group’s big introduction, skipping ahead on sun-shiny syllables and accented by a playroom’s worth of flair (chimes, bells, swooshes galore) building towards an ecstatic hook. From there every individual member gets a chance to show off a side of themselves, with Hayama delivering a standout with the guitar-powered charge of “Papapa” while Kanda plays with more topsy-turvy plinks and plonks on their “Kawaru.” Tange ends it with the most straightforward bit of catchiness on the sweet idol-ready “Mellow Mellow Mellow.”

What makes newfn much more than just an update on a familiar, manic sound is the modern touches dappling their debut. Internet music culture colors every corner of newfn and adds new sonic textures to that neo-Shibuya-kei base. Familiar club-ready samples pop up alongside melodies reminiscent of Tomggg or Avec Avec, connecting Netlabel approaches with a time preceding it (with what sometimes sounds like Hanna-Barbara cartoon samples, adding to the out-of-time feel). Even the group itself feels very online — it’s not clear if the three members are real people, avatars, characters or what (that they all just appeared online this spring adding to the uncertainty). Even with well-worn touches, newfn are very of the moment…and that can bubble out of any corner of Japan. Listen above.

valknee — Le Tombeau de valknee

Looks like valknee is overflowing with ideas in 2026. After releasing one of the year’s best to date in February, she returns with a concept EP imagining how the musical legacy of valknee might be remembered after she dies (the French title translates to “valknee’s tomb”). A macabre idea, but really it’s a chance to spotlight new producer Organista Giftshop, an entity who gives valknee a Foodman-gone-Haunted-Mansion lurch on opener “Tombeau” before showcasing a more disorienting electronic sound featuring digi-warped valknee voices on the rippling “Mollyfantasy” or the pogoing Jersey scramble of “☆Shower☆.” Thankfully she lives, because this set shows just how many more directions she can explore. Listen above.

Ako — lovely moments

Ako aspires to be a big name in modern J-pop, but her hushed singing style guarantees there will always be something just off about her music regardless of how many anime tie-up songs she makes in the years ahead. Her second full-length lovely moments attempts to synthesize trends and references to create a zeitgeist-grabbing work drawing from Aughts-era nostalgia alongside modern marquee players. 

Yet her singing adds tension, making for a good listening experience (if not perhaps smashing against her Music Station ambitions). Pop-punk balladry and surf-rock pastiche take on an odder texture when Ako’s nearly whispered, higher-register delivery floats like smoke over these tunes. There’s moments of straight-ahead pop charm here (“Love Letter”), but at its best lovely moments finds Ako’s singing offering an odder touch to stabs at cheery J-pop (“Happy Summer Baby”) or replicating Daft Punk-style stutter-pop (“magic,” “Earl Grey”). She’s eyeing the top, but with very -un-mainstream details turning her pop a touch odder. Listen above.

Various Artists — CONCRETE GREEN 12

YouTube interview channel NEET Tokyo has been a great source for bite-size chats with a variety of Japanese (and foreign) artists, with a heavy emphasis on hip-hop. CONCRETE GREEN 12 aims to offer a much longer and unwieldy experience compared to clips lasting like 90 seconds, offering a crash course in modern Japanese rap over a little under an hour and a half. All that room allows NEET to spotlight the full spectrum of blossoming (and some familiar) talent, from the digi-damaged party of STARKIDS, the shivering flow of lazydoll, or more traditional flexing via jellyy. It’s big, with misses and hits alike (I lean towards the experimental stuff, though I also am here to champion anything the upbeat and funny Worldwide Skippa provides), but that just makes it a solid gateway into finding your corner of this community. Listen above.

kaza — kirakira

The internet might provide some influence on virtual artist kaza’s first album kirakira, but it doesn’t define this set of genre zipping songs. Anyone using an avatar for their online presence is going to have some web trappings associated with what they do, but for kaza that only really manifests via her collaborators, including TEMPLIME and Uztama. Yet the music itself leans towards a more familiar rock sound, emerging in the dazed stomp of opener “Antenna” to more dashing experiments such as on “Ao Wo” (featuring club-ready samples, a nod to kaza’s more elastic approach to genre). She dabbles in rap and balladry, but works best when plugging into a Japanese music go-to that has been informing artists well before computers even entered the picture. Listen above.