Japanese Breakfast

After a decade of crafting music in makeshift spaces—warehouses, trailers, and lofts—Japanese Breakfast’s fourth album, For Melancholy Brunettes (& sad women), marks their first true studio release. Produced by Grammy Award winner Blake Mills—celebrated for his nuanced work with artists like Bob Dylan and Fiona Apple—and recorded at the legendary Sound City in Los Angeles, the album takes a more introspective turn.

Frontwoman Michelle Zauner steps back from the vibrant extroversion of Jubilee, diving into the rich emotional landscape of melancholy—a longtime muse of poets and creatives. The result is a deeply thoughtful, sonically intricate album that feels like the musical equivalent of a gothic novel: haunting, romantic, and artistically profound.