Lav's Music Corner

5.  PARA PARA - CHAI While this song is too objectively cute to get left off my summer playlist, I don't think I would put it among Chai's greatest hits. The band often has such a strong knack for those infectiously catchy refrains but while this song is extremely sweet it hasn't gotten stuck in my head. I love some of the future funk flavors in the instrumental and how it just soars to an adorable conclusion on the hook. For the most part the song is exceedingly pleasant while its on but it doesn't stick with me.   Listen 4.  Damian  - Sun Kil Moon I definitely ignored Sun Kil Moon singles all year that absolutely should have been on these list behind purely the merit of the songs alone. I'm still not sure how to grapple with the legacy of perhaps my favorite songwriter of all time but as he continues to release music it obviously continues to be wonderful. This song channels one of his most strikingly beautiful outings ever Carissa  by paying tribute to a...

CHAI are a Japanese pop rock group who have been around since 2015 and are now on their 3rd album. The group delivers a distinct blend of J-Pop fused with rock instrumentation and occasionally other genres blended in as well to craft an unpredictable and unconventional sound.  Review By Lav: Time for another round of Chai. The band first impressed me a while ago with singles that shows off how they were interpreting unique rock elements into their sound. Unfortunately I've never been in love with one of their full length albums. The issues I've had largely deal with songwriting quirks that deny these refreshing genre fusions their full potential. Once again on Wink  the band delivers compelling sounds and tons of personality, but the songwriting, particularly on the hooks, still leave a lot to be desired.  Half of the tracks on the record were released as singles but generally speaking I didn't find them to be consistently better or worse than any of the records deep cuts...