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chromaticsol.bsky.social
ChromaticSo(u)l
@chromaticsol.bsky.social
82 followers 740 following 230 posts
⭐Vi - she/her - ⚢ + 🏳️‍🌈 - twenty-something⭐
✨Musician/composer, BSc (astro)physics, teacher, TTRPG nerd, creative✨
🌟"One can’t stay sad very long in such an interesting world!" -Anne Shirley🌟
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chromaticsol.bsky.social
I'm used to talking about albums that can generously be described as "bubbling under the mainstream". Not this time, though. Through happenstance, I discovered "Hey Yo I'm Calling You" and I fell in love. I had to find out more about Sho Kamijo, and found his only album "Nobody like you".
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Cover art for Sho Kamijo's album "Nobody Like You". It's a top-down, angled photograph of the singer in between a bunch of empty seats for an audience. He's holding a guitar, and looking at the camera. The dramatic shadows on the ground give the impression of either sunrise or sunset. The photograph has been edited to consist only of greys, with hints of sepia. The album's name is written along the bottom in a tangerine colour, with the artist's name below it in white. It gives an "artist before their big show" vibe, the type of photo you'd see with an interview or magazine, but the gospel stylings of the music point to this photo potentially being taken in a church instead.
November 30, 2025 at 4:33 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
I've always associated the first few albums by Last Dinosaurs, the indie band from Australia, with specific parts of a summer's day. Their 1st scores the morning, their 4th the late afternoon, their 3rd the evening, et cetera. "Wellness", to me, falls squarely in the early afternoon;
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Cover art for Last Dinosaurs' album "Wellness". It looks to be a manipulated photograph of a field, with a forest on a hill a little further in the distance. The colours are somewhat strange, though, there's a blurriness as though multiple photographs were overlayed, and the entire composition looks washed-out as though it's many decades old. White streaks of paint are splattered over this, as though spilled on a sacrificial desk mat. The band's name and album title are to the top left and right, respectively. The overall feeling is of a not unpleasant dream; familiar elements now estranged and painted over, but in a warm and quaint manner.
November 24, 2025 at 10:36 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
I like to think there's two ways to title your album. Number one is artistic; some words or sentence that reinforce a theme or message you want to convey. The other is descriptive, and I can think of few better examples of this kind than Mariya Takeuchi's "Variety", which I can only read as-
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Cover art for Mariya Takeuchi's album "Variety". It is a black-and-white photograph of the singer, dressed in what looks to be a sailor uniform. She is looking off to the right of the camera, and has her hair down on the same side. The album's title is featured in a red box on the top left, and the singer' name in a green one to the top right. While it doesn't seem intent to convey some strong theme or message, this somewhat straightforward portrait of the singer does, to me, say something akin to "these songs are my work, and I am proud of them".
November 16, 2025 at 8:25 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
A blazing-fast album deserves a blazing-fast post. Bad Nerves' self-titled debut is the catchiest proverbial slap-in-the-face I've ever seen live. "Radio Punk" is perpetually stuck in my head, "Palace" has great lines and riffs, and "New Shapes" goes faster than a jet plane. Do give it a listen!
Cover art for Bad Nerves' self-titled debut album, "Bad Nerves". It features a black-and white photograph of the band's vocalist, who appears to be lying on a stage or in a studio. He has a microphone in his hands, held to his mouth, and is surrounded by cables. The band's (and thus also the album's) name frames the photograph in lilac-coloured lettering.
November 9, 2025 at 10:03 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
While I have expressed my love and admiration for vocaloid music before, I must say both are somewhat recent; Only last year did it finally *click* for me. Still, I have yet to find another who does it like producer Jamie Paige! "Constant Companions" is unique, to the point it's hard to fit-
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Cover art for Jamie Paige's album "Constant Companions". It's an artwork roughly split into two sides along the centre line. The left features a representation of the artist, laying on a bright-red, cloth-looking material (presumably a blanket) with a pillow under her head. She is surrounded by clutter like a game controller, gummy worms, and a cassette tape. The right features white outline in the shape of a cat-person, surrounded by white outlines of small animals. The background is a collage of greens and yellows, giving the impression of a leafy canopy. The two figures are holding hands, and both are smiling with their eyes closed. The artwork seems to me to reinforce the album's theme of companionship, and reminds me of the warmth I've felt from friendships, even over long distances (via the internet).
November 2, 2025 at 5:40 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
For week 29 we've got "Sawayama" by, you'll never guess, British-Japanese singer-songwriter Rina Sawayama! This (self-titled?) pop album was introduced to me by a good friend, and I was immediately hooked when I heard "Fuck This World". It might be listed as an 'interlude', but I think that-
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Cover art for Rina Sawayama's album "Sawayama". It's a photograph of the singer, adorned with body art, jewelry, and a very elaborate hairstyle. Sawayama is looking directly at the viewer with a hard-to-read, somewhat distant expression. The jewelry on her earrings glitters in a way reminiscent of older works of film and photography. The colour palette is mostly champagne and gold colours, with the dark colours of her eyes and hair standing out especially. It evokes an air of opulence to me; It highlights the untraversable gap between her world of glamour and our own. This is in stark contrast to the themes on the music, which are very personal and somewhat vulnerable.
October 27, 2025 at 5:00 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
TikTok, of all places; "The Loneliest Time" features the strong pop hooks I've long since come to expect from her, maybe even her best ones yet! "Shooting Star" in an infectious dance-pop song that I find myself pressing repeat on all the time, "Joshua Tree" I can only imagine is the singer's-
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Cover art for Carly Rae Jepsen's "The Loneliest Time". It's a photograph (or a painting, maybe even both) of the singer looking back at us. Jepsen is dressed in a partially translucent, elegant looking gown. Her hand rests on a table, featuring an assortment of fruits, flowers, and leaves that look straight out of an old painting. The artist's and album's names are written in white along the middle left. It's a warm composition of mostly earthy oranges and browns, with hints of off-white and leafy green. To me, it evokes the image of an aristocrat stuck in the past. There is an old-timey, retro-yet-high-class feeling to the piece; A loneliness for those of a high class, yet loneliness all the same.
October 19, 2025 at 11:07 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
Okay hear me out. Many might be sick of the one big song from this record, no doubt in part to its ubiquity in supermarket playlists, but Owl City's "Ocean Eyes" is worthy of your attention! This album by American singer-songwriter Adam Young was formative for me in many ways, being one of-
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Cover art for Owl City's album "Ocean Eyes". It features a wide shot of the Burj Al Arab hotel in Dubai, overlooking the Persian Gulf. The stark white of the building blends somewhat into the clouds, which in turn blend into a deep blue sky. This is bordered in a speckled white, giving the impression of being a painting on a canvas. The album and artists name are placed near the top right in white lettering. The photograph looks hyper real; edited to sell a feeling of adventure and open ocean, not unlike what a marketing still would do.
October 12, 2025 at 9:30 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
Seems I forgot ALT text on the image, my bad! Here's the version with:
Cover art for Satoko Shibata's album "Your Favorite Things". It is a picture of the singer standing before a body of water (likely the ocean). The depth-of-field creates the impression that said water is far away from the camera. She's wearing a coat, a bright red scarf, and glasses and is looking at the camera. The position of the sun makes it somewhat difficult to make out details, as most of Shibata is cast in shadow. The wind seems to have been blowing substantially when the picture was taken. The artist's and album's names are in the top right and top left respectively in white lettering. The graininess of the photo evoke a certain nostalgic or retro aesthetic, which suits the album's sound quite well.
October 5, 2025 at 10:18 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
For week 26, I'd like to introduce an album who's opening track, "Movie Light", brought me to tears. Singer-songwriter Satoko Shibata's "Your Favorite Things" is a lot of things. Discogs lists it as 'indie pop', but that does not, to me, capture what this album sounds like. When the strings-
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October 5, 2025 at 10:12 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
There was a time I became somewhat obsessed with a track by SIRUP some years back. It was called "MAIGO", and had some featured artist I'd never heard of; Joe Hertz. When I later went digging, it turned out this UK-based producer had an album out; Lucky me! That album was "Current Blues",
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Cover art for Joe Hertz's album "Current Blues" by illustrator Liam Cobb. It depicts an overgrown city over a bright orange sky, seemingly after rainfall. Mountain peaks can be seen in the distance. All this is rendered in a (roughly) two-tone palette of orange/red and turquoise. The album name is placed on the top left, and the artist's name vertically alone the bottom left. Abandoned buildings are often found in post-apocalyptic settings, but the piece seems to focus on the calm, even serenity, of the scene; something that ties together well with the music and album title.
September 28, 2025 at 5:06 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
One of my friends from middle school got married recently, and I distinctly remember when he introduced me to "As Blue As Indigo" by UK alt-rockers Tigercub. We listened to the entire album, front-to-back, while on our way to... I think a band rehearsal? This was in his somewhat shitty car,
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Cover art for Tigercub's album "As Blue As Indigo". It's a busy, abstract piece, heavily featuring deep indigo blues and dusty licorice blacks. There's a somewhat-chaotic intermingling of thick, wavy lines and straight, thin ones. The middle features some pops of scarlet and white, but it's not apparent what, if anything, is represented here. The band's name is printed in a darkened circle on the top left, and the album's name in a row of colourful circles in the bottom right. To me, it evokes the feeling of optical illusions or shock camouflage; the cover is striking, and seems to want to draw your attention as much as it wants to disorient you.
September 21, 2025 at 10:11 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
Switching it up for week 23, we have an album that's gone viral in some niche circles, but is very obscure outside those; "Flying Beagle", by jazz pianist Himiko Kikuchi! It's no secret I love the sounds of the 80's, and this album has that in spades. "Baby Talk" has wonderfully retro-
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Cover art for Himiko Kikuchi's album "Flying Beagle". It's a photograph of a beagle, as per the album title. It is not, however, flying. Said beagle is captured at an angle, and it's looking at the camera. The photo seems to be taken at twilight, with a prominent camera flash illuminating the dog. The artist's name and album title are given at the top left and right, respectively, in yellow and in white. The beagle almost seems to be flashing the camera a mischievous smile.
September 14, 2025 at 9:05 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
Week 22 brings me down memory lane, to the first band I ever called myself a fan of; UK alt-rockers Area 11. Getting their start playing for a YouTube channel doing minecraft let's plays, it was on their second album, "Modern Synthesis", that I feel they proved themselves as a 'real band'.
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Cover art for Area 11's album "Modern Synthesis". It prominently features a white circle, with branches like one finds on the 'tree of life' in the field of biology. The middle features the band's then-logo, a stylized eye with rays radiating in all directions and circuit-like wire pointing to the right which, in this case, happens to be the band's and album's names. The background is a swirl of dark greys to contrast this circle. This cover to me evokes themes of life in the digital information age and the idea of the singularity, where the division between human and machine would vanish.
September 7, 2025 at 5:27 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
Week 21! I'm not going to pretend this isn't a somewhat basic pick, but it's hard to beat the satin-soft jazz singing of Chet Baker. "Chet Baker Sings" is from a different era of albums, when trivial concerns such as 'theme', 'sequencing', and 'cohesion' were not yet on the minds of artists.
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Cover art for Chet Baker's album "Chet Baker Sings". It's a photograph (or maybe two photographs stitched together) of the titular singer and trumpet player, Chet Baker, in the studio. He's singing into a microphone. The photograph is monocolour, tinted a turquoise. The left side of the cover features pianist Russ Freeman. This side is tinted green. The album title and record label are featured in an orange-red colour, and some of the personnel in white.
August 30, 2025 at 10:23 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
We've made it to week 20, and I'd like to cover the delightful "Annihilation" by Japanese singer-songwriter AAAMYYY. I remember listening to the first single off this album, "Utopia", back in 2020. It felt to me like I was swimming in those synthesizers; The song's ethereal sounds were like
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Cover art for AAAMYYY's album "Annihilation". It's an abstract piece which depicts a disk or orb floating above a surface of bright reds and yellows. It gives the impression of an orb floating out of some strange liquid, reflecting the pool below it, which seems to be rising to meet it. The artist name and album title are written at the bottom over this 'pool'. It conveys to me an ominous feeling; a dark artifact that will be the vehicle of the album's titular annihilation.
August 23, 2025 at 10:32 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
Week 19*, and we're back to my personal nostalgia! When asked what the artwork represented, De Staat's frontman Torre Florim replied 'It could be a lot of things; The letter "o", a zero, or just a little circle'. Most fans have taken to calling this alternative banger "Oh". While I could-
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Cover art for De Staat's album "O". It depicts a simple white circle on a textured, bright blue background. The band's name/logo adorns the top-left corner. The band is vague as to whether the circle is just a circle, a letter, a number, an ouroboros, or any combination thereof, but the stark simplicity of the cover does bring this ambiguity to the forefront; effective minimalism for artistic ends.
August 19, 2025 at 9:55 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
The weather's been nice again, so for week 18 I'm in a city pop mood! Anri's "Timely!!" is a true classic of the genre, maybe even _the_ defining album to me. So much so, in fact, it is somewhat challenging to write about; How would you describe 'oxygen', 'the sky', or the concept of a 'day'-
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Cover art for Anri's album "Timely!!". It depicts a framed photo of the singer herself in front of a stone wall. She is leaning over slightly, appearing to peer through some viewfinder, but her eyes are turned to the camera. Behind the wall, palm trees and a sunny sky with some clouds can be seen. Dramatic shadows are cast by a low sun, seeming to be either rising or setting. The artist's and album's name are written to either side of the photo. The cover evokes a sunny, perhaps even sub-tropical feeling; One of beach days in Florida, walks along the southern shores of Japan, or a date on Hawai'i.
August 10, 2025 at 10:25 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
Week 17(ish) goes to UK rock duo Royal Blood and their 3rd: 'Typhoons'. While I've been a fan of theirs since their debut album, it is this foray into a more electronic, danceable sound where the band struck gold for my tastes. While it's still got their edge, the cuts on here are tempered-
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Cover for Royal Blood's album "Typhoons". It's an abstract piece, looking somewhat like a radar scan coloured in with magentas and cyans. The rest of the cover is a dark black, save for the band's name in white letters along the middle. With the album's focus on alcoholism, I can't help but interpret this as a ship's SOS signal; A call for help of a boat lost at sea.
August 1, 2025 at 11:30 AM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
For week 16, I wanted to go down memory lane a little bit. As with most teens, I was really trying to find my own identity as I was preparing to go to university. One album that really helped me here was 'Belladonna of Sadness' by US singer-songwriter Alexandra Savior. I had already heard-
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Cover art for Alexandra Savior's "Belladonna of Sadness". It depicts a stylized poppy flower, with a few other stems and leaves, over a very dark gray. The artist's name is written in a refined-looking, cursive gold, while the album title is given in a more standard-looking, white font. The cover, made by Savior herself, has an aire of refinement or elegance. At the same time, however, it feels cold, stark, or even lonely, despite the palette of warm colours.
July 27, 2025 at 2:47 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
I mentioned before how I got into J-pop around 2020. For week 15, I'd like to reveal the culprit for my descent into loving this genre: 'Traveler' by Official HIGE DANdism! When it comes to modern Japanese pop productions, this album has it all; spanning the gamut from horn-blasting
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Cover art for Official HIGE DANdism's 'Traveler'. It depicts a flag of red and white stripes (alluding perhaps to the flag of the United States), as well as an assortment of items of outdated technology (30 years old and over). The items obscure an open road leading to some mountains. The cover is very busy, making it somewhat hard to describe what exactly is going on. The chaotic, collage nature of the cover reflects the wide range of music on the album, while also alluding to the older period of US pop music it pulls inspiration from.
July 20, 2025 at 6:22 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
Week 14, and we're tackling "Raw Data Feel" by English experimental pop band Everything Everything! Released around the same time as ChatGPT, this album found the exact right moment in time for its themes of using technology to cope with the horrors and burdens of the world to resonate.
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Cover art for the album "Raw Data Feel" by the band Everything Everything. The artwork looks like a piece of technology, but since the artwork was generated with an LLM computer model, it is impossible to determine what exactly the object is. My best description is 'an old-school camera as viewed by someone suffering psychosis'. Behind the object is a blur of colour, looking somewhat like a sunset. The tracklisting is printed partially covering the artwork. The overall feeling is uncanny; A self-portrait by a piece of technology that's somewhat human, but not quite.
July 15, 2025 at 5:33 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
Without burying the lede further, for week 13 I wanted to talk 'Kyougen'. Acting somewhat like a virtual singer, none of the songs on this album credit Ado on writing or producing. Every track, in fact, has different credits. Despite this, it is Ado's performance that ties this album together.
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Cover art for the album "Kyougen" by Ado. It depicts a figure, which Ado uses as a stand-in for herself, covered in thorned, blue roses. One of her eyes is covered, while the other looks directly at the viewer. The album name is written in Japanese in a calligraphy style. The colour palette is dark, making the white writing stand out. The cover evokes a sense of drama and elegance.
July 6, 2025 at 3:56 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
For week 12, I'd like to spotlight "Ghost Notes" by Japanese singer-songwriter Kan Sano! I'll admit I don't know much about him, partially through only knowing the basics of Japanese, but I have always enjoyed projects he's worked on with the likes of Shin Sakiura (who'll get a spotlight-
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Cover art for the album "Ghost Note" by Kan Sano. It depcits a collage of cut and ripped photographs, with overwhelming grassy and sandy colours and textures. A face is cutout from the nose down, which flows into the rest of the photos seemingly naturally. The album name is written in a flowy ink over the collage. It gives me the impression of a sort of 'scrapbook dadaism', though the intended message is unclear.
June 29, 2025 at 5:41 PM
chromaticsol.bsky.social
Week 11 (+ 1 day), and I want to shout out an album dear to me: "Screen Violence" by Scottish synth-pop band CHVRCHES! 2021 was a weird year for me; I remember this album releasing during a very hard time for me emotionally. 'How Not To Drown' (featuring none other than Robert Smith) became-
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Cover art for the album "Screen Violence" by Churches (stylized as CHVRCHES). It depicts what looks to be a television screen, showing blinds and the shadow of a hand. The space around the television is coloured a deep scarlet, and a power cord can be seen snaking to the left. The cover evokes horror movies, but clearly also aims to distance the viewer from the awful things happening on the screen; A theme running through the album.
June 23, 2025 at 9:48 PM