Final verdict: 10/10 ★★★★★
Over the last couple of months, I’ve been in the process of going through Yumi Matsutoya’s (or Yumi Arai’s, or Yuming’s, as I’m going to call her from this point forward) admittedly intimidating discography. In the last month, I’ve also been slowly but determinedly getting through Taylor Swift’s catalogue. And I don’t know if I’m biased due to this overlap in discography-discovery or if this is actually at least half-true, so please, dear reader, do let me know your own thoughts, but with the passage of time, the following thought arose; Yuming is Japan’s Taylor Swift. Or, I’m sorry, Taylor Swift is America’s Yuming. Just so it’s clear who came first here, though it isn’t really relevant, since this is more about the similarity in the two artists’ careers, rather than their music.
The thought process here was, both chanteuses are singer-songwriters who saw extensive commercial success, continuing to release hits many years into their careers – something inconsistent with the popstar archetype. I mean, Yuming debuted in 1972 and remained commercially successful for decades, having released one of her most popular singles, “春よ、来い”, two decades into her career, and selling pretty decently to this day, well over half a century into her career. Taylor has also had similar circumstances so far – she’s been active for 20 years, come 2026 (it’s sooner than you think!), yet she is currently on top of the world, dropping hit after hit, and selling better than ever before. This isn’t a common phenomenon, but both Yuming and Taylor managed to achieve this, and so you see, the two are similar. Do you get where I’m coming from? And I haven’t even mentioned the fact both stars had their brief yee-haw moment, before eventually going on a trip to synthpop land. They’re effectively career twins, I’m telling you!
Recently, I often find myself writing album reviews for the sole purpose of expressing silly thoughts like the one above. I have nowhere else to say this stuff, and I feel I’ll explode if I don’t get it off my chest. So, here we are.
Anyway, on “ひこうき雲”. Yuming’s debut full-length effort. Her folk-pop era. Her “$5 and a dream” moment.
There’s quite a bit to say about this one, but my brain is fried and my hand (yes boys, that’s right, I’m handwriting this one on a real notebook in an attempt to combat Latin class boredom! I’m not too excited to transfer it onto the computer later) is tired from working on the Yuming ≈ Taylor Swift rant earlier. As such, I can’t format a proper essay, so here’s a list of statements about “ひこうき雲” instead:
1) The album cover sucks. Reminds me of my grandma’s carpet. “$5 and a dream”, indeed.
2) This album’s credits are absolutely stacked. Haruomo Hosono, Masataka Matsutoya, Shigeru Suzuki, Tatsuo Hayashi, Ray Ohara, all on the same album? How in the fuck did this even happen? I know these guys have left their footprint on effectively every single musical project to come out of 1970s Japan, but damn, I can’t help but be impressed.
3) The title track is lovely. The lyrics are rather sad though, so do proceed with caution.
4) I like “恋のスーパーパラシューター”. I have mild dyslexia when it comes to Katakana, so at first I thought the title was “恋のスーパースター”. Do not make fun of me, or I’ll tell my mom. You don’t want to mess with a Balkan woman, trust me.
5) Now. “空と海の輝きに向けて”. My favorite song. Everyone’s favorite song, actually. A total banger. At first, I wasn’t exactly sure what I loved so much about this song, but I think I’ve since figured it out. “光がある、永遠の輝きに”. Shut. The fuck. Up. I do not know what this lyric means, but I love it. I can see it features the Japanese words for “light” and “eternity”, so I’m confident it must be something profoundly deep and emotional, and something about the way this string of Japanese words sounds and looks and feels just tickles my fancy, so I have no choice but to love this song. Its single version is rather nice too, but it admittedly sounds more like an unfinished demo than a release-ready song. Maybe that’s just the sound of 1972. By 1973 they had it all figured out, though.
6) Actually, the entirety of side A goes incredibly hard. Love it lots. Side B can’t quite keep up, though it remains a pretty good collection of songs. It has “Velvet Easter”, after all.
7) Speaking of which, “Velvet Easter” is nice. So nice she had to reissue it unchanged as the B-side to some single of hers, a whole 3 years later in 1976.
8) The “short version” of the title track sounds real cute, I kind of wish they would’ve issued the whole thing, though I suppose that would make it a not-short-anymore version, which goes against the whole point.
This is getting way too long, so I’ll spare you the epilogue, and just say this album is a solid 8/10. Mic drop.
EDIT (November 2024): You know, my exploration of the Japanese music scene has left me in somewhat of a New Music rut. For those unfamiliar with the term, what “New Music” is is basically 1970s cheese, vaguely folky soft rock in Japanese. That label includes the likes of Happy End, Sugar Babe, Minako Yoshida, and of course, my much beloved Yuming. Personally, I am a huge fan of the “New Music” sound, however I will admit that most albums falling into that category bore the living hell out of me. This is where “ひこうき雲” rises to significance – this album is not only breathtakingly beautiful, it is also very engaging. It’s a great deal overall. And I just feel this review I wrote back in February really downplays its magnificence.
Recently I’ve been really into taking the long route home from university. You know, there’s something tear-jerkingly brilliant about walking on the beach while sipping on a double americano, all during a winter sunset. It lights up my day, it colors the canvas that is my life. I dearly love this ritual. And more often than not, this very album, Yuming’s “ひこうき雲”, has been my accompaniment during this daily adventure. What can I say, I’ve found a friend in this record. It really is a positive feedback loop, because just when I thought I loved this album… I put it on again, and it’s somehow even better than it was last time around.
Between the endearingly rough-around-the-edges recording (that is typical of early 70s music) and the exquisite songwriting, Yuming really came swinging out the gate with this one. The perceived intimacy of the musicians’ performance, the beautiful simplicity of these arrangements, the thought that all of these songs are the brainchild of an ordinary (albeit clearly musically gifted) 19-year-old girl… It makes it really easy to sympathize with this album, as corny as that might sound. I guess it can’t be helped that I also am an 18-year-old girl with a penchant for music – I’ve found a songwriting “hero” of sorts in Yuming. Someone to look up to.
There isn’t much more to say, besides this album is truly incredible. The more I listen to it, the more I grow to appreciate it, and it’s more or less the definitive soundtrack to my life these days. A true masterpiece – Yuming’s first of many. I hereby rate this album a 10/10. I feel it’s only fair.
Silia 
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