“I always think of the fourth album as the artist’s album. This record feels almost like a collection of short stories to me. Particularly in the bookend, I was thinking a lot about the age that I am and the decisions that I’ve made in my life—this anticipatory grief of the lives that I won’t live. A lot of the songs are about people who are at a crossroads or have already taken it and are looking back at what they miss out on. I was thinking about time a lot.”
-Michelle Zauner, episode 418 of Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso
Michelle Zauner (Japanese Breakfast) has long turned to music to make sense of the past. Today, she joins us to unpack all of the emotional terrain covered in her latest album, For Melancholy Brunettes (& sad women).
We discuss the literary (6:08) and musical (7:32) influences that shaped the new record, her transformative year spent living and writing in Korea (13:12), and the daily diary she kept while abroad (15:44). We then celebrate her late mother (18:56), her exploration of identity in Crying in H Mart (23:19), and the song “Heft” born out of that ongoing grief (29:49).
On the back half, Zauner recounts her breakout performance at SXSW (35:30) and unpacks her evolving relationship with her father in the wake of her mother’s passing (43:17), her plans for a second book (56:40), and how she’s coming into her own on this latest world-wide tour (58:02).
This episode was recorded at Spotify Studios. Thoughts or future guest ideas? Email us at mail@talkeasypod.com.
Show-notes:
- Hear the latest album from Japanese Breakfast, For Melancholy Brunettes (& sad women).
- Listen to more of their records: Jubilee, Soft Sounds from Another Planet, and Psychopomp.
- Read Michelle’s bestselling memoir Crying in H Mart.
- Find her tour dates on her website.
- For more talks, hear Weyes Blood, David Byrne, Laufey, Arlo Parks, and Mac DeMarco.
- Order your Talk Easy mug in cream and navy or our vinyl record with Fran Lebowitz.
Illustrations by Krishna Shenoi. Reference photograph by Pakbae.
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