Japanese Breakfast is an experimental pop group formed by Michelle Zauner formally of Little Big League. The project began in around 2014, when Zauner began recording solo music, but the group didn’t release an album until 2016. Since the release of their first record Psychopomp, the band has received critic attention, and released their second album Soft Sounds From another Planet in the summer of 2017. In support of the album, Japanese Breakfast has kind of been on a non-stop tour, and once again they are back in California in support of their debut Coachella performance. The show began two 30-minuteopeners, one being And And And from Oregon, who are longtime friends with Michelle Zauner, and Snail Mail, which is fronted by 19 year old Lindsey Jordan. And And And sang about divorce, and love and the journey one faces through these. Snail Mail then took the stage, and although facing technical difficulties, the group showed up and delivered a set to hype the crowd. The instrumentalists then left, leaving Lindsey and her Fender Jaguar alone to perform a solo song to end the set. Finally, Japanese Breakfast took the stage shortly after the stage crew moved things around. The band played a mix set, including hits from both albums, as well as a few ballads with only Michelle and Craig (her drummer/backup singer) on synthesizer. Halfway through the band set, a fan yelled “I heard you like wings, do you want wings?”, participating in a long running joke that Michelle Zauner loves chicken wings. Michelle replied “Um yeah” and continued to talk. The fan then proceeded to the stage and handed her a box of chicken wings. The two shared one together, and the show continued. The San Diego crowd shocked Michelle with how much love and appreciation they had for her as she shared her anxieties with touring. The band then closed their set with their most popular song “Everybody Wants to Love You”. After two solid minutes, of the crowd cheering “encore! Encore” and “one more song!” the band came back out and delivered an enigmatic cover of Dreams by the Cranberries. I can truly say that Michelle Zauner is the only one who can give justice to Dolores O’Riordan’s insane vocals. Overall the night was filled with an ode to rock, and experimental music through the music of the two openers, and most importantly Japanese Breakfast.
Japanese Breakfast will be back in San Diego in June at the Observatory in North Park.