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Mellow Waves

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Mellow Waves
Studio album by
Cornelius
ReleasedJune 28, 2017 (2017-06-28)
GenreAmbient pop[1]
Length41:59
LabelWarner
ProducerKeigo Oyamada
Cornelius chronology
Sensuous
(2006) 		Mellow Waves
(2017) 		Dream in Dream
(2023)
Singles from Mellow Waves
  1. "If You're Here"
    Released: April 26, 2017
  2. "Sometime / Someplace"
    Released: May 24, 2017
  3. "In a Dream"
    Released: September 27, 2017

Mellow Waves is the sixth studio album by Japanese musician Cornelius. It was released on June 28, 2017 by Warner Music Japan. The album received generally positive reviews from music critics, and it reached the top ten of the Oricon Albums Chart in Japan and the Billboard World Albums chart in the United States.

Background and composition

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After releasing his fifth studio album under the Cornelius moniker, 2006's Sensuous, Keigo Oyamada worked on a number of projects, including a collaboration with J-pop singer Salyu that resulted in the 2011 album S(o)un(d)beams, which was credited under the name Salyu × Salyu. Oyamada composed soundtracks for educational TV programs and the Ghost in the Shell: Arise anime series. He toured with Yoko Ono and Yellow Magic Orchestra and produced remixes for Philip Glass and Sakanaction. Oyamada also joined the electro supergroup Metafive, whose lineup includes Yoshinori Sunahara, Yukihiro Takahashi, Towa Tei, and others.[2][3]

Oyamada explained to The Japan Times in 2016 that he was interested in recording a new solo album because, among other reasons, he did not have many opportunities to sing within his collaborative endeavors.[2] He was also inspired by the amount of time that had elapsed since Sensuous.[3] Between projects, Oyamada found time to work on his solo record. One track, "Mellow Yellow Feel", dates back to 2012.[4] The lyrics for two of the album's songs, "If You're Here" and "Dear Future Person", were written by Shintaro Sakamoto of Yura Yura Teikoku. Another song, "The Spell of a Vanishing Loveliness", was written by Miki Berenyi, who Oyamada learned a decade earlier was a distant relative.[3][4]

Distinct sounds have been used to represent sonic themes on previous Cornelius albums—a glass wind chime for Sensuous, and water for 2001's Point. Oyamada said the tremolo served a similar function on Mellow Waves, likening the sound to that of a continuous wave.[3] Similarly, Oyamada chose the album's cover artwork because of its wavy appearance.[4]

Release

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Mellow Waves was released in Japan on June 28, 2017 by Warner Music.[5] It peaked at number 10 on the national Oricon Albums Chart.[6] In advance of the album, two 7-inch singles were issued.[4] The first single, "If You're Here", was released on April 26, 2017,[7] and its music video, directed by Koichiro Tsujikawa, was released in May.[8] The second single, "Sometime / Someplace", was released on May 24,[9] followed the next month by its music video, directed by Yugo Nakamura.[10]

On July 21, 2017, Mellow Waves was released worldwide by Rostrum Records.[5] In the United States, it reached number seven on the Billboard World Albums chart.[11] July 2017 also saw the release of a music video for "In a Dream", directed by Groovisions,[12] with the song itself being issued as a 7-inch single on September 27.[13] A music video for "Dear Future Person", also directed by Groovisions, was released in January 2018.[14] Music videos for "The Spell of a Vanishing Loveliness" and "Surfing on Mind Wave Pt. 2", both directed by Koichiro Tsujikawa, were released in March and September, respectively.[15][16] On September 19, 2018, Cornelius released Ripple Waves, a companion album to Mellow Waves consisting of new songs, live tracks, and various artists' reworkings of songs from Mellow Waves.[17]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.1/10[18]
Metacritic74/100[19]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[20]
The A.V. ClubB[21]
Financial Times[22]
The Independent[23]
Mojo[24]
Pitchfork7.7/10[25]
PopMatters7/10[26]
Record Collector[27]
Uncut7/10[28]
Under the Radar8/10[29]

Mellow Waves received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 74, based on 18 reviews.[19]

Reviewing the album, AllMusic's Heather Phares wrote, "Despite its calm demeanor, Mellow Waves is nearly as intricate as Cornelius' previous albums, and its masterful ebb and flow just gets richer with each listen."[20] Andy Gill of The Independent found that "it's the overall cool/warm Tropicalismo tone that's most engaging" about the album.[23] Stephen Wyatt of Under the Radar observed that "what it lacks in frenetic playfulness it makes up in melody and orchestration."[29]

Pitchfork's Jesse Jarnow called it "as subdued an album as Oyamada has made", while adding that "thankfully 'subdued,' by Cornelius's standards, still entails unceasing rhythmic invention, perhaps the central musical theme of his career."[25] Tanner Smith of PopMatters said: "Mellow Waves's mellowness is more in the eye of the beholder. As nice as the vibe is, there is a high level of mental activity here that definitely put it into a more experimental arena than the soft sounds might imply."[26]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Keigo Oyamada, except where noted

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."If You're Here" (あなたがいるなら)
6:12
2."Sometime / Someplace" (いつか / どこか) 3:49
3."Dear Future Person" (未来の人へ)
  • Oyamada
  • Sakamoto
4:38
4."Surfing on Mind Wave Pt. 2" 5:34
5."In a Dream" (夢の中で) 4:14
6."Helix / Spiral" 3:35
7."Mellow Yellow Feel" 4:38
8."The Spell of a Vanishing Loveliness"
3:01
9."The Rain Song" 2:49
10."Crépuscule" 3:29
Total length:41:59

Personnel

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Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.[30]

Charts

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Chart (2017–2018) Peak
position
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[6] 10
Japanese Hot Albums (Billboard Japan)[31] 8
US Dance/Electronic Album Sales (Billboard)[32] 7
US World Albums (Billboard)[11] 7

References

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  1. ^ "17 Things To Do Around DC This March". Washingtonian. February 26, 2018. Retrieved March 4, 2021.
  2. ^ a b Hadfield, James (July 5, 2017). "Cornelius opens up a little more on his latest album, 'Mellow Waves'". The Japan Times. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  3. ^ a b c d St. Michel, Patrick (June 15, 2017). "Q&A: Cornelius On His First LP In 11 Years, 'Mellow Waves'". Stereogum. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  4. ^ a b c d "Cornelius Talks 'Mellow Waves,' His First New Album in 11 Years". Billboard. July 21, 2017. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  5. ^ a b Yoo, Noah (May 12, 2017). "Cornelius Announces First New Album in 11 Years Mellow Waves, Shares New Song: Listen". Pitchfork. Retrieved August 4, 2019.
  6. ^ a b "Mellow Waves | CORNELIUS" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
  7. ^ "コーネリアス、11年ぶりシングルのタイトルは『あなたがいるなら』。作詞に坂本慎太郎". Rockin'On Japan (in Japanese). March 23, 2017. Retrieved August 5, 2019.
  8. ^ Thiessen, Brock (May 11, 2017). "Hear Cornelius's Striking Return with 'If You're Here'". Exclaim!. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  9. ^ "コーネリアス、本日アナログシングル発売＆7月にリリースパーティ開催決定". Rockin'On Japan (in Japanese). April 26, 2017. Retrieved August 5, 2019.
  10. ^ Geslani, Michelle (June 9, 2017). "Cornelius reveals video for shapeshifting new song 'Sometime / Someplace' — watch". Consequence. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  11. ^ a b "Cornelius Chart History (World Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved August 4, 2019.
  12. ^ Helman, Peter (July 19, 2017). "Cornelius – 'In A Dream' Video". Stereogum. Retrieved March 4, 2021.
  13. ^ "Third Single – 7inch Vinyl" (in Japanese). Warner Music Japan. August 3, 2017. Retrieved August 5, 2019.
  14. ^ Thiessen, Brock (January 26, 2018). "Cornelius 'Dear Future Person' (video)". Exclaim!. Retrieved February 13, 2018.
  15. ^ Rettig, James (March 2, 2018). "Cornelius – 'The Spell Of A Vanishing Loveliness' Video & Beach Fossils' Rework". Stereogum. Retrieved March 4, 2021.
  16. ^ Tsujikawa, Koichiro (November 1, 2018). "水と音。". Brutus (in Japanese). No. 881. Retrieved March 4, 2021.
  17. ^ Thiessen, Brock (July 20, 2018). "Cornelius Gets Haruomi Hosono, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Felt's Lawerence for 'Ripple Waves' LP". Exclaim!. Retrieved May 25, 2021.
  18. ^ "Mellow Waves by Cornelius reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
  19. ^ a b "Mellow Waves by Cornelius Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved February 27, 2021.
  20. ^ a b Phares, Heather. "Mellow Waves – Cornelius". AllMusic. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  21. ^ Purdom, Clayton (July 21, 2017). "Cornelius' Mellow Waves is just as nice as it sounds". The A.V. Club. Retrieved April 1, 2018.
  22. ^ Hunter-Tilney, Ludovic (July 21, 2017). "Cornelius: Mellow Waves — 'older, calmer musician'". Financial Times. Retrieved July 22, 2019.
  23. ^ a b Gill, Andy (July 20, 2017). "Album reviews: Dizzee Rascal – Raskit, Chris Robinson Brotherhood – Barefoot In The Head, Cornelius – Mellow Waves". The Independent. Archived from the original on 2022-05-12. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  24. ^ Prior, Clive (September 2017). "Cornelius: Mellow Waves". Mojo. No. 286. p. 96.
  25. ^ a b Jarnow, Jesse (July 20, 2017). "Cornelius: Mellow Waves". Pitchfork. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  26. ^ a b Smith, Tanner (August 1, 2017). "Cornelius: Mellow Waves". PopMatters. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
  27. ^ Bowler, Paul (August 2017). "Mellow Waves | Cornelius". Record Collector. No. 469. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
  28. ^ Wallace, Wyndham (September 2017). "Cornelius: Mellow Waves". Uncut. No. 244. p. 24.
  29. ^ a b Wyatt, Stephen (July 20, 2017). "Cornelius: Waves (Rostrum)". Under the Radar. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  30. ^ Mellow Waves (liner notes). Cornelius. Warner Music Japan. 2017. WPCL-12660.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  31. ^ "Billboard Japan Hot Albums". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). July 10, 2017. Retrieved August 12, 2019.
  32. ^ "Cornelius Chart History (Dance/Electronic Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved March 4, 2021.[dead link]
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