Indie Mixtape 20: Mei Semones Balances Strife And Utopia On ‘Kabutomushi’

On Kabutomushi, the latest EP from math rock-meets-bossa nova artist Mei Semones, tales of strife and utopia coexist. Whether the Brooklyn-based jazz guitarist lets go of a long-term friendship on “Wakare No Kotoba” (Japanese for “parting words”) or envisions a pastoral paradise on “Inaka,” (Japanese for “countryside”) Semones allows the space for a wide spectrum of emotions and styles. As she reconstructs her warm, comforting arrangements to suit complex, proggy time signatures, it never seems forced. Instead, it just sounds natural.

Kabutomushi is the name for the Japanese rhinoceros battle, an insect that Semones would try to find whenever she visited her grandmother in Japan as child. As a whole, this EP is an homage to her late grandmother, both in its wistful, commemorative lyrics, as on the title track, and in spirit.

Following the EP’s release this past Friday, Semones sits down with Uproxx to discuss those precious memories of her grandmother, her admiration of John Coltrane, and why her mother is her favorite person to follow on social media in our latest Q&A.

What are four words you would use to describe your music?

Sweet, sophisticated, vulnerable, straightforward.

It’s 2050 and the world hasn’t ended and people are still listening to your music. How would you like it to be remembered?

I would like my music to be remembered as something comforting, something that helped people feel less alone. I also would like it to be remembered as something new and different.

Who’s the person who has most inspired your work, and why?

John Coltrane — obviously my music sounds nothing like him, but I love his music & playing.

Where did you eat the best meal of your life and what was it?

At my parent’s house in Michigan, my mom’s nabe (hotpot) :)

Tell us about the best concert you’ve ever attended.

I really enjoyed seeing Ravi Coltrane at Village Vanguard!

What song never fails to make you emotional?

“Monk’s Mood.”