
The first time you hear Mei Semones, you’re likely to contort yourself into some weird shapes in an attempt to describe her music. My first pass, “Pat Metheny and Gilberto Gil start a Midwest emo band with a folk singer who’s fluent in English and Japanese,” nearly tore my hamstrings. That was in reference to fall 2023’s “Wakare No Kotoba,” and in fairness, it’s quite an ambitious blend of pastoral jazz, bossa nova, emo, and baroque pop.