Trooper Salute - 友達がいました [Tomodachigaimashita] (2026)
I like the lightness of this more than I admire it. The jangly guitars, soft melodies and slightly wistful tone give it a clear charm, and it feels like it belongs to a very specific Japanese indie-pop lineage rather than to some anonymous modern “bedroom pop” blur. There’s personality in that softness, and the album seems to understand how to make intimacy feel graceful rather than inert.
What keeps me at a distance is that the record doesn’t seem to push very hard beyond that initial sweetness. I hear pleasant textures, a few elegant melodic turns, and a coherent mood, but not much that really deepens the emotional field or changes the stakes as it goes. It’s the kind of album I can imagine enjoying track by track without feeling that the whole thing accumulates into something larger.
So I come away respecting its warmth, taste and melodic delicacy more than feeling fully moved by it. It sounds like a good, likable indie-pop record with its own identity, but also one that may stay a little too gentle, too modest and too emotionally light to leave a major mark on me.
pros
The album has a soft, melodic charm that feels natural rather than twee-for-effect.The jangly guitar writing and wistful tone give it a clear identity within Japanese indie pop.
It maintains a coherent mood and an easy replayability without sounding faceless.
cons
The album stays in a narrow emotional range and rarely deepens its impact.
The songwriting favors delicacy over payoff, so the record struggles to build momentum.
Too many songs leave a pleasant impression rather than a lasting one.
Genre: Indie Pop
Country: Japan
Final Verdict: 66% (Good Album)
Yearly Ranking: 117th / 505
Highlight: Narenohate
Made me think of:
Advantage Lucy
betcover!!
Belle and Sebastian
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