The pool of new Japanese shoegaze talent was apparently so deep in 2018 that some managed to slip through the cracks. That’s the case with Kanazawa’s Noah, who released a 3-track demo, titled “1st demo”, on Bandcamp in October. As it’s extremely obviously a demo, it’s not the most polished release, but it’s still clean enough to get a good scouting report on Noah. “Hakuchuumu” is a big slow billowy shoegaze track that reminds me a lot of softsurf. “Kaitei Kara” has a similar vibe to it with a kicked up tempo, and the balance of the male-female twin vocals is perfect. “Twilight” feels a bit more like a Japanese shoegaze song with the very up-front lead fluttering over a poppier, more subdued backdrop, but Noah nails the vocal harmonies again here. For a demo, this is really impressive stuff, and this band should be on any Japanese shoegaze fan’s radar.

You can grab Noah’s demo for whatever you’d like to pay over at Bandcamp.