Don’t Want To Let You Down by tokyo art museum

“Don’t Want To Let You Down” by tokyo art museum is a dreamy retro-pop single. It features driving bass and guitars with heavy chorus and reverb to give it that dreamy feel. The layering of the guitar parts is extremely well-executed and interesting, as is the vocal stacking. The style is similar to U2, The 1975, Harry Styles’ Harry’s House (which is the album with “Music for a Sushi Restaurant” and “As It Was”), and “Waste a Moment” by Kings of Leon. The pulsating synths, synth pads, and drums sounds give the song irresistible groove and the 70s-80s aesthetic. The lyrics in the verse have wonderful imagery that precisely paints a picture: “We started fighting with fire only fueled by selfish desire. Now we watch as the future burns; and nothing left but the ashes of what once was.” This is complimented by imagery using the opposite element, water, in the proceeding bridge: “We throw our worry into the sea.” Playing off of the water theme from that line, the bridge has a change in soundscape initiated by the addition of a saxophone. This soundscape is a little bit muddled, as if we are listening underwater. The bridge also makes us feel like we are floating with the tide because of the slower tempo. The bridge is the dreamiest sounding part of the song. Coming out of the bridge, we get a stripped down version of the chorus, transitioning back to the main soundscape of the song. Here, we can focus more on the catchy backup gang vocals that have been present throughout the song. To finish, the song washes away on a lead guitar solo fading out. “Don’t Want To Let You Down” is both energetic and slightly etherial, and it is a great mix of modern production and inspiration from the past.