Mei Semones – Kabutomushi

Today, Mei Semones — the 23-year-old Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter and guitarist— releases her Bayonet Records debut EP, Kabutomushi, and to celebrate the release, Semones shares a new video for the title track.

“Kabutomushi,” which translates to “rhinoceros beetle” in English, is named after the horned insect that she would spot and catch in the park when visiting her grandmother in Japan growing up. The title track is a reminiscent ode to those childhood trips – a series of nostalgic vignettes that evolve into a bittersweet apology to her late grandmother. Keeping things stripped-down with the help of electronic subtleties and plucked strings, Mei’s voice intertwined with her guitar comes off as a poignant lullaby of treasured memories long-gone, but not forgotten.

About the song and video, Semones explains: “‘Kabutomushi’ is a song dedicated to my late grandma. The lyrics are centered around memories of visiting her in Japan when I was little. It means a lot to me that we were able to shoot this video in Tokyo, and the director, Takuto Shimpo, did an amazing job capturing visually what the song means to me. I am so grateful to have worked with him and his team — it was a really long day, but everyone was so patient and dedicated to the process and I think it really shows in the video.”

MEI SEMONES TOUR DATES

Mon. Apr. 15 – Brooklyn, NY @ Baby’s All Right (EP Release Show)

Thu. July 25 – Portsmouth, NH @ The Press Room %

Fri. July 26 – Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall %

Sat. July 27 – Brattleboro, VT @ The Stone Church %

Sun. July 28 – Troy, NY @ No Fun %

Tue. July 30 – Toronto, ON @ Velvet Underground %

Fru. Aug. 2 – St. Louis, MO @ Off Broadway %

Tue. Aug. 6 – Bloomington, IN @ The Bishop %

Wed. Aug. 7 – Columbus, OH @ Ace of Cups %

Thu. Aug. 8 – Cleveland, OH @ Mahall’s %

% w/ Katy Kirby

#mei_semones