Rina Coltran

Rina Sawayama blesses us with her latest genre bending record SAWAYAMA. This album fuses heavy rock, house, pop, industrial electronic and 90s electro-dance. Dynasty is the opening track, a cinematic piece that starts quietly but erupts into a heavy rock anthem. This aggressive rock motif is carried further on STFU!, a jarring, hyper-volatile track where the instability of the verse/chorus genres coupled with the unusual harmony make for an interesting listen. Things take a stylistic turn on the album’s hit single Comme des Garcons (Like the Boys) which opens with the mix engineer asking ‘can I just record you doing that?’ This song is a true pleasure to listen to, featuring a mixture of funk, house, pop, disco, all held together by a tight modern production. The chorus’ lyrics ‘Comme des garcons…

The figure of Ferdinand Ries (1784–1838) enjoys a peripheral familiarity among music-lovers as the friend and amanuensis of Beethoven. A bond had formed when Ries’s father Franz taught Beethoven in Bonn. While Beethoven doubtless cast his eye over his friend and student’s pieces from time to time, he sent Ries to his own teacher Johann Albrechtsberger for lessons in composition.

Rina Sawayama is a singer, songwriter and model, who was born in Japan, and is based in London. In 2016, she was included in The Fader's 13 Artists You Need To Know About In 2017, and Noisey's 25 Under 25 list for International Women's Day. On Wednesday, 22 March, Sawayama's single "Cyber Stockholm Syndrome" premiered on The Fader. Rina Sawayama was born in Japan. She lives in London, England and studied at Cambridge University.