Mecha Maiko - Mad But Soft

(NewRetroWave 2018)

An album that is not really synthwave on the most synthwave-y of synthwave labels? Now I've heard everything. Just please don't take that as sarcasm. It's a good thing, for the label and also the scene, both of which have grown too risk-averse in recent times.



Hayley Stewart, aka Mecha Maiko, has a strong synthwave pedigree. She was in Dead Astronauts since 2012, then left to go solo. But again, Mad But Soft is not quite synthwave. Rather it is synthpop with some synthwave elements, like 80s toms. Like LGHTNNG, Mecha Maiko could easily cross over to fans of modern synthpop, maybe drawing some of them in to our favorite genre at the same time.  

What I like best about Mad But Soft are Stewart's vocals, which remind me of early '90s dreampop. The compositions are also very strong, and have a complexity to them that is often lacking in synthwave. The mixes are also nice and dynamic, with plenty of size and space and none of the smush that ruins so many other albums in this last bastion of the loudness wars (including, I'll note, most releases on NRW).

The only real weakness here is that, while undeniably sophisticated, Mad But Soft feels more brainy and cool than heartfelt or emotional. It is meticulous, almost to a fault, when a little rawness might be warranted. I still love it, though.

Score: 9.5