Japanese Breakfast

Behind the name Japanese Breakfast is Michelle Zauner, an American‑Korean musician and writer born in Seoul and raised in Eugene, Oregon, who was initially active in the Philadelphia‑based indie rock band Little Big League. The Japanese Breakfast project emerged in the mid‑2010s as a more intimate songwriting outlet, sitting between indie pop, dream pop and touches of shoegaze, with a notable use of synthesizers and atmospheric textures. Early cassette releases and online projects led to a debut album, Psychopomp (2016), in which Japanese Breakfast addresses grief and family head‑on. That was followed by Soft Sounds from Another Planet (2017), which broadened the sonic palette toward a more cosmic, cinematic pop, and Jubilee (2021), featuring brighter arrangements while remaining grounded in introspective songwriting. Japanese Breakfast also composed the soundtrack for the video game Sable (2021), confirming a cinematic approach to music. On stage the project performs as a band centered on Zauner, with shows rooted in North American and international indie circuits, developing an aesthetic that mixes highly melodic songs with more experimental atmospheres.