Japanese Breakfast, Orlando in Love Review

by Rudy Palma

Michelle Zauner returns after a four-year hiatus with Japanese Breakfast’s latest single, “Orlando in Love,” a captivating prelude to the upcoming album For Melancholy Brunettes (& Sad Women). The song is a hauntingly beautiful exploration of vulnerability, where Zauner’s vocals take center stage, imbuing the poetic depth of the narrative with emotional resonance.

The track opens with an acoustic guitar strumming, providing the time feel and harmonic framework. But it’s Zauner’s voice that immediately draws the listener in, with her delicate, wistful tone. Her delivery is intimate, almost conversational at first, as though she’s sharing a secret wrapped in melancholy. The subtle imperfections in her phrasing, the slight quiver on held notes, and her breathy tone convey a palpable sense of longing. There’s an understated power in the way Zauner’s vocals hover between fragility and confidence, adding emotional complexity to lines like, “Orlando in love / Writes 69 cantos / For melancholy brunettes and sad women.”

As the arrangement builds, Zauner’s vocal presence remains unshakably central. Her use of dynamics is particularly striking; she transitions seamlessly from soft, confessional murmurs to soaring, impassioned calls. In the second verse, when she sings, “The breeze carries salt / And sipping milky broth,” her voice paints a sensory-rich portrait, effortlessly blending narrative and atmosphere. The warm reverb enhances the ethereal quality of her voice without dulling its raw emotion.

The layered harmonies in the outro amplify the track’s vocal experience. When Zauner repeatedly sings Orlando’s name with added vocal harmonies, it feels like an invocation, as though she’s reaching across time and space to grasp something just out of reach. This repetition, almost like a choral lament, showcases her ability to evoke intimacy and universality in a single refrain.

While the arrangement—featuring, strumming guitars, understated strings, and drum and cymbal touches—serves as a beautiful backdrop, it’s Zauner’s nuanced vocal storytelling that commands attention. Her voice and diction carry the narrative weight of Orlando’s unraveling, transforming literary allusions into something deeply personal and resonant. There’s a motherly warmth in her tone when she sings, “Singing his name with all the sweetness of a mother,” but it’s immediately contrasted with a darker undercurrent as she concludes, “Leaving him breathless and then drowned.”

Ultimately, “Orlando in Love” foreshadows Zauner’s evolution as a vocalist and storyteller. She demonstrates an acute awareness of how tone, breath, and phrasing can shape a song’s emotional arc. With its poetic lyrics and Zauner’s vocal delivery, this single is a reflection on desire and longing. As anticipation builds for For Melancholy Brunettes (& Sad Women), this track leaves no doubt that Zauner’s voice—both literal and artistic—remains one of the most distinctive in indie music today.