Kyoto (Phoebe Bridgers song)

"Kyoto" is a song by American singer-songwriter Phoebe Bridgers. It was released on April 9, 2020 as the second single from her second studio album, Punisher (2020).

"Kyoto"
Single by Phoebe Bridgers
from the album Punisher
ReleasedApril 9, 2020 (2020-04-09)
StudioSound City (Los Angeles, California)[1]
GenreIndie rock
Length3:04
LabelDead Oceans
Songwriter(s)Phoebe Bridgers
Producer(s)
Phoebe Bridgers singles chronology
"Garden Song"
(2020)		 "Kyoto"
(2020)		 "I See You"
(2020)

Background

Bridgers wrote the song about her complicated, evolving relationship with her father. Her parents divorced when she was 20, leaving Bridgers angry.[1] The song is named for the city in Japan; Bridgers wrote the song on her first trip to the country in February 2019.[2] A lyric observing that Japan "still" has pay phones – the sentiment being that they are long outdated – was entirely fictional, Bridgers said.[3] In a press statement, Bridgers expounded upon the song's meaning:

This song is about impostor syndrome. About being in Japan for the first time, somewhere I’ve always wanted to go, and playing my music to people who want to hear it, feeling like I’m living someone else's life. I dissociate when bad things happen to me, but also when good things happen. It can feel like I’m performing what I think I’m supposed to be like.[4]

Producer Tony Berg suggested she speed up the song's tempo, creating a brighter, more upbeat tone. Bridgers agreed, growing "sick" of recording slower ballads.[4] "Kyoto" is instrumentally dense, incorporating twelve-string guitar, synthesizers, Autoharp, and mellotron.[3] Bright Eyes' Nathaniel Walcott also contributes horns,[4] while Jenny Lee Lindberg of Warpaint adds vocals.[5]

Music video and promotion

The song's music video was initially slated to have been filmed in Kyoto proper. Bridgers planned the shoot to take place during a trip to Japan supporting the National in March 2020,[2] though these dates were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, the clip was recorded in front of a green screen in Los Angeles.[4] It pictures Bridgers in a skeleton costume and superimposed over stock footage of Kyoto, including images of an arcade and at the Fushimi Inari-taisha shrine. She flies over the city and an ocean at points in the clip. The video includes appearances by Emily Bannon, Marshall Vore and Harrison Whitford—members of Bridgers' touring band. At one point in the video, the three are saved from Godzilla by Bridgers, who shoots lasers from her eyes.[2] The video was directed and edited by Nina Ljeti.[5]

In promotion of the single, Bridgers played the song on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, though remotely from a bathtub in her home due to the aforementioned COVID pandemic. In the performance, Bridgers performs on a Suzuki QChord and sings into a toy microphone.[6]

Charts
Chart (2020) Peak
position
US Adult Alternative Songs (Billboard)[7] 15
US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)[8] 36

References
  1. Petrusich, Amanda (May 17, 2020). "Phoebe Bridgers's Frank, Anxious Music". The New Yorker. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  2. Martoccio, Angie (April 9, 2020). "Phoebe Bridgers Announces New Album, Drops 'Kyoto'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  3. Martoccio, Angie (May 27, 2020). "Laughter, Tears, and Harmony: How Phoebe Bridgers Made 'Punisher'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  4. Strauss, Matthew (April 9, 2020). "Phoebe Bridgers Announces New Album Punisher, Shares New Song "Kyoto": Listen". Pitchfork. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  5. Rettig, James (April 9, 2020). "Phoebe Bridgers – "Kyoto"". Stereogum. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  6. Blistein, Jon (April 10, 2020). "Phoebe Bridgers Brings New Song 'Kyoto' to Her Bathroom on 'Kimmel'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  7. "Phoebe Bridgers Chart History (Adult Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
  8. "Phoebe Bridgers Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
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