READ THIS: MICHELLE ZAUNER

With a number of projects up to five years in the making all coming to fruition, this would appear to be the year of Japanese Breakfast (AKA Michelle Zauner). Not only is there a new LP and tour(s), but the seeds of an unforgettable New Yorker essay have given life to her debut book Crying In H-Mart, out tomorrow on Penguin/Random House.

The memoir uses family and grief as a springboard to the power of inner strength to save us. Her singular voice is unwavering, and her gift for seizing and transforming the most mundane of details stuns throughout. An excerpt is kindly provided here on the order page. With a windfall of quality memoirs the last few years from Patti Smith, Kim Gordon, Carrie Brownstein, and Viv Albertine, Crying In H-Mart stands comfortably among them.

In other Zauner-related news, the new Japanese Breakfast single “Posing In Bondage” is brought to life in a stunning video directed, of course, by Zauner, and featuring Harmony Tividad from Girlpool.

Not just one, but two tours are in the works. Wednesday sees the kickoff of her virtual book tour, featuring special guest speakers, and supporting independent book stores across the country. Tickets/details available here.

Celebrating the forthcoming LP Jubilee, releasing 6/4 on Dead Oceans, a fall Japanese Breakfast tour went on sale Friday, with Philly and LA dates already sold out and new shows added. Strike quick if you have designs on any of these dates, and venture to the Japanese Breakfast merch store if you want to work ahead. Also worth keeping an eye out for is an upcoming appearance on the 4/21 episode of Chelsea Ursin’s Dear Young Rocker podcast.