The Singles Jukebox

We’ll be getting to the new BiSH soon, btw…

[Video]
[6.83]

Micha Cavaseno: *before playing the song* Oh lovely, Aina the End away from the excessive stressers of the WACK family. I wonder what her and Mondo Grosso are going to come up with together. Like I know it’ll be lush and housey, but is it going to maybe actually result in a pleasant listening experience? Something that isn’t going to make my skin crawl? Ha-ha-ha. Well, we’ll see! *after playing the song* ………. I hate her.
[7]

Ryo Miyauchi: For some reason, Aina the End has been a minor favorite for electronic producers. Her husky voice likes to crack without notice, and the amateurism behind it seems more fit for punk-ish jams of her home idol group BiSH than the more polished R&B textures of Mondo Grosso. That said, the roughness of its edges sets “False Sympathy” apart. Had a more trained singer tackled this ’00s-nostalgic J-pop, a labored quality that usually weighs down Avex Trax singles would be more evident.
[6]

Alfred Soto: The backing track could have served Katy B well in 2010, and Aina the End’s staccato approach to the material creates a sense that he’s performing his detachment.
[7]

Will Adams: “False Sympathy” begins with lounge-house that iiO would have pulled off better before moving into a chorus that stalls out with its repeated note hook. It’s overall a disappointment compared to the buoyant “Labyrinth,” but Mondo Grosso’s sparkly touches are still easy enough to get lost in.
[6]

Katherine St Asaph: Remember the olde days of record reviewing, where any pop album could be glibly dismissed as “shopping-mall dance music?” Did Amazon kill that too? Because I haven’t heard a track in some time that so accurately captures the sensory overload, the over-packedness with people and polyester, of a weekend H&M.
[5]

Thomas Inskeep: More gorgeous deep house from Mondo Grosso, mixing in a touch of Timbaland ca. ’98 on the verses (which remind me of some of his most spatial work for Aaliyah). Aina the End, out of her comfort zone, sounds perfect against Mondo Grosso’s textures. Everything about this rings true.
[10]