Paradise Island

“Paradise Island” gives Kengo Kurozumi a bright resort setting, but the song is too finely shaded to be simple escapism. Synthesizers and a buoyant rhythm create the heat; his measured vocal keeps a trace of distance inside it.

The tropical color on the sleeve is matched by an arrangement full of small studio details. Coupled with “Shigosen,” this is polished early-eighties pop with both sunlight and a cool shadow.