Meiko - The Bright Side (Japan Edition) (2012)

The Bright Side, Meiko's second solo release, is an intimate, fearless song-cycle about risk, regret, tenderness and love. Her indelible melodies and sharp lyrical viewpoint give The Bright Side a powerful, artistic punch. It features eleven songs that blend sumptuous folk-pop with thumping electronic beats that Meiko helped create with producers Jimmy Messer, Greg Collins and Belgian electro-pop wiz Styrofoam, known for his remixes of songs by The Postal Service and The Submarines. "The new songs were all born on the guitar, but I wanted to make this record a little more lively," she says. "We played around with beats and came up with something that people could move to. There is more color, layers and texture this time around - acoustic guitars, piano, strings, horns and background harmonies."