New Decade

New Decade
Studio album by
Phew
Released22 October 2021 (2021-10-22)
Recorded2020–2021
StudioStudio P
GenreElectronic
Length34:10
LabelMute
Phew chronology
Voice Hardcore
(2017)		 New Decade
(2021)

New Decade is a studio album by Japanese musician Hiromi Moritani under the pseudonym Phew. It was released on 22 October 2021 through Mute Records. It received generally favorable reviews from critics.

Background

Hiromi Moritani, better known as Phew, is a Japanese musician from Osaka. She started her career in the 1970s. She was a member of the band Aunt Sally.

New Decade is her first release on Mute Records since Our Likeness (1992). She recorded the album in her home studio in Kawasaki, Kanagawa, during the COVID-19 pandemic. The album consists of six tracks. As for the album's title, she stated, "Personally speaking, I've stopped being able to see a future that extends from the present."

Music videos were released for "Into the Stream" and "Days Nights". The album was released on 22 October 2021 through Mute Records.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic77/100
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusicStarStarStarStar
Beats Per Minute79%
PopMatters7/10

According to the review aggregator Metacritic, New Decade received "generally favorable reviews" based on a weighted average score of 77 out of 100 from 4 critic scores.

Heather Phares of AllMusic stated, "With vocals that range from whispers to wails and almost tangible electronics, noise, and guitar, the album's pieces frequently do sound unshackled from the temporal." Miranda Remington of Beats Per Minute wrote, "New Decade comes across as bleak, but it's deliberately restrained; its meditations cut through the real sentiments of our confusing years with the sincerity of a haiku." She added, "Especially amidst isolation and the uncertainties of modernity, we are reminded of the power of self-expression."

Accolades

Year-end lists for New Decade
Publication List Rank Ref.
AllMusic Favorite Electronic Albums
—
The Wire Releases of the Year (2021 Rewind)
10

Track listing

All tracks are written by Phew.

New Decade track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Snow and Pollen"5:07
2."Days Nights"4:13
3."Into the Stream"7:14
4."Feedback Tuning"6:03
5."Flashforward"4:54
6."Doing Nothing"6:26
Total length:34:10

Personnel

Credits adapted from liner notes.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Phew (2021). New Decade (CD liner notes). Mute Records.
  2. 1 2 "Favorite Electronic Albums | AllMusic 2021 in Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 "New Decade by Phew". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 21 May 2022. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
  4. ↑ Phares, Heather. "Phew". AllMusic. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Remington, Miranda (26 October 2021). "Album Review: Phew – New Decade". Beats Per Minute. Archived from the original on 22 March 2023. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
  6. 1 2 Margasak, Peter (26 October 2021). "A Guide to the Music of Musical Experimentalist Phew". Bandcamp Daily. Archived from the original on 28 May 2022. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
  7. 1 2 3 Eede, Christian (15 July 2021). "Phew Returns To Mute For New Album, 'New Decade'". The Quietus. Archived from the original on 11 August 2025. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
  8. ↑ Mute (14 July 2021). "Phew - Into the Stream (Official Video)". YouTube. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
  9. ↑ Mute (15 September 2021). "Phew - Days Nights (Official Video)". YouTube. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
  10. ↑ Minsker, Evan (14 July 2021). "Phew Announces New Decade Album, Shares Song: Listen". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 13 April 2022. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
  11. 1 2 Phares, Heather. "Phew: New Decade". AllMusic. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
  12. ↑ Miller, Bruce (1 November 2021). "Experimentalist Phew Pushes Forward by Crawling Deep Inside on 'New Decade'". PopMatters. Archived from the original on 28 May 2022. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
  13. ↑ "Releases of the Year". The Wire. No. 455. January 2022. pp. 30–35.
  14. ↑ "New Decade | Phew". Bandcamp. Archived from the original on 23 September 2025. Retrieved 5 September 2026.