Perfume has spent much of its long career imagining the future, either through its catalog of innovative electro-pop music or live performances supported by state-of-the-art visual technology. The trio ¡ª Ayaka ¡°A-chan¡± Nishiwaki, Ayano ¡°Nocchi¡± Omoto and Yuka ¡°Kashiyuka¡± Kashino ¡ª embraced its forward-thinking reputation with album ¡°Future Pop¡± in 2018. But from the sound of Perfume¡¯s seventh full-length album, ¡°Plasma,¡± the trio seems more interested in going with the flow than chasing something new.

¡°When I listen to ¡®Future Pop,¡¯ I feel like I have to dance,¡± Nocchi tells The Japan Times over video chat. ¡°There are a lot of songs from there with impact, like they almost force you to get excited. But this time, there are a lot of songs (on ¡®Plasma¡¯) where you can just rock side to side. It¡¯s mellow and better for day-to-day listening.¡±

For ¡°Plasma,¡± Perfume producer Yasutaka Nakata softens much of the group¡¯s buzzing electronic textures to craft a collection of breezy synth-disco. The track ¡°Drive¡¯n the Rain,¡± for example, borders on nostalgic with its production that the group likens to ¡°city pop,¡± a genre of music that came about during Japan¡¯s bubble era and is influenced by funk, disco and dance pop. The easy-going music and rhythms of the album complement a slower pace of life but also the ¡°new normal¡± brought on by the pandemic.