Miu Vale

Miu Vale turns missed trains, tiny superstitions and beautifully timed bad decisions into pop songs that smile before they bruise. Born in Yokohama and raised between Bristol and London, the Japanese/British songwriter grew up with dance radio through the wall and the private rhythm of train journeys in her head.

Before signing to Afterglow, Miu worked at a fragrance counter and built demos from keyboard fragments, voice notes and sharply edited drums. That history still shapes the music: memories arrive as top notes and dry-downs; feelings move with two-step swing; huge choruses are delivered in a close, composed mezzo rather than a shout.

Her debut EP Lucky Blue follows one improbably perfect night and the clear decision made inside it. Miu is superstitious about the signs and unsentimental about what they mean. A blue taxi can feel prophetic. Leaving can still be the right answer.