The always dependable netlabel La bél, based in Italy, has released a beautiful album of lightly warped instrumental chamber pop music from Ykymr. Titled *Spring Fields Become a Hummingbird*, it’s a collection of seven tracks that range from melty piano and synth hymns, complete with layers of bird song (“Sorry”), to gently rhythmic post-rock (“Sleepy”). Two highlights are on the quieter side. “Snow in the Southerly” is one of those piano/bird pieces, adding a bit of electric guitar midway through. “Spring Birds” fuzzes out the piano in a static-tinged manner that sounds like an ancient archive.org 78 recording of some proto-minimalist’s private sketches.
Album originally posted for free download at [labelnetlabel.bandcamp.com](https://labelnetlabel.bandcamp.com/album/spring-fields-become-a-hummingbird). More from Ykymr, based in Tokyo, Japan, at [ykymr.bandcamp.com](https://ykymr.bandcamp.com/) and [ykymr.tumblr.com](http://ykymr.tumblr.com/).