Sakura Flower – Chris Selahoo (reviewed by Dave Franklin)

I guess it is fair to say that in the musical world this is the equivalent of fan fiction, a celebration and missive on the part of the artist to pay tribute to…well, what I can only assume is some sort of adult movie star. It’s sweet in its own tentative approach, lo-fi and alt-folky in that open mic. sort of way, the sound of a musician still finding their way perhaps but full marks for effort.

Sakura Flower, a cherry blossom representing fragility and beauty in Japanese culture, runs on a picked acoustic structure and accompanied only by vocals it retains a eloquent naivety, a charm and innocence which is often lost when songs are taken into the studio and layered up into something bigger and more polished. You can’t help but admire anyone who is open and honest enough to sing a song about someone that you know you can’t be with, that level of vulnerability is a brave step for anyone to make. I just feel that Chris needs to set his sights a bit more realistically and maybe at someone who understands how buttons work.