By j. poet | Published January 2026
Ito is a songwriter, pianist and composer based in Switzerland who usually tours and performs with a band. She has released six albums with various configurations of musicians. Lonely Island is her solo debut and contains one new song, with 10 pared-down, slightly reinvented tracks from her albums Ysla and
Stardust Crystals.
The album was cut live in the studio, with Ito playing the piano and singing alone. For the first time, she allowed herself to add improvised solos to the arrangements. “Love Is Here To Stay” is an original, not the Gershwin standard. On Ysla, the band, and tolling bass notes from Ito’s piano, deepened the dark feeling of the lyrics.
On Lonely Island, Ito repeats a melodic hook on the piano that lifts up the forlorn lyrics and her wordless improvisations mirror her hopes for a bit of sunlight, to help her let go of loss and fear. “Is It You” sounds even sadder, in this pared-down take, than it does on Ysla. Her scatted interludes make her voice sound as if it’s about to break into tears. “Stardust Crystals” replaces the long instrumental breaks of the backing band on the original arrangement, with Ito’s wordless improvisations. The repeating melodic hook of her piano pulls you in, with complex melodies that drift around the scale, changing keys and tempos.
The songs all describe intimate relationships, but Ito’s approach is emotionally complex, with delicate shades of sentiment and melodies that blend jazz, pop and hints of classical music.
