japan
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If it’s comfort week for me, it’s more music comfort for y’all. And it doesn’t get any more comfortable than Yasuko Agawa’s (aka Miss A) Dancing Lovers’ Nite. On the surface, far from being the jazzy/soulful Japanese pop music she’s much more known for, somewhere, lay something hidden: a fascinating, heart-pumping stab at taking her…
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I’ve gotta admit. Few albums stump me to describe. Of the few that do, AQ! Ishii’s and Hiroko Taniyama’s 楠劇場 オリジナル・アルバム (Kusunoki Gekijou) must be up there in my personal canon. Much like Mariah’s うたかたの日々/ Utakata No Hibi, Aragon’s self-titled debut, and Godley & Creme’s Consequences, to name a few close brethren, so too does…
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In light of everything that is currently happening at the time of this writing, I’d hate to add any dark energy into the world. For times like these, perhaps it’s a good occasion to revisit another work of the trailblazing Hiroki Okano. On ENN, (roughly translating to “circle”), we get to appreciate some of the…
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It goes without saying that this is the silly season for me. While I would like to drop reams upon reams of knowledge on the ins and outs of Ms. Mio Takaki and her New-Tant, unfortunately, I have less time than normal to do so but I’ll do my best. As for those who appreciate…
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More fierce humans to support: Monday Michiru Akiyoshi-Mariano. Where does one start with the wildfly prolific career of Monday? How about the beginning with Mangetsu. Unlike little released in Japan at that time, Mangetsu was the sprawling debut of a young Japanese-American who couldn’t quite suss out any style she wanted to gravitate to (nor…
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Yumiko Morioka’s work under the “Synagetic Voice Orchestra” and her Mios wouldn’t have appeared to me if it wasn’t by happenstance and luck. You see, for a moment in time, Spencer Doran had sent me a message about some wonderful work by one Alessandro Ravi or Raul Lovisoni (turned out it was Mr. Ravi) that…
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Just something for the lovers out there: Cindy’s exceptional J-Soul heavy, Angel Touch. Perfectly distilling that gorgeous in between period of the early ‘90s r&b scene, it can’t help but be a tad dated but also more than a tad timeless and (surprisingly) au courant. For those who need a bit of comfort and joy,…
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More magic from the Salt Road. Hovering in between the space of other Awa Muse alumni comes another one from the East, from Osaka to be precise, Kosei Yamamoto’s East Ward. Hard to pinpoint, East Ward, focuses on a fourth world-esque blend of Japanese ambient New Age and jazz. And much like the works of…
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Get your wet boots, we’re going off the salt road with the brilliant Japanese kalimba master and kalimba maker, Bun. Koh-Tao’s Tayu-Tayu is a furthering of a sound you were introduced to in Awa Muse’s wonderful fourth world compilation series, Shio-No-Michi. Here we get a chance to listen to what originally was a four piece…
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Editor’s note: Ayuo was kind enough to email some corrections to my review. I’ve included them inline for readers to take in. It’s never easy to be the first in anything. Kazue Sawai’s whole career is a living testament to this with multiple convictions rendering their verdict on her choices. In 1987, she chose to…
ambient art pop art rock balearic brazilian electro-acoustic england environmental music experimental folk-rock fourth world Funk fusion japan jazz minimalist neo-folk neoclassical new age walearic