Buscar:tokyo sub

2026 Repress

We feel like Frank & Tony and Smallville have been on the same musical wave-length since forever. Our musical paths have crossed back and forth over the years and we have always shared a lot of the same values- steadily putting out quality music, that stands the test of time - growing consistently - never stop following our very own way - always not-following trends forever..
Frank & Tony is the collaborative guise of Scissor & Thread co-founders Francis Harris and Anthony Collins aka Grant. Both have long been staples of the underground with material under their own names and numerous other guises shaping the musical landscape of House Techno and beyond since the turn of the millennium. Both lived together in New York and as Frank & Tony the pair have delivered multiple albums and many EP’s on their own label, Tokyo’s Mule Musiq and Pacific Rhythm- now they are warmly welcomed onto the Smallville Records roster with their latest collection of works.
‘Ways Of Mine’ leads on the A-Side and showcases the pairs signature deep hypnotic house style via soft billowing pads cascading metallic chimes psychedelic spoken word and dreamy dubbed out keys floating atop a robust bouncy rhythm
section.To open the flip-side title-track ‘After All’ lays down a subtly blooming chord sequence shuffled drums and bumpy bass stabs at its core all subtly nuanced while the latter half introduces more dynamic rhythmic elements and intertwined melodic touches. ‘Dimension’ then concludes the release diving deeper with saturated ethereal pads and bubbling resonant arpeggio lines alongside heavily swung crisp drums jazzy keys and delayed vocal chants.
After All comes with a full cover artwork by Stefan Marx.

All tracks written & produced by Francis Harris & Anthony Collins
Mastering and Vinyl cut by Helmut Erler at Lathesville

180g Heavy double vinyl LP with liner notes by Tyran Grillo. Limited Japanese Obi for the first pressing. Original artwork by Russell Mills and photography by Jean-Baptiste Mondino.

The third Time Capsule is a body of dub reinterpretations by celebrated producer Bill Laswell of Ethiopian singer Gigi. Curated by Tokyo record collector, music researcher and seasoned reissue supervisor Ken Hidaka, it is the first time Illuminated Audio is pressed to vinyl after its CD release in 2003.

Ejigayehu Shibabaw was born in 1974 in Chagni, northwestern Ethiopia and by pursuing a career as a singer, went against her father’s strict, traditional gender roles. As Gigi, she embraced the same musical freedom she had strived for in her personal life, incorporating the Ethiopian church, funk, hip-hop, West and South African music into her work. She first settled in Nairobi, then Addis Ababa, where she quickly established herself as one of the city’s leading singers. A move to San Francisco in 1998 led to a long and fruitful creative partnership with bassist and producer Bill Laswell.

Around the same time, Chris Blackwell had stepped away from Island Records to start the art house film company and label Palm Pictures. He took an interest in Gigi and together with Laswell, pulled together an all-star cast of musicians for her self-titled US debut album, including Herbie Hancock, Pharoah Sanders and Wayne Shorter. It won international critical acclaim, not just for its musicianship but for making Gigi a “defining voice for the Ethiopian expatriate community”, as journalist Tyran Grillo praises in his Time Capsule liner notes. From the nation-defining 1896 victory over Italian invaders to the quiet revolutionaries who wear simple shemma garments, Grillo believes the themes in Gigi make it “a shower of sunlight on her homeland for those ignorant of its struggles.”

After its success, Blackwell encouraged them to go back into the studio to rethink the album and Illuminated Audio was born. “Anyone can make a voice sound worldly”, Grillo remarks, “but rare are those who can make one sound inner-worldly.” Gigi was clear with Laswell to give her vocals a minor role “because it’s already been done.” Instead her Amharic verse is fleeting, exhaling through the textures like ghostly fragments; soaring yet muted. Yet the album is still titled under her name, an assertion by Laswell of her central role in the album’s creation. Not only was it a fully endorsed project by Gigi, but she would be present throughout its development, giving feedback on half-finished ideas as Laswell played them back in the studio. “It works perfectly”, she reflected after the album’s release. “We wanted to capture the whole spirit of each track, and Bill’s remixes create a different music language that really puts you in a pleasant place”.

This new vocabulary takes its lead from a technical approach that Laswell had been perfecting during a furtive creative period at the turn of the millennium. Much like his ambient interpretations of Miles Davis (Panthalassa, 1998), Bob Marley (Dreams of Freedom, 1997), and Carlos Santana (Divine Light, 2001), Laswell approached Illuminated Audio by returning to the original multitrack masters. Gigi wasn’t just reworked, but recomposed into an expansive lattice of instruments, submerged in a watery ambience of dub and trance undercurrents.

Sonically, this new language that Gigi refers to, is manifested by the original album’s more understated parts being pushed to the fore. Explaining his contrasting methods, Laswell saw Gigi as being “put together in a way that fits”. Contrastingly, in Illuminated Audio, “a lot of things that I featured in the remix weren’t as audible in the original.” Instrumentation laying near-dormant, deep in the mix, are brought to the fore: the acid rock guitar and Wayne Shorter’s saxophone on ‘Tew Ante Sew’, Graham Haynes’ flugelhorn on ‘Nafekeñ’, Laswell’s bass on ‘Kahn’, the melodica in Mengedegna or the floating synths and talking drums in ‘Gud Fella’.

Brought to his attention by mentor DJ Nori, Hidaka describes Illuminated Audio as a “masterful sonic exploration into ethereal ambience and dub” and made sure this reissue also contained a full remaster to give its “deep musicality” much better dynamics and density in the overall sound. Hidaka admits that Laswell's music “is sometimes so out-there, it is often misunderstood” and, indeed, to dub album non-believers this might seem like a prolific producer imposing himself on another artist’s work; eternally developing rearrangements that never quite get to its destination. But that’s missing its true power and triumph. This is more than the reissue of a remix, but “a wholly unique musical entity”, as Hidaka describes. Illuminated Audio refers to the illuminated manuscripts that comprise the major part of Ethiopian art and its new compositions stand in proud solitude as a rare body of reworks that both informs and enhances their originals.

Moonshine Recordings is thrilled to welcome Tokyo-based producer Flatplat to the family for his captivating debut release: Mystery Of The Belly Button EP.
Deep-diving into the realms of hypnotic dub techno and stripped-back minimal dub, this four-track record delivers smoky delay chains, pulsing sub-bass, and meticulous sound design.

DJ DIE SOON is the apocalyptic alter-ego Daisuke Imamura, whose performances of masked malice have been a fixture in the Berlin underground for the past decade. His latest record My Brothel The Wind takes inspiration from Sun Ra at his most grotesque, conjuring a distorted phantasmagoria with an eclectic crew of compatriots like Rully Shabara, Sara Persico, and longtime collaborator Kiki Hitomi. Film director Hiroo Tanaka’s visual contributions in the album art, poster, and music video complete the album’s narrative, telling a story not of villainy but of phantom caprice in a dying world.
My Brothel The Wind shows DJ DIE SOON as an alchemist of distortion, transmuting the club-forward beats of his 2020 debut Kappa Slap and the seething horrorscapes of DIEMAJIN, his 2022 collaboration with Tokyo vocalist MA. Imamura’s obsession with noise stems from his upbringing in Tokyo, where he grew up hearing the deafening roar of trains every day. “The buildings were really tall, so the sounds reflected so much and it was so loud that you couldn’t even have a conversation on the phone. Hearing this noise every minute when living in this flat, it became a normal thing,” he says. While most would content themselves with avoiding loudness, DJ DIE SOON seeks to unpack its visceral potential.
DJ DIE SOON’s subterranean productions form a monstrous gestalt with the eclectic contributions of his network of co-conspirators. “Unfinished” and “Directions” are pulsating chimeras that highlight animalistic vocalizations from Hitomi and Shabara; Italian MC Franco Franco’s verses snake underneath the noisy onslaught. The tectonic textures of “Dandelion Crackers” are courtesy of multi-instrumentalist Laure Boer’s handmade stone synth. Sara Persico’s mangled vocables hang as fleshy reminders of human fragility on “SAQ4IME”; in the Hiroo Tanaka-directed music video, the track’s sonic uncanniness is made cinematic, with an ambient dread that references Hiroshi Teshigahara’s 1964 psychological thriller Woman in the Dunes.
While Sun Ra’s intergalactic Moog reached for the stars, DJ DIE SOON plunges into the depths of hell. “Everybody, Shake Your Body, We Chill At Party” feels like the sonic equivalent of a wax museum burning to the ground, rigid smiles melting into the fire. Rather than a vision of the future, My Brothel The Wind is a laugh-cry of despair in the face of a Hadean present. DJ DIE SOON confronts the world with a new hand-made mask, reborn in the ashes.

DJ Support: Louie Vega, Mousse T, Terry Hunter, Joey Negro, Natasha Diggs, Todd Terry, Fouk, Tedd Patterson, DJ Deep, Moplen, Young Pulse, DJ Meme, Jade Edwards, DJ Disciple, Richard Earnshaw, Nathen Haines, Smokin Jo and Birdee.

A collection of some of the best releases on Big Love’s sister label Soul Love. Chicago’s Emmaculate gives a soulful touch to Haji’s ‘Nitelife’ feat the late Dianne Charlemagne aka D’Empress, Tokyo’s uber-cool couple offer their deeper interpretation of Odyssey’s 80’s classic covered by Belezamusica, the French disco don Art Of Tones creates a sublime version of Tokyo’s DJ Namy & Angela Johnson’s cut whilst Chi-Town legend Maurice Joshua re-works his own track as an ode to the fellow Chicago legend Ron Carroll who features on vocals.

Turn On The Sunlight is the long-running project of Texas-born, Maui-based musician and producer Jesse Peterson.

Originally formed in New York in the late 2000s, Turn On The Sunlight has evolved into a fluid, location-spanning practice rooted in collaboration, intuition and process. Now based on Maui, Peterson’s work draws together a wide network of musicians and environments, with recordings taking shape across Los Angeles, Tokyo, London, San Miguel de Allende and Haʻikū.

Loosely situated within a framework of organic, ambient-leaning jazz, 'Iseo' unfolds as a series of open, exploratory pieces, with electronics sitting subtly beneath acoustic and environmental elements. Built from layered instrumentation including synthesizers, guitar, zither, flutes, voice and field recordings, Peterson moves between grounded, tactile detail and more expansive, immersive states. A sense of warmth and permeability runs throughout: organic percussion, environmental textures and drifting rhythmic elements lend the record a gently saturated humidity, reflecting Peterson’s base in Hawaii, where the presence of nature is felt as much as it is heard.

Underlying the project is a way of working rooted in gathering, listening and tending. Instruments, ensemble sessions, field recordings and everyday environments are approached with attentiveness, shaped through collecting, refining and allowing things to settle. Relationships, landscape and lived experience shape the sound, giving 'Iseo' a tactile, almost hand-made quality.

Rather than fixed arrangements, the album feels as if it has been organically and lovingly assembled through a process of listening and response, each element finding its place within a wider, evolving whole. This approach reaches a natural centre point in the 15-minute piece 'Medianoche En La Calle Aurora', which unfolds patiently, bending through shifting environments as motifs and textures emerge and dissolve with quiet continuity.

Peterson’s role as both instigator and facilitator is central to the project. Bringing together a diverse group of collaborators including Carlos Niño, Mia Doi Todd, Laraaji, Ko Ishikawa, Luis Pérez Ixoneztli and Miles Spilsbury, he creates space for individual voices to emerge within a shared language. The result is a music defined by openness and generosity.

'Iseo' takes its title from Peterson’s son’s middle name, a word that can be understood to mean ‘one-world life’. The piece itself takes the form of a gentle lullaby, its melody loosely shaped around the syllables of his name and sung to Peterson’s son by Luis Pérez Ixoneztli, a close collaborator whose presence across the record reflects a long-standing relationship that extends beyond the music itself.
Sleeve art and design by Michael Willis.

/// First track, Symmetry, debuted on BBC Radio 6 New Music Fix, 10th February: "A beautiful, beautiful album" /// I got my life back. On 17 February 2025, 1024 rays of ultra sound converged at an operation table in Bern, Switzerland, and disconnected a noisy circuit on my brain. 90% of the manifestation ceased – of a disease that I no longer wish to mention by its name. During the same period, I completed my new album: Self Help Manual. I’ve read more current research about the nameless disease than my neurologist, who despite that I didn’t follow his advice on suitable treatment, called me after the successful operation: a brave, brave man. I have composed the music in the same way as in my previous album – Songs for the Nervous System – through layers upon layers of improvisations in dialogue with my synthesizers, most of which are the same age as me. I made the majority of the songs in my studio in the remains of Old Hagalund in Solna. I edited the recordings in my bed during the waking hours of clarity at night. Some songs – NAC, Ketosis, Overkill – were recorded in the basement of my childhood home in Skutskär, in Norduppland, where I’d returned to be nurtured by my retired parents – who during a night when I couldn’t turn over in bed, or pull the blanket over me – made a list of what would happen to my belongings. To my friends who have stood out with me despite my disease, I want to state: you will not inherit me yet. On the new album, the electric bass takes on a leading role. ESG and Liquid Liquid have been important when I reinvented my baselines, limited and liberated by my poor fine motor skills. Plasma is my homage to Summertime Rolls by Jane’s Addiction, that I listened to frequently in my youth. I guess that no one will hear the resemblance. In several songs, the Fender Rhodes plays an important role, a magical instrument that I bought shortly after my diagnosis over a decade ago, and for a long time didn’t dare to touch out of respect for Herbie Hancock and Fela Kuti. A couple of songs draw inspiration from the Horn of Africa – Inner Nile and Delta. At first, subconsciously in the reverb-drenched Inner Nile, then more consciously in Delta. I’m sorry it doesn’t swing the right way, but it was my attempt to return to the cradle of humanity. Longevity is possibly my favourite. The melody is played by an arpeggiator that I controlled by pressing down different keys in an exhilarating sense of freedom. One song in particular, the second track – One – has caused friends to associate freely: one thought it sounded like Patrick Cowley, another like Sly & Robbie meets Kraftwerk, a third like Air – Moonlight Safari. I made one song just before the surgery: opening track Symmetry. It’s the mightiest and most minimal song. I made one song after the surgery: finishing track Self Help Manual. My previous medication pump is heard through the microphone of my Ovation Magnum. It’s the most hopeful song on the album. I took the cover photos with my Hasselblad during walks in Tokyo suburbs of Ōmori and Kamata more than ten years ago. It was something about the faith of the traffic cones that fascinated me – born in the same streamlined form, they had over the years become increasingly individual and lovable. The mixing was finalized by Christoffer Roth in the newly built Studio Dubious in Nacka. Rashad Becker, who in an interview said that he listens as much with his mouth as with his ears, mastered the album at Clunk in Berlin. Right now it feels like anything is possible. My recovery is perhaps a small step for mankind, but a giant leap for me. I hereby leave the music to you. Joakim Forsgren

On 27 March, fabric Originals presents Shō, a five track EP of introspective, transcendent electronics from Japanese techno icon DJ Nobu. Inspired by the Buddhist Brahmavihāras - joy, compassion, loving-kindness and equanimity - Shō unfolds as a meditative, emotional journey rooted in Nobu’s experiences of Tokyo, mindfulness and inner clarity. From kinetic renewal to serene minimalism, the EP channels presence, acceptance and the simple truth that breathing itself is living.

Each track on ‘Shō’ marks a step in an emotional and spiritual journey, channelling the foundational virtues of the Brahmavihāras, which are the four ‘Sublime States’ of Buddhist practice: ‘Muditā’ (joy), ‘Karuṇā’ (compassion), ‘Mettā’ (loving-kindness), and ‘Upekkhā’ (equanimity). Together these principles form a path towards an open, boundless heart, which is mirrored in the EP’s unfolding sonic narrative.

“In recent years I became overly sensitive to my surroundings and society, finding myself strongly affected by every daily occurrence. It was during this time that I discovered meditation. And beyond that lay Buddhism. Through this, my sensibilities became able to express themselves more naturally. I decided to portray my feelings, and the scenery in Tokyo, conveying what I was experiencing in real-time, as music.

The EP title ‘Shō’ denotes views, thoughts, and actions aligned with Buddhist truth, and encapsulates my striving for presence, clarity, and acceptance. It also represents the conscious, mindful understanding that simply breathing is living.” DJ Nobu

Trajectories collide in a wormhole as Tokyo-based Igaxx and Amsterdam-based Gropina converge on a crepuscular four-track 12-inch and digital release for Paesaggi Records. Igaxx drifts through near-beatless, spiralling psychedelia: “The Perception” is a slow-burn ascent, suspended in a state of perpetual anticipation, forever circling a climax that never arrives. “Someday in Time” settles into a steady pulse that glides outward, dissolving into the distance as if lost in quiet contemplation.

On the flip, Gropina reshapes the two pieces through his own sonic lens, like stepping through the looking glass. “The Perception (Version)” brings a supernatural, Kraut-inspired vibe, opening with a deceptive 2:35 intro before unfolding into Mother Sky-esque drums, primitive flutes, and reversed guitars. “Some Day In Time (Version)” is a dubby reinterpretation driven by a ’70s Ace Tone drum machine, a funky bassline, dub-soaked guitars, noir alto saxophone, and subtle details swirling through the mix.

Repress 2026

We’re very happy to announce the vinyl release of kuniyuki’s masterpiece “all these things”.

Originally it’s released on only cd in 2007. it was his 2nd album but it’s substantially his first album because the first album was a col-lection of kuniyuki’s early productions.

The first track “the guitar song” is one of our most favorite song of kuniyuki,it’s like a real good mixture of jazz, fusion, world music and electronic music.

The second track featuring african vocalist and percussionist “omar guaindefall”,we still love amazing henrik schwarz remix.

The third track “you get me” featuring our favorite singer “josee hurlock”,we’ve knew about her from the fantastic album “residue” by hefner in 2000. she is featured to the fourth track “all these things” too. we’re hoping to repress an amazing joe claussell remix.

The fifth track “flying music” featuring our good friend “alex from tokyo” as poetry reading and shuichiro sakaguchi( a popular trumpeter in tokyo) as a trumpeter. this long version was put to single cut release on 12inch.

The sixth track “the session” is a collaboration of song with henrik schwarz. they have met at mule musiq’s party in tokyo and clicked immediately.

The seventh track “touch” sounds very nostalgic african jazz or spanish fusion which is popular these days as balearic music.

The last track “rain of ocean” is a primitive african minimal deep house.this song is put to the single cut from this album(not put to the album) and we almost forgot this song but when we’re compiling the vinyl edition of album, we noticed how this song is beautiful.

Here are the collection of eight timeless and genreless music.

The union of Antwerp synthesist David Edren and Tokyo minimalist Hiroki Takahashi is a fit so natural as to feel preordained. Both traffic in subtle shades of contemplative electronics, marked by patience, space, and poetic restraint. And both have rich histories of curation and collaboration – Edren in the duo Spirit & Form alongside Bent Von Bent, and Takahashi as proprietor of the Kankyō record shop, as well as one fourth of cosmic ambient quartet UNKNOWN ME. Mutual fans of one another’s work, they began sharing stems in the latter half of 2020, which slowly blossomed into a collection of multi-hued compositions inspired by notions of connectivity and impermanence, translated for east and west: Flow | 流れ.

Opener “Dusk Decorum | 黄昏 礼節” maps the mood of what’s to come, elegantly pirouetting and percolating through an expanding vista of looming stars and half-light horizons. Takahashi describes Edren’s arrangements as evoking “a strange feel, something we haven't heard much of before.” The sensation is one of “in-betweenness,” a restless current whispering beneath the beauty, like seasons seen in time-lapse footage: flickering but infinite, transience turned permanent. Takahashi’s signature sculpture garden tones plot spiral patterns over which Edren cascades dazzling pointillist synthesizer coloration. The pieces veer between delicate and dilated, micro and macro, their aperture forever softly in flux.

From the oscillating orchestral lullaby of “Stalactime | 鍾乳石時計” to the sweeping, sparkling dream sequence closer, “Shift Register | シフトレジスタ,” the album achieves the elusive goal of being more than the sum of its parts. This is music of rare air, elevated and amorphous, shimmering just out of reach. Though Edren and Takahashi have yet to cohabitate the same room in person (a fact that should be rectified soon by an astute festival booker), their palettes and poise are perfectly paired, twin fragilities woven into seven radiant and regenerative vibrational states. The cover design of a beatific, beaded leaf rippling on the surface of a hidden pond aptly captures the record’s muted majesty. Takahashi’s quiet pride is justified: “We are very happy with this time-consuming and carefully crafted work.”

Following the reissue of The Pocket of Fever, Ambient Sans presents the second chapter in Masahiro Sugaya’s visionary work for the avant-garde performing arts company Pappa TARAHUMARA.

Founded by Hiroshi Koike in 1982, Pappa TARAHUMARA blended dance, theater, music, and visual art into abstract, immersive stage worlds. Sugaya’s compositions became the sonic counterpart to this radical aesthetic—minimal yet deeply evocative, combining electronics, ambient textures, and delicate melodic gestures into a sound language both intimate and expansive.

Music From Alejo marks his first original stage score for the company: a work where repetition and silence intertwine with shimmering synthesizers and dreamlike motifs, conjuring atmospheres that feel suspended between reality and reverie. More structured than The Pocket of Fever yet equally poetic, the album reveals Sugaya’s gift for translating movement into sound, balancing modern composition with subtle echoes of Japanese tradition.

Reissued for the first time on vinyl, Music From Alejo includes a printed insert featuring an exclusive interview with the artist, alongside photographs from our visit to his home in Japan. Essential listening for anyone drawn to the ambient minimalism of Hiroshi Yoshimura, Midori Takada, or Brian Eno—reimagined here through the lens of Tokyo’s experimental scene of the 1980s.

Following the reissue of The Pocket of Fever, Ambient Sans presents the second chapter in Masahiro Sugaya’s visionary work for the avant-garde performing arts company Pappa TARAHUMARA.

Founded by Hiroshi Koike in 1982, Pappa TARAHUMARA blended dance, theater, music, and visual art into abstract, immersive stage worlds. Sugaya’s compositions became the sonic counterpart to this radical aesthetic—minimal yet deeply evocative, combining electronics, ambient textures, and delicate melodic gestures into a sound language both intimate and expansive.

Music From Alejo marks his first original stage score for the company: a work where repetition and silence intertwine with shimmering synthesizers and dreamlike motifs, conjuring atmospheres that feel suspended between reality and reverie. More structured than The Pocket of Fever yet equally poetic, the album reveals Sugaya’s gift for translating movement into sound, balancing modern composition with subtle echoes of Japanese tradition.

Reissued for the first time on vinyl, Music From Alejo includes a printed insert featuring an exclusive interview with the artist, alongside photographs from our visit to his home in Japan. Essential listening for anyone drawn to the ambient minimalism of Hiroshi Yoshimura, Midori Takada, or Brian Eno—reimagined here through the lens of Tokyo’s experimental scene of the 1980s.

a1. Straight Line Floating In The Sky
a2. Oldfashioned
b1. An Afternoon When Fish Appeared
b2. Mistral
b3. Alejo's Theme

Having established himself as one of the most exciting contemporary dance producers with a string of stellar releases, Japanese producer boys be kko returns triumphantly with the Nagasawa EP, four floor cuts bursting with emotion, shimmering in Tokyo technicolor, and perfectly at home on Bliss Point.

Nagasawa kicks off with a bang. “ChuKii” is a peak time heater: breaks, chopped vocals and punchy toms sear over a low end groove that proves body music can funk. Melodic acid explodes like a firework mid-track, taking the dance floor to psychedelic new heights.

The club psychedelia continues with “Mold Mold”, a minimal, subterranean system roller adorned with swells, bells, and deep, guttural growls dubbed to the vanishing point.

“Sant Esteve (kko Edit)” is melancholic and contemplative jazz house, eschewing cliché and twinging with nostalgia for that moment you felt most free.

“Humor is an important part of my music”, boys be kko reflected over lunch as Izakaya smoke billowed past his face. “Oignon”, the fourth and final track on Nagasawa, is an airy and joyful slice of sampledelia that makes good on this promise. An enormous smile of a track sending listeners off with a slice of sonic sunshine and, dare we say, hope.

From the heart of Tokyo, Kasmisou emerges with its debut vinyl release, Fleur by Taiga Tokunaga. A label built on the pursuit of functional beauty in dance music, Kasmisou embraces subtlety, detail, and emotional precision.
Fleur is a timeless 12″ designed for selectors who value both warmth and clarity. Across its grooves, Tokunaga blends delicate deep-house textures, fluid micro-house rhythms, and elegant breakbeat atmospheres. Each track unfolds like a living space, organic, balanced, and quietly radiant.
This record captures the refined minimalism of Tokyo’s underground scene while carrying a universal pulse that transcends borders. A vinyl built to stay in your bag, adaptable to any time slot, yet always leaving its mark.

After a feature on last year’s VA Family Affair comp, Tokyo-based producer Yuu Udagawa drops her first solo EP on Razor-N-Tape. With releases on Freerange and Compost under her belt, Yuu has been developing a subtle and moody deep house sound that she displays across the 3 original songs of the Urban Physicality EP. Each track vibrates with dark chordal textures, pulsating drums and chopped vocal samples, beautifully layered to develop and slowly build. To round out the record, Tokyo producer Takuya Matsumoto turns in a throbbing late-nite remix of the EP’s title track, with a tougher drum profile, cavernous bass and masterful sound design.

Evelyne/Masao bring TESTPATTERN to Dark Entries for the label’s first foray into vintage Japanese electronics. Masao Hiruma and Fumio Ichimura’s project Testpattern is known for their release Apres-Midi, a cult slab of synthpop perfection released by Yukihiro Takahashi and Haruomi Hosono’s legendary Yen Records in 1982. While Hiruma and Ichimura parted ways following Apres-Midi, Hiruma’s musical endeavors would continue after meeting French/American model and vocalist Evelyne Bennu in 1984 at a café bar where she would sit and write poetry. Their collaborative efforts as Evelyne/Masao were fruitful, and the duo first performed together in June 1984 on a television program called TOKYO ROCK TV. The album TESTPATTERN comprises seventeen songs recorded in Hiruma’s home studio, which have never been released previously. The Evelyne/Masao duo continues building on the soundworld of Apres-Midi: lush, sophisticated electronics with intricate yet minimalist production. Tracks like “Sakuramochi” and “Bird Island” bear influence from Hosono most clearly, their soaring melodies revealing a subtly ironic redeployment of East Asian musical tropes. But TESTPATTERN is more than homage to Yellow Magic Orchestra. “Tabac” and “Le Soleil Se Leve” display oddball sensibilities closer to Sky Records icons Asmus Tietchens or Cluster. Elsewhere, the project shows affinity for the punkier ethos of continental DIY electronics, like on the quirky “Alien Go Home” and a positively skewed cover of “Singin’ in the Rain.” Bennu’s vocals provide a common thread through these explorations, as she alternates deftly between New Wave deadpan and unhinged chanson singer—check her waxing maximally Francophone on “Au Clair de Lune,” based on an 18th century French song. TESTPATTERN will be available on both double LP as well as CD, and includes a fold-out poster with liner notes with lyrics. This album is dedicated to Masao Hiruma, who passed away in 2011.

"Reasons" is a compilation by four Japanese artists. It includes the debut track by Tokyo-based Miki — an energetic house tune with a strong sense of momentum, a sublime peak-time cut by Jori, dubby, atmospheric house from Daisuke Kondo, and a driving bass music track by Yomni, the alternate alias of Jomni.

Following on from 2024's "Distant Landscapes EP" alongside Tensal, Amorphic returns (solo this time) to James Ruskin's Blueprint Records with a new ten-track album released digitally and as two four-track vinyl EPs released simultaneously.

Amorphic is a pseudonym of Scottish artist Vince Watson to explore more raw and hypnotic signatures. Launched in 2022, Amorphic has featured on labels such as Token, Symbolism and Modularz as well as the two labels Vince runs himself: Amorphic and Morph.

With almost 30 years in the industry, Vince has released over 1000 tracks, which has allowed him to work and gig with some of the very best in that time including Laurent Garnier, Richie Hawtin, Carl Craig and inthis year, Vince will release an LP with Carl Cox on his label Awesome Soundwave. As a touring musician has been able to play at some of the world's best clubs as both Amorphic and Vince Watson, including a residency at Tresor Berlin, DC10 Ibiza with Carl Cox, Berghain and Womb Tokyo as well as being a current resident of 909 Festival in Amsterdam.



earth had been watched by the keepers of the secrets for millennia.
the human experiment had evolved into chaos.
the subjects had destroyed themselves and the planet they were gifted.
a few were taken, leaving a dying planet behind.
the rest of human history was deleted.
the gods sought a new order.
the year zero...

Following on from 2024's "Distant Landscapes EP" alongside Tensal, Amorphic returns (solo this time) to James Ruskin's Blueprint Records with a new ten-track album released digitally and as two four-track vinyl EPs released simultaneously.

Amorphic is a pseudonym of Scottish artist Vince Watson to explore more raw and hypnotic signatures. Launched in 2022, Amorphic has featured on labels such as Token, Symbolism and Modularz as well as the two labels Vince runs himself: Amorphic and Morph.

With almost 30 years in the industry, Vince has released over 1000 tracks, which has allowed him to work and gig with some of the very best in that time including Laurent Garnier, Richie Hawtin, Carl Craig and in this year, Vince will release an LP with Carl Cox on his label Awesome Soundwave. As a touring musician has been able to play at some of the world's best clubs as both Amorphic and Vince Watson, including a residency at Tresor Berlin, DC10 Ibiza with Carl Cox, Berghain and Womb Tokyo as well as being a current resident of 909 Festival in Amsterdam.



earth had been watched by the keepers of the secrets for millennia.
the human experiment had evolved into chaos.
the subjects had destroyed themselves and the planet they were gifted.
a few were taken, leaving a dying planet behind.
the rest of human history was deleted.
the gods sought a new order.
the year zero...

More Rice and Jugaar Records – Two Bangkok-affiliated labels – bring together an assemblage of their mutual friends for a heady, floor-focused VA with moods to soundtrack peak flow, after-hours rabbit holes, and just about everything in between.

Rudoh of Jugaar Records fame kicks us off with ‘Madoh’, a bendy groove that initially bares flex of early 2000s Minimal with its trimmed, rubbery percussion and obscured vocal snippets. As the track progresses, a hefty break and a catchy synth line bolster things before breakdowns unfold like little trippy slumbers rudely interrupted by bold, punchy drops.

Next up is Tokyo legend Gonno who follows up with ‘Rad’, a broad-shouldered banger propelled by a heaving kick and clap combo. A wrought synth is paired with odd shocks of acid and a sequence that flickers like a strobe. All the while a thick, gnarled bass line rumbles underneath, keeping vibes at boiling point throughout.

More Rice’s DOTT follows up with a swampy excursion propelled by a potent kick and nimble submarine tones. Drums are neatly stacked in polyrhythms as an infectious swing unfolds, one that’s decorated with ghostly synths and a generous dose of psychedelic synthesis.

Sarayu – also of More Rice fame, closes things up with ‘Fuijan Groove’, a brilliantly lean cut that lets the subs do the talking. Sharp tonal blobs flesh out a simple but highly effective march as spectral pads expand in plumes of smoke until the conclusion of a rich and varied record that unites two kindred labels perfectly.’

‘More Rice and Jugaar Records – Two Bangkok-affiliated labels – bring together an assemblage of their mutual friends for a heady, floor-focused VA with moods to soundtrack peak flow, after-hours rabbit holes, and just about everything in between.

Rudoh of Jugaar Records fame kicks us off with ‘Madoh’, a bendy groove that initially bares flex of early 2000s Minimal with its trimmed, rubbery percussion and obscured vocal snippets. As the track progresses, a hefty break and a catchy synth line bolster things before breakdowns unfold like little trippy slumbers rudely interrupted by bold, punchy drops.

Next up is Tokyo legend Gonno who follows up with ‘Rad’, a broad-shouldered banger propelled by a heaving kick and clap combo. A wrought synth is paired with odd shocks of acid and a sequence that flickers like a strobe. All the while a thick, gnarled bass line rumbles underneath, keeping vibes at boiling point throughout.

More Rice’s DOTT follows up with a swampy excursion propelled by a potent kick and nimble submarine tones. Drums are neatly stacked in polyrhythms as an infectious swing unfolds, one that’s decorated with ghostly synths and a generous dose of psychedelic synthesis.

Sarayu – also of More Rice fame, closes things up with ‘Fuijan Groove’, a brilliantly lean cut that lets the subs do the talking. Sharp tonal blobs flesh out a simple but highly effective march as spectral pads expand in plumes of smoke until the conclusion of a rich and varied record that unites two kindred labels perfectly.’

SAISEI founder Junki Inoue continues his vital archival work uncovering the riches of Japan’s distinctive electronic music scene and bringing them to new audiences around the world.

HERO U.D.A. aka Hiroyoshi Udaka is not someone you can easily google, but he’s sure lived a life worth retelling. His story starts back in the late 80s when, inspired by the acid house emanating from the UK — during what was fondly christened the Second Summer of Love — he picked up DJing and made the move from Japan to London. Throughout the 90s he DJed at underground techno institutions like London’s The End, CLUB UK and Silver Fish, as well as at the infamous Tribal Gathering raves, periodically returning to Japan to support techno greats like Colin Dale, Mad Mike, Suburban Knight and D. Wynn on tour.

The tracks on this EP, previously unreleased except for one, were all recorded after Udaka moved back from London to Tokyo, between 2002 and 2005. Yet they sound strikingly modern, drawing on a rich range of sounds that have come back round again two decades later: broken beat, acid jazz, dub and breaks. Deceptively simple grooves are given depth by layers of textures and micro samples, for example the surface noise on ‘On The Way’ that glues together an otherwise sparse skeleton of dubby pads and body popping drums. ‘Mature Missile’, ‘So Good’ and ‘Night Driver’ employ raw broken beat templates with acid accents, whimsical melodies and vocal interjections for a playful mood. ‘Sin City’ takes a darker turn, off-key piano hits and plunging bass adding to the wonkiness. The EP closes with a wiggly vignette, ‘222AM’, reminiscent of early 00s contemporaries like Mouse On Mars. Now these hidden treasures from Udaka’s archive gain a new life on SAISEI.

———

SAISEI is a Japanese word which translates to ‘reproduction’ and ‘to play’ (as in playing records). Japanese culture is widely known for its traditional nature just as much as it is for being forward into the future and this label’s concept does justice to exactly that. Having started digging for records as early as 16 years old, Junki Inoue delved into productions from 1990s Japan to uncover these native gems. SAISEI’s core concept is to recapture and reintroduce unique pieces of Japanese electronic music onto vinyl, to an audience it never reached before as most of this music was only released in Japan.


b A2. So Good Acid Funk

Exploring the water engineering relationship between Japan and the Netherlands across a trilogy of experimental releases, the third and final part of Field Records' Waterworks series is courtesy of Yui Onodera. Pairing delicate synthesis and instrumentation with field recordings and negative space, the accomplished artist and sound architect examines the impact of water engineering on Japan's Kiso Three Rivers.

The location refers to the confluence of the Kiso, Nagara and Ibi rivers on the Nōbi plain in Gifu prefecture. In the late 19th century, Japanese authorities collaborated with Dutch engineer Johannes de Rijke to separate the three rivers at the lower part of the Kiso delta. These extensive improvements, which were finalized in 1912, successfully shielded the city of Nagoya from regular flooding.

Onodera's minimalist palette and detailed approach to spatial sound design balances microscopic field recordings and tonally-rich traditional instruments, which he applies with stark focus to the subject of the Kiso Three Rivers across eight extended pieces of music arranged into two distinct parts. The A side's shorter tracks are delicately sculpted miniatures interweaving chiming bell tones, treated guitar impressions and hushed pads. The B side's two longer suites are more overtly minimal in nature, emphasising sampled water sources accented with patient brush strokes of synthesis.

This project is supported by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Tokyo, Japan.

Liner Notes by Martyn Pepperell

A collection of ten hypnotic guitar renditions that dive deeply into the traditional compositional musicality that underpins Harakami’s hallucinatory beatscapes before reconsidering them under a fresh, innovative and engaging new light. River: The Timbre of Guitar #2 Rei Harakami signals a new level of awareness and understanding of both Rei Harakami’s significance and Ayane Shino’s undeniable talent.

VITAL SALES POINTS:

In 1996 Tokyo-based label Sublime Records received a cassette demo from Rei Harakami, a 26-year-old Japanese experimental filmmaker, and musician. Within one year Harakami’s debut LP ‘Unrest’ was released. As the 21st century dawned, Harakami was becoming a critically acclaimed figure, and there was a feeling in Japan that Harakami would be an inevitable successor to such luminaries as Haruomi Hosono and Ryuichi Sakamoto. Sadly Harakami passed away at age 40 in 2011, leaving behind a musical legacy that seemed to deserve more recognition. A fitting tribute now comes from the incredibly gifted classical guitarist Ayane Shino. Continuing her album series ‘The Timbre of Guitar’ (the inaugural release of which was ‘Sakura’ - a cover album of Susumu Yokota's seminal album, released through the Swiss label, Mental Groove Records in 2021), she now presents ‘River ???? : The Timbre of Guitar #2 Rei Harakami’. Ayane has reworked some of Harakami’s standout tracks into an album of tranquil yet complex compositions helping to build a new level of awareness and understanding of Rei Harakami’s significance. A collection of ten hypnotic guitar renditions that dive deeply into the traditional compositional musicality that underpins Harakami’s hallucinatory beatscapes before reconsidering them under a fresh, innovative and engaging new light.

In the years that followed Harakami’s untimely passing, Sublime Records continued to sign and support new artists emerging from Japan’s rich and fertile electronic music scene. This eventually led to a meeting with gifted classical guitarist Ayane Shino in 2020. Although a new name within electronica, Shino’s classical resume is impeccable. She has performed with a range of prestigious orchestras in concert halls and at music festivals across Japan, Europe, and South America while playing classical guitar for numerous animations, movies and television commercials and holding various educational roles. These days, she also hosts the Tokyo Harmonics radio show, which is syndicated through Hyogo prefecture’s Ashiya Radio and TJS Radio in Los Angeles.

During her time completing a masters at Tokyo’s University of the Arts, Shino became fascinated by Brian Eno, Aphex Twin, Oneohtrix Point Never, Steve Reich, and, closer to home, Harakami and Susumu Yokota. ”I found myself in an environment where I was surrounded by fellow students who produced computer music, live electronics, and installations,” she explains. Following her meeting with Sublime, Hideoki Amano, the producer and owner of Musicmine, the parent company of the label, asked Shino if she would be open to transcribing and recording an album of covers of the late, great composer, producer and DJ Susumu Yokota’s music in incorporate into then-upcoming events commemorating the 5th anniversary of his death and reissues of his past works. “Yokota made music with the Roland TB-303 bass synthesizer and samplers, not in a way like a conventional instrumentalist, so I was aware it might be more of a challenge for her,” Amano explains. Fittingly, Shino was up for his suggestion, leading to ‘Sakura: The Timbre Of Guitars #1 Susumu Yokota’. Song by song, Sakura highlighted Shino’s free-flowing playing and prowess at translating electronic music into classical guitar shapes.
After considering Harakami’s background as an instrumentalist, Amano felt revisiting his catalogue should be the next step for Shino. Well-versed in how often classical versions of electronic music tend to fall flat, he asked her to examine Harakami’s songs closely, select the musical phrases suitable for guitar and create arrangements that would sound interesting to music listeners with a deep engagement with ambient, techno and electronica. In Harakami’s discography, Shino discovered “a sense of simplicity, warmth, moisture and a floating sensation.” “I was gripped by his songs, which had an array of sounds that gave me a sense of mystery but also coexisted with a sense of familiarity,” she explained. Moving beyond his official releases, Shino began digging through YouTube to find live recordings, radio appearances and obscure outtakes. Within her mind’s eye, imagining playing his songs on guitar was effortless. On her approach to the album, Ayane explains: “For this album, I succeeded in spinning some exquisite, silk thread like delicate tones, interwoven with human warmth, gentleness and simplicity. And I was also able to rework Rei Harakami's distinctive sound with a floating feel to it and transform it into a very classical guitar sound. I hope many people will be able to receive this group of sounds that I created in this album that I played with all my heart.” A record of limitless innate beauty, ‘River ???? : The Timbre of Guitar #2 Rei Harakami’ is a delicate and thoughtful body of work. A true masterclass in deconstruction and subsequent rebuilding, and an eternal lesson in how the art that we leave behind can outlive us all.

2025 Repress

Midnight In Tokyo 2, the second installment to the compilation series that rounds up hidden gems by Japanese artists that's perfect for listening at night in Tokyo, is here. This time the collection brings together some tasty electric jazz fusion from the '80s , compiled by Dubby, the man behind the online record store Ondas.

The compilation begins with "Hikobae," a dark and slow cosmic jazz by saxophonist Genji Sawai, followed by "Danza Lucumi," an odd Caribbean-style jam by Today's Latin Project, a band fronted by Tadaaki Misago of Tokyo Cuban Boys, with arrangements by Yasuaki Shimizu. "On The Coast" is a soulful and mellow vocal track arranged by Ryuichi Sakamoto, from guitarist Shigeru Suzuki's album White Heat, and fusion boogie cut "In The Hot City" is by Mr. Theodore, which was a one-off project by a mysterious artist.

The melancholic soul jazz number "So Long America" is the title track from the album Yasunori Soryo released in '82, following a stint in America with the band Brown Rice. "Twisty" is a tropical reggae tune from the album Samba Kathy, an underrated classic by Jugando which was released on Trash, a sublabel of one of Japan's finest jazz labels, Trio. "Samarkand" is an electric Latin jazz jam that sounds like something Miles Davis and Santana could have played on, performed by a Latin funk band from Fussa. "Imagery" is a primal African fusion track by Katsutoshi Morizono, a member of the prog rock band Yoninbayashi.

"Windmill" is the most acoustic sounding tune on this compilation, a breezy Brazilian affair with a Hermeto Pascoal feel. "Mystery Of Asian Port" is by the band Parachute, which consisted of Japa-nese fusion giants like Akira Inoue, Tatsuo Hayashi and Masaki Matsubara. The cosmic jazz record sounds like something Daniele Baldelli would play in his sets. "Bay Sky Provincetown 1977" is a classic Japanese fusion tune by guitarist Yuji Toriyama.

The set also features the mellow but danceable "Heatwave" by keyboardist Keiichi Oku, featuring a female vocalist (which some have identified as Rie Ida), and last but not least, closing out the 13 track compilation is "Day Dream At The Bob's Beach," a wonderful urban fusion with a beautiful vibraphone melody, from the Japanese fusion classic album that was a one-off project by studio musicians

Silvil is excited to announce its third vinyl release, featuring a standout new EP from the talented Brizman. This collection offers three finely tuned tracks that push the boundaries of minimal house.

Renowned for his intricate soundscapes and deep, hypnotic grooves, Brizman has earned a respected place in the underground scene. His latest EP highlights his skill in crafting immersive atmospheres and driving rhythms, seamlessly blending subtle textures with layered precision.

The release kicks off with “Extended Life”, a captivating journey through pulsating basslines, delicate percussion, and a vocal sample that’s sure to uplift any dancefloor. Next is “Milly”, a special collaboration with gifted bass guitarist Lea Hart. This heartfelt track serves as a love letter to Roy’s daughter, Milly, adding a personal touch to the EP.

The final track “Tokyo Nights” brings peak-time energy with dynamic shifts and an irresistible rhythm, designed to keep the crowd moving into the early hours.

This EP showcases Brizman’s knack for creating music that resonates both on and off the dancefloor, making it a must-have addition to Silvil’s growing catalog.

- For this brand new chapter in the highly acclaimed Wamono series, DJ Chintam goes digging into the vaults of one of the most revered Japanese labels, Trio Records, and unearths some killer drum breaks, dope bass lines and funky horns, for an essential selection of jazz funk fusion and rare groove vibes produced on Trio between 1973 and 1981!

- 180g heavy vinyl pressing, reverse board jacket.

- Fully licensed Trio Records masters.

- Mastering and lacquer cut by Jukka Sarapää at Timmion Cutting Lab, Helsinki, Finland.

- Signature artwork by Yoxxx.

---

After many years working as a buyer for several record stores, DJ Chintam opened his own Blow Up shop in 2018 in Tokyo's Shibuya district. A member of the Dayjam Crew and a specialist of soul, funk, rare groove and disco music, Chintam is also an expert of the home-brewed Wamono grooves. He supervised and wrote the legendary Wamono A to Z records guide book together with DJ Yoshizawa Dynamite.

For this brand new chapter in the highly acclaimed Wamono series, our man Chintam goes digging into the vaults of one of the most revered Japanese labels: Trio Records. Established in 1969 by audio manufacturer Trio Electronics, now known as Kenwood, the label - and its subsidiaries such as Showboat and Trash - released high quality music spanning a large variety of genres including rock, jazz, fusion, soundtracks and popular songs, until its end in 1984. Through the eight tracks selected here, Chintam unearths some dope drum breaks, heavy bass lines and funky horns, for an essential selection of jazz funk fusion and rare groove vibes produced on Trio between 1973 and 1981.

Put the needle on the record, turn up the volume and dig right now into the Wamono sound - the cream of the Japanese jazz, funk, soul, rare groove and boogie music developed throughout the years since the sixties in Japan!

---

180GWALP05 - Manufactured and distributed by 180g.

Next up on Breaker Breaker: 4 cuts of retrospective, video-game-inspired Jungle from Tokyo based Submerse.

Across previous releases on Apollo (R&S), Hospital Records and Project: Mooncircle, Submerse's sound has traversed Jungle, UKG, Autonomic, HipHop / R&B and Footwork.

Here, he comes full circle with a record named after the scarce and sacred space on a PS1 memory card. Fifteen Blocks scatters deftly cut breaks, convivial pads and tightly sprung bass tones with a clear sense of mastery and ease.

For an aesthetic of (dis)obedience. The impressions Richard Siegal and his company Ballet of Difference gathered on a trip to Japan in September 2022 now find their way into a full-length dance evening. Siegal and his team had set off for Tokyo to learn the practice of Shuudan Koudou, also known as "Japanese Precision Walking". The strictly synchronised group choreographies are astonishing in their radical stringency and have become a secret YouTube hit, not least because of their peculiar subtle humour. Siegal recognises in the extreme disciplining of the bodies an analogy to the training practice of classical ballet. In the mutual exchange of these movement cultures, questions are raised about individual and collective thinking, about personal decision-making power and social responsibility. For this extraordinary project, Richard Siegal has invited a special guest: Nazareth Panadero, long-time companion of Pina Bausch, who has long since become an icon of Wuppertal dance theatre and will be on stage with the BoD ensemble.

The production BALLET OF (DIS)OBEDIENCE is sponsored by Goethe Institut, with the kind support of Sissel GmbH.
CHOREOGRAPHY & STAGE: RICHARD SIEGAL
COSTUME: FLORA MIRANDA
LIGHT & VIDEO: MATTHIAS SINGER
MUSIC: ALVA NOTO
DRAMATURGY: TOBIAS STAAB

more info to: Shuudan koudou

'Shuudan koudou' Shuudan Koudou Is the Japanese #art of Synchronized Precision ...YouTube · Boson TV: Tech Marvels & Cool Discoveries22 Dec 2022

Kottke.org https://kottke.org › shuudan-koud...Shuudan Koudou Is the Japanese Art of Synchronized Precision Walking


On the other hand, hybrid 3 is inspired by Noh Play - Japanese performances and deals with the refusal of rules musically, hybrid three continues the two previous albums and weaves both rhythmic and beatless musical pieces into a holistic work.
The idea for me has always been that these albums are not only perceived as individual tracks, but as a whole piece, which is why I find the possibility of experiencing and listening to these albums in the right order and as a whole particularly important. For me, the pieces are not only closely related to the ballet that was created for them, but also function as individual pieces as pure, musical pieces and mark a new quality for me, which is very strongly focussed on producing electronic sounds and structures in such a way that they can develop a sculptural quality.

Plafond continues, taking center stage after the mother label BAKK ceded. Here, two long-time collaborators, Ekolali, originating from Sweden, and Tala Drum Corps, from the Netherlands, await their returns. The former reappears with a characteristic approach earlier heard on 'Doggerland'. The latter did multiple dance releases yet now debuts for this series, expanding on his stylistic spectrum. Despite shared tempo, the energies of the track are each of their own. Pulsating with energetic urgency, Ekolali, towards hypnotic movement, Tala Drum Corps. 'Totem Mollusca' shoots for the sun, like a budding landscape, yellow rays, waterdrops - kraut-inspired yet club-like without seeking a climax. 'tokyo subway' has a marimba-ridden, timeless approach - a clock-ticking, crude atmosphere, as a dream long passed, slowly ascending. Known for its two-sided, two-songs approach, Plafond offers two artists or artist combinations the freeform room for exploration and elongation of their respective sound and practices. This is the eighth in the series.

A command across genres has distinguished Yasushi Ide’s work as a DJ and producer since emerging from the multiscene spawning big bang that was Tokyo’s highly influential club milieu of the 1980s. His productions draw variously from hip-hop, dub, house, punk, jazz dance, exotica and electronic music - and at their most expressive, synthesize sensibilities within a single track. The respect Ide’s earned is well evident in the impressive roll call of collaborators he’s accrued over the years - Masters At Work, Tom Verlaine, Don Letts, James Chance, DJ Krush, Pharaoh Sanders, U-ROY, and Bongo Herman, just to name a legendary few.



Now available for worldwide distribution from Love Injection Records in both digital and 7-inch 45 vinyl formats, the Yasushi Ide “A Place In the Sun (Kaoru Inoue Remix)” is paired with the equally gorgeous “A Place In the Sun (Dub).” On the former, Inoue’s treatment largely strips away the track’s beats, anchoring it to a subtle percussion pulse that emphasizes the composition’s irresistible melodic qualities. The latter finds Yoko Ota at the controls restoring and pushing reverb-soaked drums to the forefront of the mix, accentuating Ide’s affection for the sound system aesthetic while exercising just the right amount of spacial arrangement flourishes to inject some brawn amidst the beauty.



These serendipitously rediscovered renditions of a back catalog deep cut are just the latest examples of Yasushi Ide’s artistic reach. In addition to recording such acclaimed albums as 2020’s Cosmic Suite and its 2022 sequel (for which Love Injection has remixed a track), his work has spanned music supervision of some 200+ compilations for major labels, artist management, his Grand Gallery shop/gallery proprietorship, and books showcasing the depth of his archival sensibilities, including vintage t-shirt and ephemera curation. Perhaps most inspiring, however, is that Ide is still winning new appreciators and collaborators in unexpected ways four decades into a revered career that continues to evolve and expand.

Duo Drunken Kong step up for their Drumcode debut.

The residents at Tokyo’s legendary Womb have a distinct sound signature, as dreamy melodic and vocal elements rub shoulders with the pair’s trademark groove-orientated rhythms to create hypnotic techno outings that span the breadth of the genre, from heads down rollers to peak-time pleasure.

Their maiden outing on Drumcode is an inspiring four-track work ‘I Want To See’ that lays down this sonic manifesto, with each track built around different vocal samples used to skilful effect.
EP opener ‘It’s Then’ brings atmosphere in spades, mixing up a chugging bottom end, a sleek synth line and a sublime vocal that simmers throughout.

The title track is another late-night dancefloor affair that shifts between function and fun, as a slick mix of polished grooves and hypnotising melodies build towards a thrilling crescendo. ‘That’s It’ brings peak-time energy against a plump electro backbone and ’90-tinged vocal.

The EP rounds out with evocative ‘Need It’, as a stirring vox and metallic drumlines propel the track forward.

2023 Repress

fantastic man teams up with tokyo’s mule musiq to deliver his debut lp in 2020. comprising of nine tracks, utopioid advances further into the realm of sci-fi influenced club and esoteric electronica - a vacation through an imaginary pleasure-dome by means of am-bient house, airy dub and at-times schizophrenic breakbeat.

written in 2019 and 2020 across berlin, the carioca spheres of rio and his hometown of mel-bourne, utopioid expands and adapts fantastic man’s much loved musical tropes for long for-mat. it’s a well-balanced and deeply crafted album and features a cameo by fellow melbourne rising-star memphis lk on ‘mazes’, resurrects the spirit of the nineties rompler on ‘forbidden fiction’ and glides you through peak-acid euphoria with ‘d’oxygen’ and ‘diaspora’.

utopioid follows a series of recent 12s, which include ‘dj mentality’ on his own superconscious records and ’solar surfing’ on stuttgart’s kitjen along with his 2016 lp titled ‘altitude attitudes’ under the alias mind lotion on parisian label antinote.

Home is a powerful concept with an abstract definition. This solo album takes those subjective ideas and unifies them under one roof. Evolving from Jerve’s #dailypiano posts in 2019, ‘The Soundtrack of My Home’ relays thoughts and improvisations that trace his journey from childhood home to adult and now, father. Nurturing a mood or feeling, each song begets a sonorous story of someone close to him, expressed through the language of piano playing.

Jerve makes use of his hands as a human step sequencer, often programming two or more motifs of varying lengths in a polymetric fashion. These melodic patterns and arpeggios evolve at varying rates but grow around clear progressions with standard 8-bar forms.

The first track - ‘Kjetil’ enters with an earnest, gentle and endearing character - like a young river near its source. As with such a river, it will grow to varied sizes throughout the album but must begin as a humble expression from the source. The following titles sketch his interpretations of the people that have made up his home.

There is a theme across the album that unites the songs, so much so that differentiating tracks can at times be difficult. Though, Jerve punctuates this overarching mood with a few distinct structures, as found in tracks ‘Karoline’ (wife), ‘Espen’ (brother) and ‘Sven’ (father). ‘Turid’ (daughter) and ‘Jon Eirik’ (brother) seem less directive and welcome more intrigue, reminiscent of a curious child wandering through the dappled light of a forest.

‘Iben’ (daughter) and ‘Eivor’ (daughter) have a hypnotic, three-pointed melodic structure that leaves the listener suspended; transfixed - while ‘Sussi’ (cat) carries unique momentum and suitably feline autonomy. ‘Mette’ (mother) has a mood of ascending, like that of a child's upward gaze at their maternal carer. Utterly nuanced in structure, Jerve leaves ample space for subjective interpretation and allows the listener to weave their own life into the tones.

As expected from the founder of Dugnad rec - this album signifies a deeply personal sentiment. Sometimes we are forced to confront the music and other times, we are left to wonder. Here, we find a balance and unity that allows little thoughts and worries to drift away, bringing us warmly to rest in the present. The LP edition's bonus track features producer/performer extraordinaire Stian Balducci, drawing a line to the next chapter of piano-based music from Dugnad rec: TOKYO TAPES: PIANO RECYCLE.

Much deserved, remastered reissue of ‘We Are I.E.’ by Lennie De Ice, arguably the first proto jungle tune, now coming correct with fresh remixes from Solo & Blades alongside Borai, as well as the sought-after Horsepower Productions remix.

Released in 1991 on I.E. Records, an imprint based out of De Underground Records, a store in London’s Forest Gate run by Mike De Underground alongside Uncle 22 and Randall, it famously featured elements that paved the way for the Jungle sound. Centered around the Amen break, ragga style basslines, vinyl spinbacks and gun shot samples, it stood out as something different back in ’91, A certified classic, rinsed on dancefloors everywhere and anywhere, from back in the day to the present.

Solo & Blades are the first of the new versions, hitting hard with a heavyweight jungle remix, as Borai steps up with a beefy bassline rework. Horsepower Productions killer and sought after remix rounds off the package.


DJ Feedback:

Foul Play
Moving Shadow
"All the remixes totally land, great package, respectfully done. gonna hear a lot of these over the summer I think."

Jerome Hill
Super Rhythm Trax, Don't, Kool FM
"Was a little sceptical seeing these were remixes as its such an iconic track - BUT fair play ! Borai and Ed Solo & Blades both knocked it out of the park and i'll be playing both these, plus replacing my personal (slightly. crusty) vinyl rip of the original ! Bigups !!"

Om Unit
"Untouchable until now tbh"

jd Twitch
optimo
"even though I have probably heard it ten thousand times you can't beat the original. remixes are cool though."

Louise Chen
"this hits so hard it's tough choosing a fave mix!"

Emerald
BBC 1xtra/ Rinse FM
"Yeeeeeh found the dubstep remix vinyl of this in barcelona recently"

Werdna (Circular Jaw)
"Classic, lovely to see Hooj bringing in the big guns for the remixes. These are going off!"

Cortese
"Sick breaks on this one"

Truss/ MPIA3/ Overmono
"wicked"

Oli Warwick
Crack/ RA/ International Orange/ JunoJuno Plus
"Absolutely seminal bomb drop here, and the remixes are no joke either!"

Chris Farrell
"Always good to see this come round again, original and borai mix for me"

Smolny
"CLASICK !"

Doc Martin
Sublevel USA/Fabric UK.
"Complete Rave Warehouse Flashbacks!!!!"

Lil Mofo
The Trilogy Tapes / Tokyo
"wow!"

Moody Boyz
all over the worldstudio rockers records
"classic tune feeling the Filter Dread Remix"

Ciel
Rinse FM / Refuge Worldwide
"really nice collection of tunes!"

dop
"love the original"

Three years after he released the incredible New Experience EP (picking up plaudits from Bill Brewster, Tim Sweeney, Laurent Garnier, Horse Meat Disco, Leo Mas & 6Music’s Tom Ravenscroft, among many more), Tokyo’s Kota Motomura returns to Hobbes Music for his debut LP, Pay It Forward. This is the first vinyl release on Hobbes Music since the much-loved ‘Aranath’ EP by Leonidas & Hobbes last Spring. While the label maintains the level of quality control for which it has become recognised, the artist continues to subvert electronic and dance music norms in his iconoclastic way on this extraordinary record.

He’s a mysterious character with an ear for idiosyncratic music that runs the gamut from ambient, exotica and jazz to disco, house and techno via post punk, new wave and funk. It’s highly original and all adds up to a confection perhaps best described as ‘Balearic’.

Album opener Paradise is a certified jazz-funk JAM. Destined for dance floors worldwide, this one’s been dropping well with DJs, Motomura demonstrating his piano chops alongside Mutsumi Takeuchi’s sax. Tropical pushes the boat in a more rhythmic direction, some pretty wild drum programming laced with more sounds of the, um, tropics, before mad vocal yelps suggest something yet more tribal. To Be Free initially resembles early 90s progressive house (pulsing bassline, synth-driven melodies), before the arrival of some new wave guitar licks a la classic Talking Heads/David Byrne and ooh ooh vocal chants take it to another dimension altogether.

B-side opener Emotion features Takeuchi again (on flute this time) and more vocal chants before things take a dramatic turn, threatening to open up into a full fanfare before calming and then bursting into wild life again with the exhortation that “C’mon, everybody dancing!” Rhythm flirts with an energy and pace more akin to a techno record: drums, drums, more drums plus a fair few yelps and chants - the kind of DJ tool that will send a simmering dance floor wild in the right hands. Flower closes things in a more melancholy style, familiar to fans of ‘Aboy’ from the New Experience EP, with plaintive acoustic guitar (performed by Akichi), birdsong and big piano chords.

Support from Bill Brewster, Leo Mas, Al Kent, Red Rack’em, Nick The Record, Phil Mison, Phat Phil Cooper, KZA, Sean Johnston (ALFOS), S/A/M, Dribbler, Joe Muggs, Monolith Cocktail and more…

‘Gonna review in MÜ mag... very fine stuff!’ JOE MUGGS
‘Will be reviewed on the blog’ MONOLITH COCKTAIL 
BILL BREWSTER played Flower on the DJ History podcast #641 (25.3.22)
'I really like this album, Flower and Paradise are my favourite' LEO MAS
‘I like Paradise’ AL KENT
‘Woo this is tasty. DEFO playing on my next radio show. The label’s A&R is defo getting better and better. HM has been putting out some dope stuff and this one seems really good quality’ RED RACK’EM
‘Paradise and Flower sounding good’ NICK THE RECORD
‘Tunes sound great!’ PHIL MISON
‘Going to include Paradise and Flower on my Sunday Ibiza global radio show PHAT PHIL COOPER (Nu Northern Soul)
‘Very nice album with influences from many different genres. I especially like To Be Free with nice synths and guitar cutting, and Flower, which is a chill vibe’ KZA (Mule Musiq, Endless Flight)　
'100% correct about the ALFOS potential of To Be Free!' SEAN JOHNSTON (A Love From Outer Space)
'Stunning, will fit perfectly with the vibe of my radio show’ S/A/M (Music For Dreams, DK; Playa Del Sol, Ibiza)
'Stellar work, i'll make a bet that Flowers is a Balaeric classic this summer' DRIBBLER (Breakfast Club, Ibiza)
‘It's cool in a nice smelling psycho sense, it was a very DEEP sound that I couldn't produce. Congrats!’ ALTZ (Altzmusica)
‘Paradise is my jam, it's deep, sunny and never boring. I'm interested to see how this will work on the dance floor. Overall a great album with solid composition and impressive use of live instruments!’ SOBRIETY (fka Chloé Juliette)
'Very tidy selection' ASTROJAZZ (Kelburn Garden Party, Wee Dub, Samedia Shebeen, Disco Makossa)
‘This is a lovely release. Follows on from New Experience in the best way possible. It's got lots of vibes going on but holds together as a cohesive piece of work. Love it’ JAMIE THOMSON (La Cheetah, Glasgow)
‘To Be Free is a track i could imagine Andy Weatherall playing in one of his sets at A Love From Outer Space’ KIRSTIE PATON aka She-Bang Rave Unit (Threads Radio, Radio Magnetic)

Repress!

A MAJOR EXPLORATION OF TOKYO'S CUTTING EDGE 80S SOUND THROUGH THE MUSIC OF CULT JAPANESE LABEL NIPPON COLUMBIA AND ITS BETTER DAYS IMPRINT, SELECTED BY BRITISH RADIO PRESENTER AND DJ NICK LUSCOMBE.

‘Tokyo Dreaming’ is a superb selection picked from the highly collectible Nippon Columbia label and its Better Days sub-label. For the occasion, we’ve teamed up with journalist and Japanese music expert Nick Luscombe who was granted rare access to the much-guarded Nippon Columbia's vaults for a masterful selection encapsulating the fascinating sound of Tokyo in the late 70s and 80s. The selection mixes electro, synth-pop, funk and ambient and features such artists as Ryuichi Sakamoto, Mariah, Shigeo Sekito, Juicy Fruits, Hitomi "Penny" Tohyama and Yumi Murata. The tracklist includes many sought-after rarities and hidden gems which have never been released outside of Japan and the set has been newly remastered by Nippon Columbia. The album has been designed by famed London-based designer Optigram and is annotated by Nick.

Nippon Columbia, one of Japan's oldest music labels is also one of its most collectible thanks to its sub-label Better Days which, in the late 70s, became a hotbed for Tokyo's new generation of pop artists eager to experiment with ambient, electro and funk. Armed with a string of new Japanese-made synthesizers and drum machines that would soon take the world by storm, they made cutting-edge music, which has since become highly sought-after by a new generation of Japanese music lovers. Nick Luscombe, who has long been a leading advocate of Japanese music from this era, has handpicked a selection of some of the sharpest music released on these labels at the time.
According to Nick, “Tokyo Dreaming is a look back to an incredible era of Japanese music, that still sounds and feels like the future. It was a moment when brand-new music tech from Japan helped forge new ideas and experiments that permeated pop, soul and jazz and helped create new forms of music including electro and techno. The perfect meeting point that would help create a new soundtrack for modern living.“
?The selection starts with "The End of Asia" by Ryuichi Sakamoto from his 1978 ground-breaking debut "Thousand Knives Of" (reissued last year by Wewantsounds). The track became a staple of Sakamoto's and YMO's live shows and was even re-recorded by the group for their 1980 album 'X Multiplies'. The track is followed by Mariah's cult Armenian folk flavoured synth pop classic "Shinzo No Tobira" (1983), which first spread outside of Japan when the Scottish DJ duo Optimo started playing the track regularly at their shows.
?Chika Asamoto's "Self Control" (1988) and Jun Fukamachi's "Treasure Hunter" (1985) are perfect songs in the synth-pop canon, while Yumi Murata's rendition of Akiko Yano's "Watashi No Bus" and Hitomi "Penny" Tohyama's "Rainy Driver" both from 1981, move closer towards the slicker, funkier sound of City Pop.
?'Tokyo Dreaming' superbly showcases the breadth of 80s Japanese music and the way electro pop was a playing ground for musicians to experiment with many styles, as showcased by Akira Sakata's dub-enfused "Room" from 1980, Kazumi Watanabe's discoid "Tokyo Joe" (1980) and Juicy Fruits' "kawai" robotic Techno pop song "Jenie Gets Angry".
?The selection flows effortlessly between many shades of synth and ends with two cult classics in the form of Yasuaki Shimizu's "Semi Tori No Hi" and Shigeo Sekito's ambient-jazz masterpiece "The Word II" from his highly sought-after album "Kareinaru Electone (The Word) Vol.2" which, although recorded in 1975, perfectly announces the synth revolution to come. Tokyo Dreaming showcases the groundbreaking sounds of a city turned giant sonic lab which was restlessly inventing the music of the future.
Nick Luscombe is a highly respected and in-demand music influencer who discovers great music from all over the world and shares it internationally through his many radio shows and DJ sets. He has been in charge of music selection for various radio programs since 1999, and from 2010 - 2019, was the DJ for the popular BBC Radio music program "Late Junction”. He has also curated and presented music shows for Monocle and British Airways radio stations. He has worked as both Chief Music Editor at iTunes and Director of Music at London’s Institute of Contemporary Art, and is the founder of MSCTY.

Mr. YT returns!

The cult deep house alias of Yuji Takenouchi was last seen on Brand New Day in 2017, which compiled a series of soft scenes and deepest soulful house for the ambient techno predator R&S and its Apollo, Generations and Global Cuts sub-labels across the mid-to-late 90s. Quietly and confidently some of the most beautiful house music ever made.

So it's a thrill to announce the Universo EP today on Short Span, and to say that he’s still making incredible new dance music in his studio. This is the first Mr. YT record of brand new material in twenty eight years.

The lushness springs forth as delightfully as ever. The inspirations of Detroit chords floating and interacting with a certain kind of Japanese plasticity and futurism. Crystal clear blue skies, sweet perfume and space race optimism, touched with a gentle wistfulness. The four tracks are each as beautiful and intricately deep musically as they are colourful and buoyed by energy. Ready to delight you.

Universo has some new purpose and drive up front, designed and deployed as his most propulsive dance music as Mr. YT. The tempo is taken up, and tracks frequently break out into virtuosic melody that dances across the pieces. Yuji’s talent for composition that hits as hard as it effortlessly glides hasn’t lost its edge in the quarter century plus break. The kick of “Acuario” and “Escorpio” are finely balanced with the influences of jazz and something a little more padded and cosmic. You could mix these into something by Los Hermanos or Ian O’Brien.

The EP bubbles down to a more yearning, sunsetting ambient house on the B side. The instantly recognisable language of classic Mr. YT, a warm and tender place.

Mr. YT has been absent a while, but Yuji’s busy. He’s established a long career as a musician and sound designer within the Japanese videogaming industry, having his hand in games including FromSoftware’s Dark Souls series surely adds something widescreen and sharply emotionally focused to the direction of his dance music. His Missing Project alias also got some shine from the stellar Music From Memory Virtual Dreams II compilation in 2024, which once again pinned down his enduring importance within the ambient techno movement of Japan. He’s also regularly working with Tokyo’s FORM@ Records and regularly self-publishing interesting work and studio versions. And his Missingsoul alias is still some of the most beautiful deep jazz-house committed to wax on Ron Trent’s Future Vision label. Check it all out!

Born out of a shared pop-up studio on the 5th floor of an Omotesandō shopping mall, “Paradox” is the rousing result of a compelling musical collaboration between two British-born, Tokyo-based producers: The Magus Project (Rhythm King / The White Label, Silk Road Sounds, WhatSonic?) and Submerse (Hooversound, Future Retro, Straight Up Breakbeat, Breaker Breaker).

It also marks a collaborative first between The Magus Project’s own WhatSonic? label and Yeti Out’s imprint, Silk Road Sounds.

The archetypal DIY split-single approach — two individual artists offering a track each across a single release — is magnificently elevated in this case by a powerful connective force, in the guise of a shared rhythm spanning Paradox’s non-identical-twin tracks; a relentless pulse that, uniquely, allows either track to be mixed effortlessly into the other, bridging the transition between 126 and 168 bpm or vice versa.

Different speeds, different tracks, identical pulse: making the bpm matter and, well, not matter all at once: a kind of Schrödinger’s tempo, a thought-experiment in sonic form, an either/or/both of genre-spanning stylistic enquiry.