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"Ikue Mori, PHEW and YoshimiO are three legends of the Japanese Avant Garde music scene: Ikue was an original member of DNA and is a vital member of the NYC Downtown Scene, Phew founded Aunt Sally in 1978 and has performed in countless folk/rock solo projects and collaborations and YoshimiO is a core member of the Boredoms, Saicobab and OOIOO. Here they come together for their first ever trio project. Recorded at Club U.F.O. in Tokyo, the music was edited and mixed during the shelter-in-place months of early 2020. Surprising and powerful, this is a fabulous and essential meeting of three new music superstars!"
I.P.Y is a dense and striking collaboration that brings together three legends of the Japanese avant‑garde — each with a distinct voice and an unrelenting experimental spirit.
Shintaro Sakamoto's new album ‘Yoo-hoo’, his first release in about three and a half years, reflects his overseas live experiences over the past few years while showcasing a diverse sound incorporating blues, mood songs, 60s soul, surf instrumentals, funk, and more. Furthermore, the lyrics, captured through his unique perspective, are truly one-of-a-kind. The new album, containing ten tracks including the October digital single “To Grandpa” and the November digital single “Is There a Place for You?”, is now complete.
Like the previous work, this album was recorded primarily with members of the Shintaro Sakamoto Band: Yuta Suganuma on drums, AYA on bass & backing vocals, and Toru Nishinai on saxophone & flute. Guest player Mami Kakudo participates on marimba for two tracks. Recording engineer/mastering: Soichiro Nakamura. Artwork: Shintaro Sakamoto.
“Things fade into obscurity when a populace has no interest” - Meitei / 冥丁
Meitei considers himself an old soul, often preoccupied with the customs and rituals of the past. Recently Meitei lost his beloved 99-year-old grandmother, a woman who he considered to be one of the last remaining people to have experience and understanding of traditional Japanese ambience. His music and art is driven by a desire to cast light on an era and aesthetic that he believes is drifting out of the collective Japanese consciousness with each passing generation, what he calls "the lost Japanese mood". He chose to dedicate Komachi to his late Grandmother.
“I want to revive the soul of Japan that still sleeps in the darkness” - Meitei / 冥丁
Haunting and delicate, distant and timeless, Komachi is awash with white noise, complex field recordings and the hypnotic sounds of flowing water. Though confidently contemporary, like a bucolic J-Dilla, Komachi’s lineage can be traced back to the floating worlds of Ukiyo-e and Gagaku via the prism of 80s Japanese ambient pioneers, and 90s pastoral sample-based artists such as Susumu Yokota and Nobukazu Takemura.
Composed as individual sonic dioramas, each of the twelve tracks have been crafted to not only evoke feelings of nostalgia but to also explore the dichotomy of ancient and new in modern Japanese society. This pervasive narrative runs throughout, calling to mind the work of authors Yasunari Kawabata and Natsume Soseki, as well as the films of Yasujirō Ozu and Hayao Miyazaki, artists similarly fascinated by the reflective tranquillity that permeated traditional Japanese domestic life.
The limited vinyl release, produced in collaboration with label and distributor Séance Centre, includes a super limited special edition complete with beautiful twelve-page booklet featuring a number of prints in the Ukiyo-e style, a traditional style of woodblock print that dates back to 17th century Japan. The images were chosen by Meitei to showcase the old style Japanese sentiments that form a core inspiration to his musical output.
One of the most essential early documents of Japanese noise, originally recorded and mixed at home in 1980 and released in 1981 on cassette by Lowest Music & Arts, now given the physical treatment it always deserved: a 2LP set housed in a natural birch wooden box with laser print, hand-numbered edition of just 99 copies. Ninety-nine! With a double-sided 42 x 60 cm poster, heavy card insert reproducing the original master tape cover, and black cardboard strip with album credits. An art object, plain and simple.
This is Masami Akita before the impenetrable noise walls that would define his legend - something rawer, more tactile, "a sound world still breathing and searching for its shape." Electric guitar, bass, tapes, electronics, prepared guitar, tabla, junk percussion, radio, egg cutter & noise - everything feeding into a tangle of wires and tape decks in a small Tokyo room. Across four vinyl sides, the sound unfolds as shifting collage: machine-like drones, metallic friction, detuned radio signals, tape manipulations and warped string sonorities. Like Kurt Schwitters building his Merzbau from found objects, Akita assembles sound from the refuse of modern life - "creating something greater than the sum of its broken parts."
Transferred from the original source, this edition reveals microscopic details the cassette could never deliver. Drop the needle anywhere and you're inside that 1980 room. Do NOT sleep on this one.
Shuta Hasunuma Team — consisting of Shuta Hasunuma, Shuta Ishizuka, itoken, Yu Oshima, and Ryosuke Saito — has released their first studio album, 17 years after the group’s formation. The album includes a cover of Tortoise’s “Seneca,” with mixing handled by Tortoise’s own John McEntire and mastering by Dave Cooley.
Hailing from the seaside communities surrounding Enoshima, a small island located 50 km southwest of Tokyo, maya ongaku is a ragtag collective of local musicians whose brand of earthy psychedelia transcends widely beyond the roots of their inner souls. The name derives not from any kind of ancient civilization, but rather a neologism defined as the imagined view outside one’s field of vision. The band—currently a trio of Tsutomu Sonoda, Ryota Takano, and Shoei Ikeda—finds sanctuary at the Ace General Store, a beachy vintage shop and salon-like space just hidden from sight from the bustling, touristy riverside Subana Street. Between discussions on music and art, curating the vinyl section and manning the register, and chatting up with locals young and old, the members find time to jam and record their spontaneous ideas in the studio tucked away in the back. It’s in this unlikely setting where maya ongaku finds its origins, the culmination of what Sonoda describes as 自然発生 (shizen hassei), meaning spontaneous generation, or the supposed production of living organisms from nonliving matter.
Approach to Anima, the group’s debut album released on Guruguru Brain, finds maya ongaku building a foundational groove while tapping into their innermost psyche. Sonoda’s malleable guitar and vocals, Takano’s sinuous bass lines, Ikeda’s floating woodwinds, and a sprinkling of delicate percussion—all coalesce into an aural experience that’s assertive yet abstract, calm but unsettling. The slow building, sax-laden “Approach” serves as an introduction to maya ongaku’s world, while the appropriately-named “Water Dream” floats its way toward the gentle finale of “Pillow Song.” It’s a concise distillation of their many interests and influences, from Neo-Dada and Fluxus, to where contemporary art intersects with the development of modern recording technology in the ‘60s and ‘70s.
As the title suggests, Approach to Anima is not intended to be a terminus; it’s merely the beginning of an exploration. The three childhood friends that comprise maya ongaku are always looking beyond the confines of the idyllic but rapidly gentrifying enclave of their beloved Enoshima. Feeding off of the energy that still radiates from the triumphant, decade-long journey of their label bosses’ band Kikagaku Moyo, who rose to global prominence from scrappy beginnings busking on the streets of Takadanobaba, they hope to go wherever inspiration takes them, to anywhere around the globe where their music can find a home.
Ultimately, maya ongaku’s uninhibited world-building will make it possible for us to see the unseen, expand the possibilities of the naked eye—all through the unbridled vibrancy of their music.
'noisembryo' definitively presented here on cd with bonus disc noise matrix including unreleased material from the same sessions as noisembryo and counterpart 'hole' and selected recording from the time period.
absolutely can’t be missed for fans of this period of noise deity merzbow. the bonus disc alone makes this essential for any merzbow fanatic as well as new listeners. When people ask where to start with merzbow? this is the answer!
the holy grail, not only of merzbow’s obsessive discography, but of the entire 90’s noise movement. you’ve heard the stories surrounding the infamy of this release, but beyond that stands the depth and wild energy over two decades later that ‘noisembryo’ encapsulates. velocity loops, roving automotive bass and cacophonic drum machine gel together with the surprising inclusion of a sound rarely heard within merzbow’s many years...masami akita’s own voice. akita’s surrealism of the past stands prominently relevant to this day. art images from unseen classic paintings and collages of masami from the original ‘noisembryo’ session.
The original 'noisembryo' on disc one as well as the following tracks included on the 'noise matrix' bonus disc:
1. Noisembryo Extra 01
2. Noise Matrix Extra 01
3. Noise Matrix Extra 02
4. Noise Matrix Extra 03
5. Noise Matrix Extra 04
6. The Amazing Maya H
7. 94526
Track 1: taken from original DAT tape which including ‘noisembryo’ recording on 1994.
Track 2-5: taken from original DAT tape which including ‘noise matrix’ (in ‘hole’) on 1994.
Track 6: a track recorded on 1995 for releasing eskimo compilation.
Track 7: taken from original cassette tape which recorded on 1994 and remixed on 2019.
all music by masami akita
all remastered on 2020 at munemihouse, Tokyo
portion of proceeds go to animal rescue.
An antidote for chaotic times, this collection of ambient pieces gathers the masters of the genre for a journey designed for calm, clarity and consciousness. All corners of the New Age genre are explored here with a spoken word intro from Jaroslav Kovaracek, host of long running ambient radio program “Dreamtime” that aired in Australia from the early 80s into the mid 90s.
Antigone is a chilling look at our already-alternate reality, coming from inside Eiko Isibashi’s own head. Her band brings a wide array of sounds and moods, shading pop, funk and jazz, ambient, electronic and musique concrète in a bittersweet latticework. Interlocking her new songs in seamless long-play flow with the compositional ambitions of her acclaimed soundtrack work, Eiko’s expressions are epic and intimate. 2025 will never be the same!<iframe style="border: 0; width: 350px; height: 406px;" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=507708664/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=333333/artwork=none/transparent=true/" seamless><a href="https://eikoishibashi.bandcamp.com/album/antigone">Antigone by Eiko Ishibashi</a></iframe>
Recorded in Osaka almost exactly a year ago (11th Nov, 2024), II = II is the first and likely only collaborative album between CS + Kreme and KAKUHAN, a stunning flex of asymmetric and atmospheric world-building, mastered by Rashad Becker for added shine, and highly recommended if you’re anywhere on the line from Autechre to Beatrice Dillon, Mark Fell to HTRK.
Playing to the quartet’s respective strengths, II = II finds balance between KAKUHAN’s percussive tekkerz and CS + Kreme’s emotional heft, with Conrad Standish providing drum programming and bass, Sam Karmel on electronics, Koshiro Hino on sampler, and Yuki Nakagawa on Cello. The sound they make together is beautiful but full of swagger - as if SND’s MAX MSP-ed and Razor-ed electronics were blunted at the edges, very gradually melted to vapour. It’s music that’s hyper-specific, in a vein that will be familiar to anyone who copped KAKUHAN’s astonishing debut album ‘Metal Zone’ in 2022, and yet somehow super loose with it, unravelling through four long tracks that each progress and expand the same essential register.
Shot from the hip but with ample tricks in the pocket, enhanced by that distinctive room-recorded je ne sais quoi and Noh-style percussive theatrics, it’s the most human sounding electroacoustic music imaginable; tough, rolling, complex, full of space and resonance - and if it really is to be the last word from CS+Kreme (they recently announced the band was no more) - what a way to go out.
Welcoming elusive Japanese guitarist, Kouhei Fukuzumi, for his 3rd solo full-length as Ultrafog. ‘A Replica Screams’ emerges as a collection of drifting memories, a chain reaction of unique combinations of elements already present in the World. It embraces the idea that existence itself is positively shaped by serendipity and meaningful coincidences, and that we are all falling together, in time, and on time.
The vinyl edition contains an original artwork poster presenting João Bragança Gil’s ‘The Origin’ (On & On), an installation on synchronicity and fossils, which materialized in conjunction with Ultrafog’s live show at Ufonic (Lisbon, September 2024).
Legowelt & Takafumi Noda aka Mystica Tribe with their third Noda & Wolfers album, this one is for the real dub headz!
“At the end of 2024 I was invited by Hanna Girma at Serpentine Galleries to write a piece of music for the first issue of their publication "Serpentine Reader" - a collection of texts from various authors on the theme of circulation.
I was immediately drawn to Hana Pera Aoake’s essay on listening to a river - there was a line that especially resonated with me about how rivers and other waterways in Hana's native Aotearoa are "conceptualised as both or either atua (gods) or living ancestors, who have their own life force and spiritual strength". In Japan, water is also deeply instilled in our culture as a sacred source - as one example, we cleanse ourselves with water at the entrance of a shrine, to purify the body and mind.
The composition is made of three studies relating to the three sections of a river, weaving together synthesizer soundscapes and field recordings from various sources of water between Yugawara, Kyoto and Osaka - starting with the upper section, the waterfall, travelling down to the middle, broader section where it slows in pace, and finally the lower section where the river eventually meets the sea.
Each study is in 3/4 time broken up into 9 cycles of 9 bars, and the set of three studies musically runs 12 minutes in total. The pace of each study relates to the velocity of the water in each section of the river - the first study incorporates different synth motifs, and the second and third are made of recycled material from the first.” - Hinako Omori
“Corpus Delicti EP” marks the first vinyl release by Mazlika, a Tokyo‑based trackmaker and DJ who is also active as a dancer.
“Things fade into obscurity when a populace has no interest” - Meitei / 冥丁
Meitei considers himself an old soul, often preoccupied with the customs and rituals of the past. Recently Meitei lost his beloved 99-year-old grandmother, a woman who he considered to be one of the last remaining people to have experience and understanding of traditional Japanese ambience. His music and art is driven by a desire to cast light on an era and aesthetic that he believes is drifting out of the collective Japanese consciousness with each passing generation, what he calls "the lost Japanese mood". He chose to dedicate Komachi to his late Grandmother.
“I want to revive the soul of Japan that still sleeps in the darkness” - Meitei / 冥丁
Haunting and delicate, distant and timeless, Komachi is awash with white noise, complex field recordings and the hypnotic sounds of flowing water. Though confidently contemporary, like a bucolic J-Dilla, Komachi’s lineage can be traced back to the floating worlds of Ukiyo-e and Gagaku via the prism of 80s Japanese ambient pioneers, and 90s pastoral sample-based artists such as Susumu Yokota and Nobukazu Takemura.
Composed as individual sonic dioramas, each of the twelve tracks have been crafted to not only evoke feelings of nostalgia but to also explore the dichotomy of ancient and new in modern Japanese society. This pervasive narrative runs throughout, calling to mind the work of authors Yasunari Kawabata and Natsume Soseki, as well as the films of Yasujirō Ozu and Hayao Miyazaki, artists similarly fascinated by the reflective tranquillity that permeated traditional Japanese domestic life.
The limited vinyl release, produced in collaboration with label and distributor Séance Centre, includes a super limited special edition complete with beautiful twelve-page booklet featuring a number of prints in the Ukiyo-e style, a traditional style of woodblock print that dates back to 17th century Japan. The images were chosen by Meitei to showcase the old style Japanese sentiments that form a core inspiration to his musical output.
Forthcoming 7" from Tokyo's TAMTAM.. Including a favorite of Kuro's, "花を一輪 - Hana Wo Ichirin" which was featured on Dublab Japan's -resilience- A Charity Compilation in Aid of the 2025 LA Wildfires. Also available at Dublab.jp digitally. Flip for the Magic Hour DUB version.
R We There Yet? is a split EP by Stefan Ringer, a leading figure of the next generation house scene who is based in his hometown Atlanta while maintaining a truly global presence, and Takuro Higuchi, owner of the record store/record label Dotei Records. The two first met when Stefan visited Japan for the first time in 2023, and deepened their connection through a DJ tour across Japan in 2024. This project began when Stefan visited Takuro's home and Takuro confessed that he was making music, but struggling to finish a track. Stefan suggested that they produce a split EP, and when Takuro said, "I'll try" Stefan said “You are not just trying. You are doing it.” This was the fire that Takuro needed - encouraged by his words, Takuro began working on music again and finally finished two tracks. The title R We There Yet? comes from a phrase repeated in Stefan's track A2, Road to Shizuoka. It was inspired by the long, unexpectedly drawn-out drive Stefan and Takuro took while on tour from Hachioji to Shizuoka, and evolved into a broader reflection — Am I (or are you) really reaching the things we're striving for in life? Am I truly working hard to move forward? It’s a message that questions one’s journey, daily practice, and the spirituality that lies within. I hope you also enjoy Taizo Watanabe’s artwork, which beautifully captures the theme of encounters that transcend place and time.
This album finds internationally active turntablist and sound artist dj sniff reconstructing material from the Japanese avant‑garde label doubtmusic. Through a process of constant destruction and regeneration of the source recordings, he creates an entirely new sonic form—an invigorating work that sits at the intersection of turntablism and experimental music.
NaMShaN / eShaMilDe is a dense and primitive 7-inch by MeNeM, fusing elements of traditional music from Central Asia and the Middle East with minimal electronic sound design.
"Eau" is the lovely new album from aus, the solo project of Tokyo-born composer and producer Yasuhiko Fukuzono, who has gained attention, in Japan and overseas, for his thoughtfully paced and sensitively skillful music as well as his intriguing sound design for exhibitions and experimental cinema. Having worked primarily with keyboards and electronic sound up to this point, "Eau" is a slight yet fascinating shift for aus; the album, while still primarily an electronic work, revolves around the sonic world of a stringed acoustic sound source, the koto, that most characteristically Japanese of musical instruments. The very accomplished Eden Okuno provides the delicate-yet-rich koto sounds on offer here; Fukuzono, in the liner notes, acknowledges the importance of Okuno’s artistry to the project.
The compositions on the album are designed to balance the sound of the koto, with its subtly variable attack and flickering resonance, with the timbre of other instruments. The delicate decay and metrical flexibility of the koto is enveloped by sustained synthesizer sounds and contrapuntally constructed piano melodies, creating a flowing ambience with absorbing undercurrents, a languid and liquid quality that reveals the suitability of the title.
Avid fans of contemporary Japanese music might hear the influence of pioneering works such as the the 1979 Hiroshi Yoshimura composition “Clouds for Alma", realized by koto player Tadao Sawai, and the 1993 album "Koto Vortex I: Works by Hiroshi Yoshimura" which featured performances of Yoshimura's works by the Japanese koto quartet Koto Vortex. These works attempted to remove the koto from its traditional context and place it within the context of ambient and techno. "Eau" is available on CD/LP/cassette/digital, with E/J liner notes by aus. "Eau" is the first collaborative release by EM Records and FLAU, the label run by Yasuhiko Fukuzono (aus).