MUSIC

Psychedelic trance ritual music! It is an imaginary and vast horizon. From the percussion instrument group "Kodo", which has its roots in Sado, great performance of Kenta Taku Yutaku, a unit consisting kodo! Reminds me of Mohammad Reza Mortazavi or Ricardo Villalobos & Oren Ambarchi "Hubris"!!

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Kenta Taku Yu Tataku 2nd Album
Physical release on cassette tape along with digital release. The cassette is limited to 100!

Imagine from the sound.
Create sound.

The "sound" that overflows from Kenta Nakagome and Yuta Sumiyoshi, who chose the media "cassette" in an era where they can listen to anything with various streaming services, is particular about their own sound and the sound that only two people can make "NAYUTA". It became a work called.
Please prepare a cassette deck and fully enjoy the difference in texture and sound quality peculiar to analog that can never be reproduced digitally.
Also pay attention to the cassette design that you want to collect and the bonus stickers that come with it!

Taeko Onuki's second album released in 1977. Reissue,

Mesmerising album of Yokota’s earliest sonic explorations that demonstrates his unique vision and sublime transcendence of boundaries.

‘Image 1983-1998’ is a collection of short miniatures, composed in two different time periods. Tracks 1-5 were recorded with guitar and organ between 1983-4 and tracks 6-12 were composed through 97-98, being inspired by the earlier material.

A musical scrapbook, or sonic design board. The sleeve notes give an insight into Yokota’s belief in a close connection between music, memory and his active imagination: ‘Encountering Acid House made me visualise music – I could clearly see the sounds sparkling… this experience led me to create electronic music.’

Mesmerising album of Yokota’s earliest sonic explorations that demonstrates his unique vision and sublime transcendence of boundaries.

‘Image 1983-1998’ is a collection of short miniatures, composed in two different time periods. Tracks 1-5 were recorded with guitar and organ between 1983-4 and tracks 6-12 were composed through 97-98, being inspired by the earlier material.

A musical scrapbook, or sonic design board. The sleeve notes give an insight into Yokota’s belief in a close connection between music, memory and his active imagination: ‘Encountering Acid House made me visualise music – I could clearly see the sounds sparkling… this experience led me to create electronic music.’

Sakura is without doubt the most loved and lauded entry in Susumu Yokota’s catalogue.

The music unravels like cascades of petals falling from the eponymous cherry blossom trees. Yokota intended to ‘express ki-do-ai-raku (the four emotions; joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness) through music’, and throughout Sakura, the effect fluctuates between profound tranquillity, hesitation, melancholy and joy with ease, addressing the fickle nature of human emotion, while transcending the inclination to label moods entirely.

Sakura became Yokota’s best selling album. It was greeted with universal acclaim, lauded by Philip Glass and Brian Eno and launched Yokota internationally.

‘A bittersweet beauty, heightened by the sadness that all things must one day end.’ - Martyn Pepperell

'87 KAD 3:4:5:6 ~ Newly Discovered MaterialMichio Kadotani (1959–1990) was a legendary figure in Japan’s 1980s underground punk and psychedelic rock scenes. Living with schizophrenia, he inspired characters in Ramo Nakajima’s novels and is presumed to have died young from a drug-related illness. His only known release was Kusatteiku Telepathies (‘腐っていくテレパシーズ,’ or Rotting Telepathies in English), a posthumous 1991 album on P.S.F. Records—until now.Newly uncovered tapes from Nakajima’s archive, including ‘87 KAD 3:4:5:6, a fully restored studio demo, reveal Kadotani’s original vision. Unlike the P.S.F. release, this work features his handwritten cover and tracklist, reflecting his meticulous design. His sensitivity to voice and meaning shines through in detailed notes correcting perceived lyric errors, even though the vocals remain largely unintelligible.The music, multitracked solo, blends raw acid punk energy with echoes of the Velvet Underground and the Sex Pistols/P.I.L. Outdated drum machines and multiple takes add texture, while songs like “Telepathy” foreshadow later work. Track 9, an uncredited bonus piece, was identified through interviews with Sô-si Suzuki, showcasing Kadotani’s ability to lead collaborative sessions.Long dismissed as an outsider, Kadotani was deeply attuned to sound and structure. His work is intense, vivid, and uncompromising—a rare example of someone transforming inner chaos into a coherent sonic world. He didn’t explain it. He lived it.

A cozy collection of botanical background sounds from Lullatone – an arrangement of atmospheric ambience that blossoms into a bouquet of meditative melodies.

What is the obsession with electronic musicians and houseplants? Is it because they are a captive crowd to watch composers create? Because photosynthesis kind of sounds like synthesizer? Because roots and vines like cables on a modular synth rig? Or is it just because ever since Erik Satie coined the term “Furniture Music” every person with a penchant for soundtracking can’t help but look for things in their immediate surroundings to turn into a muse?

From seedlings to sprouts, these melodies mature more like the life cycle of flowers than typical long-lasting houseplants. Living in Japan, Lullatone quickly learned that half of what makes a flower beautiful is knowing it won’t be around for long. Every spring, phrases about fleeting beauty flood conversations as cherry blossoms saturate the sky. Even the flitting run time of some of the songs evokes the haiku-ish poetry of plucked petals falling away too soon.

Imagined also as a tribute to an avant-garde(ning) local flower shop in Nagoya, Japan called Tumbleweed, which hosts a special event called “Flower Listening” multiple times a year, this album plays a bit like a mixtape but with tracks made all by one person. Shawn, the songwriter / producer behind Lullatone often played at the event and found himself making more and more new songs to especially fit the space. But as time went by, he listened to them other places and noticed the impressionistic tone of the tracks translated to lots of other areas as well.

Whether you want to call it botanica / petalcore / pollinated pastoral / j-ambient / folktronica / floraltronica / compositional collage / environmental / kankyō ongaku / “ambient for angiosperms” or just plain instrumental, we hope these soft & serene synth sounds soundtrack anywhere you (and maybe some flowery friends) find yourself growing.

A cozy collection of botanical background sounds from Lullatone – an arrangement of atmospheric ambience that blossoms into a bouquet of meditative melodies.

What is the obsession with electronic musicians and houseplants? Is it because they are a captive crowd to watch composers create? Because photosynthesis kind of sounds like synthesizer? Because roots and vines like cables on a modular synth rig? Or is it just because ever since Erik Satie coined the term “Furniture Music” every person with a penchant for soundtracking can’t help but look for things in their immediate surroundings to turn into a muse?

From seedlings to sprouts, these melodies mature more like the life cycle of flowers than typical long-lasting houseplants. Living in Japan, Lullatone quickly learned that half of what makes a flower beautiful is knowing it won’t be around for long. Every spring, phrases about fleeting beauty flood conversations as cherry blossoms saturate the sky. Even the flitting run time of some of the songs evokes the haiku-ish poetry of plucked petals falling away too soon.

Imagined also as a tribute to an avant-garde(ning) local flower shop in Nagoya, Japan called Tumbleweed, which hosts a special event called “Flower Listening” multiple times a year, this album plays a bit like a mixtape but with tracks made all by one person. Shawn, the songwriter / producer behind Lullatone often played at the event and found himself making more and more new songs to especially fit the space. But as time went by, he listened to them other places and noticed the impressionistic tone of the tracks translated to lots of other areas as well.

Whether you want to call it botanica / petalcore / pollinated pastoral / j-ambient / folktronica / floraltronica / compositional collage / environmental / kankyō ongaku / “ambient for angiosperms” or just plain instrumental, we hope these soft & serene synth sounds soundtrack anywhere you (and maybe some flowery friends) find yourself growing.

The new album "Passing Tone" by SOFT, a band of Kyoto's party scene/music culture treasures, is released from their own base of activities, "softribe.

The album was jointly released in 2021 by 17853 Records and TUFF VINYL, presided over by CHEE CHIMIZU, and Crosspoint, presided over by J.A.K.A.M., the release source, and was followed by a vinyl reissue of their 2010 album Soft Meets Pan "Tam (Message To The Sun )", the 11th and latest album released on analog at the memorial timing of the 30th anniversary of the band's formation since "Tokinami" in 2018.

They have collabolated with various musicians in the past, but this album features only one guest musician, PRITTI, an old member, who participates in one song. The album was produced by the three members since the formation of the band, guitarist SIMIZ, drummer PON2, and double bassist UCON, as well as engineer/electronics KND, who is an indispensable part of the Kyoto music scene. Lurking in the background are vibrant sounds, psychedelic acoustics, and dub work in a style similar to that of a live performance. Their 30th anniversary live performances in Osaka and Kyoto, which were a great success, and their Asian tour are also included in this album.

A rare best-of album featuring unreleased tracks from 1973 to 1984 by the genius guitarist Akio Niitsu is now available on LP. The album features a wide range of works, from the production process of the masterpiece “I/o” (1978), through the period of creating background music for Muji, to demo recordings from the ‘PETSTEP’ (1982) and “Winter Wonderland” (1985) eras. The innovative soundscapes created through double-speed guitar and multi-track recording continue to receive worldwide acclaim. Through the 12 tracks on Side A and Side B, listeners can experience Shinji Akiyama's experimental and ambient musical world. Influenced by J.S. Bach and Jimi Hendrix, his creative approach, which established his unique musical style, is beautifully expressed in this collection. 300 grams vinyl, this album is an important record in music history and is recommended not only for fans but also for listeners interested in experimental music.

"Yasoka" (Night Song) by Suishou No Fune is a live recording captured late at night in Beijing’s UFO Space in August 2024. The album features five deeply atmospheric tracks blending psychedelic improvisation with ethereal vocals and guitar. A haunting meditation on night, memory, and emotional resonance.

"UNDERGROUND SPIRIT 20 – Faraway Thunder" is a live recording by Suishou No Fune featuring drummer Koji Shimura, captured in Tokyo in May 2025. The album blends psychedelic rock and free improvisation in a deeply emotional tribute to Matt Zaun. Ethereal guitar layers and haunting vocals evoke distant storms and spiritual resonance.

A long-lost live recording from 2005 by Shizuka, the legendary psychedelic band led by doll artist Shizuka Miura—whose cult popularity has only grown since her passing—and her husband Maki Miura, renowned guitarist of Les Rallizes Dénudés, Fushitsusha, and Ookami no Jikan. Released by UFO CREAtions, a new Beijing label carrying the spirit of P.S.F. into the present alongside imprints such as Black Editions, An’archives, and Eschogras Records. Captured at Tokyo’s Koenji U.F.O. Club in 2005, this long-hidden performance is an essential document for fans. Fragile gothic atmospheres, doll-like dreams steeped in girlish decadence, smoke-shrouded psychedelia in the direct lineage of Les Rallizes Dénudés, rustic incantations, and dreamgaze-like weightlessness intertwine to conjure a snowfield of phantom suns—nowhere and everywhere at once. Lo-fi yet radiating an uncanny beauty, this is a true hidden gem of neo-psychedelia. Limited to 100 copies.

A solo improvisation stripped down to the extremes of resonance, silence, and impact through the drum itself! Shoji Hano, a free jazz/improvisation drummer and singular figure in the Japanese scene—known for his releases on P.S.F. Records and collaborations with European avant-garde giants like Peter Brötzmann and Hans Reichel—presents his 2024 solo cassette work 69, stocked here from Beijing’s rising label UFO CREAtions. Strikes, reverberations, and silence intertwine with tension, offering a meditative experience of sound that expands both time and inner space. What resonates here is not decoration of narrative or genre, but the raw vibration of life itself—an experience of listening to an “absent pulse,” inviting both quiet introspection and a journey into uncharted sonic territory. A stark, uncompromising document of Hano’s solitary improvisation that transcends jazz and free music, drawing the listener into profound inner resonance. Limited to 69 copies—don’t miss it!

“Après-midi” by TESTPATTERN is a refined slice of early 1980s Japanese synthpop and technopop, produced by Haruomi Hosono. Blending minimal electronics with urban sophistication, it captures the experimental spirit of the YEN label era. A cult favorite among fans of YMO and avant-pop aesthetics.

"Crossover City – Misty Morning" is a curated compilation of Japanese jazz fusion and crossover gems from the 1970s and 1980s. Featuring artists like Terumasa Hino and Sadao Watanabe, it captures the smooth, urban soundscapes of a golden era. A must-listen for fans of city pop and sophisticated grooves.

Atsushi Tsuyama is a legendary guitarist representing the Japanese underground, known for his work in various bands, including the mind-bending duo Omoide Hatoba with Seiichi Yamamoto. He was also a founding member of Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paraiso UFO, a group that conquered the world and even graced the cover of the UK's WIRE magazine before his surprising departure. In recent years, he's been active in projects like Psyche Bugyo, which champions "samurai rock," and a traditional duo with Tomomi Nagano from Kyoto.

"Guitar Solo North of Latitude 30°" is an acoustic guitar solo album that captures Tsuyama's raw, unvarnished style. Released exclusively on vinyl with a limited run of 200 copies, the jacket features a photo of him in the mountains, printed on a shimmering silver sheet. For over 50 years, Tsuyama has also been a dedicated caretaker of the mountains in Nagano Prefecture, running a mountain hut and rescuing hikers, literally protecting the mountains of the Ina Valley.

"Minami-kaze α Wave (Southerly wind alpha wave)“ is a very rare ‘vocal piece’ that Henry Kawahara has produced, and released under the name HMD (H Music Deperception) in 1993. The song is a vocal version of the cyber-occult exotic instrumental piece "Nanpu“ included in the compilation “Cybernetic Defiance and Orgasm: The Essential Henry Kawahara” [EM1197TCD/DLP]. This track is a rare example that proves he had also a genius for producing ‘pops’ in the general sense of the word, and which seems to have challenged head-on the pop songs produced by Haruomi Hosono or Tetsuya Komuro in the 80s-90s. 

The Henry Kawahara project on EM Records was developed only with the enthusiasm of proving Kawahara's existence if he is to be erased as nothing in the current art context, and we have confirmed that there are a lot of supporters all over the world for our opinion when we released "Cybernetic Defiance and Orgasm" (several articles and interviews have been given). This single is a 'prescription' for the sequel, tentatively titled "Cybernetic Defiance and Orgasm 2: Other Sides of Henry Kawahara," which is currently in the process of being prepared. This 7” is a limited one-off release, not included in the compilation.

This anthology is the second compilation from EM Records of the works of the late Henry Kawahara, a media artist and electronic music producer who was particularly active in the Japanese cyber-occult underground of the 1990s, a scene linked with technologies such as 3D (binaural) recordings, brain machines, sound chairs, computer graphics and compact discs. These tracks, produced 1990-95, include a series of recordings described as “Parallel Data Sounds” and “Sound LSD”, a “new language system that speaks directly to the cerebrum” using “frequency components that are not perceived by the conscious mind”, reflecting Kawahara’s interest in concepts such as astrology, love mantras, and astral projection. Also here are two pieces featuring dolphin sounds and human brainwave feedback, as well as pieces from a recording unit called H Music De-perception (HMD) and a group called Xiaoyun. The majority of tracks here were not originally released under Kawahara’s name, but this compilation is an essential key to decoding the Henry Kawahara saga, and also an unveiling of the secret we planted in the previous release, "Cybernetic Defiance and Orgasm: Essential Henry Kawahara," which Kawahara himself was involved in selecting before his death. This 3-CD set, which includes a special bonus CD, is also available as an abridged digital download.

Captain Ganja + Haruomi Hosono + A. Russell !? This is the rumored Pure Land Dub New Age Base! A natural talent who fell in love with that Tapes, a new album of all 7FO songs has been completed !!!! A fluffy daydream experience with Nirvana BGM with a faint grassy scent. Offers from leading labels such as RVNG and Bokeh Versions are coming in, and the attention is rising overseas overseas, but Japan is left behind? I hear a voice saying, but wait! We kept waiting for this talent to stone and explode, and finally it was time to awaken !!!!!! The decisive difference between 7FO and conventional electronic music writers is that it treats ambient-new age synth electronics with natural ethnicity like dub-reggae, with a feeling that Westerners do not have. That's the point. That sense is the reason why it produces the sound that the times demand, and is supported by RVNG-like new age-electronic music, new roots revival to extreme bass music, and La Monte Young to Equiknoxx fans. In a metaphorical way, what would happen if Haruomi Hosono from the YEN-Monad period appeared in the 2010s base scene? That is, it still has a mysterious potential. If you tell someone who doesn't know anything about the charm of "Ryu no Nukegara", you can get the true value straight away! ?? Natural high additive-free chill-out decision board that will be a landmark of 7FO that told that Tapes "There is no reason for me to make music ..." (The binding by Hiroto Higuchi is this sound Successful visualization.)

'TTT grip Reckless Records don and record collecting heavyweight Toru Yoneyama on a mad cosmic noise mission sparked off with bony dancehall and mutant tekno-electro pulses – think Conrad Schnitzler meets Jeff Mills at Heinrich Mueller's lab afterhours, it's that wild.

The 92 minute 'Rescue at SW4' is among the best of TTT's already deadly run of '25 so far. Toru's eight trax take all the time needed – nearly up to 20′, and more often at least 10′ – to work out unpredictable permutations of spiny machine rhythm and rudely activated arp leads that seem to have a jazz-noise-tekno mind of their own.

An ideal case in point is the opening passage '052 T.HOLE', which spends the first 10 mins coaxing analog machines to sputter like a Schnitzler-meets-Dilloway jam, overeasy on the curdled chromatic distortion, before crystallising into a gnashing dancehall and Kongo tekno drum pattern whilst the synth wheezes psychoactive spumes. The transition is as effective and it is unexpected, and sets the tone for a class session of strangely sidewinding treats.

'BITT 35ER' stays in the longform lane with a more direct, if wobbly, traction from the offing, recalling some noisy Drexciyan probe and Mills' offbeat jazz-techno treks, whilst a pair of acrid palate cleansers set off a 2nd half encompassing pulsating, kosmiche dub techno noise in 'SPKXXX042', to Ra-esque wormholer '254222 BC' resolving in coiled acid tekno, and the stewed 303 gunk of '052 T.HOLE (048 bottoms)'.' (Boomkat, June 2025)

Here is a portal to a vast and relatively unknown world, the Japanese cyber-occult underground media scene of the early 1990s; our guide is the late Henry Kawahara, a media artist and electronic music producer whose expansive and visionary conception of digital technology merged with a desire to break free of the constraints of mere rationality. This collection, the first-ever archival release of his work, is drawn from recordings released during the period 1991-1996, an exceptionally fertile time for Kawahara. Originally released on CD by a few Japanese independent labels including Hachiman Publishing, a cyber-occult/new-age book specialist, the releases were available mainly in book stores, so this sumptuous and prescient music has remained relatively unknown. The original titles and tag lines of the CDs give clues about Kawahara’s interests and the music itself: Digital Mushroom, Subtropical Illusion, Never-ending Asia, and so on. This 15-track gateway compilation is available on double 12” vinyl and DL; the CD version has two extra discs featuring sound from two art installations entitled "Dysteleology - α" and "Dysteleolog - β" from the 1990s. All formats feature extensive English liner notes. 

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Henry Kawahara has been called “the Jon Hassell of Japan”, but upon closer inspection one finds that his work operates on very different terms. Like Hosono's forays into computerized Ryukyu folk “sightseeing music” or Tsutomu Ōhashi's Ecophony trilogy, Kawahara's world projected ancient musical traditions and notions of cultural identity onto the modern digital plane through a fusion of cybernetic thinking and pan-asian cultural introspection that makes Western attempts to do the same seem quaint in comparison. Kawahara's omnidirectional sound “illusions” were constructed not as albums but psychological experiences, billowing with a then-nascent notion of early 90s cybernetic spirituality that was proliferating on both sides of the Pacific as the hyperlinked state of global connectivity we know today was just beginning to crystalize. Through digital representations of folk instruments, shifting MIDI sequencing and custom binaural recording technology he aimed for psychoacoustic effect as much as artistic, all via a countercultural form of distribution untethered from the commercial expectations of post-bubble modes of artistic production. This EM collection draws out the best of his fruitful early-mid 90s period into a revelatory sequence, generously opening Kawahara's world to all. —Spencer Doran (Visible Cloaks) 

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Henry Kawahara's deal is Intimate, Intuitive, Adventurous, and Acidy! Spice is added to all, whether its ethereal guitar, nature effects, gamelan club trance, or LSD experimentations. In the vibe of Coil's “Love Secret Domain” and out there clubgamelan. The creative force of the jungle is mutated and interchanged with further sound palettes, and his effex palette has the schwing of a 90s grunge guitarist. His musical tendencies are natural and his scope and variety are dangerous. —Spencer Clark (The Star Searchers / Pacific City Discs)

At long last, Takao is back with his long-awaited second album, seven years in the making. His 2018 "Stealth" was (and still is) a much-loved set, mixing elements of ambient and environmental music; with this new release Takao breaks free of the gravitational pull of these earlier influences and strides confidently forward. "The End of the Brim" jettisons some of the more abstract elements of his previous work, embracing a “universal listenability” and a more concrete intensity, with a focus on supple rhythms and strengthened senses of melodic development and harmonic sophistication. This musical growth can be linked with Takao’s admiration of composers Ken Muramatsu and Toshifumi Hinata, who are generally associated with commercial “production music” and easy listening. Another contributing factor is his private study with veteran keyboardist Ichiko Hashimoto of Colored Music. The ten tracks here include three vocal tracks, with three different singers (Yumea Horiike, Cristel Bere, Atsuo Fujimoto of Colored Music) and seven keyboard-led pieces. The vocal pieces are integral parts of the album’s flow, rather than typical “songs” driven by the name and personality of the singer. All of these factors, plus the veteran presence of engineer Hiroshi Haraguchi, known for his work with Haruomi Hosono, who mixed half of the album's tracks, along with the use of excellent old-school synths, aligned with Takao’s forward-looking vision, have combined to give us an album with a unique sense of timelessness. A spotlight illuminating future paths for pop music, available on CD/Vinyl LP/Digital, with English/Japanese lyrics, and liner notes by Yuji Shibasaki.

Funky Best is a jazz-funk/disco cover album recorded in 1975 by Jiro Inagaki and his band. Featuring bold yet refined arrangements of soul and funk classics by Stevie Wonder, Kool & The Gang, and Ohio Players, the album showcases powerful horn sections and groovy rhythm work. While preserving the essence of the originals, it fuses jazz improvisation with the delicate sensibilities unique to Japanese musicians. Backed by top-tier players who led Japan’s jazz-funk scene, the album captures the raw energy of studio sessions with striking immediacy. Crossing boundaries between jazz, funk, and disco, Funky Best remains a genre-defying gem that continues to shine with the timeless creativity and musicality of Jiro Inagaki.