MUSIC

In the midst of a series of great domestic new age/ambient reissues this year, including works by Mkwaju Ensemble, Motohiko Hamase, and Joe Hisaishi, here comes the long awaited pure ambient masterpiece! The monumental 1983 debut album by Inoyama Land, a synthesizer unit formed by Makoto Inoue and Yasushi Yamashita, former members of the still active techno-pop and avant-garde group Hikashu, has been digitally mixed down from the original multi-track tapes. The original 1983 album was digitally mixed down from the original multitrack tapes and reissued for the first time in 35 years.

The original 1983 album was released on MEDIUM, a subsidiary of the YEN label hosted by Haruomi Hosono. The original version of the album was released in 1983 on MEDIUM, a YEN label owned by Haruomi Hosono. The original version was known to be one of the most sought after by enthusiasts around the world, and both the LP and CD versions were extremely expensive. The origin of the album title comes from a childhood memory of Yamashita's friend playing with the song "Dan jin dan posidon! The title of the album was taken from the scene where Yamashita's friends used to play while saying "Dan jin dan posidon! The album was recorded using the "Water Delay System," a method devised by Hosono in which microphones and speakers are installed in a tank of water to create a unique, crystal-clear sound. From the ambient sounds colored by meditative synth layers, to the lovely home recordings, to the premature electronica feel, to the occasional avant-wave appearance, this is a masterpiece of originality and a playful piece of work. This is the pinnacle of unique music that lies somewhere between new wave and ambient. This is a masterpiece that is highly recommended for all environmental music and new age fans, including Hiroshi Yoshimura, Midori Takada, Yumiko Morioka and others!

In the 1980s, there was a unique music in between new wave and ambient. In the 1980's, there was a unique music between new wave and ambient, and Japanese music released in that period is now being heard around the world. Inoyamaland is one of the rarest of them all, and has not been forgotten. I was still involved in the release of the album 35 years ago, but the submission of the lost homework was a fresh surprise. The strange comfort of the region called Inoyamaland, like listening to a weather report, has not changed.
Harumi Hosono, July 11, 2018

Midori Takada (1951-) is a composer and percussionist who is very popular overseas as one of the last treasures of Japanese ambient, new age, and minimal new music. WRWTFWW in Switzerland and Palto Flats in New York! After making her debut as a soloist with the Berlin Radio Symphony, she began to explore traditional music in the 1980s, traveling throughout Africa and Asia. In the 1980s, he began to travel around Africa and Asia to explore traditional music. He has had many sessions with musicians from Ghana, Burkina Faso, Senegal, Korea, etc. (in Japan, with Masahiko Sato and Tadashi Suzuki, a director), and has established his own musicality with spirituality by integrating the dynamic musicianship of Africa and the static spirit of Asia based on the integral concept of consistency between sound and the human body. He established his own musicality with spirituality. In addition to the oriental and misty ambience, there is a minimalist piece with marimba reminiscent of Steve Reich, and a shamanic and spiritual percussion piece that seems to be a mixture of Japanese drums and African percussion. Perhaps it is because he is also familiar with ambient and experimental music, but this is a masterpiece that you can listen to over and over again, with a spirit that is completely different from the New Age works that abound in the Western world.

It's here!
Hiroshi Suzuki's CAT.
Recorded at Nippon-Columbia Daiichi Studio, on Oct 8-10, 1975.
Trombone: Hiroshi Suzuki.
Keyboards: Hiromasa Suzuki.
Bass: Kunimitsu Inaba.
Drums: Akira Ishikawa.
Saxophone: Takeru Muraoka.
The legendary jazz-funk masterpiece fully reissued on We Release Jazz.
Digipack CD.
With liner notes.
Super smooth, extra funky, indeniable grooves, this is the real deal!

After two highly acclaimed early albums, "Seanaly" and "Mellow Dream," and now known by jazz listeners around the world, "A Letter From Slowboat" is his first leader album in 2015, 16 years after his first album.

“A mesmerizing Japanese ambient techno masterpiece that that completely rewires how you perceive music” Electronic Beats A Mountainous Masterpiece. A powerful testament to rave culture’s establishment and the birth of a new scene in Japan emerging in the mid ‘90s. One of Yokota’s most celebrated work that merges Japanese new age and minimal techno. Alex From Tokyo Prat (Japan Vibrations, world famous, Paris) On July 26th Susumu Yokota’s venerated 1994 classic ‘Acid Mt. Fuji’ is reissued in expanded, deluxe fashion, as part of the 30th anniversary celebrations of the label that originally presented it. Japan’s Musicmine – specifically it’s electronic subsidiary Sublime – released the album on June 29th 1994, simultaneously with Ken Ishii’s ‘Reference To Difference’, as their inaugural joint offering. ‘Acid Mt. Fuji’ is an enchanting mix of mystical ambient acid and futurist minimal techno, taking the listeners on a psychedelic pilgrimage, where 303, synths and electronic percussion are scented with reverb, echo and forest recordings. Merging Japanese new age and sparse electronica, the recording is free, organic, and energized – proffering a unique blend of early 90s western styles and the essence of his home country. Yokota originally planned an ambient record, but ‘Acid Mt. Fuji’ evolved into a concept work featuring the Roland TB-303, which he recorded live at home alongside a sampler, yielding experimental and innovative results. The long player found its muse in the famed 18th-19th century artist Hokusai’s red rendition of Mt. Fuji, known as ‘Red Fuji’ or ‘Akafuji’. Part of the painter’s renowned ‘Thirty Six Views of Mt. Fuji’ series from the 1830s, ‘Red Fuji’ depicts the iconic sacred mountain aglow in red at dawn, symbolizing spirituality and creativity. With references to Japanese folklore, nature and shrines, tracks like ‘Kinoko’ and ‘Meijijingu’ invite the listener to immerse themselves in the album’s spiritual depths. Yokota’s own homage-to-Hokusai drawing graces the record’s cover, and was inspired by the concept of wa (harmony) – highlighting his diverse skills not only as a musician, but an artist and designer too. ‘Acid Mt. Fuji’ is a powerful testament to the establishment of rave culture in Japan, which rapidly developed within just two years, from 1992 to 1994. Largely due to praise for the breathtaking originality of the LP, within this burgeoning national techno scene, Yokota rose to prominence as one of its key figures. He then became one of the most renowned artists to emerge from his homeland and enter the global electronic pantheon. He inspired a new wave of Japanese producers and DJs, contributing significantly to the growth of the techno movement in Japan. Yokota was a solitary figure, an artist who expressed his life through the continuous creation of music. For those seeking something different; mystical, soothing, pristinely ergonomic and uniquely Japanese, this record stands as iconic as Mt. Fuji itself. - This triple vinyl Deluxe Edition includes the original album’s eleven tracks alongside five raw and jacking rare gems, available on wax for the first time, which were previously included only in the Japanese 2016 Deluxe Edition CD. There are also two digital-only bonus tracks. One is a live performance by Yokota, titled ‘Live at Shibuya Beam Hall’, which was recorded at Sublime Records’ label launch party, held in September 1994. It was previously only released on the aforementioned 2016 Japanese CD edition. This event, titled ‘Sublime Records Presents New Style of Electronic Ambient Party’ featured performances by Susumu Yokota, Ken Ishii, Yoshihiro Sawasaki, Speedy J and DJ Wada. This ten minute long, rare live recording captures Yokota playing a dynamic, fast paced acid house live jam, using two TB-303s and a drum machine. The other digital only bonus track is an alternative version of ‘H’, which was discovered recently whilst excavating a DAT. The liner notes are written by DJ/producer Alex From Tokyo, who was a good friend of Yokota, and experienced the 90s Tokyo club scene first-hand as an insider. His compilation ‘Japan Vibrations Vol. 1’ captures this golden era, and features music by Prism (Susumu Yokota), Ryuichi Sakamoto, Haruomi Hosono, Yasuaki Shimizu, Quadra (Hiroshi Watanabe) and more.

“Originally released on the lauded Green Energy label from experimental maverick Henry Kawahara, Forest Jams is thrilled to present the official re-issue of Nami Hotatsu’s sophomore album – revised and re-christened “Ultra Hyper Cosmic Voice” by the artist herself. Equal parts beguiling and inviting, Nami’s mixture of vocals and driving propulsive beats still sound as fresh and as captivating as when they were originally released in 1994. Now, thirty years later, we invite you to discover Nami’s “perfect world of being” in its totality – awakening yourself to the unknown world inside through what lauded producer Haruomi Hosono hailed as a “shamanistic” vision!” – Hsu Jui-Ting

Meditations Bestseller! Steve Hiett's only album "At the Shore..." is still very popular as a masterpiece of AOR/light mellow with too much unusual transparency and floating feeling. The album has been co-released by Melbourne's Efficient Space and Be With Records for the first time on vinyl! Steve Hiett has worked as an art director and designer, and has also worked as a photographer for top fashion magazines such as VOGUE and MARIE CLAIRE. The original album, released by CBS/Sony in 1983, is known to be extremely rare and hard to find. The album was released only in Japan and was not distributed worldwide, despite the fact that it featured a superb lineup that represented the Japanese music scene at the time: Toru Okada of the Moonriders, Hirofumi Suzuki, Masahiro Mukawa, and Kazuhiko Kato. This is a very rare album. Remastered from the original master tapes. Don't miss it!

Be With Records present the first ever official reissue of Kimiko Kasai with Herbie Hancock's Butterfly, originally released in 1979. The positively sublime and very rare Butterfly LP, recorded in Tokyo in 1979 by Japanese songstress Kimiko Kasai and jazz legend Herbie Hancock. Due to its super-rare status as a Japan-only release, this exquisite collection of covers never got the recognition it deserved at the time, despite incredibly inspired performances from Kimiko, Herbie, and the supremely talented musicians assembled for the project. From heavenly drummer Alphonse Mouzon and renowned organist Webster Lewis to bassist Paul Jackson, reedman Bennie Maupin, and the master percussionist Bill Summers, the legendary performers crafted amazingly good vocal versions of Herbie/Headhunters jazz-funk. Unsurprisingly, it has been heavily in demand for many years. The LP opens with Kimiko's highly desirable version of "I Thought It Was You", an elegant take on Herbie's own anthem. Other superb re-workings include the delicately soulful "Butterfly", jazzy groover "Sunlight", the smooth and sexy "Tell Me A Bedtime Story", and the beautiful ballads "Maiden Voyage" and "Harvest Time". A wonderful example of perfectly understated and masterful jazz-funk soul fusion that shouldn't be missed, the set closes with a jaw-dropping version of Stevie Wonder's "As". This lovingly curated reissue enables a long overdue reappraisal of this hitherto unavailable masterpiece.

No digital version available 

This is the long-awaited, first-ever vinyl release from the Osaka-based band goat. The five tracks are compiled from their debut album “New Games” (2013) and their second album “Rhythm & Sound” (2015). The titles of those releases provide a hint: a sense of joyful play within defined structures, and an emphasis on propulsive pulse and a prioritizing of pure percussive sound over melodic content. With guitar, bass, drums and saxophone, goat create music which is unlike most rock bands, utilizing harmonics outside standard tonality, as well as clever muting, to craft intricate, driven, forceful compositions by Koshiro Hino, aka YPY. goat is currently going through a period of new development and further exploration of intertwining patterns of rhythmic repetition; this compilation is the bedrock. Superbly recorded and mixed by Bunsho Nishikawa, mastered and cut by Rashad Becker, cover art by Tomoo Gokita, this release will be a revelation for your turntable. 

TRACKS: 
A1. New Games 
A2. std 

B1. Solid Eye 
B2. Ghosts Part 1 
B3. On Fire

One of the most representative works of their career, this album contains 7 tracks recorded at the "best performance" in a hall recording. This is a masterpiece that will remain in the history of Japanese fusion music, and was selected as one of the best albums of 1982 by both ADLIB and JAZZLIFE magazines. Cutting by Bernie Grundman. Repressed on clear green vinyl!

Japanese jazz and rare groove masterpiece re-released on clear lime yellow colored vinyl!
A single stroke of the drum will numb your whole body. Japan's super funky drummer, Akira Ishikawa, runs through the wonderland of grooves!

Akira Ishikawa is a superb funky drummer born in Japan. He is highly regarded in many fields for his ability to travel freely through jazz, rock, and African music, fuse them together, and create his own unique musical style. His career is lined with masterpieces of jazz-rock and rare groove, but this album is especially favored for its outstanding selection of songs and poignant musicality. The album includes "Let's Start," a tight cover of Fela Kuti's Afro-funk, "Bongo Rock," a dynamic song with drum breaks, and "Pick Up The Pieces," a jazz-funk version of the Avebury White Band's classic. Pieces," a jazz-funk version of the Avebury White Band classic, and many other monster tunes that are hard to believe were recorded in 1975. Supported by such virtuosos as Kiyoshi Sugimoto, Hiromasa Suzuki, and Ken Muraoka, the album also shines.
text by Yusuke Ogawa (universounds/Deep Jazz Reality)

Musician haruka nakamura will be in charge of in-store music at several Tsutaya stores in Japan for one year from 2023 to 2024. All music will be newly written for the Tsutaya project. Based on the concept of a bookstore and the theme of “forest,” the birthplace of pianos and musical instruments, four albums will be produced through the summer of 2024 under the title “Blue Forest,” which is connected to Nakamura's hometown, Aomori. The first album, the first synthesizer-only music, has become a topic of conversation and has been well received by many listeners. The second album is a piano ambient world. It was well received by listeners with its long-awaited musical worldview. This work is a world of blue like the dawn, as expressed in the jacket photo by Rinko Kawauchi. This is the third work in the series and the deepest blue sound as if diving into the deepest inner voice. The total conceptualization of the Blue Forest series has also been developed into a beautiful binding that you will want to keep with you.

nujabes passed away suddenly in February 2010 due to an accident, and this "metaphorical music" is the first album he put all his energy into after releasing mainly analog singles until then. It is a masterpiece that continues to be loved by many even now, and is the core of nujabes and hydeout productions. It is a historical masterpiece that contains many of the great songs that defined his presence. The first chapter of his miraculous mental landscape music, in which a piece of his soul that burned briefly but fiercely resides, has been released on cassette tape after a lapse of 20 years.

nujabes passed away suddenly in February 2010 due to an accident, and this "metaphorical music" is the first album he put all his energy into after releasing mainly analog singles until then. It is a masterpiece that continues to be loved by many even now, and is the core of nujabes and hydeout productions. It is a historical masterpiece that contains many of the great songs that defined his presence. The first chapter of his miraculous mental landscape music, in which a piece of his soul that burned briefly but fiercely resides, has been released on cassette tape after a lapse of 20 years.

"The origin of techno. The original crystallization of the artists who created the era as big names, immortal monuments beyond the masterpieces." Limited vinyl version reissued in heavy vinyl. The heavy-duty vinyl version in the original jacket supervised by Ryuichi Sakamoto is available in a completely limited edition.

One year has passed since the release of her debut album "Approach to Anima" last year on Guruguru Brain / Bayon Production. Maya ongaku has entered a new phase of evolution, and her new sound approach is a conceptual one based on rhythm machines and electro development. The M-1 "Iyo no Hito" has already been well established in live performances. Anoyo Drive" has an unsettling atmosphere with the effective sound of saxophone riding on the minimal beat. Love with Phantom" is a strangely pop song like a children's song, and you can't escape from the loop in your brain. Meiso Ongaku" is a 15-minute epic and spiritual song that has been performed live many times. This is a masterpiece that symbolizes the original Japanese alternative music that the world is looking for!

This solo debut album was self-produced and released in 1984, following the hiatus of Guernica. Including the title track on the theme of female menstruation and "Mushi no Onna (Pupa Woman)," a baroque song (Pachelbel's Canon) with lyrics written by herself, this album fully expressed her one-of-a-kind worldview and catapulted her to the status of queen of the 80's subculture. Even today, it remains a classic in the history of Japanese women's rock music.

This is the latest EP work by Kaoru Inoue, a DJ, musician, and music producer who has been internationally renowned for his activities under the name Chari Chari and Kaoru Inoue for 30 years since his debut in 1994.

A compilation of reworks of Haruomi Hosono’s iconic solo debut, Hosono House, celebrating 50 years since its release. This compilation sees musicians from the Stones Throw roster and beyond offer up their own interpretations of Hosono’s songs.
Haruomi Hosono is the legendary artist best known for Hosono House and his tenure in the seminal band Yellow Magic Orchestra.
Hosono House still sounds as fresh as it did in 1973. Its impact stretches far beyond Japan, with an unexpected surge of interest when Harry Styles cited it as a leading inspiration for his Grammy Award-winning album Harry’s House.

Musician haruka nakamura will be in charge of in-store music at several Tsutaya stores in Japan for one year from 2023 to 2024. All music will be newly written for the Tsutaya project. Based on the concept of a bookstore and the theme of “forest,” the birthplace of pianos and musical instruments, four albums will be produced through the summer of 2024 under the title “Blue Forest,” which is connected to Nakamura's hometown, Aomori. The first album, the first synthesizer-only music, has become a topic of conversation and has been well received by many listeners. The second album is a piano ambient world. It was well received by listeners with its long-awaited musical worldview. This work is a world of blue like the dawn, as expressed in the jacket photo by Rinko Kawauchi. This is the third work in the series and the deepest blue sound as if diving into the deepest inner voice. The total conceptualization of the Blue Forest series has also been developed into a beautiful binding that you will want to keep with you.

Fully licensed, limited to 500 copies. Frank Chickens could have been possibly forerunners for several famous alternative band, Cibo Matto, but sure had a development on their own. They began in London, early eighties as the original creation of Japanese performers Kazuko Hohki and Kazumi Taguchi. The band debuted with a pair of singles and a full length on Kaz Records. Backed by the likes of Steve Beresford (Alterations, The Slits, General Strike, London Improvisers Orchestra), Annie Whitehead (Penguin Cafe Orchestra, Robert Wyatt), Lol Coxhill, Tony Coe, and Clive Bell, the band soon became a case in history. Now, 37 years after its original release, their second album is being reissued: Get Chickenized! The record came out in 1987 on the British label Flying Lecords and showed a different side of the project, with a major focus on the so-called synth wave counterculture, still maintaining a certain avant feel. With original conspirator Steve Beresford still on board, the band was propelled in the studio by another key figure of the London underground: journalist, composer and producer David Toop. Being John Peel's favorite for a while, the band built a cult following retaining some absurd live performances, well known for their idiosyncratic choreography. Later revamped in the year 2000, thanks to cult label Ninja Tune, the band enjoyed a second wave of success, with a remix album featuring the likes of Pizzicato 5, Fink, and Neotropic. With a cover embellished by the labor of Pere Ubu David Thomas, this second influential album is finally available for your listening pleasure.

An archaeological sound source from the famous label Unseen World, which continues to send obscure electronic music. An early collection of early recordings by Carl Stone, an American composer who studied under Morton Subotnick and is a professor at Chukyo University, and a master of sampling and cut-up collage.
This work consists of 6 unreleased songs from the 70's and 80's and 7 songs of "Shing Kee" excerpted from the work "Mom's" released by New Albion in 1992. "Shing Kee" (1986), which is a sampling of Schubert's "Bodhi" sung by Akiko Yano, has a great sense of ambience for sustained sounds, and Seth Graham and Kara-Lis Coverdale are also surprised by the timeless three-dimensional electronic sound. , "Shibucho" (1984) and "Dong Il Jang" (1982) are also ambitious works in which cut-ups were attempted using sampling methods. Our Rashad Becker is in charge of mastering. An avant-garde electronics masterpiece that unfortunately demonstrated a strange soundscape like melting modern architecture. Even if I listen to it now, it doesn't feel old at all. Recommended for a wide range of people from DJ material to new age to ambient drone lovers. A gatefold specification & booklet & DL code limited track is also included.

2024 Repress. Tokyo's Ai Aso is a Japanese psychedelic pop singer-songwriter whose work has a whisper-thin acid-folk quality to it. She started performing as a solo singer around 2000. Her solo work, infrequent collaborations with White Heaven members You Ishihara and Michio Kurihara, Yurayura Teikoku, and Boris bring a level of fragility and hypnotism to the stage, recalling lost memories, small flavors of Coil, and serial playing on the verge of evaporation. As for her recent activities, she has performed on bills together with Sunn O))), Boris, Masaki Batoh (Ghost), Touri Kudoh, Kim Doo Soo, Mark Fry, Simon Finn, etc. Cut by CGB at Dubplates & Mastering.

A Day of the Sun is a spiritual jazz masterpiece full of poetry by two geniuses of the Japanese musical scene. Masahiko Togashi and Isao Suzuki, pivotal figures in jazz with a unique talent and sensitivity that transcends conventional jazz forms and styles. In addition to being skilled performers they demonstrate extraordinary compositional talent that transcends their sensibilities and wisdom of more conventional jazz. They are together a wonderful combination of techniques, but without the eyes and ears of these two artists, the mutual understanding, friendship and cooperation that only certain artists are able to recreate together, would never have given rise to this music. The album is based on Togashi's drums/percussion and Suzuki's bass, with occasional changes to cello and piano/synths, and is skillfully performed by just the two of them, creating a unique worldview; a performance that far exceeds expectations. The mystical melodies of the East, earthy percussion, and the sensibilities of the two intertwine to create a unique groove, resulting in a universal masterpiece that will never fade away and connects with today's sound makers and DJs. Top sound quality from original master tapes. Includes 4-sided insert with a very interesting interview at the time with the two musicians regarding the record.