One of the nicer efforts to arrive on my desk recently was this eight-track gem from Japanese underground delicates, Eddie Marcon. Both Eddie Corman and Jules Marcon served time in garage-psych agitators, LSD-March, but there’s nothing aggressive at all about the music on this collaboration, also featuring luminaries from the Japanese ‘acid folk’ scene.
It may seem a little soon to be planning for autumn, but if there was ever an album for taking out into the desert and star gazing to, then this is it. Stretch out on your car bonnet and strap on your ear goggles. Sprawling and vast, the sounds contained on this seven song CD are presented on a cinematic scale, reaching and expansive, never less than huge.
Lawrence English is an Australian producer and performer not terribly well known outside of his field of expertise, but the kind of artist that the current music scene was made for. He finds an international audience through social networking sites such as Last.fm, as well as through his work with cult performers such as Tenniscoats (see last month’s issue). Based in Brisbane, he is the proprietor of Room40, a record label that deals in the kind of sound often labeled ‘unusual’.
While this latest collection isn’t presented on Room40, it certainly fits in with its usual modus operandi. The tracks are the equivalent of aural paintings; huge watercolours of sound, rich in purple and crimson. Beats are few and far between, the only pulses coming from the occasional crackle of samples as they flicker in and out of the picture.
Easy reference points include a vaguely Floyd-esque guitar figure that picks its way through ‘Watching it Unfold’, though this is by no means progressive rock. On first listening, it appears less structured than anything the average listener is used to, though it quickly gets under your skin and demands another listen, preferably at night.
At its worst, A Colour for Autumn could be accused of being a little long-winded. At its best, it’s how the northern lights would sound if they had a voice.
A Colour for Autumn’ is available from www.amazon.com.
Electric Grizzle, the new 5-track EP from the Grizzly Folk is now available for free download. Constructed from the ground up by the peripatetic songwriting talents of Jon Wilks, aided and abetted by electron-botherer Jon Nice, Electric Grizzle is something of a departure from the barrel-chested folk rumblings of their previous recordings. Featuring vocals from nanbanjin’s Dai Evans (Friday Night) and Emma Kuntze (Gotta Keep an Eye on My Lover), Electric Grizzle brings bristles to pop, both figuratively and literally.
Download it here, and please share it with your friends!
The Grizzly Folkの最新マキシシングルが下記のリンクから無料ダウンロードできます。The Grizzly Folk (Jon Wilks & Jon Nice), Em Kuntze (The Loving Oven) and Dai Evans (Nanbanjin)がフィーチャーされています。この曲はThe Grizzly Folkによって作曲、演奏され、日本の福岡とアラブのアブダビの２か所でレコーディングを行いました。もし気に入ってもらえたら、友達に下記のリンクを紹介したり、ＣＤを焼いたりしてあげてください！
Temporacha, the new album performed by Japanese experimentalists Tenniscoats, produced by Australian avant garde magnet Lawrence English, is not really one for fans of their more singalong albums (if Tenniscoats have ever made singalong music). The seven track collection was recorded on location at Wako Jurin Park and Koma Gawa River, Japan, over two days in the autumn of 2008. Largely improvised, the music often takes second place to the overall sound itself; fragments of melody are recorded beautifully in stereo, as random cars, water-splashes and birds find space in the picture. Lovers of ambient sound will be delighted: the aural backdrops - provided by nature alone - are gorgeous. Standout track is ‘Sitting By’, which features Takeshi Ueno’s vaguely out-of-tune guitar rattling lazily over a lucid soundscape - although, anything that features the whimsical Saya on lead vocals is a winner with this listener. If it’s your first time approaching this weird and wonderful Japanese duo, tread carefully. A more listener-friendly introduction can be found on earlier releases such as Tan Tan Therapy (2007). Temporacha is by no means easy listening, but it’s definitely rewarding if you will but try. First published in Time Out, April 2009.
The theme for this TADA Sampler collection is ‘the unusual’. We’ve scoured the Japanese musical landscape for some of the more peculiar music out there, and we’re happy to confirm that ‘unusual’ does not necessarily equate ’strange’. Contained on this sampler are some of the most beautiful tracks recently released in Japan, either by Japanese artists or artists who happily call Japan home. We hope you enjoy what you hear, and we’re pleased that the artists have agreed to let you have it for free. All we ask is that you share it with your friends, so that other people get to hear this great stuff too.
Thanks,
Tim Dillon
Download TADA Sampler Volume Four
Tenniscoats: Baibaba Bimba (Japanese: バイババビンバ)
www.tenniscoats.com
Tenniscoats are probably one of Japan’s best-known underground acts, and it is with sheer delight that we accept their gift of this wonderful track (with additional thanks to Johan Berthling at Hapna) for our compilation. While many would say that Saya and Takashi Ueno are currently at the peak of their powers, this track - originally from 2007’s Tan Tan Therapy album - was a signal that an amazing talent had arrived on the world stage. Look out for a new album in collaboration with The Pastels later this year.
mothercoat: yoku to bou
www.mothercoat.com
We’ve been good friends with mothercoat for some time, so we’re chuffed that they’ve given us this rare treat. Yokutobou was originally recorded for their first album, Interphone (it can be ordered or downloaded from www.monstar.fm; CDs are fast running out, so BE QUICK), though it appears on our compilation as a remix by their mad genius singer, Giga Dylan. A stunning act to see live, as we recently found out at a their Koumyou Temple gig, which we reviewed. Check out their website for their hectic live schedule.
Lullatone: Your Snore
www.lullatone.com
Your Snore is the 2nd track from Lullatone Presents the Bedtime Beat, a concept album with a twist. Shawn and Yoshimi, a married couple who live their musical life in Nagoya, have created a 20-minute album dedicated to sleep. Does it sound uninspiring? No way! Lullatone’s album recreates childhood dreams, using musical notes as paint. This track appears with thanks to Lawrence English and http://www.someonegood.org.
The Loving Oven: I Can’t Breathe
www.tadamusic.org/node/2
The Loving Oven is an experimental collaboration between a number of musicians based in Kyushu. The music is usually recorded piece by piece in different studios across the island, then molded together via the internet. Artists involved include The Grizzly Folk, Nanbanjin, Roi Schaider and Franklyn Tanner. A full album will be released in summer 2008.
tailor made for a small room: pleasant hill
www.myspace.com/tailormadeforasmallroom
This band are very fresh on the scene, but in many ways the members are veterans. Ayumu is the leader of 4 Bonjour’s Parties, and Miwa is the singer from Lost in Found. Together they make minimalist, psychedelic electronica, and we think it’s great! This is the first release from their forthcoming album.
Nanbanjin: In Time
www.nanbanjin.net
In Time is taken from Nanbanjin’s HiFi-RoFi EP, which can be downloaded for free from their page on www.tadamusic.org. Many people recognize them as one of the best indie bands currently working in this country. Eoin is from England, Dai is from Wales and Manabu is from Fukuoka. Together they make music that often shatters eardrums. Check out their website for their crazy live schedule.
Ueno: Track 8
www.room40.org/releases-suigin.shtml
It’s at this point that our compilation takes a turn towards the avant garde. Takashi Ueno is arguably the busiest man in the Japanese music industry. As well as being half of Tenniscoats, he also performs with countless other bands and as a solo musician. His latest solo release is titled Sui-Gin, and is now available from Australia’s Room40 label, who made the inclusion of this track possible. Recorded on a 12-string guitar, Ueno fed the sound through a ring-modulator to purposefully destroy the original sound. Why? See if you can work it out for yourself.
Akira Kosemura: Garden
www.akirakosemura.com
Akira Kosemura is another big name on the Japanese underground scene, though he seems better known amongst avant garde circles abroad than in his native Japan. Garden, the track that he has given us here, is a perfect example of what he does best: minimal acoustic landscapes that highlight delicate, simple melodic lines. This track is taken from his latest album, a collaboration with Haruka Nakamura. It’s available now from his homegrown label Schole, at www.scholecultures.net
Decentred: Old Sins Cast
www.tadamusic.org/node/145
Decentred sits on a beanbag high above the streets of Nishijin, grabbing sounds from the sky as they swirl around his tower. He feeds the sounds to his computer, which turns them into the magical beeps you can hear on his first collection, downloadable from www.tadamusic.org. Currently not a live act, Decentred is best experienced late at night, on earphones, lying under your kotatsu.
Marihiko Hara: Modena
www.zymogen.net/releases/zym016
Modena, the last track on Marihiko Hara’s album ‘Cesura’ is about the prettiest thing we’ve heard in a long while. Originally from Kyoto, his music has similarities with Autechre and Susumu Yokota. On this song he collaborates with Natsuko Yanagimoto, who also performs with him in his other band, Rimcona Labs. Check out www.zymogen.net for the full album, then find a quiet corner, curl up, and let Marihiko Hara calm your soul.
All songs on this sampler are the property of the artist, unless otherwise stated. TADA Music is not a record company, and the music here is presented courtesy of the artists and their related record companies.
The Grizzly Folk’s first EP, 5-Weight, is now available for free from this very website. A long time in the making, it was first released at the now-no-longer-there tadamusic.org, which was swallowed by a wrestler during a bar-fight. Whilst that repository is now no longer available, the left-hand Grizzly managed to extricate much of the music from the belly of the fighting beast, and it is slowly being released here.
5-Weight is short but oh-so-sweet, and well worth a listen. Please, have a go!
Download the file here: The Grizzly Folk - 5-Weight EP
This month sees the release of AoooO, the debut album from Japanese indie supergroup, OneOne, comprised of members from Deerhoof and Tenniscoats. The Grizzly Folk are delighted to clear our music pages for a sneak preview and chat with the creators of one of 2008’s must endearing collaborations.
The P-Vine label must be delighted to be getting this little gem, just as The Grizzly Folk are delighted to be the first journos allowed to review it. OneOne’s AoooO is the album we’ve been waiting for all year and, as we stumble into December, it’s a relief to say that the best things have been kept ’til last.
Regular readers will know that the Grizzly Folk are mildly obsessed with all things Tenniscoats. Less well known is our gluttonous appetite for all things Deerhoof, so much so that we’ve occasionally come to fisticuffs when the CD player needs attention. So we thank the indie gods for bringing the 2 together as OneOne - a band that makes use of the combined talents of Saya (Tenniscoats) and Satomi (Deerhoof), backed by the unhinged freakery of their respective partners, Ueno (Tenniscoats) and Greg (Deerhoof).
Initial listens suggest that this might be something more for the Deerhoof posse. Tenniscoats are often described in serene, occasionally psychedelic terms, and while they’ve sometimes let loose on tracks like ‘Moshi-Moshi, This is Ueno’, they’ve never rocked out quite as much as AoooO’s ‘Letitino’ or ‘Unicorn’, both vaguely reminiscent of late-90s Blur. The mixing is fantastic, with Greg’s ferocious drumming allowed to crackle over the wooden, homey thud of Satomi’s Hofner violin bass - the kind of sound the aforementioned Britpoppers mastered with ‘Coffee & TV’ and ‘Look Inside America’. Indeed, the album’s standout track, ‘Tobe Tobe’, sounds like a Damon Albarn thought waiting to bubble into existence. Wouldn’t it be fascinating if these 3 compulsive collaborators put their minds together for their next project? Ah, the stuff of a madman’s dreams.
Despite a generally upbeat atmosphere, there are occasional moments of melancholy and release, such as the blissful, early-morning wonder of “Halleluhi”, which features one of Saya’s most plaintive and beautiful vocal lines. Elsewhere, they stray into their native avant-garde territory, exploring something vicious and disorderly on ‘Wan Wan’. It shouldn’t work on a pop album as hook-filled as AoooO, but it really does. It’s almost-mainstream-friendly-avant-noise; anyone who wants something more intense should try Moere, a sound exploration featuring Tenniscoats and friends, released earlier this year.
As Deerhoof continue to teeter on the edge of international superstardom (last seen supporting Radiohead across the USA) and Tenniscoats continue to collaborate with everyone they possibly can (next seen releasing an album with Scottish indie legends, The Pastels), the chances of another OneOne album seem some way off. However, on the strength of this disc, it’ll be well worth the wait. In the meantime, allow yourself 27 minutes each morning with this bag of loveliness. It’s depression-proof. Smiles are guaranteed.
Can you tell us a bit about how OneOne came about?
Years ago, when I went to San Francisco, we were introduced by a mutual friend who was involved with a kind of cultural exchange music program. He said he knew someone who was really similar to me, and it’d be great if we got together.
A mutual friend?
Yes, I first saw him in the street, eating bananas and carrying records. It really made me feel, “Wow! I’ve come to another country!”
Are you a fan of Deerhoof? Do you have a particular favorite track?
‘Bendnin’ holds a lot of memories for me.
Considering that Satomi is based in the US, and you work out of Tokyo, how did you bring this album project together?
Whether we were far apart or close together, either way, we made songs alone first, then - through eventually playing the songs together - we arranged them, and sometimes came up with lyrics.
It’s a playful kind of album, wouldn’t you say?
Yeah, it sounds like we’re playing, doesn’t it? It’s certainly more interesting making music with Satomi than doing it alone!
Some of the songs seem more standard than others, take ‘Halleluhi’, for example…
If you read the lyrics to ‘Halleluhi’, the meaning becomes more obvious, but it has 2 meanings: ha ga hareru (my tooth is swollen), and kyou hareru (today it’s sunny). Either way, it’s not English, but I gave it an English title based around the word, “Hallelujah”.
It’s really beautiful, and it’s interesting that it fits so comfortably onto an album that also features the experimental craziness of a track like “Wan Wan”!
That track is by Takashi (Saya’s partner in Tenniscoats).
That figures!
We arranged it together for this album. A guy called Yashi-Kun plays the synth on it.
Do you think it’s possible to categorize an album this diverse? Is it indie? Alternative?
I think it sounds like the rock version of “Minna no Uta” (a long-running NHK music program for kids), doesn’t it! The songs are connected by a sense of humor, I think. If you enjoyed it, then that makes me happy.
Do you see it appealing to audiences of both Tenniscoats and Deerhoof? Your regular bands are quite different…
I’d be happy if that were the case, but I’m not thinking much about the influence of Deerhoof or Tenniscoats. I’d be pleased if OneOne’s accidental joy could be passed along to anyone.
It has such a clear, strong sound. It almost sounds like a Stephen Street production.
Well, Deerhoof’s Greg Saunier mixed the album. His is a precise, caring form of witchcraft!
Hahaha! It certainly does Deerhoof no harm. Speaking of which, Greg was on the OneOne Japan tour in September, wasn’t he? How did that go?
We had Greg and Takashi along for the tour, so arranging and rehearsing the songs in a band format was really fun, and personally I felt it was a real eye opener. Like, wow - bands practice this much! Rehearsals can actually be this fun!
You nicknamed them CanCan. Have they got plans to do an album too?
Yeah, CanCan was formed especially for the tour. They were essentially an improvised backing group, so they don’t have an album out yet. It’d be great to hear one though, right?
A collaborative album by Greg Saunier and Takashi Ueno? Imagine the rock possibilities! Are there plans for the whole OneOne/ CanCan unit to tour again? I missed the show last time round.
We don’t have any tour plans at the moment, but every dog has his day! I’m expecting something interesting!
How about supporting bigger acts? Deerhoof famously played stadiums across the US, supporting Radiohead. Couldn’t OneOne do something like that?
There’s a Japanese children’s song called “Inu no Omawari San”. Every time I think of OneOne, I think of that song (”Wan Wan” being the sound a Japanese dog makes), so it’s kind of surreal to think of us as a regular touring band. But supporting someone might be fun.
You’re becoming famous as a serial collaborator, Saya! Who is your dream collaborator?
I’m a fan of Arvo Pärt (legendary Estonian minimalist composer and artist). But I don’t think I’ll get the chance to meet, let alone perform with him. Maybe I could send him a letter…
No harm in trying. Anyone else?
Recently I’ve been making field recordings with Lawrence English.
What do you think you’ll take away from the experience of collaborating with members of Deerhoof?
Tenniscoats have started rehearsing in studios! Hahaha. I remember when Satomi-Chan and Greg played their song, ‘Makkoukujira’, in the house. It was modest, moving and very touching. Sometimes I remember that, and it gives me inspiration to keep trying for another day. Apart from that, I learnt more practical things in life - for example, if we drink coffee all at once, it’s tastier! Night time is for sleeping - that kind of thing! I learnt quite a lot!
And the future of OneOne? What’s next?
For now, OneOne are wandering.
Interview by Jon Wilks, with translation assistance from his long-suffering wife, Emi. AoooO is out now on the P-Vine label, available from all good retailers. This article was first published in Japanzine.
The mercurial Lawrence English
Brisbane, Australia. Known for its botanical gardens and something called Riverfestival (thanks Wikipedia). Oh, and increasingly synonymous with decent Japanese music, thanks to Lawrence English and his good wife Rebecca, owners and curators of the Room40 and Someone Good record labels respectively. Seriously, if it wasn’t for good folk like these, naysayers that write the Japanese music scene off as so much style over substance would be absolutely right. As good always triumphs over evil, talent must triumph over visual kei, and so these friendly Brisbanians have given an international outlet to Tenniscoats, Lullatone, Tujiko Noriko and Akira Kosemura. Knights in shining armor? Can’t argue with that.
Jon Wilks: Can you explain the difference between Room40 and Someone Good? How do you decide which artist belongs on which label?
Lawrence English: I guess the primary difference with Room40 and Someone Good is the curation and aesthetic that each of the labels focuses on. In broad terms, Room40 is more concerned with exploratory practice, whereas Someone Good is more focused on avant-pop in all it’s varied guises. Artists like Tenniscoats and Tujiko Noriko, who are part of the Room40 catalogue, generally have longer relationships with that label - and in both those cases I have been directly involved in the production of those records. To me, those editions tend to fit the Room40 mode of operations, whereby the artists are in some ways reaching out to new ideas or approaches - exploring a different territory to what might be on their other releases. For someone good, the label is also curated by my wife and partner Rebecca, who has a large say in what the label issues and how it functions. She has a very acute ear for unusual pop.
How long have the labels been in operation, and how did they come into existence?
Room40 started in 2000, and basically started out of a feeling I had that there was a distinct lack of representation of sound here in Australia. I’d also been passed some great records by artists who were struggling to find a home for their works and it struck me as odd that these discs weren’t being supported more readily. Since then, Room40 has gone on to actively advocate for sound art and expanding listening cultures over here. We have also worked on tours and exhibitions that take in New Zealand, Hong Kong, Japan, etc, promoting and expanding where this kind of work is experienced. Someone Good started out last year. Rebecca and I were talking about it for some time as we’d both been sent great records that sat outside the realm of Room40.
You have a large “stable” of Japanese artists. Do you have a particular affiliation with Japan, or is it just coincidence?
I have to confess a strong interest in Japanese music (and culture more generally). I grew up on a lot of anime and manga as a kid, and that rubbed off on me. I guess, as well, in many cases, I think that there’s a particular way of approaching work that many Japanese artists create that sits aside from many ‘western artists’. I’m speaking broadly of course, but take an artist like Tujiko Noriko; her work is quite unique in terms of song form, sound choices and production etc - each of those elements is not necessarily what you might expect - and yet, when combined together it works in such an elegant and alluring way. It’s quite intoxicating, and I find this quality in a number of other groups from Japan. I’m not sure if it’s necessarily a social thing, or maybe it’s the way that music fits into Japanese culture or something else altogether, but I feel a very special quality in many Japanese acts and artists - like Tenniscoats also. Those guys are just such natural musicians, and the way they approach melody is just so special.
As an artist yourself, have you spent much time in Japan?
I’ve toured there about 9 times and I have to say, it’s always a pleasure.
Got any tales of Japan-based hi-jinks over the years?
I prefer to think about tales of amazing food and credit card concern - that country knows how to produce frenzy (albeit in a hushed and restrained manner). To be honest, some of the best times I have had in Japan have been in very small towns, or in the countryside. I often stay in Shizumi, Nara prefecture - an out of the way but special little place, not too far from one of my favourite zen Buddhist temples at Taima.
You’ve been orchestral in bringing many of these Japanese artists to your native Australia. How do they take to performing ‘Down Under’? Are they received well?
Generally everyone has had a ball, found their feet real quick and just enjoyed themselves. The Australian culture is fairly welcoming and friendly, so that always helps. My wife and I basically run a bed and breakfast these days, so people are instantly at home with us - quite literally! We have this large old Queenslander-style house, a big deck and possums that visit nightly (not the American kind; the kawaii Aussie type), so all in all it’s a nice spot. Our official mascot, Schnapps, is always about, too! In terms of response, Tenniscoats, Tujiko Noriko, Lullatone et al have all sold out their shows in Brisbane, and many other places as well.
Just how strong a drinker is Tenniscoats’ Takashi Ueno? In my experience, he’s a cheap date!
Not sure about that, though he’s a champion coffee drinker, that’s for sure. That man loves a loooong black in the morning! Incredible guitarist, too.
Undoubtedly. Your latest release involves John Chantler - himself a Japan veteran - and the semi-legendary Tujiko Noriko. How did that come about, given that you’re based in Australia, she lives in Paris, and John’s bedded down in London?
I’ve known Noriko for about 4 years now. We started a little experiment when she was here in 2004, and from that the Blurred In My Mirror CD kind of bloomed. When she was here again in 2005, we started another approach that has ended up being U. When I visited her in Paris last year, we had a chat about the record and decided to go for it this year. John was also involved in the last record - he’s a great musician and has a good sense of playfulness with his work that I really admire. He was in Brisbane for a few days in June and we just went for it - redrafted a lot of the sketches I’d made based on Noriko’s original vocal recordings and then passed them back to Noriko who redrafted the vocals based on the new tracks. The whole record is like a game of ping pong, passing the idea back and forth.
How can readers get hold of your labels’ catalogues? Do you have outlets in Japan?
Best bet is to order direct from www.room40.org or www.someonegood.org, but we certainly have distribution in Japan - you can find most of the albums in Tower, Disk Union, HMV and all the indie stores.
Anything else you’d like us to know about before we sign off?
Next time I visit Japan, I really want to see a Tanuki in the wild! Seriously!
“U” by Tujiko Noriko, Lawrence English and John Chantler is out now on Room40.
Aside from being increasingly synonymous with the experimental sound scene in the UK, John Chantler’s name can often be found lurking around the thank-you section of Japanese sleeve-notes. Having worked extensively with Maher Shalal Hash Baz and Tenniscoats (he played drums on Totemo Aimasho’s “Kimi Ni Naritai”, amongst other things), he recently completed work on U, a masterful collaboration with Australia’s Lawrence English and Japan’s leading avant-garde chanteuse, Tujiko Noriko. The trio are currently preparing for a gig at London’s OTO CAFE (November 1st), so we were delighted when John found the time to chat with TADA about his story so far. (more…)
Towards the end of summer, 2008, word spread across the Kyushu underground that Doddodo, high priestess of the Kansai noise scene, would be making a weekend trip to Fukuoka for 2 separate appearances. On the advice of Japanzine’s JP DuQuette, TADA Music snapped up tickets for both events, and then sat around for a month, twiddling its thumbs until the weekend finally came around.
For those not yet in the know, Doddodo was created for a Hayao Miyazaki project, but banished to a Hideo Nakata movie for reasons best left unspoken. That’s our theory, anyway. Some say she was born Namin Haku in Osaka, probably around 30 years ago. Nobody really knows the truth, and the presumption is that she probably prefers it that way. (more…)
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