Prior to founding Zelone Records and becoming the emperor of mellow groove, Shintaro Sakamoto fronted Yura Yura Teikoku. A scrappy psych trio with humble origins in the Tokyo’s DIY underground, the band cut a unique trail guided by an eclecticism that pushed their sound ever further to new heights. Over two decades, 10 studio albums, a live record, and a slew of EP’s, the band eventually saw crossover success in Japan, signing to a major label and garnering a cult following abroad. However, as everything seemed to fall in place for in place for Yura Yura Teikoku, the band dissolved amicably in 2010, a decision rendering 2007’s masterful Hollow Me their de-facto swan song.
Category: Japan
First & Last: Japanese Private Press, Vol. 7
Welcome to the seventh installment of First & Last, a series of mixes providing a glimpse into the world of Japanese private press, or 自主盤, pronounced “jishuban”, which loosely translates to “independent board.”
Masaru Imada Trio + 1 :: Planets
Yet another inspired ride in BBE’s masterclass series highlighting the golden age of modern Japanese jazz from the late 1960s – early 80s. Helmed and curated by Tony Higgins and Mike Peden, this installment shines a light on the Masaru Imada Trio + 1 lp, Planets. Originally released in 1977 via private press, the seven track set finds pianist and bandleader Masaru Imada joined by bassist Kunimitsu Inaba and drummer Tetsujiro Obara, along with sympathetic percussion courtesy of Yuji Imamura.
The Lagniappe Sessions :: Takuro Okada
As 2022 winds to a close, we are wrapping up this year’s installment of the Lagniappe Sessions with the Tokyo based artist Takuro Okada. The set finds Okada on the heels of his first album in two years, Betsu No Jikan, which features a heavy murderers’ row of of guest players including Jim O’Rourke, Shun Ishiwaka, Nels Cline, Sam Gendel, and Carlos Niño. No stranger to covers (the LP kicks off with Okada and co.’s transfiguration of Coltrane’s “A Love Supreme”), the following session finds the artist paying tribute to fellow countryman Haruomi Hosono, and the title track from Don Cherry’s 1975 LP, Brown Rice.
First & Last: Japanese Private Press, Vol. 6
A dozen dusky acid folk songs for the waning days of summer. Welcome to the sixth installment of First & Last, a series of mixes providing a glimpse into the world of Japanese private press, or 自主盤, pronounced “jishuban”, which loosely translates to “independent board.”
Hiroshi Asada :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview
Hiroshi Asada’s Greetings From Nashville (You Who’s In My Mind) turned 50 this year, the artist’s expressive aural love letter to Country Music and America. Spoken of reverentially by fans and artists from Japan and beyond, the LP was cut in Nashville at the Acuff-Rose studio with a grip of the industry’s most in-demand session players including members of Nashville’s Area Code 615.
Minami Deutsch :: Fortune Goodies
Minami Deutsch are not shy when it comes to krautrocking. Their name in Japanese translates to “South Germany,” they’ve self-identified as “repetition freaks,” and band leader Kyotaro Miula calls the Japanese trio’s third album, Fortune Goodies, an “encyclopedia of krautrock.” But the band offers much more than just pastiche, achieving instead a kind of spiritual homage.
First & Last: Japanese Private Press, Vol. 5
Fourteen humble, cosmic and fragile tracks scanning folk and rock. Welcome to the fifth installment of First & Last, a series of mixes providing a glimpse into the world of Japanese private press, or 自主盤, pronounced “jishuban”, which loosely translates to “independent board.” A proper companion for these lingering, dusky summer days.
Ryo Kawasaki :: Juice
A deeply pleasing sensation arises when terrific cover art not only fully delivers on the music, but also bears a distinct resemblance to it. Ryo Kawasaki’s 1976 jazz-funk album Juice is one such record. Bright and refreshing like a piece of citrus, peel the skin back and you’ll find an electric fantasyland of traversing wires and circuits. Over the course of its seven tracks, the visually sci-fi-tinged world of Juice feels at once perfectly of its time, yet remains delightfully vital in 2022.
Videodrome :: Tetsuo: The Iron Man
However one chooses to interpret the thematic message, part of Tetsuo’s lasting endurance is that it can be enjoyed on a purely visceral level. If you tear away all of the percolating themes, Tetsuo is a pure emulation of the sci-fi and horror content Tsukamoto grew up watching and reading. It’s a love letter to the kaiju films of Toho Studios as well as a continuum of Japanese horror; ironically dubbed “the most metal film ever made
Shintaro Sakamoto :: Like A Fable
Fall once again, dear friends, into the warm waters of Shintaro Sakamoto’s musical universe. Ever the maestro of mellow groove, Like A Fable is Sakamoto’s first album in six years, the fourth in a string of idiosyncratic solo albums that include Love If Possible, Let’s Dance Raw, and How To Live With a Phantom, each propagating their own infectious mixture of sly funk, exotica, disco, and deft songcraft.
First & Last: Japanese Private Press, Vol. 4
This fourth volume of First And Last features a menagerie of tunes for the early days of summer (with seven of the twelve songs culled from EPs), from psych-pop to breezy bossa nova, wrapping up with a grip of introspective folk.
Haruomi Hosono :: Music For Films 2020-2021
Slowing down? If you’ve paid even half attention to the prolific vocation of Haruomi Hosono you know it’s not in the cards. Long before Shoplifters made waves at Cannes, composition work had long been a staple of the musician’s repertoire.
Les Rallizes Dénudés :: The OZ Tapes
Major on every possible level. Not only do The OZ Tapes present one of the earliest sonic portraits of Les Rallizes Dénudés, it serves as an instant de-facto entry point into the band’s vast, unwieldy catalog. It also marks the first release sanctioned by The Last One Musique, an organization formed by band alumni and family in the wake of Mizutani’s passing in 2019 to oversee the issuing of all future archival material.
Akira Ishikawa & His Count Buffalos :: African Rock
Cop the groove. Unleashed back into the wild, Japanese drummer Akira Ishikawa’s 1971 lp, African Rock. Working under the guise of a funky jazz excursion, its eclectic forty minute runtime is full of surprises. Expect a torrid medley of percussion, fat blasts of brass, inspired vocal weirdness, and searing electric guitar courtesy of MVP, Kimio Mizutani.