Gaia: Selected Ambient & Downtempo Works (1996-2003)’ is a new in-depth compilation of works by Japanese musician Dream Dolphin.

Co-compiled by Eiji Taniguchi, it draws from a vast discography of music oscillating between IDM, Pop and Electronic Dance Music. First appearing on Eiji’s compilation ’Heisei No Oto - Japanese Left-field Pop From The CD Age (1989-1996)’, this selection of rediscoveries, further shines a light on the singular musician known as Dream Dolphin and her place in Japan’s rich electronic music legacy.

Dream Dolphin was originally an Ambient and Electronic project by the Japanese artist referred to simply as Noriko, who moved from studying classic Italian songs as a child, to increasingly being inspired by artists such as PIL, Yellow Magic Orchestra, KLF and movies such as ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’ and ‘Le Grand Bleu’. The music she released under the name Dream Dolphin, from the age of sixteen, is unique and versatile in style, encompassing Ambient, IDM, Techno, Trance and Drum & Bass, whilst fusing natural sounds with her own spoken word lyrics.

Dream Dolphin released an incredible twenty albums in just eight years. In addition to her own projects, she has also put together a number of fascinating compilations herself, as well as composing ambient music to be used in hospitals and other caring contexts. ‘Gaia: Selected Ambient & Downtempo Works (1996-2003)’ contains 15 tracks thoughtfully selected from various albums that until now were only released on CD format. More

Music From Memory return with a further six tracks from Dutch musician Richenel. Continuing with recordings taken from his debut album 'La Diferencia’, originally released in 1982 on the cult Amsterdam cassette only label Fetisj, the tracks on Music From Memory’s second EP ‘Perfect Stranger’ includes alternate takes drawn from Richenel’s personal copy of the album alongside a further composition which didn’t make it onto the original Fetisj cassette.

Studying set and costume design whilst making a name for himself as a singer and performer in Amsterdam’s underground clubs, Richenel played with several disco acts and cultivated an extravagant cross-gender stage persona before connecting with members of the local label. Hooking up through their time together at the Rietveld art academy in Amsterdam, Fetisj was an experimental multi media collective which revolved around a loose mix of various young artists and musicians. Having developed a house band with artists going by a number of different pseudonyms the label set up their own small makeshift studio and would produce and sell the cassettes through their distribution network and at events across the city. Recorded amongst the turmoiled punk and squatter scene of Amsterdam against a backdrop of drugs and social unrest, the ‘La Diferencia’ sessions reflect a unique mix of punk aesthetics with a synthesized bedroom funkiness.

A somewhat illustrious figure in Dutch pop history with his flamboyant appearance as well as having one of the more exceptional male voices to come out of the country, Richenel would go on to record a number of successful albums and hit singles in the Netherlands and beyond. This largely unknown album on Fetisj however, seems to embody the spirit of another time; a particularly unique and richly creative moment in Amsterdam’s musical and cultural history and one that is deserving of a much wider audience.

‘Perfect Stranger’ is co-compiled by Orpheu De Jong More

Music From Memory is thrilled to introduce Dead Sound, the collaborative project of Marco Sterk (aka Young Marco) and Berlin-based pop-auteur John Moods. Both artists are no strangers to the label; Sterk forms one third of the trio Gaussian Curve, while Moods released the 2022 album ‘Hidden Gem’ with The Zenmenn.

Their collaboration was both planned and spontaneous; Sterk initially reached out in 2022 expressing his desire to work with Moods. The pair finally got together in 2024 to produce ‘Into The Void’, an album that burst into life over the course of a few creatively charged days in each other’s company.

Moods’ dream-like, emotionally charged music wears its heart on its sleeve; its very human vulnerability makes it a perfect match for Sterk’s strong sense of melody and textural sonic visions.

‘Into The Void’ carries these psychedelic traits in its DNA, but they exist layered deep amongst the shadows. Painting on a wide canvas that effortlessly skips between genres, the pair weave anything that inspires them into a truly unique tapestry; a bold attempt to touch at the beyond.

Exploring the space between perception (level of the mind) and the nature of the universe (actual level of reality) seems traditionally like an impossible task. But there’s gotta be a time and a space for the profound and this album invites the listener to go deep, letting go of concepts such as love and opening oneself up to one’s own authentic journey. This transformative force of healing is a central theme of ‘Into The Void’, a path that is lined with light and darkness in equal measure. But, as Moods says, “do not skip the darkness, let that door open and swallow you. And maybe you’ll find, it's not as dark as you perceived at first."

Sleeve art by Michael Willis. More

The next installment of MFM's popular multi-artist compilation Virtual Dreams: 'Virtual Dreams - Ambient Explorations In The House And Techno Age, Japan 1993-1999'. As with Part One, released in 2020, 'Virtual Dreams II' shines a light on house and techno-adjacent music that helped redefine the definition of ambient music during the 1990s.

The focus of Part One heavily fell on music from techno and house producers in Europe, eagerly exploring new soundtracks for chill-out rooms and re-imagining the potential future of club culture from new perspectives. For Part Two, we narrow the lens to focus on a unique time and place, namely Japan between 1993-1999. Despite missing out on the 'Acid House Fever', club culture was beginning to take shape in Japan during the early '90s. In contrast to the rest of the world, where ambient techno / IDM emerged as a by-product or response to the scene, 'listening techno', as it is known in Japan, was a central pillar of the culture right from the start.

'Virtual Dreams II' aims to shine a light on this unique moment in time where the thread of ambient music weaved its way through the music of an emerging club culture. This period saw the birth of many great Japanese techno labels such as Sublime Records, Transonic Records, Syzygy Records, Frogman Records, and Form@ Records, following in the late '90s. 'Virtual Dreams II' features ambient, chill-out, and intelligent techno from these leading labels alongside other lesser-known but equally influential imprints, as well as ambient deviations from Japanese house producers. Much of the music featured has only ever been released on CD.

'Virtual Dreams II' is compiled by Eiji Taniguchi and Jamie Tiller, who have worked closely together on previous Music From Memory releases such as 'Heisei No Oto' and 'Dream Dolphin - Gaia'. It is also the final project Jamie Tiller worked on before his tragic passing in 2023. Jamie had been researching, planning, and compiling this version of Virtual Dreams even before the first chapter was released, believing that there were many great tracks in Japan that fit the concept of the series. Knowing how much love and energy he put into compiling it gives it an extra special place in our hearts.

Compiled by Jamie Tiller and Eiji Taniguchi with artwork by Kenta Senekt, design by Steele Bonus and liner notes by Itaru W. Mita, More

Introducing ‘Total Blue’, the Los Angeles-based trio of Nicky Benedek, Alex Talan, and Anthony Calonico. Despite collaborating for over a decade, ‘Total Blue’ represents a new chapter in their artistic journey together as a trio.

Embracing chance, inviting the unknown, and guided by a spirit of sheer play and exploration, ‘Total Blue’ was driven by a desire to ‘touch the beyond’ in pursuit of an elusive vibe the three had been chasing for years.

Alex, Nick, and Anthony envision ‘Total Blue’ as the all-encompassing full picture, a place where the real and the imaginary begin to blur; a destination reached not through escapism but by expanding one's perspective; a widened scope of vision where personality both shines and disintegrates.

Across the album, their mission statement is expertly achieved with subtlety and delicate human touch; painting with a lush palette of digital synths, Akai EVI wind synthesizer, fretless bass, and guitar, the trio masterfully balance texture and color, evoking wide expansive vistas that stretch from Los Angeles right out to the furthest reaches of sky and sea. This is ‘Total Blue’ - a place of time and timelessness where echoes of history and tradition merge with rootless inhuman sonics.

Art and design by Michael Willis. More

The return of Gaussian Curve - Gigi Masin, Jonny Nash and Marco Sterk’s much-loved trio are back for the first time since their 2016 sophomore album 'The Distance', presenting two new tracks entitled 'Winter Sun' and 'Fever Dream'.

Both tracks originate from recording sessions that took place in Amsterdam in 2016 for 'The Distance'. Despite not finding a place on the final album and being left as unfinished sketches for six years, the tracks represent an important part of the Gaussian Curve story which the band felt compelled to complete. Coinciding with the decision to perform a handful of live shows in 2022, they finally revisited the sketches, mixing and arranging them with the goal of giving them the full release that they deserve.

The trio’s trademark sound hits from first moments of 'Winter Sun'; a lush slow builder with all the classic GC ingredients; Nash’s airy and spacious guitar lines interplay with Masin’s warm rhodes, underpinned by Sterk’s subtle use of electronics and the minimal rhythm of a CR-78 drum machine.

On 'Fever Dream', the trio subtly expand their palette; a gently building 303 bass line and 808 rhythm form the foundations of the piece, with Masin’s vocals adding to a slow-burning intensity. Arguably a fuller sound hinting at new areas of exploration for the trio, but unmistakably Gaussian Curve.

Graphic art by Qiu Yang, design by Steele Bonus, More

2024 Repress!
Music From Memory continue their 12? series with the release of an EP. This 4 track comp holds 3 tracks from the LP and one unreleased.. Tip! More

Repress!

Music From Memory is excited to announce a special compilation that they’ve been working on for some time now; MFM053 – VA – Heisei No Oto – Japanese Left-field Pop From The CD Age (1989-1996). Compiled by long-time friends of the label, Eiji Taniguchi and Norio Sato, Heisei No Oto delves into a world of music released almost exclusively on CD and brings together a fascinating selection of discoveries from a little known and overlooked part of Japan’s musical history.

The last ten or so years have seen a global wave of interest in Japanese music encompassing ambient, jazz, new wave and pop records from the 1980s, some of which is increasingly considered the most innovative and visionary music of that time. Although some music from this period, in the form of ‘City Pop’ or ‘rare groove’ records, had been coveted by collectors and DJs for a number of years, most Japanese music from the time was little known outside and often even within Japan.

Sometime around the mid 2000s, two Osaka record store owners, Eiji Taniguchi of Revelation Time and Norio Sato of Rare Groove, along with a handful of deep Japanese diggers such as Chee Shimizu of Organic Music records in Tokyo, began to explore beyond the typical ‘grooves’ or ‘breaks’. Much like their counterparts in Europe and the US, they began delving into home-grown ambient, jazz, new wave and pop records, discovering visionary music, often driven by synthesizers or drum computers, that broke beyond the typical confines of their genres.

Spending tireless hours in local record stores and embarking on digging trips across the country, Eiji Taniguchi and Norio Sato, much like Chee Shimizu, have been at the forefront of unearthing and introducing many of the very Japanese records now loved and sought after around the world. Yet as YouTube algorithms and vinyl reissues would transport such music into the global consciousness and demand and therefore scarcity intensified for such records, so Eiji and Norio have recently begun to turn their attention to CDs.

The title of the compilation Heisei No Oto refers to the sound of the Heisei era, which began in 1989 and corresponds to the reign of Emperor Akihito until his abdication in 2019. Marking the culmination of one of the most rapid economic growths in Japanese history, 1989 also coincided with the music industry’s final shift away from vinyl in favour of CDs. And, although compact discs were first introduced seven years earlier it wasn’t until late into the ‘80s that, beyond dance music labels, CDs became the exclusive format for major and independent labels in Japan and throughout the world.

This however didn’t signal the end of the innovation in Japan. Many of those same musicians who have become known for their work in the ‘80s would continue to produce outstanding music well into the mid ‘90s, as greater innovation and advances in musical equipment allowed Japanese musicians and producers to refine and explore new sounds. While musicians such as the seminal Haruomi Hosono, whose productions feature on a number of tracks, would continue to push the boundaries of these new technologies, these technological advances also meant less established musicians were able to make use of increasingly affordable but state-of-the-art equipment.

Including music by Haruomi Hosono as well as Yasuaki Shimizu, Toshifumi Hinata and Ichiko Hashimoto who have become known and loved around the world in recent years, Hesei No Oto also features Japanese pop star Yosui Inoue, producers Jun Sato and Keisuke Kikuchi in aaddition to less established artists from the contemporary, jazz, new wave, pop and dance music scenes. Bringing together a selection of tracks that seem to define these specific genres and in fact move fluidly between a number of them, the music on the compilation is again underscored by experimentations with synthesizers and drum computers though with something of a gentle Pop sensibility. Reimagined here then under the encompassing term ‘Left-field Pop’, this is an exciting chapter in Japanese musical history that has only just begun to be fully explored.

VA - Heisei No Oto - Japanese Left-field Pop From The CD Age (1989-1996) is a 2xLP/2xCD that includes liner notes by Chee Shimizu and artwork by Hagihara Takuya and is released on February 28th. More

Music From Memory is pleased to announce the upcoming release of ‘Salt And Sugar Look The Same’, a collaborative album from Tim Koh and Sun An.

Tim Koh is an American multi-instrumentalist and visual artist born and raised in Los Angeles. He has been touring, releasing music and showing art works internationally for nearly two decades. Sun An is a Southern California-based graphic designer, art director, and sound designer who has self-released music since 2012.

‘Salt And Sugar Look The Same’ plays somewhat like a dreamlike collage; across 18 short compositions, finger-picked guitars melt with electronics and warped samples to create a form of American Primitivism bent and refracted through Tim and Sun’s unique lens.

Their collaborative journey unfolded gradually, exchanging snippets via email over the span of a year or so, Sun in LA and Tim in Berlin. Amidst personal struggles and uncertainties, the act of recording and composing became a refuge, a safe space where they could navigate life's complexities together. Though they didn't converse much, mostly just sending music, their musical dialogue spoke volumes, shaping a narrative that evolved naturally over time. As they shared their musical ideas, they discovered a profound sense of connection and understanding with one another. The music became a conduit for healing, bridging the gaps between them and offering comfort in times of need.

Their musical influences and backgrounds anchored them. From reminiscing about past scenes to exploring cultural intricacies of being Korean American in Los Angeles, infused with a natural sense of shared identity, their collaboration reflected a mergence of old and new memories into a hallucinatory, dream-like experience. Across the 18 compositions that make up the album, incense emerges as a poignant motif, symbolizing the passage of time. Each incense stick becomes a vessel carrying the essence of moments gone by, while the holder becomes the custodian of these ephemeral memories.

‘Salt And Sugar Look The Same’ invites the listener on a boundary-transcending journey of introspection, joy, and pain, creating an experience that lingers long after the last note fades.

Sleeve art by Brian DeGraw, design by David McFarline. More

Music From Memory is delighted to present ‘Elevations’, a new album from Manchester based artist Tom Burford, aka Contours.

Drawing heavily on his background as a drummer and percussionist, ‘Elevations’ began as an exploration of the Balafon, a Malian tuned percussion instrument, before organically growing into its final form; a delicate suite of compositions centered around rhythmical interactions of percussion, synthesizer and strings.

Recorded during the pandemic and the period following, the album reflects a desire to lose oneself in the expanse of nature - the title ‘Elevations’ being a direct nod to the mountainous area of Cumbria where Tom grew up. The album also represents the joy of creating with friends; it features performances from several of his musical contemporaries, many of which were recorded at his home in Manchester. Slowly taking shape, the final result is a record that seamlessly blends electronic and acoustic, operating at the intersection of Minimalism, Jazz, Fourth World and Contemporary Classical music. More

Repress!
Uneven Paths: Deviant Pop From Europe, 1980-1991 is the second multiple artist compilation on Music From Memory and is compiled by record connoisseur Raphael Top-Secret and label man Jamie Tiller. The compilation brings together twenty one tracks from across the continent; exploring the more unusual and unexpected sides of Pop music produced during that period.Drawing material from cult experimental artists such as Steve Beresford, Brenda Ray and Bill Nelson alongside one-off independent musical projects rescued from the fringes, ’Uneven Paths’ focuses on a selection of tracks that go beyond the confines of mainstream pop music but which also transcend expectations of much of the ’experimental’ music of the time. This is music with one foot in the avant-garde and another foot firmly rooted within the sensibilities of Pop; where Jazz musicians detour into Synth-Pop, Punk bands break into Boogie jams, and student doctors jam out on odd melodies with synthesizers and drum machines during their night shifts. More

Staying on the Mediterranean coast for their third release, Music From Memory this time shift their attention to the work of Mallorcan musician Joan Bibiloni. TIP!

Primarily a guitarist, Bibiloni was creating music at an early age, releasing his first single at the tender age of 15. In his twenties he formed Spanish progrock outfits Zebra and Euterpe where he would meet Pepe Milan, the two of them becoming the bluesy folk duo 'Milan & Bibiloni'. Bibiloni himself would later go on to play with a number of luminary musicians such as Larry Coryell, Daevid Allen and John Cage to name but a few.

In 1982 Bibiloni set up his own label Blau in order to highlight the muchoverlooked work of musicians not only on his home island of Mallorca but across the Balearic Islands. In doing so he created a platform not only for
local talent but also for his own music to breathe a new life, much influenced by the landscape and life that surrounds the islands.

Whilst Bibiloni's first solo releases on his Blau imprint have stronger echoes of contemporary Jazz fusion of the time, it is on the album known as 'Una Vida Llarga I Tranquila' where Bibiloni really began to experiment with new soundsand technologies; fusing tape loops, drum computers and synthesizers.

Taking these more electronic infused works as a departure point for the compilation and drawing on material from across his following five albums, El Surï sets out to highlight Joan Bibiloniïs unique ambient fusion and sun-drenched Mediterranean beach boogie. More

2023 marks the tenth year of Music From Memory; a decade of groundbreaking archival releases, cross-generational collaborations and long-standing creative partnerships with our ever-expanding community of artists.

To celebrate this milestone, earlier this year we asked our roster of artists to submit a piece of music for an anniversary compilation. As submissions gradually came in, we were blown away by what we received and slowly began to piece them together into what was to become “10”.

Featuring work from artists who were present during the formation of the label, such as Gigi Masin, Joan Bibiloni and Michal Turtle, as well as artists like The Zenmenn, RAMZi and Dea, who have helped the label expand over subsequent years, “10” serves as a natural bookmark of where we are musically, whilst simultaneously reflecting on the label's rich musical past.

In keeping with the Music From Memory ethos, the music of “10” spans both time and space, with submissions ranging from Vito Ricci's 'Da Hamptons' (1985) to Yu Su & J. Wilson's 'Mitti Atar' (2023). It crosses the globe, with a total of 10 countries represented across 17 tracks. The final result is an immersive musical compilation that flows perfectly from start to finish.

Tragically, during the last few weeks of finalising MFM066, label co-owner Jamie Tiller passed away in a sudden accident. “10” was always intended to be a way to reflect on the journey of Music From Memory. The fact that it is now also one of the last releases that the team all worked on together adds a whole other level of reflection and makes it all the more special.

* incl. insert liner notes by John Gómez) Artwork by Bráulio Amado. Design by David McFarline. More

2023 Repress!

Music From Memory are excited to present the debut LP of Kaifeng born, Vancouver based artist Yu Su in collaboration with Chinese label bié Records. Titled 'Yellow River Blue' it is our first release of 2021 and the second collaboration between label and artist, following up on the strongly received EP 'Roll With The Punches' from 2019 on Second Circle.

Named after the world’s most heavily silted river, 'Yellow River Blue' is Yu Su's personal musical autobiography, constructed around stories of chasing something inconceivable. Written and recorded in different continents in between August 2019 and March 2020, all songs seek to musically translate years of moving and touring, temporarily settling, and the feelings of both being turned away and accepted. In her own words, “The world is my home and it isn’t, but as long as there is generosity of water and mud...” It is an homage to her home beside the Yellow River.

Yu Su's debut album consists of eight songs that are versatile in both writing and aesthetics. Versatile individually, consistent as a whole. Yu Su is in a class of her own, dodging the obvious while combining sounds and inspirations of various origins into a new destination that sounds like her home in the here and now. It's a release that is constantly in motion and moves fluently between contemporary pop, ethereal sound compositions and dance-floor experiments.

'Yellow River Blue' comes as part of a collaboration with Yu Su's co-founded new label bié Records and will be released as MFM052 in vinyl format by Music From Memory on January 25th 2021, after seeing a full digital album release via bié on January 22nd in the new Year of the Ox, according to the Chinese zodiac. Both formats come in different exclusively designed artworks. More

Repress!

Self-titled debut album of Habitat Ensemble, a new musical collective headed up by musician Marius Houschayer.

The collective originates deep in the south of the Czech Republic, on the border with Austria, amongst the idyllic hills and fields of a village called Maríž, where a summer school of outsiders and creatives have been gathering since the 1990s. Enriching each other through intercultural exchange, summer school participants have created a unique gathering of artistic expression and interdisciplinary research.

Originally grown out of the idea of translating the unique energy of the community and its environment into a musical journey where each member makes their own individual contribution, during the summer of August 2022, The Habitat Ensemble became an exciting vehicle for connection and co-creation.

Whether it be musical experimentation, composition, poetry, song or dance, Habitat Ensemble, having started as a series of multidisciplinary workshops, slowly developed into a unique musical recording. The album serves to conjure the unique nature, community, experimentation surrounding the school and the collective’s search for harmony across all of these, both musical and spiritual. More

The new LP by Krefeld-born, Berlin-based artist Philipp Otterbach entitled 'The Dahlem Diaries'.

Recorded in a little-visited corner of the German capital, 'The Dahlem Diaries' is a convergence of ideas, sketches and tracks, both old and new, most of which were produced between 2020-2022. Whilst eerie atmospheres, electronics and drums have played a pivotal role in Philipp’s earlier releases, his latest is a rather more introspective affair, in which the guitar takes a leading role. A role Otterbach uses to quietly bring light and hope to his music.

Speaking about his writing process, Philipp explains that, based around his original compositions, “Friends were nice enough to contribute additional parts on their instruments which I then reworked, put together and re-contextualized. The recordings encapsulate a very specific moment in time, one that would have sounded perhaps very different the day before or after.”

Combined with a strong use of effects and field recordings, 'The Dahlem Diaries' feels somewhat like a scene or fragment from a story, in which the narrative remains undefined. It is a playful album that is something of a blurred underwater adventure, sounding as bright as it is hazy, even psychedelic at times, yet with an almost melancholic positivity. In Philipp’s own words: “It could be an album about friendship and being at one with myself, whilst at the same time bringing a certain seriousness to my music, but not necessarily to myself; there is also a playful humour hidden in there. ”

Artwork by David McFarline. More

Swiss based artist Androo, who previously released on MFM sub label Second Circle, returns with his debut LP 'Club Salon Theatre'.

Far from an album in traditional form, 'Club Salon Theatre' explores its potential as a musical collage of sound. Recorded during 2021 and the beginning of 2022, it is the result of Androo's desire to draw connections between diverse fragments of music and art.

Originally born out of the Dub sound-system scene in Geneva and with a continued love for the modal music of the likes of John and Alice Coltrane and Pharoah Sanders, Androo has long put improvisation at the center of his practice. His understanding of dub music as an integral part of the experimental music tradition, with ties to the school of Musique Concrète for instance, and with trap music as another vital ingredient, has as much to do with the form as with the method. With the studio as a laboratory for experimentation, Androo utilizes a variety of outboard instruments as well as working in-the-box, but it’s his classic “dub style” technique of mixing at the hardware console that leaves its quintessential mark throughout the whole record.

'Club Salon Theatre' is a rich patchwork of imagined scenes, emotive melodies, flying rhythms, harmonic changes, loose improvisations, with an almost romantic thread running through it. Like a collection of musical poems, gently arranged in what is sometimes sparse musical language. Far from a patchwork of scattered and disjointed inspirations, there is a real unity and singularity at work, resulting in a record which can be enjoyed as a collection of sonic poems, simultaneously nonchalant and earnest, sentimental and playful.

Full Tracklisting:
A0. Préface, Bonjour
A1. (shhhht) Introduction
A2. Wyatt revolt
A3. Or,
A4. Autonomia
A5. – Ah balbec!
A6. Obsessions. étoiles. neurones
A7. Giant steps (alternate take)
A8. Bcp de bruit pr rien (si jav sus)
A9. Pensées
A10. Equipments (guattarix mix)
A11. Clou, vis
A12. Moment’s notice (part 1)

B1. Moment’s notice (part 2)
B2. Judso Danc Theate
B3. Club géography
B4. Original J dub
B5. Djs, Argen, capital, plus-valuxe
B6. Subversion, seduction
B7. Histoires sans livres
B8. Tout ça
B9. UZI
B10. Outro (en finir avec les clubs) More

Repress!

Terekke drifts gracefully onto Music From Memory with a long player of looping ambient pad pressure...BIG TIP!'The recording of Improvisational Loops began in 2012 during yoga classes at Body Actualized Center in NYC. In the spirit of past ’New Age’ or Minimal music, it aims to open up a space within the room giving the listener a chance to explore inward or outward. It was recorded using a digital synthesizer, reverb, and looper." Terekke, January 2018' More

Repress!

Music From Memory is excited to announce a special compilation that they’ve been working on for some time now; MFM053 – VA – Heisei No Oto – Japanese Left-field Pop From The CD Age (1989-1996). Compiled by long-time friends of the label, Eiji Taniguchi and Norio Sato, Heisei No Oto delves into a world of music released almost exclusively on CD and brings together a fascinating selection of discoveries from a little known and overlooked part of Japan’s musical history.

The last ten or so years have seen a global wave of interest in Japanese music encompassing ambient, jazz, new wave and pop records from the 1980s, some of which is increasingly considered the most innovative and visionary music of that time. Although some music from this period, in the form of ‘City Pop’ or ‘rare groove’ records, had been coveted by collectors and DJs for a number of years, most Japanese music from the time was little known outside and often even within Japan.

Sometime around the mid 2000s, two Osaka record store owners, Eiji Taniguchi of Revelation Time and Norio Sato of Rare Groove, along with a handful of deep Japanese diggers such as Chee Shimizu of Organic Music records in Tokyo, began to explore beyond the typical ‘grooves’ or ‘breaks’. Much like their counterparts in Europe and the US, they began delving into home-grown ambient, jazz, new wave and pop records, discovering visionary music, often driven by synthesizers or drum computers, that broke beyond the typical confines of their genres.

Spending tireless hours in local record stores and embarking on digging trips across the country, Eiji Taniguchi and Norio Sato, much like Chee Shimizu, have been at the forefront of unearthing and introducing many of the very Japanese records now loved and sought after around the world. Yet as YouTube algorithms and vinyl reissues would transport such music into the global consciousness and demand and therefore scarcity intensified for such records, so Eiji and Norio have recently begun to turn their attention to CDs.

The title of the compilation Heisei No Oto refers to the sound of the Heisei era, which began in 1989 and corresponds to the reign of Emperor Akihito until his abdication in 2019. Marking the culmination of one of the most rapid economic growths in Japanese history, 1989 also coincided with the music industry’s final shift away from vinyl in favour of CDs. And, although compact discs were first introduced seven years earlier it wasn’t until late into the ‘80s that, beyond dance music labels, CDs became the exclusive format for major and independent labels in Japan and throughout the world.

This however didn’t signal the end of the innovation in Japan. Many of those same musicians who have become known for their work in the ‘80s would continue to produce outstanding music well into the mid ‘90s, as greater innovation and advances in musical equipment allowed Japanese musicians and producers to refine and explore new sounds. While musicians such as the seminal Haruomi Hosono, whose productions feature on a number of tracks, would continue to push the boundaries of these new technologies, these technological advances also meant less established musicians were able to make use of increasingly affordable but state-of-the-art equipment.

Including music by Haruomi Hosono as well as Yasuaki Shimizu, Toshifumi Hinata and Ichiko Hashimoto who have become known and loved around the world in recent years, Hesei No Oto also features Japanese pop star Yosui Inoue, producers Jun Sato and Keisuke Kikuchi in aaddition to less established artists from the contemporary, jazz, new wave, pop and dance music scenes. Bringing together a selection of tracks that seem to define these specific genres and in fact move fluidly between a number of them, the music on the compilation is again underscored by experimentations with synthesizers and drum computers though with something of a gentle Pop sensibility. Reimagined here then under the encompassing term ‘Left-field Pop’, this is an exciting chapter in Japanese musical history that has only just begun to be fully explored.

VA - Heisei No Oto - Japanese Left-field Pop From The CD Age (1989-1996) is a 2xLP/2xCD that includes liner notes by Chee Shimizu and artwork by Hagihara Takuya and is released on February 28th. More

Tokyo DJ’s sonic memoir spanning two decades of life and music in Japan - Japan Vibrations Vol. 1 will transport listeners in time to energetic nights at Japan’s legendary club venues and delight with a spirited journey of musical discovery and reflection.

Dive into the exhilarating era of Japan’s electronic dance music scene from the mid ’80s to the mid ’90s with Japan Vibrations Vol. 1. The hand-picked collection by DJ and musical storyteller Alex from Tokyo pays homage to the trailblazers and innovators who shaped the landscape.

Set for release this autumn, the compilation serves as a time capsule recording a vibrant point in Japan’s modern music history. Likewise, a love letter from someone who lived it.

11 newly remastered tracks spanning ambient, downtempo, dub, world beats, deep house, new jazz, and techno. Together they showcase the creative ingenuity and energy of a paradisiac era marked by a symbiotic fusion of international sounds with distinctively Japanese influences. Experience the vibrations of pioneers Haruomi Hosono, Ryuichi Sakamoto, and Yasuaki Shimizu. Culture-shaping forces Hiroshi Fujiwara, Kan Takagi, Susumu Yokota, Silent Poets, Mondo Grosso and Kyoto Jazz Massive. And new- generation artists Jun CMJK Kitagawa (C.T. Scan), Mind Design, Okihide, and Hiroshi Watanabe. The evolution of a scene, a moment, presented with the progression of a DJ set.

Hi-fidelity remastering by sound engineer Isao Kumano (PHONON). License coordination by Ken Hidaka, album artwork by Takehiko Kitahara.
Photography by Meisa Fujishiro and Beezer, and from Alex and friends’ personal collections.
Pressed by Mother Tongue Records. Distribution by Rush Hour.



Track info:

1. Haruomi Hosono — Ambient Meditation #3

The compilation opens with an invitation to tea in the dream layer. The tranquil track, dedicated to new age legend Laraaji and ambient great Brian Eno, features Hosono on the Prophet 5 synthesizer and the American multi-instrumentalist Laraaji plucking a glittering zither. Hosono released it in 1993 as the closing track of his Medicine Compilation From The Quiet Lodge. True to its title, the album charts the early ‘90s contemplative turn of one of Japan’s most influential musical artists. Recorded in the tea-room modelled RACOON studio in Yutenji, Tokyo, the album weaves together house, techno, and ambient elements with Hosono’s signature eclectic-exotica touch. The result is a divine elixir, and this track is especially captivating.

2. Silent Poets — Meaning In The Tone (’95 Space & Oriental)

The bubbling dub is impossibly vibey on this remix of “Meaning In The Tone” by Japanese electronic duo (turned solo) project Silent Poets. The original track by Michiharu Shimoda and Takehiro Haruno appeared on their 1993 sophomore album, Potential Meeting. This ethereal, downtempo reworking came out in 1995 for the compilation album New Chapter for DJ/artist Nobukazu Takemura’s newly launched label idyllic records. Silent Poets went on to garner international acclaim for its catching sound palette—spanning dub, trip hop, acid jazz, and downtempo like this track—and holistic approach to art fusing music, design, and culture. Shimoda’s original music and brand Poet Meets Dubwise continues to capture the meaning in the tones.

3. Mind Design — Sun

Soft and resonant with a cinematic build up, “Sun” by techno unit Mind Design (Tomonori Sawada and Koji Sakurai) feels like daybreak at Mount Fuji. Sawada and Sakurai made the track (and all their music at the time) using a sequencer to run synths and rhythm machines, and a DAT recorder to capture everything in a single shot. In 1993, Mind Design signed to Transonic (predecessor of Trigger Label), Kazunao Nagata’s underground electronic music label, after the muiltitalented DJ, musician, mastering engineer, and producer saw the duo perform live at a Tokyo techno party. Mind Design’s first and only album View From The Edge followed in 1994, paralleling Sakurai and Sawada’s rising careers as sound composers and designers in the video game industry, where they remain active today.

4. Quadra — Phantom

A rare downtempo gem by Hiroshi Watanabe under his Quadra alias featured on his debut album Sketch From A Moment. With its gently swaying synths and confident percussive stride, “Phantom” is a total vibe. Watanabe, a prolific and versatile artist, is a man of many aliases (Quadra, Kaito, Hiroshi W, Tread [with Takehiko Kitahara], 32 project), label homes (Nite grooves, Kompakt, Third Ear Recordings, Ibadan, Transmat Records), and sound profiles (deep slow house, uptempo, melodic techno, to name a few). The mid ‘90s found Watanabe hard at it, studying composition at Berklee College of Music in Boston, spreading from New York the deep house gospel with EPs released on Japanese label Frogman, spinning hard house and techno at NYC clubs like the legendary “Save The Robots,” and more. “Phantom” captures the spaces between—a mid-album track with a subtle, unrushed flow. Nothing dramatic, everything chill and beautiful.

5. Yasuaki Shimizu — Tamare-Tamare

Few artists create a vibe as timeless, innovative, and totally fun as Yasuaki Shimizu. Singing and sax-ing (he does both on this track), connecting dots across the world, tinkering with scales and studio techniques—Yasuaki’s organic and highly experimental flickering about is an artform itself. Enter “Tamare Tamare,” an electro, world-fusion dance-floor killer featuring renowned Senegalese singer and musician Wasis Diop. Recorded in Paris’ ADS-Colour studio with Martin Meissonier, worldbeat and ethnic music producer extraordinaire (think Fela Kuti, King Sunny Ade, Salif Keita, and Manu Dibango) and released on Shimizu’s 1987 Subliminal, the track shines like the sun. “Tamare Tamare,” as the maestro himself says, is a potent spell in sound form.

6. Ryuichi Sakamoto — Tibetan Dance (Version)

A groovy collage of deep slaps, snappy beats, feathery strums, ethereal windings, rolling keys, and plenty of experimental tweaks, the track feels like a joyful gathering of friends. And it should—Sakamoto invited his YMO colleagues and collaborators Haruomi Hosono (bass), Yukihiro Takahashi (drums), Kenji Omura (electric guitar) and string instrument master Ayuo Takahashi on the Japanese zither instrument the koto into the studio to make “Tibetan Dance”. The revolutionary Fairlight CMI synthesizer joined the party, too, providing the perfect foil for an epically funky, buoyant tune. This slightly stripped down, club-oriented version first saw the light of day in 2015 with the Japan-only re-issue of Sakamoto’s 1984 Ongaku Zukan, remastered in high-resolution format (DSD) by Seigen Ono. Our “professor" Ryuichi Sakamoto, prodigious (and pioneering) musician and beautiful human, passed away in March 2023. His astonishing body of work - some 25 solo albums, 41 albums with YMO, 14 live albums, 19 collaboration albums, and 40 EPs and singles - will enliven and inspire for generations to come!

7. T.P.O. — Hiroshi’s Dub (Tokyo Club Mix)

Thunderclaps and a driving downpour of beats—we’re deep in the club now, Japan vibrations at max amplitude. This atmospheric club classic tells a story of scenes and genres—whole worlds—merging at the close of the ‘80s in Japan. An early release by the powerhouse hip-hop label and posse Major Force, the track is a remix twice over. It started with the uptempo “Punk Inc.” by Tiny Panx Organization” (T.P.O.), brainchild of Hiroshi Fujiwara, Kan Takagi, and K.U.D.O. Next came the dub take by Hiroshi, supreme music and culture tastemaker. And here we have the Paradise Garage-inspired deep-house reworking by Sapporo-hailing DJ Heyta. Got that? Now imagine taking it in at the tiny basement club Aoyama MIX during one of DJ Heyta’s wildly popular Wednesday nights back in the day. Lights out!

8. Okihide — Biskatta

Cycling through sugar cane fields in Okinawa, intense sun overhead and a glistening ocean stretching out into infinity. That’s a sweet memory Okihide Sawaki was recalling when he made this track in his Kyoto “Sleepy Room” home studio. Okihide, a sound otaku since childhood (proud owner of a Korg Mono/Poly at age 12!), caught the attention of Fukuoka’s top DJ and producer Ken Inaoka in 1994 when he was playing live under the moniker Tanzmuzik at Shibuya On Air in Tokyo. Inaoka signed the young artist, now going just by Okihide, to his just-launched techno label “Syzygy Records,” and in 1996 A boy in picca season came out. This smooth, uplifting, Detroit-inspired jam from his eclectic, “intelligent” debut album is full of feeling.

9. Mondo Grosso — Vibe PM (Jazzy Mixed Roots) (Remixed by Yoshihiro Okino)

Peppy, elegant, and massively jazzy bops from 1994 that feel so familiar and fresh. The Kyoto-based acid-jazz collective Mondo Grosso roared to life in the early 90s, led by the multitalented Shinichi Osawa. “Vibe.P.M” (Jazzy Mixed Roots) appeared on the compilation Kyoto Jazz Massive (For Life Records), the brainchild and handiwork of Shuya Okino who, along with his brother Yoshihiro, formed the eponymous musical project (Shuya had been managing Mondo Grosso while working at the Kyoto club “Container”). Yoshihiro’s remix presented here is a slice of Japanese crossover jazz that “makes me feel so alive,” just like American vocalist Brenda Kay Pierce beautifully sings on the track. Thirty years on, Kyoto Jazz Massive and Mondo Grosso, together and as individual artists, continue to evangelize good vibes and heady crossover dance music.

10. Prism — Velvet Nymph

A masterful straight-up deep-house track by one of the masters of Japanese electronic music, the late Susumu Yokota. Working under the pseudonym Prism, and fittingly so, Susumu refracted and refined the Detroit techno sounds he loved into Metronome Melody, released in 1995 on the newly formed Japanese label Sublime Records ran by Yamazaki Manabu. The track and album came on the heels of several pioneering moments for Yokota and, by extension, the Japanese electronic music scene. First, he created a storm in December 1993 performing live at club Yellow as the opening act for Underground Resistance (their first appearance in Japan!). Then, in June 1994, Yokota rocked his unique acid-techno sound at Berlin’s Love Parade to huge fanfare (the first Japanese performer at the legendary technoparade!). The dearly missed Susumu Yokota left us with an amazing, eclectic body of work—some 70 albums and singles over 2 decades.

11. C.T. Scan — Cold Sleep (The Door Into Summer)

The compilation closes with an epic techno gem that spins the story of an era: Frogman Record’s 15-year history as a key incubator of Japanese techno music. Among those discovering techno music in the early ‘90s in Japan was a crew of club-going music writers and industry workers that included Kengo Watanabe, Tsutomu Noda, Dai Sato, and Masakazu Hiroishi who would all in different ways influence and innovate the whole scene. Watanabe and Noda launched the groundbreaking electronic music magazine ele-king. Moved by the Berlin techno scene and spurred on by German-Japanese techno ambassador DJ Toby Izui (aka Tobynation), Watanabe and Dai created the techno label Frogman. They tapped C.T. Scan (better known as synthpop artist and producer CMJK of J-pop fame) for the label’s first and final releases. This version of “Cold Sleep (The Door Into Summer)” appeared on Frogman’s 2008 entering-into-hibernation compilation, Fine – The Best of Frogman. Inspired by Robert A. Heinlein’s sci-fi tale about traveling back in time to find oneself, the track is reflective, floating, and gently futuristic. Looking back to create the future, the highest Japan Vibration. More

Between improv, pop and r&b abstractions, and contemplative balearics, Sam Gendel and Ugné Uma “Tam tikri objektai erdveje” subtly meanders through a fragile and forward cosmos both inward and out.

Sam Gendel and Ugne Uma’s Tam Tikri Objektai Erdveje album sketches a layered, melismatic and intertextual view on what both performers define as a lightness of being. Ugne Uma’s musical stance is influenced by experimental poetry and Lithuania’s 20th century underground music scene - jazz and folk, resulting from the liberation of the country’s independence movements. Sam Gendel, from Los Angeles, is a saxophonist and producer, proficient on more instruments than the saxophone alone, whose recorded work both solo and collaborative has brought him acclaim as a vital new voice in modern jazz and beyond.

Tam Tikri Objektai Erdveje is Lithuanian and translates as Some Particular Objects in Space. The six tracks on the album stand for every letter of the word Saturn. They sketch out a sound palette both fragile and full of forward momentum. With hints of improv, sampling their own recorded work and sounds of a childhood’s Yamaha Portasound PSS-290 synth into abstractions of pop and r&b, some of these tracks reach an almost balearic feel, the more contemplative end of it. With lyrics delving into cosmic phenomena, Tam Tikri Objektai Erdveje is an album about space, whether cosmic or inward or the one in between. It easily surpasses the sum of its influences and the materials and tactics used to produce it.

A1 ttoe - S_M (0’46)
A2 ttoe - T_M (3’02)
A3 ttoe - N_M (3’55)
B1 ttoe - U_M (4’00)
B2 ttoe - R_M (4’30)
B3 ttoe - A_M (2’38) More

Repress!

Self-titled debut album of Habitat Ensemble, a new musical collective headed up by musician Marius Houschayer.

The collective originates deep in the south of the Czech Republic, on the border with Austria, amongst the idyllic hills and fields of a village called Maríž, where a summer school of outsiders and creatives have been gathering since the 1990s. Enriching each other through intercultural exchange, summer school participants have created a unique gathering of artistic expression and interdisciplinary research.

Originally grown out of the idea of translating the unique energy of the community and its environment into a musical journey where each member makes their own individual contribution, during the summer of August 2022, The Habitat Ensemble became an exciting vehicle for connection and co-creation.

Whether it be musical experimentation, composition, poetry, song or dance, Habitat Ensemble, having started as a series of multidisciplinary workshops, slowly developed into a unique musical recording. The album serves to conjure the unique nature, community, experimentation surrounding the school and the collective’s search for harmony across all of these, both musical and spiritual. More

Debut album from UK jazz saxophonist and composer Miles Spilsbury, featuring Carlos Niño. Produced by Slugabed.

Light Manoeuvres is about warmth, generosity and openness. The music which would become Light Manoeuvres was sketched in fragments, but began to take shape in earnest during a period of living under the Marseille haze in the South of France.

The specific character and opacity of the light in Marseille inspired the album title which imagines the movement of light passing over different subjects and spaces in intricate motion. Sand blows over from the Sahara on the Sirocco wind and is whipped up by the Mistral, the Marseille sky becomes golden and vapoured, then intermittently pastel blue. That image stuck while shaping this body of work, and became integral to the function of the compositions - which act as jumping off points for the players and myself, vehicles for improvisation and gateways to something else entirely.

Miles Spilsbury is a saxophonist, composer and multi-instrumentalist. Light Manoeuvres may be Spilsbury’s first full-length as bandleader, but the Brighton-based artist brings more than a decade of experience to bear on this record. In addition to a list of collaborators which includes Carlos Niño, Iglooghost, Nate Mercereau, Surya Botofasina and Yasei Collective, Spilsbury has been a permanent member of celebrated avant-rock experimentalists The Physics House Band since 2018. He has performed at prestigious UK venues such as the Southbank Centre and the London Jazz Festival, and has toured extensively throughout North America, Europe and Japan.

In time between other musical projects, Spilsbury spent several years sketching fragments of solo material. The music which would become Light Manoeuvres began to take shape in earnest during a period of living in Marseille. The specific character and opacity of the light there inspired the album title, which imagines the movement of light passing over different subjects and spaces in intricate motion.

"Brilliant brilliant" · Gilles Peterson
"Out of nowhere Brilliant deep jazz album" · Sounds Of The Universe
"Lovely stuff, so much great new jazz coming out of the UK lately!" · Danilo Plessow (MCDE/SPACE GRAPES) More

This is the first stop on Sven Wunder’s musical journey. Wunder takes the listener somewhere around the easternmost part
of the Mediterranean Sea, around the Levantine Sea, where he paints a colourful portrait and illustrates the regions flora
through sound.
The fruitage is a vivid bouquet where Wunder fuses colours and pigments by using traditional and modern instruments
merged with arrangements and melodies that stretches from popular to folk music by portraying tulips, red roses, hibiscus,
hyacinths, chamomile, magnolia, daisies etcetera. With both fine and thick brushes are these flowers being pictured in a
both modern and classic idiom.
The outcome is prismatic. It stands between Anatolian rock and European jazz-funk with ponderous drum patterns, groovy
organs, far-out synthesizers, enchanting Saz and impetuous bass lines. Eastern Flowers sweeps through time and space
and points towards the future. It could appeal both psych and prog listeners, folk or jazz aficionados and as well the gourmet
hip hop connoisseurs.

A1. Black Iris
A2. Tulip
A3. Magnolia
A4. Lotus
A5. Lily
A6. Red Rose
B1. Hibiscus
B2. Magnolia (reprise)
B3. Morning Glory
B4. Chamomile
B5. Hyacinth
B6. Daisy
B7. Gilboa Iris More