Description
Tsunaki Kadowaki curates the fourth installment of Midnight in Tokyo, themed around Ambient Kayō. The Midnight in Tokyo series by Studio Mule focuses on Japanese music, serving as a soundtrack for Tokyo nights -- whether for home listening, club play, or as a driving BGM, transcending location and space. The fourth volume takes "Ambient Kayō" as its new perspective, compiling genre-defying tracks released between 1977 and 1999 to explore the intersection of Japanese ambient and pop music. The focus was on music that deeply moves the listener, is open-minded and evocative, brims with inspiration and spiritual insight, and embodies the "utagokoro" (singing heart) of Japanese artists. Opening the compilation is "Umi e Kinasai" by Yōsui Inoue, a legendary Japanese singer-songwriter. Composed and arranged by Katsu Hoshi, the track features renowned players such as Masayoshi Takanaka, Hiroki Inui, and Shigeru Inoue. Next, "Oritatamu Umi," compiled from Keiko Nosaka and George Murasaki, is an instrumental track from their album Niraikanai Requiem 1945. Also featured is "Natsu no Kowareru Koro" by Higurashi, a folk-rock band led by Seiichi Takeda, formerly a guitarist of The Remainders of The Clover. From the enigmatic Blue, the only work left by the mysterious composer S.R. Kinoshita, comes "Mangrove", a hidden treasure of Japan's ambient/new age scene from the CD era. "Yaponesia Sakura," selected from Rehabilual's sole album New Child, is a masterpiece of Japanese new age music. The track features Michio Ogawa (Chakra) and Atsuo Fujimoto (Colored Music). "Asa no Hitoshizuku", the opening folk song from Sachiko Kanenobu's album Sachiko, is also included. From the synth-pop band E.S. Island comes "Yume Fūrin ", selected from their long-lost new age classic Nanpū from Hachijo. Dubbed "the world's first Min'yō House Mix," "Esashi Oiwake (Maeuta)" comes from Kanazawa Akiko HOUSE MIX, a collaboration between Japanese house music pioneer Soichi Terada and Akiko Kanazawa. This compilation also includes "Sweet Ong Choh," a track from Voice From Asia, a group active between 1989 and 1992 featuring vocal artist Shizuru Ohtaka. Hailed by Haruomi Hosono as having "a shaman residing in her voice," singer-songwriter Nami Hōdatsu also appears in the selection. Her debut album featured "Asa-Hikari-Ame-Yume," a track that now stands as a precursor to modern vocaloid/synthesized vocal music. Likewise, "Tennessee Waltz", from Naomi Akimoto's album One Night Stand, supported by members of Mariah, serves as another early prototype of vocaloid/synthesized vocal music. Closing the compilation is "Heaven Electric", a track from Nav Katze's album Gentle & Elegance, which featured remixes by Autechre, Seefeel, and Sun Electric.