Playlist: Chill Ambience from Japan
A short, remarkably varied, random(ish) tour of minimalist sounds
The path I followed for this playlist devoted to the minimalist wonder of Japanese ambient music began in December, with an annual roundup of reissues and vault discoveries NPR Music. One title that captivated me was the reissue of a hauntingly spare 1986 album called Green by the late Hiroshi Yoshimura. That reissue came from the folks at Light In the Attic, one of the labels that’s consistently discovered great music hidden in the musty forgotten corners of music vaults.
From there I navigated by crowdsourcing. Starting at Light in the Attic’s Bandcamp page, I randomly clicked on customers who’d purchased Green to see what else they’d bought, or recommended. Because ambient music stretches on at length, I’d dip into a work at the four or six minute mark, let it roll for a few minutes to get the general vibe, then jump ahead. I was in search of environments that encouraged lingering, if not full immersion, and I found scores of them – at times it was challenging to pick just one slice from an album, because these works are structured as extended experiences, with their own narrative arcs. Besides Yoshimura, the only artist I knew about was Haruomi Hosono, a founding member of Yellow Magic Orchestra, pictured above in then/now photographs. Like others represented here, he’s incredibly prolific; please seek out (and support by purchasing!) more from all these discographies from the links below.
https://hiroshiyoshimura.bandcamp.com/
https://sachikobayashi1.bandcamp.com/
https://metaldance.bandcamp.com/track/platonic
https://midorihirano.bandcamp.com/
https://masahirosugaya.bandcamp.com/
https://elmrecords.bandcamp.com/album/hirotaka-shirotsubaki-waterfront
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