Pioneering Californian / Bay Area minimal maestro, Terry Riley, is probably best known for his ground-breaking composition, In C. 

However, like a lot of folks from my generation, I was introduced to Terry`s magical music via another of his timeless classics, A Rainbow In Curved Air. This piece of early electronic innovation was a regular spin in “acid house” chillout rooms during the mid-1990s, where it segued alongside beatless trance and intricate IDM, and helped many a “refreshed” raver – myself included – regain a little bit of balance. 

Subsequent adventures in search of transcendence – without the aid of chemical or psychedelic shortcuts –  led me to Terry`s team up with La Monte Young, Marian Zazeela, and Tony Conrad, their Theatre Of Eternal Music, and inside New York`s Dream Syndicate. Subjecting myself to their deep drones, and deep, deep listening, I eventually surfaced, out the other side, to discover the songs and mantras of Terry`s teacher and mentor, Pandit Pran Nath. 

Finally, sort of coming full circle, and arriving at the fantastic funk that Terry helped to fuel and fire on John Cale`s righteous psyche epic, Church Of Anthrax. 

Now based in Japan, Terry Riley will perform at Billboard Live Tokyo as part of Festival Tandem, tomorrow, March 16th. The performance will be split across two stages. The first will find Terry, accompanied by percussionist, Sara Miyamoto, premiering a new work, entitled Everything And Beyond. For the second, he`ll create an improvised score for Francois Girad`s historical drama, Hochelaga, Land Of Souls. Ban Ban Ton Ton`s bon ami, Krikor Kouchian, fresh from an artist residency in Kyoto, will be providing DJ support. 

The gig will be broadcast via Live Mine – the pay-per-view site run by local label / distributor, Musicmine. For more details, and tickets, please click here. I will most definitely be plugging myself in.