Keeping our current Japanese theme this week for just one post longer, I need to let you know about an event taking place this Saturday, January 28th. Pioneering electronic musician, Takashi Kokubo – who I had the pleasure of interviewing in 2021 – will be hosting an “immersive audio experience”, live-streamed from his Studio Ion. 

Takashi is famous, in part, for developing a unique binaural recording system, utilizing a custom-built “robotic” head, called Cyberphonic. In collaboration with respected “Hi-Fi” engineers Phonon, Genelec, and ATL. Inc., this has now been transformed into a “3D” format – promised to be unlike anything else – with 13 speakers providing 360 degrees of sound, which listeners will be able check out via Youtube and livemine.net. The concert, as its title, Immersive Ambient Music.jp vol. 1, suggests, is the first in a planned series. 

I caught Takashi’s set at the Seion party at Galaxy–Gingakei just over a year ago – which incorporated a table full of traditional instruments – and it was totally mesmerizing. Truly healing. On Saturday he’ll be playing alongside the Italian trombonist and composer, Andrea Esperti. The duo have an album, Music For A Cosmic Garden, due in February, on Swiss imprint, WRWTFWW. The bill also includes Chillax – more old friends of Ban Ban Ton Ton – while Hideki Matsutake will be headlining. 

Hideki is probably best known in the west for his releases under the moniker, Logic System, but he’s a super prolific artist, who both creates solo and has collaborated with tons of talented folks, for example, Midori Takada’s Mkwaju Ensemble, Towa Tei, and Akiko Yano. He’s also worked very, very closely with the Yellow Magic Orchestra, to the point where he could arguably be considered an unofficial fourth member. On the night he’ll be performing previously unreleased material, and reimagined YMO classics. Let’s hope that he manages to squeeze this Cosmic cracker in… 

Immersive Ambient Music.jp vol. 1 takes place on Saturday, January 28th, between 5 and 9PM JST (commenecing worldwide: 9AM (ECT) / 8AM (GMT) / 3AM (EST) / 2AM (CST) / 12AM (PST). You can tune in via Youtube and livemine.net. Be sure to be packing some high quality headphones.