Originally released in 1994, together with Susumu Yokota’s Acid Mt. Fuji, Ken Ishii’s sophomore set, Reference To Difference, launched the Tokyo label, Sublime Records, and in the process gave Japan’s home-grown techno scene a huge boost.

The success of Ishii’s early 12s and debut LP, signed to foreign labels such as Richie Hawtin’s Plus 8 and Belgian titan, R&S, had gained him global recognition, so the decision to “stay local” for this album was significant. For his next record he’d switch back to R&S, where he remained until the end of the decade. Reference To Difference, in hindsight at least, seems like a gift to Ishii’s friends Manabu Yamazaki and Hideoki Amano, who run Sublime, since its sales – at home and internationally – helped finance the imprint’s subsequent investment in new, and emerging Japanese techno artists. As such the album’s legacy is considerable, and this fact alone ensures its place as an important electronica landmark.

Ishii has cited both classic Detroit techno and British, Black Dog Productions-esque, IDM as influences. You can hear the former in his Sci-Fi strings – all sleek, and steely, summoning shiny, polished alien surfaces – however, his sound here is pretty unique. In contrast to his contemporary and label mate, Susumu Yokota, whose genius was to raise hypnotic rhythms using only very few elements, Ishii’s tunes are highly complex and multilayered. It’s super interesting to note that Ishii’s quoted as saying, “Individual sounds are more important to me than the composition itself”, because the pieces are kinda abstract and seem to be constantly evolving. The melodic metallic sonics, continually shape-shifting and morphing into something new. Bells and chimes ring in repeats, but the resulting notes warp and refract, forever in flux. There are certainly no hands in the air hooks.

The music clearly has its roots in “big room” techno, however, while the kicks are still there, they’re confined to the background. Hammers on anvils, marching military snares, way off in the distance. Fading Sky’s beats, for example, have a splashing and sloshing, submerged aquatic quality. Dubby and reminiscent of some of Two Lone Swordsmen’s earlier stuff. That said, Finite Time, is a pounding, panel-beating piece of furious futuristic funk.

Interjection is a beatless ocean of pace-y programmed percussion, whose textures and tones seem to tap into traditional Japanese culture – the atmospheric air of Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples. The album’s closing cut, and most chilled moment, Scene One, also has a ritualistic rhythm, but this one’s slightly more sedate. Countering synthetic bass growls with loose, live-sounding hand drums, spinning spiritual, it conjures a vibe that’s improvised, meandering, mediative, and almost Orb-like (minus the subversive spoken word samples).

The 30th anniversary, remastered vinyl edition of Ken Ishii’s Reference To Difference can be ordered directly from Sublime Records / Musicmine. The package contains superb, in depth, sleeve notes penned by Martyn Pepperell.