+/- (PLUS/MINUS) VS. BLOODTHIRSTY BUTCHERS s/t (TeenBeat) cd 10.98
As the back cover informs us, "+/- covers BB and BB covers +/-". Seems simple enough, don't it? And if you're not familiar with these two bands you'd probably already guess just from the bands' names that this might be a rather odd pairing. So we thought. However, it's not as strange as we initially believed. Seems Blood Thirsty Butchers have gone through something of a transformation in the years since we last heard from them... it has been quite a while. If our memory serves correctly, they used to be a gritty indie hardcore band from Japan. As far as we know they're still from Japan, but they've mellowed considerably. They make dreamy post-rockish pop with angelic female and boyish vocals with a very occasional blast of gnarly guitar aggression. They're so much closer in sound to soft popsters +/- than we could ever have anticipated. Soooo, whatcha get is a pretty consistent half dozen delicious indie pop tunes with feverishly strummed Unrest-style jangly guitars. So at home on the Teenbeat record label.
MPEG Stream: +/- (PLUS/MINUS) "Banging The Drum"
MPEG Stream: BLOODTHIRSTY BUTCHERS "Waking Up Is Hard To Do"

AI ASO Chamomile Pool (Pedal) cd 19.98
A couple of years ago Japan's Ai Aso served up an absolute dreamcake of an album titled Lavender, then last month she teamed up with Wata of Boris for an amazing book and 7" set. Ai's delights keep on coming with this, her latest full length. Her cooing Japanese waif vocals float like fallen blossoms atop a blurred watercolor stream of effected guitar and steady programmed Casio-esque rhythms. Taking a dip in this Chamomile Pool will surely have the same calming effect as the tea of the same name. We imagine it'd even make a great substitution for traditional baby lullaby fare. This will definitely soothe children of all ages, but the overall serenely elegant tone ensures its adult appeal too. Not an abrasive tone in sight, everything is smooth, soft and so very enchanting. Recommended.
MPEG Stream: "Date"
MPEG Stream: "Hundred Years"

AQUARIUS BUTTONS 2 x 1" buttons 1.00
Spread the word! Show the world your true aQ colors! COOL COOL COOL aQ buttons, in 5 different colors. TWO FOR $1!!! Colors are random, but buy enough and you'll be guaranteed to get 'em all! All 5 feature our spiffy James Gang style logo!!

ASOBI SEKSU Citrus (Friendly Fire) cd 14.98
New Yorkers Asobi Seksu brings the bright carefree pop of the late '80s (think: The Primitives, Lush, Velocity Girl) together with the moody UK shoegazers of the early '90s (a la My Bloody Valentine, Ride, Swervedriver or perhaps the more recent atmospheric modern rock of Magyar Posse). However, what sets their second album Citrus apart is its high gloss J-pop production style. Each song showering the listener with a Puffy Amiyumi level of shiny shiny, sugary pearliness. Singer Yuki Chikudate's high flittery delivery recalls that of Cocteau Twins' Elizabeth Fraser... and if you don't know Japanese then the lyrics may prove just as cryptic as Fraser's. Countering the sweetness of Yuki's vocals are her bandmate James Hanna's variety of electric guitars. He builds up billowing spirals of highly effected washes which he punctuates with sharper edged, punchy melodic segments. All the while Chikudate's voice ties giant bows of satiny sorbet ribbons around the proceedings. Yes, Citrus is filled with many seemingly incongruous elements, but the band whips them all together into a delectable effervescent confection. Yum!
MPEG Stream: "Strawberries"
MPEG Stream: "Pink Cloud Tracing Paper"

BOREDOMS Rebore Vol.2 (mixed by Ken Ishii) (WEA Japan) cd 34.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
This is volume 2 in the Boredoms remix series, and continues in much the same manner as volume one (which was an an U.N.K.L.E. mix), with a crazy, seamless 40 or so minute continuous mix of Boredoms mania. This mix is by Ken Ishii, and is quite nice, though it basically sounds like a Boredoms mixtape, which is not a bad thing. Can't wait to hear volume three though, mixed by DJ Krush!

BUFFALO DAUGHTER I (Emperor Norton) cd 16.98
I never really got into Buffalo Daughter until I saw them live in, like, 1998 or something. And man, are they good live, and that's what has made me love their records. The band is two Japanese girls and a guy drummer who seems to change with each album. Anyway, when seen live, Buffalo Daughter's magic becomes clear -- they love Stereolab as much as they love Krautrock like Can and Neu!, as much as they love the weird bombasticism of fellow countrymen the Boredoms. Buffalo Daughter filters all that good stuff thru an art pop filter, coming up with a sound that is totally accessible and yet challenging and charmingly unpredictable. And they do it just on guitar, bass and drums, plus various judiciously-wielded electronics. Nothing unnecessary, nothing sweet, just kickbutt arty new rock. You never know where they're gonna take you next. I just love 'em. You will too. Get this fine new record or start with their best album 'New Rock'.
RealAudio clip: "Earth Punk Rockers"
RealAudio clip: "Ivory"
RealAudio clip: "Five Minutes"

BUFFALO DAUGHTER New Rock (Grand Royal) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Japanese female quartet mix power pop and funk and electronic noodling into a surprisingly appealing whole. Bonus points for throwing Gregg Turkington's "Great Phone Calls" pranks into the mix, barely there but so very there.

BUFFALO DAUGHTER New Rock (Grand Royal) 2lp 13.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Japanese female quartet mix power pop and funk and electronic noodling into a surprisingly appealing whole. Bonus points for throwing Gregg Turkington's "Great Phone Calls" pranks into the mix, barely there but so very there.

BUFFALO DAUGHTER Sax, Drugs And Rock'n'roll (Grand Royal) 7" 3.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
On this funky lil' 7", Buffalo Daughter bring us a live (and lively) recording from a show in Osaka. They've taken their wellknown song "Socks, Drugs And Rock'n'roll", and ditched the socks in favor of a little sax! Throw in some twisted vocoded vocals and the result is a fun, skronky sample of Buffalo Daughter live action. The b-side is a lovely sonic rendering of a jellyfish. Languid, dreamy, underwater/deepspace-y. A nice little release to tide us over 'til their next full length.

BUFFALO DAUGHTER Socks, Drugs, And Rock And Roll (Grand Royal) 12" 8.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Remixers include Alec Empire (very recognizable!), Stock, Hausen & Walkman, Money Mark, and U.N.K.L.E.

BUFFALO DAUGHTER Socks, Drugs, And Rock And Roll (Grand Royal) cdep 7.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Remixers include Alec Empire (very recognizable!), Stock, Hausen & Walkman, Money Mark, and U.N.K.L.E.

CASINO, COTTON We Love Cotton (Sillyboy) cd 15.98
The adorable Acid Mothers Temple chanteuse steps out all on her own with this truly solo album (no guests, no sidemen). It's got a bold title, but hey, who doesn't love Cotton? Rather than try to demonstrate that she can match the mothership's psychedelic overload freakout intensity all by herself, she veers off into a more intimate, personal realm of J-pop inflected, melodic voice-and-synth tunesmithery. It's airy and breathy and embellished with the quietly burbling and swooshing sci-fi keyboard sounds she wields so effectively in AMT. Definitely very different from the general run of Acid Mothers side projects, that's for sure! Recommended, if you're in the mood for some gently psychedelic, spacy pop with a wistful feel and exotic ambience.
MPEG Stream: "Melt Down"
MPEG Stream: "Silence"

CIBO MATTO Viva! La Woman (Warner Mothers) cd 14.98
Pronounced 'chee-boh mot-toh'. 2 Japanese expatriates living in NY make a tasty and very fun racket (that you can dance to) with synthesizers, numerous recognizable or tantalizingly familiar samples, and lyrics solely about food: white pepper, beef jerky, etc.

CORNELIUS Drop (Matador) 12" 8.98
A decent single spun off from the last Cornelius album Point. This has three tracks: "Drop" from the aformentioned album, and two remixes of the same. The Kings of Convenience sweeten the already-Stereolabbish nature of the Cornelius original. It's kind of a surprise to see them doing a remix at all, since they're Sweden's answer to Belle & Sebastian. Herbert (a.k.a. Doctor Rockit) delivers a much more interesting remix, forcing the song to hiccup and stutter admirably.

CORNELIUS Drop (Matador) cd single 8.98
A decent single spun off from the last Cornelius album Point. This has three tracks: "Drop" from the aformentioned album, and two remixes of the same. The Kings of Convenience sweeten the already-Stereolabbish nature of the Cornelius original. It's kind of a surprise to see them doing a remix at all, since they're Sweden's answer to Belle & Sebastian. Herbert (a.k.a. Doctor Rockit) delivers a much more interesting remix, forcing the song to hiccup and stutter admirably.
RealAudio clip: "Drop (Herbert remix)"

CORNELIUS Fantasma (Matador) cd 11.98
Both of SF's alternative weeklies have been praising this album high and low, so you can believe the hype, or not. The Aquarius staff thinks this recognizable-sample-heavy party record is merely okay, sounding kinda like a mediocre mixtape as opposed to a seamless whole. We recommend you take Cornelius' lead and get an Omoide Hatoba record instead (Cornelius' own label has released Hatoba stuff, and we feel that they fuck with a million different musical genres AND come out with a sound all their own, something Cornelius is trying not-so-successfully to do...)

CORNELIUS Fantasma (Matador) lp 9.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Both of SF's alternative weeklies have been praising this album high and low, so you can believe the hype, or not. The Aquarius staff thinks this recognizable-sample-heavy party record is merely okay, sounding kinda like a mediocre mixtape as opposed to a seamless whole. We recommend you take Cornelius' lead and get an Omoide Hatoba record instead (Cornelius' own label has released Hatoba stuff, and we feel that they fuck with a million different musical genres AND come out with a sound all their own, something Cornelius is trying not-so-successfully to do...)

CORNELIUS Five Point One (Matador) dvd + cd 14.98
A dvd and a cd packaged in super jewel case, this is the latest from our favorite Japanese genre-defying pop genius, Cornelius. The dvd features a video clip for every song off of Cornelius' last album, Point. This is cool for two reasons: 1) Point was an awesome album, and 2) if you've ever seen Cornelius live, you know that video art plays a big part in his show and it's great stuff. And when you're done with the visuals (including the bonus TV commercials), there's the whole 'nother extra audio cd featuring a dozen remixes of Point tracks done by fans!

CORNELIUS Point (Matador) cd 14.98
Ah, Cornelius. Japanese soundmeister. Label impresario. Citizen of the world. Promoter of the bowlcut.
A cynic might predict that this album would be full of cutesy lounge music and tired samples... indeed that's what I (non-Cornelius fan) thought. But actually, I'm happy to report this record is kinda really good. Point begins quietly, admirably not screaming for attention, utilizing static to create anticipation. Then it slips effortlessly into a Stereolab-like groove, where the chiming sampled voices of the Stereolab women (that is them, right?) hover over organic, stumbling drums and precise guitar strumming. The entire album runs at this loping, kooky pace. Like the dearly departed Esquivel, Cornelius uses the voices only as sonic elements; the lyrics are relatively nonsensical. And once in a while you'll even hear an honest to gosh distorted guitar solo, or insane speedmetal riffing superimposed over the mellowness, or a sweet cover of "Brazil". (These changes in tone are not gimmicky -- they're worked in seamlessly well.)
This is a consistent, fine album, just don't expect the cut and paste theatrics of his previous record Fantasma. Buy it if you don't like the recent Stereolab albums, this will satisfy that craving quite handily.
RealAudio clip: "Point"
RealAudio clip: "Brazil"
RealAudio clip: "Smoke"

CORNELIUS Point (Matador) lp 11.98
Ah, Cornelius. Japanese soundmeister. Label impresario. Citizen of the world. Promoter of the bowlcut.
A cynic might predict that this album would be full of cutesy lounge music and tired samples... indeed that's what I (non-Cornelius fan) thought. But actually, I'm happy to report this record is kinda really good. Point begins quietly, admirably not screaming for attention, utilizing static to create anticipation. Then it slips effortlessly into a Stereolab-like groove, where the chiming sampled voices of the Stereolab women (that is them, right?) hover over organic, stumbling drums and precise guitar strumming. The entire album runs at this loping, kooky pace. Like the dearly departed Esquivel, Cornelius uses the voices only as sonic elements; the lyrics are relatively nonsensical. And once in a while you'll even hear an honest to gosh distorted guitar solo, or insane speedmetal riffing superimposed over the mellowness, or a sweet cover of "Brazil". (These changes in tone are not gimmicky -- they're worked in seamlessly well.)
This is a consistent, fine album, just don't expect the cut and paste theatrics of his previous record Fantasma. Buy it if you don't like the recent Stereolab albums, this will satisfy that craving quite handily.

CORNELIUS Sensuous (Everloving) cd 14.98
If only Beck's last outing was as creative and colorful as this! Cornelius tends to take his time between albums but when they finally drop and sound this good and this meticulously crafted, we realize it's well worth the wait. With an uncanny ability to be both challenging and so damn catchy, Cornelius continues his streak with great pop record after great pop records, never afraid to explore new sounds while still making the whole sonic experience so fun to listen to. Picking up nicely where Point left off, this new record is perfectly titled as there is a breezy and brainy sensuality at play, and as always Cornelius effortlessly travels in all sorts of directions throughout the record, without ever losing cohesiveness. When other folks try the same sort of thing you usually just feel lost and bewildered by the haphazard musical confusion, but when Cornelius takes you from dreamy to rambunctious, blissed out to bumpin' and fractured to smoothed out, you just close your eyes and let yourself go, being carried away by colorful waves of sound headed for another engaging adventure in sound. So nice!
MPEG Stream: "Beep It"
MPEG Stream: "Gum"
MPEG Stream: "Wataridori"

CORNELIUS Star Fruits Surf Rider (Matador) 12" 7.98
Matador UK is acting like the English majors by releasing two singles of the same song when the six tracks on these two releases could easily fit on one piece of vinyl or one cd. Cheesy label tactics. But these tunes are so darn charming, capitalist manipulations soon fly away like air blown popcorn. On blue: a Damon Albarn remix and "Surf Rider Blue" (tres jungley!) and on green: "Ball In -Kick Off" (tres funky!) and "Star Fruits Green" (accoustic guitar with string orchestration).

CORNELIUS Star Fruits Surf Rider (Matador) cdep 7.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Matador UK is acting like the English majors by releasing two singles of the same song when the six tracks on these two releases could easily fit on one piece of vinyl or one cd. Cheesy label tactics. But these tunes are so darn charming, capitalist manipulations soon fly away like air blown popcorn. On blue: a Damon Albarn remix and "Surf Rider Blue" (tres jungley!) and on green: "Ball In -Kick Off" (tres funky!) and "Star Fruits Green" (accoustic guitar with string orchestration).

DOODLES Nokori (Alchemy) cd 21.00
Ok, we imagine that some of you might be kind of skeptical about this band, seeing as they're called, ahem, Doodles. Not exactly an awe-inspiring, heavy-psych kinda moniker is it? And with a name like that, and because of the fact that it's an all-girl outfit, you might expect some kind of cutesy "chick band from Japan" (as someone we know who shall remain nameless put it). But this ain't no Puffy Ami Yumi. Or even Shonen Knife. And their music is quite a bit different from the (also great) but much more robustly silly mayhem unleashed by the other all-girl Japanese psych duo reviewed on this week's list, Afrirampo. No, Doodles are a more serious sort of band, despite the name. Far from silly or fluffy. More roughly hewn and melancholic. These ladies (Akiko Terashima on vocals/guitar/piano and Nao Shibata on drums/chorus) play plodding, haunted psych-rock, with storms of guitar distortion hovering on the horizon, and sweet, sad vocals quivering deeply soul-ward. Ringing, reverby chords, jagged strum, staggering drums. Japanese psych-scene fans will understand if we compare 'em to Angel' In Heavy Syrup, Shizuka, and Nagisa Ni Te. But for a (sort of) non-Japanese comparison, we think maybe Blonde Redhead would be a slight parallel. Uh, Blonde Redhead meets Codeine, maybe. They've also drawn comparisons to other punkish/naive Western acts like the Smashachords and Swell Maps. And then there's some Neil Young and VU too. They're definitely a band that we think should appeal to indie-rock lovin' AQ customers beyond just those with Japanocentric tastes! And the Japan-psych fans among you ought to be already into 'em, thanks to their appearance on first volume of Alchemy's great The Night Gallery: 21st Century Psychedelic Underground compilations. Also Akikio plays on the two Jojo Hiroshige discs we've recommended recently. And in fact this is their 2nd or 3rd album after one on Gyuune and at least one cd-r release before that, though it's the first we've managed to stock. But we'll definitely keep Doodles on our list of bands to watch out for more from in the future!
MPEG Stream: "track 2"
MPEG Stream: "track 6"

EDDIE MARCON Shining On Graveposts (Preservation) cd 15.98
Ooooh. Some really nice, gentle Japanese acid-folk here, from this female duo, first heard (by us that is) on Alchemy's Night Gallery 2: 21st Century Psychedelic Underground compilation. If you like Nagisa Ni Te, or L's Holy Letters, or the ghostliest Ghost you'll certainly welcome the embrace of Eddie Marcon's dreamy, folky, psychedelic soundworld. As with Nagisa and L, you'll find here similarly drawn out and sparse compositions infused with strange and subtle atmospheres -- mostly acoustic/electric guitars with some snare and piano (cymbal drones, scrapes, gasps -- all acoustically hand-crafted). The record also has some haunting horn blasts and lots of rattling percussion, bells, etc., and the whole thing is sedated by ongoing mallet flourishes on drums and cymbals. Vocally, this could be Takako Minekawa or Tojiko Noriko stripped of the electronica element. There's all the seductive conventions of melancholy folk with just enough eccentricities to place this in a continuum of modern Japanese underground psychedelia, such as LSD-march (an early line-up of which apparently featured both Eddie Marcon's singer Eddie and guitarist Marcon -- aha, now you see how Eddie Marcon came up with their name!) and the female bass-drums duo of Coa (singer Eddie's other band). Eddie Marcon is quite a bit more quiet and mellow than either of those outfits tend to be, though! And outside of the Japanese comparisons, we'd think anyone into anything in the psych-folk vein from Vashti Bunyan to Islaja might quite find this to their liking...
Australia's Preservation label has stylishly packaged this disc in/with an intriguing minimalist graphic design fold out poster. Totally recommended!
MPEG Stream: "Amime"
MPEG Stream: "Siro No Uta"

EX-GIRL Back To The Mono Kero! (Ipecac) cd 17.98
Yet one more time, let's hear it for Japan! Always pushing things (anything! everything!) to the next level of absurdity and wonder. The highly animated, outstandingly costumed Chihiro, Fuzuki and Kirilo return to take us on another bizarre musical journey to their secret magicland of Kero (that's "ribbit" in Japanese). Definitely a group to be seen live in concert --- it's a spectacle!--- but if you're not one of the lucky ones who've had this joyful experience, their recordings will just have to do. Imagine incredibly organized, playful and strange sonic chaos. A capella vocal acrobatics, punky/prog-y guitars, raw tribal beats. This time they're accompanied by one Mr. Robin Scott. Name sound familiar? Think M. Think "Pop Muzik". Uh huh, he's the voice behind that great, truly new wave tune from 1979 which Ex-Girl cover quite splendidly. Once again produced by Hoppy Kamiyama.
RealAudio clip: "Wipe Out 3"
RealAudio clip: "Frog King"

EX-GIRL Endangered Species (Alternative Tentacles) cd 14.98
More pop-tastic, bombastic, triple-threat vocal mania from Ex-Girl, three hot and insane Japanese women whose band rocks hard and weird and is tough not to like, especially if you're a bit of a Japanophile. Ex-Girl is nothing if not exceedingly over the top, more concerned about being fun and kicking ass than being avant-garde, although they can't help it, especially with cross-dressing keyboard whiz Hoppy Kamiyama as their producer/arranger/main composer. A song you thought was gonna be an overdose of operatic artiness will turn out to be the Hello Kitty version of rap-metal or something. And it's good. Imagine, if you can, a cross between Hundred Sights of Koenji and Faith No More or No Doubt, and a few random techno/electronica DJ cds... Crunching guitars, pounding drums, wild synths, and zany fx abound, with numerous pop hooks taken to the heights of these ladies' impressive vocal capabilities. Dizzying and delightful, loud and lovely. Deserving of their cult following and due for some major commercial success someday we hope! (Not likely in this country, but who knows maybe they're huge in Japan now.)
MPEG Stream: "Hettakorii No Ottokotou"
MPEG Stream: "PUJEVA"

FANTASTIC PLASTIC MACHINE Beautiful (Emperor Norton) cd 14.98
If you've been itchin' for something house-y for your warm summer nights, look no further than this, the third album from Tomoyuki Tanaka aka Fantastic Plastic Machine. Reaching back to the 70s for some soul and house moves embellished with some Brazillian accents and flute flourishes. A comment on the music straight from the horse's mouth, "Comparing my music to a girl, I used to like a 'cute' girl but now I prefer a 'beautiful' girl." And much of his usual sweet, fluffy electronics from his previous self-titled and 'Luxury' releases are certainly absent on 'Beautiful'. That's not to say this isn't another playful outing for Mr. Tanaka. It's just that the 'girl' sure resembled a groovy Barry White this time around. And i just noticed that I'm not the only one who thinks this. Printed right on the front cover is a review clip from the Miami Herald tagging it as "Barry White for a house music age." Okay! Includes a cover of Frankie Knuckles' classic "Whistle Song".
RealAudio clip: "Beautiful Days"
RealAudio clip: "Whistle Song"

HANAYO Gift (Geist) cd 16.98
Now domestically priced: Japanese avant-chanteuse Hanayo (whom some will recall from her collaboration with German electronica hotboy Panacea) here presents another collaborative work, this time with a whole host of international electronic/experimental artists, including Terre Thaemlitz, Curd Duca, Merzbow, Patric Catani, Stilluppsteypa, Christophe de Babalon, and others. So it's a varied mix of digital hardcore, electronic pop, abstract noise, and everything in between, with Hanayo's little-girl voice holding forth over all, whether her collaborators provide atmosphere or chaos...nice.

HIKASHU Hikashu History (Tzadik) cd 15.98
Ranging from goofy electronic pop to jazz/rock collage to noise improv, this band really runs the gamut of underground Japanese sound. Of course, they've been at it for about 25 years, so it's not surprising that this collection is so varied and bizarre. "Hikashu History" isn't exactly a "best of" -- rather, this disc pulls together demos, live recordings, and other rare archival material to give an overview of Hikashu's activities since their inception in the mid-seventies. It's a wild, weird bunch of stuff, with leader Makigami Koichi's wacky, dramatic vocals being the main unifying factor. If you've heard of Koichi at all before, it's probably from his solo releases also available on Tzadik, one a twisted solo vocal performance that makes Mike Patton sound like a an amateur, another being a experimental jaw harp duo with Swiss musician Anton Bruhin. But Hikashu is quite another matter, kind of an alternate-universe rock band.
As we said, the music here is quite varied, utilizing toys, mellotron, synths, sax, samplers, cornet, guitars, etc. -- and on the more recent material, there's even some turntable scratching courtesy of Otomo Yoshihide, whose Ground Zero band might have taken some inspiration from the cut-ups of Hikashu. The Boredoms probably did too. It's a mixed bag (some of the more poppish stuff wasn't really to our taste, although it certainly has a uniquely Japanese flavor), but for fans of wacked-out left-field Japanese avant-pop-whatever this is one of the more necessary Tzadik releases to date.
RealAudio clip: "Mask"
RealAudio clip: "Suika No Koushin M"
RealAudio clip: "Rhetoric-S & Logic-S"
RealAudio clip: "Shuffer"

HOAHIO Ohayo! Hoahio! (Tzadik) cd 16.98
Fantastic 2nd (first US) release from this all-female Japanese avant-pop group. Yagi Michiyo on the koto (veteran of a Tzadik solo release), Haco on vocals and other instruments, and sinewave sampler virtuoso Sachiko M (known for her work with Otomo Yoshihide in Ground Zero and ISO). Includes a couple of reworked tracks from the import debut on Sachiko's Amoebic label, and more, new wonderful electronic/experimental pop songs in the same vein, strange and lovely. Recommended.

KARIE, KAHIMI K.K.K.K.K. (Le Grand Magistery) cd 12.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Kahimi's ultra-sweet baby doll vocals twit and twitter around a Gainesbourg/Bacharach-sque melodious stew. Much like a super amped up Pizzicato Five. Lots of Momus here (words, music, production, etc), but Add 'N' to (X), Stereo-Total, and Buffalo Daughter also put in their two bits worth. Soaring pop on a grand scale. Warning: may induce sugar shock.

KARIE, KAHIMI s/t (Minty Fresh) cd 14.98
Super saccharinely sweet female vocals from this woman who has been called a female Cornelius. He guests on this record, as does Momus.

MABUKI, JUNKO Slave Of Love (Tiliqua) cd 26.00
What was meant to be a limited series, seems to be extended indefinitely, with a new disc on this week's list, and at least two more installments planned. And if anything, they just keep getting better, and more perverted! There's just too much sexy sound to stop now. Longtime readers of the aQ list will no doubt be familiar with the Erotic Oriental Sunshine series of archival releases from Tiliqua Records in Japan (who also released the Joakim Skogsberg, this week's Record Of The Week). Each disc in the series unearths a lost gem from a particular sexy chanteuse, lost examples of a strange, and distinctly Japanese artform, where studio bands would perform groovy tunes, exotica, lounge, new age, jazz, even sometimes sort of Morricone style soundtracks, while a starlet would coo and purr, groan and moan over the top.
Past installments have included sexy action heroine Ike Reiko, Japanese "Play Girl" Kuwabara Yukiko, seventies bondage / S&M queen Naomi Tani (who Mabuki is often compared to), legendary porn actress Taguchi Kumi, sexy Lolita, Petite M'Amie, aka Mari Keiko and the most recent disc (and the only one not out of print), which instead of focusing on a particular starlet, focused on the composer responsible for many of these releases, Masami Kawahara.
But this newest installment returns to the series' original pattern, collecting all the recorded works by a single actress/performer, in this case, S+M / bondage queen Mabuki Junko, who essentially took over when Naomi Tani retired. Mabuki was curvaceous and busty, and a spirited performer, writhing and squirming as she was restrained, tied up, whipped and spanked, finding fame starring in films with titles like All Women Are Whores. Her film career was brief, her musical career even more so, having released a single 7" and a single cassette. The cassette was part of a series called Yoru No Driver, designed for truckers, to keep them company on long lonely all night drives, and were thus sold primarily in gas stations and truck stops. Both are collected here, and both are as weird and wild, freaky and fucked up as all of the other installments. And in its own way, one of the weirder installments.
Playing more like some soap opera on tape, the music is exotic and groovy, somewhere between easy listening and light jazz, but with strange Eastern tinges. The music fading out, to play in the background, while Mabuki and her male 'co-star' deliver their lines. Growing more and more frenzied and feverish, until Mabuki begins to sob, and groan, and squeal, the sound of fabric tearing, the sound of tape being pulled from a roll, the sound of whipping, grunting, breathless grunts and howls, all bathed in reverb, and over a smooth jazzy backdrop.
Other tracks feature fuzzy flute, muted trumpets, string stabs, groovy guitars, some actual singing (most notably on the second track, which was the title song to one of Mabuki's films), steel string guitars, spacey synthesizers, shimmering harps, shuffling snares, what sounds like koto, xylophones, some tracks totally goofy and cheesy, others haunting and ominous, at least one a groovy string soaked disco groove, but most all of them featuring long stretches of soap opera drama, with Mabuki pleading and sobbing tearfully, eventually giving in, and losing herself in some sexy punishment. Weird weird weird, but as always pretty fascinating and of course way recommended for fans of wild and exotic sounds.
Packaged in a super deluxe Japanese miniature gatefold style cd sleeve, with a printed obi, sexy photos of Mabuki including the cover shot of her gagged with a scarf, and the gatefold phot showing Mabuki in an open robe trussed up with red cords, and extensive liner notes in English and Japanese including a biography of Mabuki, and notes on each track. ULTRA LIMITED!!! Like most of the releases in this series, this one is a one time only limited pressing of only 1000 copies, and is already SOLD OUT. There's a good chance once these are gone we will be unable to get more...
MPEG Stream: "1"
MPEG Stream: "2"
MPEG Stream: "3"

MAHER SHALAL HASH BAZ From A Summer To Another Summer (An Egypt To Another Egypt) (Geographic) cd 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
From the Glasgow label run by the Pastels comes the first widely-available collection of music by long-running cult Japanese folk-psych duo Maher Shalal Hash Baz. With 27 shambolic tracks, widely ranging in style, recalling everything from '80s/'90s lo-fi indie-pop like, well, the Pastels, to '60s Japanese psych a la The Jacks to the mellowest, folkiest Albert Ayler freedom jazz jams! Should appeal equally to fans of Belle & Sebastian, {k} Records, and Ghost/PSF stuff. Lovely and fragile, seemingly innocent yet seemingly ancient.
Stephen of the Pastels, who loves Maher Shalal Hash Baz so much that he started the Geographic label _specifically_ to release this collection, says:
"When you consider how rare it is that you actually hear something that is startlingly different from other music in any given year, or even in a decade (I just tried and could only think of Aphex Twin, a couple of hip-hop productions, and the lyrics of Belle & Sebastian and Silver Jews) it feels such a privilege to be working with people you consider to be actual visionaries." (And terrorists, too, if the stories in Stephen's larger article are to be believed. Let us know if you want to see it!)

MAHER SHALAL HASH BAZ From A Summer To Another Summer (An Egypt To Another Egypt) (Geographic) lp 11.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
From the Glasgow label run by the Pastels comes the first widely-available collection of music by long-running cult Japanese folk-psych duo Maher Shalal Hash Baz. With 27 shambolic tracks, widely ranging in style, recalling everything from '80s/'90s lo-fi indie-pop like, well, the Pastels, to '60s Japanese psych a la The Jacks to the mellowest, folkiest Albert Ayler freedom jazz jams! Should appeal equally to fans of Belle & Sebastian, {k} Records, and Ghost/PSF stuff. Lovely and fragile, seemingly innocent yet seemingly ancient.
Stephen of the Pastels, who loves Maher Shalal Hash Baz so much that he started the Geographic label _specifically_ to release this collection, says:
"When you consider how rare it is that you actually hear something that is startlingly different from other music in any given year, or even in a decade (I just tried and could only think of Aphex Twin, a couple of hip-hop productions, and the lyrics of Belle & Sebastian and Silver Jews) it feels such a privilege to be working with people you consider to be actual visionaries." (And terrorists, too, if the stories in Stephen's larger article are to be believed. Let us know if you want to see it!)

MAHER SHALAL HASH BAZ Live 1984-85 (Kunitachi Kibun) (PSF) cd 22.00
If you thought that recent recordings by Japanese shambolic psychedelic pop outfit Maher Shalal Hash Baz sound full of simple, child-like naivety, imagine the even less-trained, even more-Shaggsy charm of this band back, say, twenty years ago! Well you actually don't have to imagine 'cause now PSF has provided us with this disc of archival live recordings, from performances in 1984 and 1985. That's truly delving into Tori Kudo's troupe's earliest years (he started the band in '83). In fact, the 1984 performance documented here was in fact their FIRST EVER gig, opening for High Rise and Kousokoya! May have been High Rise's first show too... (hmm, does that mean PSF has tapes of their sets as well?). Their entropic sound was much like it is today, though. Not-quite-jazz horns bleat out distressed melodies over stumbling beats, gentle vocals hold your hand as guitars are strummed with more feeling than finesse. The recording quality is suitably lo-fi and tape-hissy and makes this even more of a warm blanket of softly sunny clangy jangle and blissful pop chaos, so wrong it's right. Ariel Pink's got nothing on this. With interesting liner notes about these early daze from Kudo, translated into English by Alan Cummings.
MPEG Stream: "Unknown Happiness"
MPEG Stream: "View From Midheaven Of Itami Airport"

MAHER SHALAL HASH BAZ Live Aoiheya January 2003 (Chapter Music) cd ep 8.98
The willfully naive charm of Japanese cult pop act Maher Shalal Hash Baz is hard to capture in words. You kinda have to experience it. And even then you might not 'get it'. But if you do, you've got a new favorite band. Here's a nice chance to have that "experience" -- a cd ep featuring an entire live Maher Shalal Hash Baz performance from 2003, five tracks, a little over 26 minutes in length. And playing live -- raw and spontaneous -- is the MSHB modus operandi. Mournful horns and innocent vocals, no overdubs, it's the MSHB experience all right. After over 20 years in the biz, band leader Tori Kudo is still all about recruiting totally untrained musicians into the MSHB ranks, allowing their barely-rehearsed playing to teeter-totter wonderfully, tilting somehow inevitably towards fragile beauty though it seems like a musical mess should result. You'll hear 'em taking chances on this disc, and much emotion is revealed, much loveliness as well, from a woozy, droning, plinking instrumental called "Asahana" to the jazzy melancholia of "Gratitude"... Short but oh so sweet.
MPEG Stream: "Asahana"
MPEG Stream: "When I Die"

MAHER SHALAL HASH BAZ Maher On Water (Geographic) cd ep 10.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
After the lengthy collection (Geographic's From A Summer To Another Summer) that introduced this Japanese band to Western audiences, here's a fifteen-minute quick listen from Tori Kudo's project Maher Shalal Hash Baz. Kudo wields recorder, sweetly-picked guitar and directs various "water"-y sounds made on percussive toys etc. Sing-song vocals, gentle clarinet, warm cello, purposeful organ all are used for maximum sweetly shambolic naive pop. This is released on Stephen Pastels' label, and the Pastels are an apt comparison in terms of sharing melodic styles and a stripped down, lo-fi indiepop aesthetic. Eccentric, playful, sweetly childlike. If you liked their From A Summer collection, this will please you too, and if you've never heard them before, this is a lower-priced way to do so.
RealAudio clip: "Good Morning"

MAHER SHALAL HASH BAZ Maher On Water (Geographic) 10" 10.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
After the lengthy collection (Geographic's From A Summer To Another Summer) that introduced this Japanese band to Western audiences, here's a fifteen-minute quick listen from Tori Kudo's project Maher Shalal Hash Baz. Kudo wields recorder, sweetly-picked guitar and directs various "water"-y sounds made on percussive toys etc. Sing-song vocals, gentle clarinet, warm cello, purposeful organ all are used for maximum sweetly shambolic naive pop. This is released on Stephen Pastels' label, and the Pastels are an apt comparison in terms of sharing melodic styles and a stripped down, lo-fi indiepop aesthetic. Eccentric, playful, sweetly childlike. If you liked their From A Summer collection, this will please you too, and if you've never heard them before, this is a lower-priced way to do so.

MINEKAWA, TAKAKO Cloudy Cloud Calculator (March) cd 12.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Sweet lo-fi electro pop for casio from this Japanese woman who put on one hell of a good instore here at Aquarius!

MINEKAWA, TAKAKO Fun 9 (Emperor Norton) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Following up her recent "Ximer" remix disc, Japanese electronic-pop songstress Minekawa presents a "fun" new full-length.

MINEKAWA, TAKAKO Maxion (Emperor Norton) cd 11.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
With every new record casiopop auteur Takako Minekawa gets miles better, her sampling and arranging techniques more sophisticated and varied. She's so clever to balance her sweetness with smarts! As this 7-song cd begins we wonder if Takako has hijacked "Peter Gunn", but soon we are soothed by the return to the light, dreamy electronic pop she is more known for. Still in full possession of sweet-sweet, breathy child vocals, playful samples and pretty melodies, she adds doses of solemnity and darkness to make for possibly her best record yet. With a guest sitar appearance by Keigo Oyamada (aka Cornelius).
RealAudio clip: "Brioche"
RealAudio clip: "Picnic at Loose Rock"

MINEKAWA, TAKAKO Recubed EP (Emperor Norton) cdep 9.99
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
While Takako has been described as the female Cornelius, her sound is much more simple, clean, and not nearly as sample-reliant. However, this stellar EP finds her getting the remix treatment from Buffalo Daughter (who manage to make that ubiquitous Liquid Liquid sample sound fresh again), Land of the Loops, Trans Am, Pulsars, Portastatic (Mac of Superchunk), and Sukia. Takako's sweet voice holds the whole thing together beautifully. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

MOPS, THE Psychedelic Sounds In Japan (Victor Entertainment) cd 21.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Psychedelic pioneers in their home country, The Mops (great name!) were one of the originators of the Japanese GS (Group Sounds) scene. They were among the first in Japan to experiment with psychedelic studio effects like flanging and phasing, as well as with psychedelic stage lighting effects -- trying as best they could to make up for the scarcity of hallucinogenic drugs like LSD in Japan! This cd reissues their 1968 debut LP, which is supposedly their best although we haven't heard the other seven albums they later released. This album's colorful, Peter Max/Yellow Submarine styled artwork should clue you in to what they were all about -- a trip to the San Francisco Summer of Love of their imagination, full of fuzz and fantasy. As with most teen rock bands of the period, these kids played a lot of sometimes-cheesy covers of big British and American bands -- The Animals, Jefferson Airplane, The Doors -- but they also wrote originals, such as their Monkees-like theme song, the wonderful "I'm Just A Mops" (which was one of the many gems in the recent Nuggets II box set). Derivative and dated, yes, of course, The Mops were and are -- but at their best (doing their own stuff particularily) they're also irresistably enthusiastic and energized. There were better Japanese GS bands, for sure -- the melancholy, timeless sounds of The Jacks being a good example -- but when they're telling you they're just a Mops, can you ask for more? Charming stuff.
RealAudio clip: "track 1"
RealAudio clip: "I'm Just A Mops"
RealAudio clip: "track 7"

NAGISA NI TE On The Love Beach (Jagjaguwar) cd 14.98
Jagjaguar scores major points with us by reissuing here in the USA yet another of the albums by wonderful Japanese outsider-folk-psych duo Nagisa Ni Te. They've previously brought us the band's more recent album "Feel", and now they delve into the past to make 1995's "On The Love Beach" available at a non-import price. Lovely, folky, sunny-yet-melancholic psychedelic pop rock. If you like Ghost, or Neil Young, or Nagisa Ni Te's pals Maher Shalal Hash Baz -- or even the mellower stuff by Acid Mothers Temple -- this band ought to please you greatly. Their songs are works of fragile beauty, with innocent-sounding Japanese vocals, acoustic strumming, and lilting melodies. There's some fuzz bass here, some tuba there, and some shimmering guitar feedback when needed. The liner notes include English translations of Nagisa Ni Te's cryptic love-song lyrics.
If you're not already hip to Nagisa Ni Te, there's also a "best of/rarities" comp out on the Geographic label you should be aware of, called "Songs For A Simple Moment". You can read our review of that disc for more background on the band, and that collection would be a good starting point, although both Jagjaguar reissues are equally fine introductions to the band -- all are certainly recommended!
RealAudio clip: "Elegy To Betrayal"
RealAudio clip: "They"

NAGISA NI TE Songs For A Simple Moment (Geographic) cd 17.98
"Songs For A Simple Moment" is an introduction to the musical world of Shinji Shibayama. Since 1992 Nagisa Ni Te has released four records of honest, fragile psychedelic folk. With ties to Maher Shalal Hash Baz, whose members have at one time or another collaborated with Nagisa Ni Te, this collection released via Stephen Pastel's Geographic label comes just in time, as the western world's interest in Japanese psychedelia, from the '60s and beyond, is at an all time high. Formerly of Kansai legends Idiot O'Clock and the Hallelujahs (who have three tracks included here), Shibayama has been a major figure in the Osaka psych underground. His small label Org has released a handsome amount of incredible records by Maher Shalal Hash Baz and Naoki Zushi of Hijokaidan, as well as his own Hallelujahs (reissue on PSF) and the first three Nagisa Ni Te lps (all of which have recently been reissued via P-Vine in Japan).
With a revolving host of guest musicians, the core of Nagisa Ni Te centers on Shibayama and his partner Masako Takeda. Drummer Ikuro Takahashi, most recently of Fushitsusha, had once been a major part of the lineup, but has recently, mysteriously retired from music altogether. But that's another story...
In the Japanese psych underground, there is a strange coexistence of feedback/noise and earnest, heartfelt acoustic folk. Nagisa Ni Te embrace both aspects and combine the two at times. Think a more naive version of Tim Buckley or Neil Young. And if you're at all familiar with the brittle psychedelia of Shizuka, or the primitive guitar feedback freakout of the obscure '70s psych gods Les Rallizes Dénudés, you will definitely want to venture forth. From the fragility and innocence of "Star" and "They" to the shattering, feedback drenched Rallizesesque live rendition of the twenty minute epic "The True Sun", this comes highly recommended as an introduction, and is a great companion to the growing output of Nagisa Ni Te! (Even if you're already a fan and have their Japanese import cds, you'll probably want this for the rare/unreleased/live tracks included.)
RealAudio clip: "They"
RealAudio clip: "The True Sun"

NAGISA NI TE The Same As A Flower (Jagjaguwar) cd 14.98
Another lovely outing (their fifth album, if we've counted correctly) by one of our favorite bands from the Japanese indie-psych underground. While the duo of Shinji Shibayama and Masako Takeda have had their moments of Neil Young/Les Rallizes Denudes style slash-and-burn guitar storm in the past, with this album (and their previous disc Feel) they've been concentrating more on the quiet, mellow, melodic side of psychedelia... This is some ever so wistful, slow-moving, "heartfelt folk music" that features the sweet, sad voices of both Shinji and Masako singing their fragile tunes over a backing of strum and shimmer. Various guests augment the core Nagisa Ni Te duo, with sundry instruments employed, including electric and acoustic guitars, bass, mandolin, organ, electric piano, glockenspiel, mellotron, percussion, and such oddities as "backwards cymbal", "uncertain piano" and "electric desert guitar" (that's what it says the liner notes, which also provide English language translations for the band's Japanese lyrics). We said sad voices above, but really much of this expresses hope -- Nagisa Ni Te are a springtime band with memories of winter. So very pretty, lazy Sunday afternoon listening for fans of the softer Pastels, Belle & Sebastian, Ghost, and Maher Shalal Hash Baz sort of thing...
MPEG Stream: "A Light"
MPEG Stream: "Beyond The Grass"

NI HAO! Gorgeous (Tzadik) cd 15.98
Featuring the singer from Limited Express (Has Gone?), Ni Hao! is an all-girl Japanese art-rock trio: two on bass, one on drums, all of 'em on vocals. Lots and lots of vocals, in complex arrangements. The whole shebang is quite energetic and precise, and should appeal to fans of Limited Express and Ex-Girl. Includes a spirited cover of the Ramones' "Do You Remember Rock 'n' Roll Radio?" and also three bonus computer-only video interview clips with each of the band members (in Japanese with English subtitles).
MPEG Stream: "Laila"