Takehisa Kosugi: Catch-Wave Vinyl LP

First-time official vinyl reissue of deep Japanese ambient debut. Takehisa Kosugi was a composer, multi-instrumentalist and mixed-media artist who was at the vanguard of Japanese avant-garde for decades. Founder of Japan's first improvisational music collective Group Ongaku in 1958 as well as the legendary Taj Mahal Travellers - an experimental Japanese collective that created spontaneously improvised drones - in 1969, Takehisa released his debut solo album Catch-Wave in 1975. Side-A's "Mano-Dharma '74" features improvised violin drones and voice combined with various oscillators, echo delays, an electric fan (say wha?) and layered tape experiments, while side-B's "Wave Code #E-1" is a three-part performance for a solo vocalist. The included (translated) liner notes are essential to understanding the meticulous process behind these performances, which on the rear cover are described as "Sounds speeding on lights, light speeding on sounds music between riddles & solutions." Also comes with a glossy 8.5" x 10" photo of Takehisa at the Mano Dharma concert in '74. Originals go for triple digits on the second hand market, so don't sleep on this killer reissue. Released by Superior Viaduct.

• includes glossy 8.5" x 10" press photo
• housed in a stoughton tip-on sleeve
• inner sleeve features translated liner notes
• music label: Superior Viaduct 2018

reviewed by RBG 12/2018