Composer Teiji Ito is one of the most unique voices of the 20th century musical avant garde. Born in Tokyo, his family emigrated to New York where he would remain for the rest of his musical career. Growing up in the big apple from the age of 6, he soon became part of the NYC underground (later known as the Downtown scene), where he worked with some of the most legendary artists on the planet in music, film, dance and theatre.

His early work can be heard in the films of Maya Deren, whose films Ito would begin scoring at the age of 17. As the story goes, it was here that he acquired an appreciation for ceremonial and secular drumming techniques from traveling to Haiti, where he would later pass away in 1982.

A little background to this album: Ito grew up in a working theatrical family, and this influence is clear in his music. There are hints of Kibuki theatre, borrowing rhythms from here as well as taiko drumming. He works primarily from the pentatonic tonal system, but draws from all sources to add an almost sound design-y element to his music. Its wild in context, causing the spaces to shift unexpectedly time and again through the course of the album. The sound is somehow always fresh and light, despite the various terrains traversed through its course.

Watermill, denoting name of this album as well as the ensemble, was written by Ito in 1972. The instruments alone are a formidable presence. To name a few: shakuhachi, calimba, sho, voice, koto, bamboo sticks, ocarina, wratchets, flutes, gongs, the list goes on. As mentioned above, also flown in are sound effects like dogs barking, jet planes, and unidentified noise. Nevertheless, it's cohesive throughout.

At times meditative and at others nightmarish, Watermill covers a wide variety of spaces and places. Impeccable and virtuosic performances by the Watermill ensemble make this one of the most definitive performances that might ever come available. And what makes this version worth owning is the connections to Ito and the piece itself performer- Mara Purl was in the original ensemble that premiered this work. Teiji's daughter also performs on the piece, which (it would seem) provides some legitimacy and endorsement to such a timeless endeavor by this underappreciated composer. Either way, this disc deserves a standing ovation.

Watermill is a truly authentic presence in itself. Highly recommended.

Formerly of Japan, Berlin's Tetsuya Hori catches my ears and eyes because of his use of everyday objects from which to generate music. This 3 track release features source material derived from beer bottles, water, and flute, respectively. As Tetsuya demonstrates across the album, each one contains a new world of sonic possibility going beyond the source's mere existence. It's quite easy to forget what you are actually hearing, as I found myself losing focus on the origins of the material often. That's great.
According to his liner notes, his approach to composition is with 'no concept'. I imagine he's emphasizing sound just for the sake of developing sound, which intimates a sense of well considered development and exploration across each work. Piece 1, for beer bottle and laptop features slowly morphing forms of metallic and wind-like tones, as well as glass-like emergences of pitch and timbre. Piece 2 for glass of water and laptop features plopping, bubbling, and emerging sounds of water in a wide stereo space, almost like you are actually inside of the glass of water. The highs are high, and the lows are felt in your core. The piece later lands on an underwater sound stage with an orchestra of aquatic life. I enjoyed this one most, as it was a new soundworld to my ears.
And piece 3 is for flute and laptop, played by flutist Ryoko Sakurai. Following a minimal soundworld, we are thrown back to planet earth with vocalisms reminiscent of Takemitsu's Vocalism AI. This piece is also the most effects-heavy, with endless reverbs and heavily digitized blankets of sound being pulled across your ears.

In all, Hori's use of space through is intriguing, taking care to illuminate tones in the distance as well as in the forefront at most every moment. Through the album, there is a clear sense of spontaneity and improvisation which will keep this a fresh listen into the future.

It should be noted that since this release he has also produced an album with Soon Kim called Non-transposed sense. If it's anything like his self titled album on Naivsuper, its surely a release to be consumed as well.

Performed on turntables with electronics, Henry the Ironman by Philippe Petit showcases deliciously crunchy electronic textures that drone, hiss, crackle and morph into new realms. With only 3 separate tracks (the first being 20min long mind you) Petit covers quite a bit of ground on this excellently mastered disc on Beta-Lactam Ring.

According to the liner notes, the album was recorded live in a studio. Its tricky to find exactly the right words to describe this sound, but there are hints of a saturated Kanding Ray and Jan Jelinek on Tierbeobachtungen, but many additional layers of noise that give it something of an industrial sound. Additional appearances by sax player Perceval Bellone and Chinese samples by FM3.

Get this for the astounding sound of Salaryman's Dream alone, and ride the wave with noisey delight through the rest of this excellent release.

Celebrating its 10th anniversary, Zorn's re-release of Music for Children can now be heard in full, remastered and re-visualized fidelity. Heralded as one of the most 'eclectic' Zorn cds to date (any dedicated Zorn fan can vouch for this statement), it features the multi-instrumentalist playing saxes, wind machines, bass drums, and even feedback systems. Also featured is the guitar feedback master himself, Lou Reed, amidst an onslaught of other top notch performances by all stars of the Tzadik catalog including Erik Friedlander, Greg Cohen, Cyro Baptista, Anthony Coleman, Prelapse, David Abel, Julie Steinberg, William Winant and Marc Ribot.

There's no shortage of mileage traveled in the course of this disc. The trajectory of aesthetics runs the gamut of surf, grindcore, freejazz, music box lullabies, and everything in between -an all around textural stomping ground with no borders, but one rounded out by the well thought out bookends of celeste, voice and hand clapping. It's dense. You simply must hear it to understand it. Even then you are likely to need a few listens to fully grasp what's going on here, and that's what makes this one worthy of owning.

Cycles du Nord, now a classic in Zorn's catalog, is my favorite work on this album. This is an up to date version with new engineering as well as new performances. Second fav being Dreamer of Dreams, a surf guitar-like tune featuring cello solos and, as in any great Zorn tune, an abundance of ambience that could slice a Tarantino flick into two wholes.

In addition to the music, another particularly beautiful aspect of this rerelease is the artwork presentation. The work of multiple artists is fused together to bring to spotlight the visual aesthetics of doll-making by Katan Amano, photography by Yoshida Ryoichi and Macioce, plus illustrations by Henry Darger and the audio production of numerous top notch engineers.
Highly recommended for budding Zorn fans and seasoned vets alike, and well worth repeated listens.

Upon hearing the very 1st track on this album, you are soon warned that the frequency spectrum on this album will be a wide one. By track two, 'the voice of the moon" (their lowercase) is a manic, hyperspeed and looping race to an unknown destination in Tron land. As a point of reference here, a stretch mind you, it almost reminds of a midi-derived Reich percussion piece smashed into a work by maximalist composer Paul Dolden, complete with accelerated phasing and organically panned stereo imaging. This lasts just a short time however, as shortly thereafter in ?the moon moves’ the swirl begins to deteriorate and melt upon itself. After this barrage, we return to a more spacious and sonically expansive place much like the intro. After a very patient 15 and one half minutes of this piece, we are hit with a sudden onslaught that would make any Merzbow fan happy. Its a big sound, and its in your face. Nice.

This was the first moment that truly woke me up. Starting at this mile marker, I found myself much more enrapt in the album as a whole. It’s almost like you are listening to a compilation or split 7" and then the 2nd band arrives - the one you like more. This does make for a trajectory on the whole.

Everything that follows is worth sitting through. Other noteworthy tracks are 'lamplighter', and 'the end' which introduces some woodwinds, synths, and consequently a feel not unlike Badalamenti scoring a Lynch film. 'rising', the final track does an effective job of leading you back out the door you entered.

I initially decided to forego the liner notes, although as I wrap this it appears they reveal a bit about the equipment used on the record. This is not really part of the way I enjoy going into a new listening experience but its there for those who are curious.