Takeshi Terauchi's Suite Nihonkai colloboration with Chisato Yamada gets recirculated

Japanese guitar slinger Takeshi Terauchi's 1981 throwdown with shamisen ace Yamada has been reissued by Italy's Cinedelic label. 

Suite Nihonkai – Takeshi Terauchi with Chisato Yamada

1. 第一楽章（渡来三味）First movement | Torai Zanmai (The Path Of The Shamisen) 06:25

2. 第二楽章（越前流れ節）First movement | Echizen Nagare Bushi (The Echizen Current) 04:47

3. 第三楽章（領民一揆浅瀬石川）First movement | Ryōmin Ichiai Aseishigawa (The Lord Of Great Humanity Aseishigawa) 04:51

4. 第四楽章（土着上河原節魂永遠に）First movement | Kamigawara Bushi Tamashi Eienni (The Kawigawara Song, Eternally In The Soul) 05:37

5. 津軽春唄 First aria | Tsugaru Haru Uta (Tsugaru Spring Song) 04:05

6. 津軽夏唄 First aria | Tsugaru Natsu Uta (Tsugaru Summer Song) 05:26

7. 津軽秋唄 First aria | Tsugaru Aki Uta (Tsugaru Autumn Song) 05:54

8. 津軽冬唄 First aria | Tsugaru Fuyu Uta (Tsugaru Winter Song) 04:15

Get a copy of Suite Nihonkai via Bandcamp right here. Listen to the album below.  

 

R.I.P. guitar great Takeshi Terauchi, 1939-2021

Sadly, innovative Japanese guitarist Takeshi Terauchi has passed away. Here are just a few of his amazing recordings.

Montreal's Teke::Teke debut with Shirushi on May 7

Initially begun as a Takeshi Terauchi tribute act, Montreal's Teke::Teke have evolved beyond all expectations with Shirushi. 

Here's the scoop...

Montreal's seven-piece Japanese psych-rock band TEKE::TEKE are releasing their debut album Shirushi, out May 7 via Kill Rock Stars. You can pre-order a copy via Bandcamp right here. 

Shirushi (“sign of big changes to come”) was inspired by the Japanese practice of kintsugi, the art of mending broken pottery by fusing the pieces back together with seams of gold, silver, or platinum lacquer. “There’s always something hopeful that comes after destruction,” explains guitarist Serge Nakauchi-Pelletier. “Next comes rebirth, and we get to learn again.” The album glues classic Japanese balladry, surf rock, psychedelia, and more together into a set of songs that play like soundtracks to a wildly eccentric epic film saga. The band incorporates traditional instruments, influences from ‘60’s/70s Japanese soundtracks, and the sentimental balladry of Japanese enka - yet Shirushi manages to sound as if it comes from some distant future. 

Lead single “Kala Kala” perfectly encapsulates this refusal to be contained, building from an expansive ambience to an elephantine instrumental hook, singer and visual artist Maya Kuroki’s voice darting over the top. “The Japanese language allows for visual, colorful poetry, and the lyrics tell a story with a lot of different colors, strong vibes, and emotional themes,” Kuroki says. In that way, each individual track plays out like a lost classic soundtrack with its own genre and storyline, even for those who may not have the benefit of the literal translation of Kuroki’s lyrics. A trained actor and visual artist, Kuroki’s place at the front of the stage for TEKE::TEKE masterfully amplifies their already dramatic arrangements. 

Takeshi Terauchi and a few of his guitars

After initially forming as a tribute band for Japanese guitar legend Takeshi Terauchi (check out a selection of his amazing recordings with The Bunnys and Blue Jeans right here), TEKE::TEKE learned that they had to tear up their surf-tinged covers and build something new. Since then, the Montreal-based seven-piece have expanded their already wide scope into a dazzling journey through classic Japanese balladry and Brazillian psychedelia alike. Fusing everything from traditional Japanese instrumentation to punk guitar, TEKE::TEKE have created their own musical universe - one that’s continuously expanding. You can still hear elements of Takeshi Terauchi's groundbreaking concept of mixing Japanese folk forms with rippin' surf guitar in the track "Yoru Ni" in which TEKE::TEKE neatly weave blazing guitar runs with traditional Japanese shamisen and shinobue.   

The band also recently shared cinematic new single & video for “Meikyu” (“labyrinth” in Japanese) - animated by Serge Nakauchi-Pelletier along with Maya Kuroki. "When plans with a hired animator fell through, Maya and I decided to take things into our own hands,” Nakauchi-Pelletier says. Kuroki adds, “I'll make some drawings or paintings and then use whatever tools we have, learn new software on the spot and ways of working as we go.’’  

Check out TEKE:TEKE's videos for "Yoru Ni," "Kala Kala" and "Meikyu" after a performance of "Barbara" below. 

Happy Birthday Terumasa Hino!

Raising a glass to the trumpet titan with rare surf number accompanying Takeshi Terauchi & The Blue Jeans.

Lindi Ortega @ The Mod Club, Saturday

Watch Lindi and New Country Rehab guitarist Champagne James Robertson tear it up in Toronto back in May. 

Robertson is also in C&C Surf Factory. Here's their salute to Takeshi Terauchi off Garage City out now.

One For The Weekend: Takeshi Terauchi

Whaddya mean you don't know Chisato Yamada

The Top 100 Reissues of 2011

1. Batsumi - Batsumi (Matsuli Music)

2. Those Shocking Shaking Days: Indonesian Hard, Psychedelic, Progressive Rock, 1970-78 (Now Again)

3. Follow Me Down: Vanguard’s Lost Psychedelic Era, 1966-1970 (Vanguard)

4. Rail Band - Buffet Hotel De La Gare (Superfly)

5. True Soul: Deep Sounds From The Land of Stax Volume 1, Volume 2 (Now Again)

6. Takeshi Terauchi - Nippon Guitars: Instrumental Surf, Eleki & Tsugaru Rock 1966-1974 (Big Beat)

7. T.K. Ramamoorthy - Fabulous Notes & Beats of the Indian Carnatic Jazz (EM Records)

8. Jef Gilson - The Best of Jef Gilson (Jazzman)

9. Svenska Löd Ab! - Svenska Löd Ab! [aka Hörselmat] (Figaro Music & Media Group)

10. Sun Ra - The Eternal Myth Revealed, Vol. 1 (Transparency)

11. Psychedelic Pernambuco (Mr. Bongo)

12. Darondo - Listen To My Song: The Music City Sessions (Omnivore)

13. AKA - Hard Beat (Strawberry Rain)

14. Stone Coal White - Stone Coal White (Cali-Tex)

15. Calexico - Road Atlas, 1998-2011 (Our Soil, Our Strength/Quarterstick)

16. Turkish Freakout 2: Psych Folk: 1970-78 (Bouzouki Joe)

17. L'Orchestre Kanaga De Mopti - L'Orchestre Kanaga De Mopti (Kindred Spirits)

18. The Hidden Tapes: A Compilation of Minimal Wave from Around the World ‘79-‘85 (Minimal Wave)

19. Kourosh Yaghmaei – Back From The Brink: Pre-Revolution Psychedelic Rock From Iran, 1973-1979 (Now Again)

20. Jukebox Jam – Blues and Rhythm Revue (Jazzman)

21. Kelenkye Band - Moving World (Superfly)

22. This May Be My Last Time Singing: Raw African-American Gospel on 45RPM, 1957-1982 (Tompkins Square)

23. Paul Ngozi - The Ghetto (Shadoks)

24. Cartagena! Curro Fuentes & The Big Band Cumbia And Descarga Sound Of Colombia, 1962-72 (Soundway)

25. Tino Contreras - El Jazz Mexicano De Tino Contreras (Jazzman)

26. Rev. Charlie Jackson - You Got to Move: Live Recordings, Vol. 1 (50 Miles Of Elbow Room)

27. Boddie Recording Company: Cleveland, Ohio (Numero Group)

28. Orchestre Poly-Rythmo De Cotonou Dahomey - The First Album, 1973 (Analog Africa)

29. Bobby Hamilton Quintet Unlimited - Dream Queen (Superfly)

30. Michigan Meltdown: Post-Garage Pandemonium and Pre-Punk Fuzz Freaks From The Mitten State's Miliken Era (Coney Dog)

31. Beautiful Rivers And Mountains: The Psychedelic Rock Sound Of South Korea's Shin Joong Hyun (Light In The Attic)

32. The Outsiders - CQ Mythology (Pseudonym)

33. Ongaku 70: Vintage Psychedelia in Japan (Hiruko)

34. Ebo Taylor - Life Stories (Strut)

35. Super Funk's Mission Impossible: Hard To Find & Unreleased Funk Masters (BGP)

37. Lloyd McNeill Quartet - Washington Suite (Soul Jazz)

38. Googoosh - Googoosh (Finders Keepers)

39. Sorry Bamba - Volume One 1970-1979 (Thrill Jockey)

40. Ongaku 80: Alternative Waves From Japan (Hiruko)

41. Mellow Candle - Swaddling Songs PLUS... (Rise Above Relics)

42. Les Goths - Rêve de Silence (Shadoks)

43. Peter Herbolzheimer – Soul Puppets: Unreleased Jazz Funk Library 1970-75 (Sonorama)

44. Bobby Charles - Bobby Charles (Rhino Handmade)

45. Orchestre Rail-Band De Bamako - Orchestre Rail-Band De Bamako (Mississippi)

46. Mickey Newbury - An American Trilogy (Drag City)

47. Battle of Rat Fink Hill: Crude Unissued Pittsburgh Instrumentals, 1961-63 (Norton)

48. Marijata - This Is Marijata (Academy LPs)

49. Istanbul 70: Psych, Disco, Folk Classics (nublu)

50. Soul Safari Presents Township Jive and Kwela Jazz, 1940-60 (Ubuntu Publishing)

51. Bambara Mystic Soul: The Raw Sound of Burkina Faso 1974-1979 (Analog Africa)

52. Mahmoud Ahmed – Jeguol Naw Betwa (Mississippi)

53. Jean-Claude Vannier - Electro Rapide (Finders Keepers)

54. John Fahey - The Past Comes Back To Haunt You: The Fonotone Years 1958-1965 (Dust To Digital)

55. Willie Wright - Telling The Truth (Numero Group)

56. These Trails - These Trails (Drag City)

57. Daphne Oram - The Oram Tapes: Volume One (Young Americans)

58. Vis-A-Vis - Obi Agye Me Dofo (Secret Stash)

59. Van Dyke Parks - Arrangements, Vol. 1 (Bananastan)

60. El Rego et Ses Commandos - El Rego (Daptone)

61. François de Roubaix - Courts Métrages (Wémè)

62. Gétatchèw Mèkurya – Ethiopian Urban Modern Music Vol. 5 (L'Arôme Productions)

63. K. Frimpong & His Cubano Fiestas – K. Frimpong & His Cubano Fiestas (Secret Stash)

64. Bollywood Bloodbath (Finders Keepers)

65. The Original Sound Of Cumbia: The History of Colombian Cumbia & Porro, 1948-79 (Soundway)

66. ¡Gózalo! Bugalú Tropical, Vol.4 (Vampi Soul)

67. Mississippi Fred McDowell - Amazing Grace (Sutro Park)

68. Ame Son - Primitive Expression (Wah Wah)

69. Brand New Wayo: Funk, Fast Times & Nigerian Boogie Badness 1979-83 (Comb & Razor Sound)

70. Erkin Koray - Meçhul: Singles & Rarities (Sublime Frequencies)

71. Opika Pende: Africa at 78 rpm (Dust To Digital)

72. Persian Funk (Secret Stash)

73. Nigeria 70 – Sweet Times: Afro-Funk, Highlife & Juju From 1970s Lagos (Strut)

74. The Fame Studios Story, 1961-73 (Kent)

75. Hans Kennel & Bruno Spoerri - Dusty Vibes: Unreleased Swiss Radio Jazz 1963-67 (Sonorama)

76. Kool & Together - Original Recordings 1970-77 (Heavy Light)

77. Peter Thomas Sound Orchestra - Orion 2000 (Omni)

78.Heikki Sarmanto Big Band – Everything Is It (Porter)

79. Junior Kimbrough - Do The Rump (Sutro Park)

80. Our Lives Are Shaped By What We Love: Motown's Mowest Story, 1971-1973 (Light In The Attic) 

81. "Blackman" Akeeb Kareem - Tomorrow (Hot Casa)

82. Raphaël - Stop, Look, Listen (Heavenly Sweetness)

83. Fred McDowell - The Alan Lomax Recordings (Mississippi)

84. Aqui Los Bravos! The Best of Michi Sarmiento y su Combo Bravo 1967-77 (Soundway)

85. Nouvelle Vague: Musiques Et Chansons De Films (Universal)

86. John Berberian - Expressions East (Mainstream)

87. Rob - Funky Rob Way (Analog Africa)

88. Sohail Rana - Khyber Mail (Finders Keepers)

89. Frankie Zhivago Young - The Age Of Flying High (Superfly)

90. Jim Ford - Demolition Expert (Bear Family)

91. La Sonora Ponceña – A Band And Their Music (Fania)

92. Lucho Bermudez Y Su Orchestra - Lucho Bermudez Y Su Orchestra (Soundway)

93. Ali Farka Touré - Ni Foli: Music From A Cassettte (Social Music)

94. Blind Willie McTell - Trying To Get Home (Sutro Park)

95. George Danquah - Hot & Jumpy (Secret Stash)

96. Nicola Conte Presents Viagem 3 (Far Out)

97. RL Burnside & Sound Machine - Sound Machine Groove (Sutro Park)

98. The Contours - Dance With The Contours (Kent)

99. Janko Nilovic - Funky Tramway (Vadim)

100. Charles "Packy" Axton - Late Late Party, 1965-67 (Light In The Attic)

Honourable Mention

Ali Farka Touré - Manakoidé EP (World Circuit), Cyril Diaz & His Orchestra - Voodoo EP (Soundway), Theo Parrish - uget (Sound Signature), Sun Ra - Space Probe (Art Yard), The Louvin Brothers - Handpicked Songs 1955-1962 (Light In The Attic), Faith - Subject To Change plus First Demo (Dischord), Vesa-Matti Loiri - 4+20 (Porter), Freddy Cole - The Cole Nobody Knows (First Shot/Sonorama), Virgo Four - Resurrection (Rush Hour), Genius/GZA - Liquid Swords (Get On Down), Lijadu Sisters - Danger (Knitting Factory), Marion Brown - Geechee Recollections / Sweet Earth Flying (Impulse!), Ol' Dirty Bastard - Return To The 36 Chambers (Get On Down), New World Generation - NWG (Now Again), MF Doom - Operation: Doomsday [Lunchbox Edition] (Metal Face), Satwa - Satwa (Mr. Bongo). Shattered Dreams: Funky Blues 1967-78 (Ace)