» Press »  Tamaru | Figure

Two releases on Tokyo's neophyte Trumn label each with their own peculiarly Japanese take on ambiance. In the case of Yui Onodera's, label head, Hideho Takemasa, describes Entropy as "the most sought-after item of all his releases," partly a consequence of a highly limited first release (on Onodera's own Critical Path), but, to be fair, also due to its compelling quality. Still a relative youngster at 27, he's lately made increasing incursions, with a series of albums on taâem, Mystery Sea, and/OAR, and Gears of Sand. Entropy betrays no signs of age despite its 5-year vintage, sounding fresh as ever; the kind of work that's blazed (or rather 'lightly singed') a trail for the small-gesture large-affect micro-symphonics of a new wave of cosy-drone cottage industrialites - labels like Home Normal, Low Point, Under the Spire and Hibernate. And also led the way for fellow rising sun 'scapers like Chihei Hatekayama and Hakobune.

Entropy's parts - a layering of harmony from guitars, streaks of field-found noises off and signal processing - will be familiar (see all of the above labels). It's a familiarity that breeds admiration not contempt; not that Onodera does it better so much as he has the touch. And touch is what endows music of this stripe with the compelling quality mentioned earlier - what separates this soundscape sheep from the goaty herd. Entropy's constituents, once established, are then variously configured and held up to the light, or maneuvered gently through the shade. If there is a Japanese aspect discernible in these elegant compositions, it's their uncluttered nature that leaves space for still substantial bounty. Simple chordal shifts, a delicate reticence of melody playing at the edges, frequency inflections and timbral tweakage. As the border between surface and depth is navigated, Onodera's locus/focus ranges from the geo-spatial mysteries of Biosphere to the stunned-bliss stargazing of SotL, taking in the more intimate microscopics of Celer. The intricacy of the minutiae hidden in the folds and rhizomes of sound open up to scrutiny, like snowflakes through the lens of Onodera's focus-shifting micro-viewer. A certain density no sooner develops than it cedes into more minimal tonal terrain, where pacific streams emerge then resurge into more ambiguous, though ultimately benign, waters. As movements progress, immersion creeps, seeps more immanently, till "09" opens beyond the light into harmonic radiance, the chafings of field recordings below submerged by a mounting melody of expansion lifting us into "10." Here the sensations of tone suffuse the listener with serenity, in a final dissolution of tensions. Entropy - a measure for the proportion of disorder in the universe - is always rising. Onodera's construct is of a different order - an antidote, in fact, in aural form.

If guitar is the star of Onodera's firmament, bass is the place for Tokyo-based improv-minimalist, Shuichi Tamaru. His Figure is leaner, even consumptive - a spartan ethnography of his lugubrious instrument's tonality. A simple process system involving footpedals and real-time processing is set in train. Bass tones are drawn out via volume pedals, and fed to processors set to generate long-interval delays. Then further tones are spread over the seams. A head-achey bass hum that sometimes thrums with subtle shifts of processing intervention. Tamaru keeps it clean and close to first bass/base, the object of his ear's desire residing in the natural overtone layers of the instrument's resonances. Here is a drone redolent of faraway planes passing over. There is a long dark vector snaking through evacuated terrain. Between the expanses of lowflow, off-chords peek through, now and then a rumble and a crumble. A shadowy Zen Garden-like mood prevails, pebbles and the odd rock, raking sounds relieving otherwise sparse expanses, Tamaru's palette deliberately reined in on these lowlight tone sketches. "Torso" starts, a single string plucked and re-plucked, its decay fed to delay and captured in frozen fluidity. "Juju," almost dynamic by comparison, growls quietly, mysterious microtonal ripples triggered by delay overlay in a dialogue with the aleatory. Tamaru's musical philosophy of asceticism means gesture is subsumed to gaze, alternately rapt and stunned by tonal slippage and elision. The music of chance is given little voice, as improv incursions come in spurts, small timbral tweaks and frequency flickers - the short discontinuous inciding in the long continuous. And though Figure is thin gruel for those used to wallowing in textural transport, deep listeners may find here a certain elliptical beauty in these twilight tones as they arc and tilt, fade away and resonate.

Alan Lockett

This set of bass guitar improvisations has at it's base (please excuse the pun) a strict doctrine as outlined in the accompanying notes. Tomaru's setup, through it's simplicity, allows him to fully control the overtones coaxed from his delay drenched bass sounds.

There is an inherent problem in single instrument composition in that it often suffersd from a dearth of available sounds unless one is willing to overdub, something which Tamaru's strict minimalistic improvisational style precludes.

Figure is a little one-dimensional in places but equally the control and finesse displayed is quite something to behold. His tones are pristine and the music moves with a stately grace.

My minor reservation aside this is an interesting and worthwhile foray into improvisational minimalism.

Ian Holloway

The inaugural release from this new label from Tokyo comes from experimental bass guitar player Tamaru. Having self released a number of CDs over the years whilst appearing on plenty of compilations, this latest full album is a thematically engaging and fascinating look into his sound. Simply using bass guitar and effects, Tamaru explores the range of tonal variations from his instrument of choice by creating drone textures and wonderfully stripped back note structures. The opening tracks alone are something of a transcendental treat that have an almost spiritual quality to them – the bass guitar version of the 'Om' in some ways. Long, drawn out and all encompassing, there's a raw resonance to the notes and sounds that seems to almost magnetically draw you towards them. To temper that there are several shorter pieces that use a more overtly melodic feel to convey a less obviously hypnotic feel and sound somehow warmer... it's an intangible sense thatﾕs hard to describe and, in fact, there's something almost playful about these pieces. But the main draw here is the bottom-heavy, mind filling goodness of the longer works and it's there that you'll find something pretty much unique – I certainly haven't come across a lot of music like this. It sounds fresh and slightly strange but ultimately it has a singular beauty that becomes more and more apparent with each listen. A wonderful beginning for this excellent new label. Gorgeous packaging as well I have to mention with oversized fold out panel cardboard sleeves with immaculate design and printing. Something a little special, then.

Nuove dal Sol Levante. Dall'etichetta di Hideho Takemasa, il secondo album solista di Shuichi Tamaru, Figure, sposa l'ambient più riduzionista all'improvvisazione, trasformando gli interessi dell'artista in un vero e proprio manifesto d'intenti.

L'album è una sorta di mappatura sonora in otto movimenti che ruotano intorno alla gamma di frequenza giocando con sfumatura, plasticità (Stream), dissolvenza (Cathedral) o profondità di tono (Juju) il cui effetto dato dalle stratificazioni (Thought) o dalle fluidità (Plateau) in loop è imprevedibile ma consapevole.

A impossessarsi del vuoto qui sono le formule più semplici - in variazioni di tempo e microtonali armonie - votate al suono puro e chiamate a gestire lo spazio attraverso sinusoidali forme sottili.

Di fronte a tanta essenzialità stupisce l'eleganza e la qualità del droning riprodotto. Oltre, il gesto e la teoria poi, Tamaru possiede il dono di sospendere il tempo. Non è certo poco.

Sara Bracco

The first release on the wonderful looking Japanese label Trumn comes from Tamaru and it is called 'Figure'. I'm just reading the lovely sleevenotes that lie within the ultra smart looking A5 card package and they're very charming. Tamaru writes about his creative process and techniques of using his beloved bass guitar, volume and delay pedal. The sound he achieves is a heady bass drone that throbs and hums with lots of subtle transformation. The sound is very clean and precise and in many ways reminds me of some of the pioneers of early minimalism. If you like ultra stripped down tones where the beauty lies within the simplicity then this is well worth your attention.

Ant

Trumn est un tout jeune label japonais créé par Hideho Takemasa qui débutait fort en mars avec la sortie simultanée de deux albums : Yui Onodera dont nous parlerons très prochainement, et Tamaru pour la première référence. De son vrai nom Shuichi Tamaru, le Japonais agé de 46 ans a déjà quelques années de pratique musicale, que ce soit en solo ou avec son groupe Installing avec Keiichi Sugimoto (Minamo, Fourcolor, Fonica). Il gère par ailleurs les labels 1040 et 1050 dont il se sert pour sortir une partie de sa production et autres collaborations.

Le projet solo de Tamaru est un peu plus extrême que ses collaborations puisqu'il se produit à la guitare basse en jouant principalement des drones lancinants. S'il n'aime pas le terme, il est tout de même difficile de ne pas parler d'ambient. Abstraction, linéarité et flottements sont quelques uns des éléments qui reviennent à l'écoute de ces 8 "figures" polaires. Parlons de l'objet tout d'abord, avec un travail particulièrement soigné réalisé par Ricks Ang et April Lee dont nous parlions récemment puisqu'ils forment aspidistrafly pour la musique et Kitchen. pour la partie label/webdesign. On a donc ici un simple carton très rigide plié en trois et rangé dans une pochette plastique, le tout au format DVD, avec une superbe illustration, traitement gris pastel d'une photo rendue quasiment abstraite et qui sied à merveille à la musique de Tamaru.

Cela fait dix ans que le Japonais a acheté sa basse et qu'il compose plus ou moins la même musique depuis, se produisant régulièrement en concerts improvisés avec pédales de volume et delay. C'est d'ailleurs ce type de performance, sous forme d'une session d'enregistrement, qui compose Figure. Si l'album s'ouvre sur une basse claquante (Torso), on se retrouve très rapidement avec un drone grave aux lentes évolutions, s'assourdissant, semblant ensuite se dédoubler sous forme de nappe métallique. La moitié des morceaux du CD se développent sur 8-11mn, jouant uniquement sur des oscillations et superpositions, soit une ambient minimale et contemplative, tel un jardin zen. Ronronnements aux teintes variées, on a souvent l'impression d'assister à un ballet d'avions dans le ciel (Plateau, Cathedral), certains se faisant particulièrement menaçant (Juju). Sur les pièces les plus courtes, Tamaru torture un peu plus ses sonorités et tente de les mettre en relief. Rapides changements de niveau sonore sur Stream, denses frétillements sur Thought rappelant alors le bruit d'un hélicoptère, ou notes tronquées sur l'étonnant Room qui conclue l'album. Des pièces qui gagnent en richesse sans perdre de leur aspect contemplatif.

Un album tout en finesse et subtilité, à conseiller aux amateurs de peintures monochromes et paysages désertiques.

Fabrice Allard

Tamaru is a Tokyo based improvisor who limits himself to bass guitar, volume pedal and delay in order to explore drone overtones. There's nothing new about his processes, but the stillness of the eight tracks is curiously gripping – Tamaru's ability to do nothing for long stretches borders on the catatonic. The opening track "Torso" consists of a single note hammered for a few seconds followed by its decay being fed into a delay system that freezes its undulating responces. The comparatively action-packed "Juju" introduces slightly bolder growling textures that sound like they might be produced by bowing, though this would seem to be at odds with Tamaru's insistence on restricting himself to the simplest instrumental gestures. He's clearly enthralled by the way the textures slip and elide, as if his own contribution to the music that emerges is co-incidental. Weirdly, it's the total lack of technique on display that makes Figure such a riveting album.

Keith Moliné

Tamaru states rather categorically that this kind of music is not made to earn a living, nor can it be performed at the drop of a hat. For him, its fountainhead lies deep within and is as private as a personal spiritual ritual.

Armed with only a bass guitar, volume pedal, sound processor and, maybe most essentially, his own listening powers, Tamaru does in sound what Robert Rauschenberg did in paint half a century ago. Rauschenberg called his famous white canvases "landing strips for shadows and dust". The textures he created with his brush strokes were the topography catching these near-intangibles.

On casual listen, Tamaru's soundscapes may sound like almost featureless drones, but paying close attention reveals them to be stubble fields for catching thoughts - each strum of the bass is akin to Rauschenberg's brushstokes, reproducing itself as a hum, shiver, ripple, or shudder, rebounding through the space around the bassist. Though there is never utter silence, like in the work of kindred spirit, guitarist Taku Sugimoto, there is no bald smoothness, no surface but rather different depths to listen oneself into.

His rather low profile has led Tamaru not to have gathered the audience that, say, a Sugimoto has but a unique a recording as Figures should change that.

The album is the first release for a brand-new label, Trumn, whose intention it is to help make available works by solo artists exploring sound from a different angle, like Tamaru, and releasing them in handsome, tall three-paneled sleeves.

Stephen Fruitman

» Spanish

Esta es la primera edición de sello Trumn de Tokio que está dirigido por Hideho Takemasa quien también vive y trabaja en dicha capital. Este CD viene en un bello tríptico cuyo diseño realizó el propio Takemasa. Este artista residente de Tokio es el líder de la banda Installing junto a Tadahiko Yokogawa y Keiichi Sugimoto [de Four Colour], tiene un proyecto en solitario hace 10 años con el que ha editado el disco “Basso Continuo” en su propio sello 1050. “Figure” son improvisaciones en bajo guitarra realizadas el 31 de mayo de 2007. El trabaja con efectos de pedales y procesadores con delay y el resultado son 8 largas piezas de drones; en la que son tocadas unas pocas notas, produciendo bajos de sobre tonos y diferentes tipos de resonancias. La música es sigilosa con vacilantes movimientos, texturas y colores de sonidos flotantes intencionales que se entretejen de un modo inesperado.

Guillermo Escudero

» English

This is Tokyo's Trumn imprint first release run by Hideho Takemasa who also lives and works in Japan's capital. This CD it comes in a glossy tri-fold one-piece sleeve design by Takemasa. Tokyo based artist frontman of Installing band alongside Tadahiko Yokogawa and Keiichi Sugimoto [of Four Colour], runs a musical project under his own last name in the last ten years with which he has self-released “Basso Continuo” in his own 1050 label. “Figure” is bass guitar improvisations recorded in May 31, 2007. He works with pedal effects and delay processors and the result are 8 long drone pieces; where few notes are played producing low overtones and different kinds of resonances. The music is quiet with flickering movements, textures and colours of intentional floating sounds that interweave each other in an unexpected way.

Guillermo Escudero

Trumn est un jeune label japonais qui officie dans les musiques expérimentales. Jusqu’ici, rien d’extraordinaire. Sa première référence est cet album de Tamaru qui se présente sous un packaging cartonné tout en verticalité et qui se déplie délicatement. Tamaru est connu pour son implication dans le groupe Installing dans lequel on retrouve Keiichi Sugimoto aka Four Colour. Figure est le deuxième album en solitaire (apparemment il en aurait sorti une bonne quantité mais sur des thèmes différents et au sein de formations ou collaborations diverses) basé sur l’exploration des possibilités de son instrument de prédilection : la guitare basse. Clairement dans une optique d’improvisation et de minimalisme ambiant, Tamaru use de sa basse avec une très grande délicatesse. Si, par bien des aspects, le caractère ambiant ressort des travaux du Japonais celui-ci refuse qu’on prête cette dénomination à sa musique. Selon lui c’est plus le caractère improvisé et l’insistance sur la confrontation entre le tonal et l’atonal qui doit l’emporter. Le reste ne serait qu’une vue erronée de l’esprit. Une fois cette précision assimilée on peut écouter Figure d’une toute autre manière. Chaque pièce qui compose l’album mérite une attention toute particulière afin de percevoir toutes les nuances apportées par Tamaru. Une écoute non rigoureuse serait ainsi fort dommageable.

Pourtant la tentation de cataloguer Figure dansla case ambiant est assez forte. Des morceaux comme Torso ou Plateau prêtent facilement à confusion tellement ceux-si sont construits autour de longs étirements sonores. A contrario des titres, comme Stream ou Thought sèment durablement la confusion. Au bout d’un certain moment on finit même par douter. Cependant, au lieu de se creuser la tête pour savoir si effectivement Figure est un disque d’ambiant, il vaut mieux se concentrer sur les valeurs intrinsèques de celui-ci. Difficilement accessible, hermétique, froid et monolithique, Figure ne fera sans doute pas que des heureux. Sans doute son côté très introspectif peut-il rebuter mais il est également indéniable que ses recherches peuvent intriguer et susciter un peu plus que de la curiosité. En somme, si Figure est un disque à écouter dans la pénombre, il est aussi un appel à en savoir un peu plus sur un Tamaru très mal connu en Europe. Pour Trumn, Figure est une bonne œuvre inaugurale qui pose parfaitement les bases de l’orientation voulue par le label.

Pondard Fabien

Vignette #1 - I've had the same headache in my right temple for 8 days straight (too many football grand finals in Europe at odd hours mixed with late nights for music). Most sounds just hurt my head. But my preferred method of falling asleep involves headphones and music. Figure is a warm, treacly soother to both my sore head and desire to sleep.

Vignette #2 - I'm walking home from work with my headphones on. The sky is grey. As I walk, appearing before me is the full 180° arc of a rainbow. To anybody who, like me, has lived in Sydney for the last month and is used to much more regularly blue skies, you will understand the joyous feelings that such a sight might trigger. Figure is my brooding soundtrack which always hints at quiet joy and peaceful satisfaction.

Tamaru has created a contemplative drone work from a setup of bass guitar, volume pedal and delay pedal. The work is majestically beautiful as its simple constructs drag you through a range of of emotional states without seemingly doing very much at all. The bass notes tend to form sinewave sounds which, through subtle shifts in the delay time, are pushed into brief microtonal harmonies. Each track is given time to sink in and envelope. Each is inviting and full of warmth.

Put it down to the weather. Put it down to my health. Whatever it is, Figure is one of the finest releases I've heard for a while and will be returning to my playlist regularly top accompany any of a wide range of moods.

Adrian Elmer

From Japan we are this year happy to see the inauguration of a new label, Trumn – a label specialised in purveying exciting projects into electronic music with its focus on materialising works by artists exploring in the field of sound on a solo basis. Trumn is owned and run by Hideho Takemasa – a busy Japanese salary-man with a great love for music. Takemasa puts great time and money into his passion – an interest which also has seen him take on promotion and tour manager roles in the Japanese electronic music scene – recently working with our newfound, favourite Singaporean imprint Kitchen.

We are well into 2009 now, and Trumn released their first two catalogue releases in March – Figure from experimental bassist Tamaru and Entropy from composer and multi-instrumentalist Yui Onodera. On Entropy we find a rich and diverse collection of compositions – ranging from outer space-like vacuum soundscapes as those of Biosphere in early recordings on Patashnik, to lovely, microscopic details telling of minute variations of organic life, much in the same vein as Jasper Leyland, BJ Nilsen, and aspirations to long-form compositions in the vein of Stars of The Lid and Celer, the latter of which he collaborates with and on Entropy we see glimpses of droning, long-form compositions where the listener can revel in shimmering, wallowing space of enduring hummed noise, processed field recordings and electronics reduced to sound. Then, on other tracks we find Onodera give way to tracks of low, crackling microsounds and glitchy bleeps and electronics in the vein of 12k, Room40 and Spekk. This diversity makes for highly enjoyable listening and through the course of the album new details are discovered on repeated listening.

Tamaru is a bass player who delivers a record of challenge to the listener. Across a collection of 8 tracks on Figure, he plays bass sounds, modulated by delay and volume pedals, handling his trained instrument adeptly and processing its sounds beyond recognition at times, centering on long-stretched tones of a bass, alternating, fading, evolving, trembling chords and reduced to longer tones of droning, repetitive sound. It is quite meditational – sometimes taking on the hue of the engine noise of planes passing above you in the sky. Other times it shifts in force and feels like a fluid body edging its way through a terrain, yet other times again feeling very lofty with dark bass tones allowed a light shade by lingering in the open or flickering. Tamaru’s release feels physical and exerting; this is no electronic composition for the novice listener, but on the other hand a rewarding study of the bass to those who are persistent and are not daunted by the outset of a single instrument making up an entire composition. But given the warm and dark drone of the bass tone there is also a counter-balance in the noise given life in between the short-lived tones, and the result is interesting to say the least.

With two such diverse releases to mark the start of Trumn – not to mention their stunning, over-sized packaging in thick cardboard made by Hideho Takemasa himself – we believe Trumn is a brilliant new addition to Japanese label flora and we look forward to several more releases from them in the future.

Trym Asserson

L'entropia è una sorta di dannazione che la musica di ricerca porta con sé, irreversibile processo di disordine e dissolvimento molecolare che spesso aleggia sopra e dentro i dischi che siamo soliti recensire.

"Entropy" è proprio il titolo dell'album di Yui Onodera, classe 1982, autore non ancora famoso ma già parecchio attivo (il suo stato di servizio annovera ben tre album, un 7" e un 3" nel solo 2007, mentre sono arrivo lavori in collaborazione con Celer, The Beautiful Schizophonic e Exit in Gray). Questo disco d'esordio era uscito originariamente nel 2005 per l'etichetta personale Critical Path e ora riedito dalla neonata Trumn. Un mormorio neutro e immobile, un ondeggiamento statico, il suono dell'entropia appunto, per realizzare il quale il nipponico si serve di varia elettronica, chitarre elettriche efield recordings di rigore. Messa così sembrerebbe ci sia poco da stare allegri, eppure Onodera riesce imperterrito a riacciuffare l'equilibrio dinamico dei propri pensieri acustici e ad offrire, sebbene occasionalmente, pagine di grande fascino.

Stessa lunghezza d'onda per il nuovo album del redivivo Tamaru (a lui dedicammo un esteso articolo nel lontano 2000). Armato del fido basso e di pedaliera per il controllo del volume e il processing del delay, il buon vecchio Shuichi realizza una manciata di improvvisazioni a base di dronesronzanti e ostinati, continui flutti di rimbombi sotterranei da cui si percepisce la disciplina tutta orientale del mantenimento senza fine del tono puro, a renderlo quasi immacolato segno spirituale.

Ultima nota va alle eleganti confezioni dei CD progettate daidesigner dello studio grafico Kitchen. di Singapore.

Nicola Catalano

"The music that is recorded on the album, Figure, is made in the same style that I've been playing for over 10 years. Namely, it is a non-edited recording of an improvised expression played by connecting a volume pedal and delay processors to my bass guitar... The appearance of my set has hardly changed in over 10 years but the sound I play has slowly evolved its form. Some of the changes have occurred without my awareness and some were made intentionally."

So says Japanese experimental bassist Tamaru (also leader of the band, Installing), in notes to his second bass solo album, Figure. He's right, you know. It may sound meaningless to anyone walking by when you're hearing this album, but when you feel the vibration of the speaker cone and feel the bass sound humming into your body, it feels like you're in a sonic Jacuzzi, the sounds rippling across your body physically.

There are eight tracks on the album and what Tamaru seems to do is to build the drama of the bass sound. First track, Torso, sounds like a bunch of Gyuto Monks discovering the delay pedal. Plateau evokes the grandeur of a large, empty space and this sense of a black hole, of a supreme emptiness continues in Cathedral. But the meditation is finally disturbed by Thought where Tamaru's pulsating bass figure pierces the equilibrium. Finally, we wake up in a quiet Room. Recommended for all bass freaks and lovers of drone music.

Philip Cheah

Trumn is a new label from Tokyo, Japan, run by Hideho Takemasa. Trumn releases are featured in a taller, 3-panel vertical case, made with heavy cardboard, and printed with cold lamination film coating and matte varnish, with transparent ink. The artwork, by designer and artist April Lee, is a flushing and ghostly array of photography, brilliantly arranged and eerily fitting for Tamaru’s music. Considering the amount of thought, time, and quality that is represented through the packaging, the resulting releases of equally high-quality music in such an art-edition format makes the albums of Trumn pure, and timeless.

The first release of Trumn is by Tamaru, a well-known figure of solo-improvisation in Japan. He is also a member of the band Installing, with Keiichi Sugimoto and Tadahiko Yokogawa. His album on Trumn, 'Figure', is his second album using his solo bass guitar technique, after 'Basso Continuo' on his own label 1050 from 2000. Included in one of the inner panels of the release is an explanation of style and method, which is an enlightening insight into the thoughts and ideas of Tamaru.

The most imperative detail about Tamaru's music is improvisation, and the will to allow sounds to extend in their own ways, in controlled orders, sequences of senses of beats, and the overture of continuous sounds. Using only a bass guitar, delay processors, and a volume pedal (each controlled by his left and right foot), 'Figure' succeeds in creating an audio map of the progression of harmonies, tonal/atonal/microtonal positions, and the natural evolution of a controlled while still expressive and adventurous sound.

The opening track, titled 'Torso', begins with hopping melodies from the bass, bouncing away slowly, before quickly feeding into a deep and solid funnel of swirling hums, and thunderous momentum. Extending into microscopic progressions, the track grades away finally with a sole, fading echo. 'Plateau' picks up well from the intensity of the first track, immediately pushing into a deep and buzzing realm, where the physical movements appear more as having already passed, than audibly heard, like in the first track. It is an exercise in extension, suspension, and intensity.

'Stream' begins on yet another level of formation, as wavering, smooth, bass notes sway and ebb with upward harmonies, lower-level dips, and with a movement almost comparable to a small boat being tossed side-to-side on the ocean. With an always-deep undercurrent, the higher notes seem to climb with an almost playful, swinging intent.

Inducing yet a different form, 'Matter' begins with a heavily-woven, near-industrial sound to it, highly reminiscent of gritty field recordings, but instead of revealing a locale, it changes. Heavy layers of underlying static circulate through the sound field, with a disjointed bass mumble becoming clearer, and in just a short 3 minutes building to a warm and harmonic flush, with a sudden entrance to clear air and silence.

'Cathedral' begins similarly to the first track, with audible bass movements, but in a much more gentle and patient way. Echoes begin forming, squiggly high frequencies uncurl and drift off, and a re-occurring structure of bass notes becomes apparent through the duration of the track; evolving, and remaining present in faithfulness to structure, and response to the unpredictable. This track's title actually fits perfectly when given thought. For myself, it even brought back memories of seeing a performance of Charlemagne Palestine at a church in Los Angeles. I remember hearing sounds as they were first played, then hearing them return again amidst new sounds as they circulated through the room, and returned to my ears. Tamaru creates a similar and highly engaging atmosphere with 'Cathedral', all inside of a grandiose 10+ minute track. While the structure may appear consistent throughout, the end becomes a metallic, streamlined delta, leading away from the restraint of confines.

Next, everything is taken to a far deeper level. 'Thought' is an incredible example of the true depth and the insinuated-activity that is possible in music. Throughout the track, the listener is surrounded by heavily pulsing bubbles of bass, having the effect of bubbles rising from deep water, changed by the fluid texture of water, unpredictable in size and movement, but only predictable in form. From deep bass bubbles, 'Juju' begins with the deep characteristics of earlier tracks like 'Plateau', but in the form of a slow evolution into a darker, slower form, similar to 'Stream'. While it may be similar, it is no less engaging, and gives only further exploration of the possibilities of the deep-seated physicality and 'human-flow' to this music. All the while, undeterred bubble streams reminiscent to echoes of ‘Thought’ brew underneath, barely in audibility, but utilizing a continuing theme of improvisational transformation.

As the closing track, 'Room' represents an entirely stripped and held-back feel, seeming as if the music is enclosed. Pulses rise from nowhere, fade away softly, or disappear completely. With sparse sounds rising, and such an incredible variety of harmonies appearing from 'Room', it is difficult to define, but that is also what makes it so interesting. It is the kind of track that a listener could leave playing on repeat for hours in a room, and you would never know when it began, or ended. This mystery, and stripped-away compositional method gives the closing track a gentle and alluring attention to detail, that could easily be lost in a heavy or climactic finale, but instead it is memorable and mysterious.

Displaying a tremendous amount of variety, skill, and individuality, Tamaru's 'Figure' is a masterpiece of depth through simplicity, and a fine debut for Trumn. Highest possible recommendation.

Will Thomas Long / Floor Sugar    *Review also available in Floor Sugar store blog

Typisch japanisch, dieser Ästhetizismus, zumal neben der feinen Klangwelt von Hideho Takemasas neuem Label auch die überformatigen Faltcover an die Spekk-Releases von Nao Sugimoto, ebenfalls in Tokyo, erinnern. Zumindest ist es ein fernöstlicher Sinn für Schönheit, denn die Grau-in-Grau- und Foto-Kunst auf den Covern stammen von April Lee (aspidistrafly/Kitchen.) bzw. Erica Lai aus Singapore. Takemasa ist ein Vertreter des Prinzips ,Doppelleben', der neben seiner Existenz als Salaryman sich noch andere Wünsche erfüllt, als nur in einer Karaokebar oder Patchinkohalle zu versacken (um zwei weitere Japanklischees zu bemühen).

Shuichi Tamaru, kurz TAMARU, 1963 in Tokyo geboren, war in der zweiten Hälfte der 90er mit einer Reihe von elektronischen Releases auf Zero Gravity, der Feedbackpsychedelica-Kollaboration mit Hado-Ho aka Dub Sonic und hysterischen ,Spirituals' mit Ami Yoshida in Erscheinung getreten, bevor er 2000 mit Basso Continuo ein Dröhnding nur mit Bassgitarre einspielte. Dem folgte mit Winter 2007 ein Improduett mit dem Saxophonisten Yamauchi Katsura (der mit Signal To Noise schon in BA aufgetaucht ist) und nun mit Figure (T01) ein zweiter Bassmonolog. Per Volume Pedal und Delay Processors moduliert Tamaru seine Basstöne, die in brummiger, brütender, versonnener Sonorität schnurren und meditative Wellen aussenden. Der Klang wird als Stoff spürbar, als etwas Formbares, fließend weich wie Lava, als ein Kokon oder Iglu, der einen umhüllt, eng und warm, dann auch weiträumig und hochgewölbt wie eine gewaltige Höhle, oder stabil und so monoton, dass man darin sitzen und mitfliegen kann.

YUI ONODERA, Jahrgang 1982 und aus Iwate nach Tokyo gekommen, einem bereits Taâlem-, and/OAR- und Drone-einschlägigen Dröhnminimalisten und Ambientästhetizisten, wird mit Entropy (T02) das selbstverlegte CD-R-Debut von 2005 hier wiederveröffentlicht. Sein auf Gitarrenschwingungen und Fieldrecordings basierender Soundscape ist in 10 nicht weiter betitelte Passagen gegliedert, durch die man wie auf Samt schwebt. Es ist ein Summen und schimmerndes Dröhnen in der Luft, das wie ein weicher Nebel aufsteigt oder wie Licht einsickert. Die Schattierungen, die Nuancen sind mal heller, mal dunkler, aber immer mit der Impression von etwas Großem und Weitem verbunden, Landschaften bis jenseits des Horizont oder so in Dunst eingetaucht, dass sie entgrenzt und unermesslich wirken. Die Zeit dehnt sich zu langen Schwingungen, schwellende Haltetöne greifen Raum, der wie gesäumt wirkt mit Bronze-, Silber- oder Goldrand. Sonnenuntergang und Ausklang, nicht Morgenröte, nicht Anfang von etwas. Die Stimmung ist feierabendlich, der Beigeschmack, vom Titel nahegelegt, entsprechend entropisch. Aber statt zu enden, werden die Dinge nur unsichtbar, unhörbar.

Rigobert Dittmann

All art is quite useless according to Oscar Wilde. Then, what is the merit of a CD filled with meditative improvisations on a bass with a delay pedal and a volume pedal? Maybe just that: an opportunity for meditation, inspection and introversion guided by the pounding and pulsing of what has become my favorite instrument in the last years. (Actually, not the instrument but rather the frequency range that is considered as bass, its warm hum, its booming hug or its blowing blast. I like bass. I am addicted to bass. In some ways. I even thought about going to a Flo-Rida show for a second because this mediocre, mainstream dancefloor rapper has some outstanding bass sounds in his music. The next second I knew I would never do it, though, I haven't yet sunken that far...)

The richness in overtones and the droning quality of bass playing is an artistic measure in itself. Verbal expression and direct political statements are not needed, hence Oscar Wilde was right. But I am sure he also figured, that life is better when there are some things left that are not attributed by a use and the net worth of its usage. To be rendered useless but still valuable is the highest form of freedom. There, you see what unfocused meditative improvisation may lead to.

On "Trumn" by the Japanese improviser Tamaru the bass improvisations are gentle, submerged in self-evocation and soothing to an extent that is close to having a small baby sleeping in your arms. Tamaru has been playing with his bass guitar for over ten years – and nothing else. This kind of extreme immersion (or obsession) with a single subject has become a trademark cliché attributed to Japanese artists, and truly, this album is more an artistic statement than about music. Which again brings us back to the intro citation of Oscar Wilde, but does not add to the conclusion taken above.

The most important thing to mention directly to the music is that it is much more lively and dynamic than you would expect from the description or the set up. It is the opposite of boring – which in our day and age is more than you can say about most music released – and keeps on the level of encompassion and organic warmth that does so much for the soothing for the whole length of the album. Sometimes the music almost comes to a complete standstill, though, not moving in any direction anymore and remaining solid and immobile as a wall. Then there are irresponsible gaps and holes in the music filling with nothing at all. But all of these measures somehow magically add to the impression of liveliness.

Emptiness is a very interesting thing. Our society would regard emptiness as a threat – just as uselessness (there, again!) – and try to fill it up with something. I am not too knowledgeable about transcultural philosophy but from an artist's viewpoint a different sentiment should be close at hand: emptiness is a great chance, you get space to fill. Nature abhors vacuums, we all know that. Tamaru seems to be a step further and sets out to produce the vessel that contains emptiness and therefore the chance for the listener to fill something up. With what? A personal redefinition of time or a small historic essayist thought or just a small idea that brings joy for a moment? Whatever you like,is probably the proper answer.

Trumn is a new label from Japan and I will take the opportunity to congratulate them for their great start. The second release on the label will be "Entropy" by Yui Onodera and that will be reviewed here as well shortly.

Georg Gartlgruber