Mango & Sweet Rice Presents
 |
| courtesy of mango & sweet rice |
Singer and electronica artist Coppé celebrates her label’s 10th anniversary with some friends
Shibuya’s dark den of expats, the Ruby Room, plays host to what looks to be
one of the more unpredictable events of the summer when Coppé celebrates her label’s 10th anniversary and new album next Friday.
Something of a musical nomad who grew up in Japan and the US, Coppé relocated to Tokyo a few years ago and has become a familiar denizen of the city’s experimental electronica circles. The result of her restless musical explorations most recently took form in 9 + 10, issued to mark a decade of her Mango & Sweet Rice imprint.
With collaborations from electronica luminaries like Q-bert and Nobukazu Takemura, the album ranges from hip-hop to ambient to minimal techno and musical territories beyond. Guest spots for the event are slated from album contributors Legofriendly and The Kitchen Cynic as well as drummer Jimanica, so it’s likely the evening will prove equally musically schizophrenic.
Organized by Tokyo’s Sound Dispatch label, the event will be rounded out with sets by New Zealand downtempo artist Jet Jaguar and turntables/sampler/drums “psychedelic thrash” unit Fallopian Disco Force...
On a house tip, veteran dancefloor anthem-makers Blaze return to Japan for a weeklong tour that takes them from Kyushu to Hokkaido with a stop at Yellow next Saturday.
It’s been two years since Kevin Hedge and his partner in Blaze, Josh Milan, last visited Japan, and to mark the occasion they are releasing a new album, Most Precious Love: Blaze Essentials on Victor Entertainment. In addition to their epic house workout “Most Precious Love,” the album features a slew of Blaze hits and rare remixes selected by Hisa Ishioka of New York-based King Street Sounds, also the organizer of the Urbanphonics series under which the tour is taking place.
The Tokyo date will be enlivened with a live set by Blaze collaborator, violinist Chieko Kinbara. A classically trained musician and former member of the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, Kinbara broke away from the concert hall to bring her instrumental skills to bear on her true love: house music.
The result has been a series of albums blending dynamic classical strings with house, Latin and worldbeat, of which her new Strings of Life is the latest. In addition to a collaboration with Blaze, the album also saw her working with Grammy-winning Masters At Work producer Louie Vega and New York house group the Ananda Project.
Mango & Sweet Rice Presents@Ruby Room, Aug 4. Urbanphonics presents Blaze@Yellow, Aug 5. See club listings for details.
Got something to say about this article? Send a letter to the editor at letters@metropolis.co.jp.
Listen to the Metropolis Podcast, the coolest guide to what goes on this week in Tokyo.
Looking for international friends? Check Japan, Inc. Friends now - it's 100% free!
|
