Studio Mule Japan Vinyl & CDs

Review: Revered Japanese house producer and DJ Kaoru Inoue has been making his mark since the late 90s with releases music through his label Seeds and Ground and others like Mule Musiq and Groovement. Originally released in Japan in 2013, this newly reissued album blends world music, field recordings, ambient and electronic elements into an immersive and widescreen sound. It opens with the minimal gamelan ambient track 'Malam' followed by the Afro-Brazilian house of 'Selva' which is reminiscent of early Luciano and Villalobos. The album also features electric jazz fusion house, avant-garde tribal breakbeats and Balearic slow house. Closing with the melancholic new age piece 'Healing Force,' it's a timeless delight.

Review: Some expansive, cinematic, orchestral spiritual jazz for you here, from the trio of talents that Fumio Itabashi, Kuniyiki and Henrik Schwarz. While the latter two are generally better-known for their deep and sometimes tech-tinged house and ambient productions, the original mix of 'Watarese' (featured here on side B) is a dense, immersive jazz soundscape laden with evocative Japanese vocals, improvised piano, moody orchestration and definite nods towards vintage free-jazz. Spiritual Life supremo Joaquin 'Joe' Clausell provides the remix and, somewhat predictably, steals the show. His take is gently rhythmic, sun-splashed spiritual jazz full of hand percussion, fluid piano motifs and rubbery double bass.

Review: Moogroove is the alias of Japanese house music producer Kenji Eto, who released this highly sought after gem originally back in 1994 on Mo Rhythm Records. Made famous by Motor City Drum Ensemble on his Fabric compilation where he used the track 'Dark Room', this is the EP's first reissue courtesy of Studio Mule featuring artwork from Lily Fei. Features the hypnotic back room dub of 'Moogroove' (part 2), the classic acid house sound of 'Out Of Control' and the deep, late-night mood music of 'Out Of Time'.

Review: Renowned for the immersive nature of his sunset-ready blends of ambient, Balearic, deep house and new age sounds, Soshi Takeda is best-known for Floating Mountains, his cassette-and-digital only 2021 album on 100% Silk. Soon, it may be this mini-album - his first outing on Studio Mule - that people cite as the Japense producer's best work. Rich in colourful 1980s new-age synths and sparse drum machine sounds, twinkling piano solos, and oodles of enveloping ambient textures, the six tracks on show draw some inspiration from Japanese ambient pioneers (Midori Takada especially) and contemporary crews (Coastlines in particular) while delivering a distinctive musical voice. Inspired stuff all told.

Review: More from Studio Mule's must-check "Midnight In Tokyo" series, which gathers together obscure gems from the Japan that "sound best listened to at night". While the previous volume largely focused on forgotten Japanese jazz-funk, this edition is more eclectic in tone, variously touching on rare groove, new wave, soul and disco. It's another belting selection, all told, with highlights including the breathy sleaziness of Yoko Hatanaka's "More Sexy", the post-punk boogie eccentricity of Mari Kaneko's "Get To Paradise", the sprightly synth-funk of "Sunshine Bright On Me" by Kangaroo and the synth-rock silliness of The Fad's wonderfully over-the-top "Singing Lady".

Review: Tsunaki Kadowaki curates Midnight in Tokyo 4, exploring an obscure form, "Ambient Kayo", which shortens the Japanese pop phenomenon Kayokyoku or "Showa-era pop" and dissolves it in a blushing, titrated wash of ambience, taking cues from the "Showa-era" pop period that lasted roughly from 1977-1999. The compilation presents a diverse breadboard, with such charcuterie items as Yosui Inoue's 'Umi e Kinasai', an ambient pop gem and Balearic bisque, and Keiko Nosaka & George Murasaki's 'Oritatamu Umi', blending Okinawan and progressive rock. The collection also has hidden treasures like S.R. Kinoshita's 'Mangrove', a mystical New Age piece, and 'Yume Furin' by E.S. Island, capturing island life's higher vibrations. With contributions from iconic figures like Haruomi Hosono, this album is an evocative, genre-defying celebration of Japanese ambient pop that resonates with contemporary sensibilities.