|
December 18, 2017
|
|
|
New Release:
Copies of the duo of Keiji Haino & John Butcher recorded at Cafe Oto in London are beginning to arrive in mailboxes around the world. Both cd and lp remain available at the Cafe Oto online shop. The release is titled, "Light Never Bright Enough" and is released in a limited edition of 500 cds and 500 lps. The collaborations section of the discography has been updated.
|
|
|
December 9, 2016
|
|
|
The Music of Keiji Haino in the Year 2017:
Our friends over at the Poison Pie Publishing House have just posted on their blog a brief look at each of the eleven releases and reissues, which included Haino, in the year 2017. Interested readers are encouraged to visit the blog.
|
|
|
November 23, 2017
|
|
|
New Release:
The new album by the trio of Keiji Haino, Oren Ambarchi & Jim O'Rourke, titled This Dazzling, Genuine "Difference" Now Where Shall It Go? has been released as a double lp. It appears on Black Truffle Records. The collaborations section of the discography has been updated.
|
|
|
November 18, 2016
|
|
|
New Release:
With a copy of the dvd by Yumiko Tanaka, titled Music Performance "KIYOH", in hand, this entry has been moved from the forthcoming section of the discography to the video section. The dvd was released on June 25, 2017. One of the bonus features of the dvd is a ten-minute duo of Yumiko Tanaka on shamisen and voice with Keiji Haion on percussion and voice. The vocals of both are, in a word, unabashed. Aside from the brief, Haino guest appearance, the dvd is full of other musical delights, including appearances by Otomo Yoshihide, Seiichi Yamamoto and Kazuhisa Uchihashi.
For patrons who appreciate Haino's non-idiomatic improvisational vocals, we suggest the investigation of two other artists. Thomas Buckner has had a long and distinguished career as a vocalist including a collaboration with Roscoe Mitchell that began in the early 1980's. In 2014, Buckner made a recording with Joëlle Léandre (bass) & Nicole Mitchell (flute) titled Flowing Stream (Leo Records, CD LR 701, 2014, cd). This was a favorite record of 2014. There is more information about Flowing Stream on discogs.com and a video of a live performance of the trio on youtube. Buckner's vocals techniques with some similarity to Haino are apparent in the video. A second non-idiomatic improvisational vocalist who has only recently come to the attention of our ears is Isabelle Duthoit. She has a new (2017) duet with trumpeter, Franz Hautzinger, on Relative Pitch, titled Lily. There is a video recording of a live solo performance that is not to be missed on youtube. She seems the equal of Haino in vocal pyrotechnics. |
|
|
November 13, 2017
|
|
|
New Release:
The new lp by the Turkish free jazz ensemble, Konstrukt, with Keiji Haino, titled A Philosophy Warping, Little by Little That Way Lies a Quagmire is arriving in mailboxes. The digital version will not be available until December 1, 2017 via karlrecords.bandcamp.com.
|
|
|
November 12, 2017
|
|
|
Forthcoming Release:
A new album by the American/Canadian metal band, Sumac, with Keiji Haino, titled American Dollar Bill - Keep Facing Sideways, You're Too Hideous to Look at Face On is up for preorder at Thrill Jockey with a release date of February 23, 2018. It is available in both cd and double lp format.
|
|
|
October 27, 2016
|
|
|
Forthcoming Release:
The new album by the Turkish free jazz ensemble, Konstrukt, with Keiji Haino, titled A Philosophy Warping, Little by Little That Way Lies a Quagmire is up for preorder at karlrecords.bandcamp.com. According to the site, which shows a counter for the unsold inventory, less than one hundred (of five hundred) copies of the lp remain.
|
|
|
October 23, 2017
|
|
|
Vinyl Reissue:
The compilation, Tokyo Flashback (Volume 1), has been reissued on vinyl from Black Editions. It was originally released on cd in 1991 by the Japanese label PSF. This official release date was October 20, 2017. The reissue contains two lps with deluxe packaging and digitial download code. The compilation includes tracks by both Fushitsusha and Keiji Haino solo, as well as contributions from other groups from the Japanese underground scene of the time: Ghost, High Rise, White Heaven, Kousokuya, Verzerk, and Marble Sheep & The Run-Down Sun's Children. The compilation section of the discography has been updated.
|
|
|
October 21, 2016
|
|
|
New Release:
A dvd by Yumiko Tanaka, titled Music Performance "KIYOH", was released on June 25, 2017. Yumiko Tanaka is a gidayu shamisen player active in the fields of contemporary classical and improvised music as well as traditional Japanese music. The dvd contains one duet with Keiji Haino (percussion, voice), with a run time of 10:06. The dvd also includes contributions from Yukio Suzuki (dance), Otomo Yoshihide (electric guitar), Seiichi Yamamoto (electric guitar), Kazuhisa Uchihashi (guitar) and other Japanese luminaries of non-idiomatic improvisation. Much more information is available at the Ftarri website. The cd can be ordered internationally from Ftarri. The release is parked in the forthcoming section of the discography until I receive my copy in the mail, at which point it will be moved to the video section.
|
|
|
October 20, 2016
|
|
|
Forthcoming Release:
The new album by the Turkish free jazz ensemble, Konstrukt, with Keiji Haino, titled A Philosophy Warping, Little by Little That Way Lies a Quagmire has been announced. It appears on Karlrecords. The announced release date is December 1, 2017. The forthcoming section of the discography has been updated. Previously, we received an email stating that the title of this record was Eastern Saga. It appears that the title has been changed, (unless there are two Konstrukt+Haino lps coming out on karlrecords this fall, which seems unlikely). More details as they become clear.
|
|
|
October 20, 2016
|
|
|
Forthcoming Release:
The new album by the trio of Keiji Haino, Oren Ambarchi & Jim O'Rourke, titled This Dazzling, Genuine "Difference" Now Where Shall It Go? has been announced. It appears on Black Truffle Records. The announced release date is November 17, 2017. The forthcoming section of the discography has been updated.
|
|
|
October 6, 2016
|
|
|
Link:
You Haven't Seen Everything Until You've Seen a Woman Playing Pedal Steel Guitar: An Interview with Susan Alcorn Our friends over at the International Journal of Exploratory Meta-Living have just published a new (eleventh) issue of the journal featuring an interview with the American pedal steel guitarist, Ms. Susan Alcorn. The interview was conducted in Fall, 2017 as part of the "Golden Age of Non-Idiomatic Improvisation" course offered at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Interested readers are encouraged to check the issue out via free, anonymous download. |
|
|
October 5, 2017
|
|
|
Forthcoming Release:
Preorders for the live performance of the duo of Keiji Haino & John Butcher recorded at Cafe Oto in London are now up at the Cafe Oto online shop. The release is titled, "Light Never Bright Enough" and will be released on the in-house label, Otoroku, in a limited edition of 500 cds and 500 lps. The orders are expected to ship in early November. Worldwide shipping is available.
|
|
|
September 16, 2017
|
|
|
Forthcoming Vinyl Reissue:
The compilation, Tokyo Flashback (Volume 1), is being reissued on vinyl from Black Editions. It was originally released on cd in 1991 by the Japanese label PSF. It is up for pre-order now with an October 20, 2017 release date. The reissue will contain two lps with digitial download code. The compilation includes tracks by both Fushitsusha and Keiji Haino solo, as well as contributions from other groups from the Japanese underground scene of the time: Ghost, High Rise, White Heaven, Kousokuya, Verzerk, and Marble Sheep & The Run-Down Sun's Children. The deluxe reissue of Haino's debut solo album, Watashi dake? is also still available on the site.
|
|
|
September 6, 2017
|
|
|
New Release:
The new album by Nazoranai (the trio of Keiji Haino, Oren Ambarchi & Stephen O'Malley), titled Beginning To Fall In Line Before Me, So Decorously, The Nature Of All That Must Be Transformed has been released. It appears on W25.TH, an imprint of Superior Viaduct. The announced release date is October 6, 2017 but I pre-ordered a copy from the Superior Viaduct website and my copy of the lp arrived in the mail today. The Nazoranai section of the discography has been updated.
|
|
|
August 29, 2017
|
|
|
Discography
The cd compilation, "Music of the Polygonola (a polygonal flat musical instrument)" has finally found a distributor outside Japan. The cd is for sale at https://japanarchives-mailorder.com/ and on discogs.com. Get one while they last. There are two tracks, which include Haino performing on the polygonola, which combined run about twenty-eight minutes. The compilation section of the discography has more information.
|
|
|
August 29, 2017
|
|
|
Forthcoming Vinyl Release:
W25.TH, an imprint of Superior Viaduct, has announced the forthcoming release of the new album by Nazoranai (the trio of Keiji Haino, Oren Ambarchi & Stephen O'Malley). The album is titled Beginning To Fall In Line Before Me, So Decorously, The Nature Of All That Must Be Transformed. It will be available on vinyl with a digital download code. The announced release date is October 6, 2017.
|
|
|
August 21, 2017
|
|
|
Forthcoming Vinyl Release:
karlrecords has announced the forthcoming release of a collaborative album between Keiji Haino and Konstrukt, the Istanbul-based free jazz collective. The album is titled Eastern Saga. It will be available on vinyl with a digital download code. The precise release date was not included in the announcement.
|
|
|
July 10, 2017
|
|
|
Music of the Polygonola Review:
A review of the recently released Music of the Polygonola compilation by the staff of the Poison Pie Publishing House is now available on their blog.
|
|
|
July 6, 2017
|
|
|
Discography
A cd compilation, "Music of the Polygonola (a polygonal flat musical instrument)" has been released on the label Applied Vibro-Acoustics, Inc. (NSAVA-0001). There are two tracks, which include Haino performing on the polygonola, which combined run about twenty-eight minutes. The compilation section of the discography has been updated. The entry in the discography contains a link to the label, including a pdf of the liner notes in Japanese and in English. To our knowledge this disc is not being distributed outside Japan. If a visitor to this site learns of a distributor outside of Japan, send information to this site and we will post it.
|
|
|
June 21, 2017
|
|
|
Watashi Dake? Review:
A review of the Black Editions reissue of Watashi Dake? by the staff of the Poison Pie Publishing House is now available on their blog.
|
|
|
June 19, 2017
|
|
|
Vinyl Reissue:
The official release date for the reissue of Haino's first solo album, Watashi Dake? (Only Me?), was June 16, 2017. Our copy arrived in the mail today. Watashi Dake? is being reissued on vinyl (with digitial download code) from Black Editions. It was originally released on vinyl in 1981 and later on cd in 1993. For the first time official English translations of the lyrics are also included. We added these to the lyrics page of the website. Also of interest on the Black Editions website is an interview with Keiji Haino conducted by Takeshi Goda on January 29, 2017. The interview touches on all sorts of topics from the early years in which Watashi Dake? emerged. The interview can be accessed here. |
|
|
June 2, 2017
|
|
|
Discography
A double cd compilation, "Tokyo Flashback: PSF - Psychedelic Speed Freaks" has been released to commemorate the passing of PSF founder Hideo Ikeezumi. The release date was May 24, 2017 and the label is Super Fuji Discs (FJSP 271/272). There is a Haino track on disc one and a Fushitsusha track on disc two. The compilation section of the discography has been updated.
|
|
|
May 12, 2017
|
|
|
Forthcoming Vinyl Reissue:
Haino's first solo album, Watashi Dake? (Only Me?), is being reissued on vinyl (with digitial download code) from Black Editions. It was originally released on vinyl in 1981 and later on cd in 1993. It is up for pre-order now with a June 16, 2017 release date.
|
|
|
April 14, 2017
|
|
|
Discography Format Updated:
When "An Unofficial Keiji Haino Website" was started in 1995, it provided a source of information about the music of Keiji Haino to an English-speaking audience. In the intervening decades, much additional content has appeared on internet. In particular, the community database at discogs.com provides a plethora of information regarding the releases of Keiji Haino. We thought about the utility of the discography maintained at "An Unofficial Keiji Haino Website" and ultimately decided it was not entirely redundant and was worth continuing, at least for a while. There are several reasons to do this. First, some entries in our discography apparently don't exist on discogs.com. Second, some information on discogs.com contradicts our own information. For things such as release dates, since we added releases to the Haino discography in real time, we have confidence in our own information. Third, it is difficult on discogs.com to get a comprehensive discography of a particular artist, since groupings are made my ensemble name. When we decided to add to each entry in our discography a link to the relevant entry on discogs.com, some of them were difficult to find. Some we could not find at all. Some appear only to be searchable in one language (Japanese or English) or the other. In updating the discography, we also got rid of the html frames, which is a feature still supported by current browsers but which was largely antiquated and provided fragments of pages out of context in response to internet searches. We also decided to split up the "collaborations" section of the discography, which had become unwieldy. Our choice of categorization is arbitrary but systematic. |
|
|
April 9, 2017
|
|
|
Forthcoming Compilation:
A forthcoming compilation featuring Haino and Fushitsusha tracks has been officially announced. The double cd compilation will have the "Tokyo Flashback" title and will be released to commemorate PSF founder Hideo Ikeezumi. The material is described as previously unreleased. The proposed release date is May 24, 2017 and the label is identified as Super Fuji Discs (FJSP 271/272). More information, including a list of artists, is posted at: http://indiegrab.jp/?p=46479.
|
|
|
April 6, 2017
|
|
|
Live Recording on Web:
An audio recording of a solo vocal show by Keiji Haino has been posted on the web. The performance dates from February 26, 2012 at the Tramway in Glasgow. Follow this link: http://arika.org.uk/archive/items/episode-2-special-form-darkness/keiji-haino.
|
|
|
March 26, 2017
|
|
|
Radio Broadcast:
Stephen O'Malley of, among other ensembles, Nazoranai, ran a two hour Keiji Haino special on his Acid Quarry Paris show the other day, with quite a bit of unreleased live material from different periods. Follow this link for the rebroadcast schedule: https://www.redbullradio.com/shows/stephen-omalley-presents-acid-quarry-paris/episodes/keiji-haino.
|
|
|
March 14, 2017
|
|
|
New Release:
A book about Keiji Haino, titled, Vocations de l'ombre - Haino Keiji - Une autre voix/voie du rock (Vocations of the Shadow - Haino Keiji - Another Voice / Way of Rock) written by Bruno Fernandes is published by the French publisher, Les presses du réel. The book is accompanied by a cd of unreleased solo (two tracks) and Fushitsusha material (3 tracks), titled, unheard pieces of the late XXth and early XXIst centuries. The book can be ordered for worldwide delivery at http://www.lespressesdureel.com/EN/ouvrage.php?id=5284. (At the time of posting, this site still says, "pre-order", but this is where I ordered my copy from and I have the book in hand.) More information is in the Fushitsusha section of the discography.
|
|
|
March 3, 2017
|
|
|
News:
Hideo Ikeezumi, the founder of the PSF label, which released so many seminal recordings of Haino, Fushitsusha and other artists of the Japanese underground, has died. An obituary by Alan Cummings is posted in The Wire here and an obituary by Peter Kolovos and Steve Lowenthal is posted on NPR here.
|
|
|
February 2, 2017
|
|
|
Forthcoming Release:
A book about Keiji Haino, titled, Vocations de l'ombre - Haino Keiji - Une autre voix/voie du rock (Vocations of the Shadow - Haino Keiji - Another Voice / Way of Rock) written by Bruno Fernandes is to be published in the first quarter of 2017 by the French publisher, Les presses du réel. The book is accompanied by a cd of unreleased solo and Fushitsusha material. The book can be pre-ordered for worldwide delivery at http://www.lespressesdureel.com/EN/ouvrage.php?id=5284.
|
|
|
January 31, 2017
|
|
|
New Release:
The trio of Keiji Haino, Jozef Dumoulin and Teun Verbruggen have released a new recording, Miracles of Only One Thing on Sub Rosa Records on lp and cd. More information is in the collaborations section of the discography.
|
|
|
January 1, 2017
|
|
Releases in 2016:
For those keeping track at home, it appears that the full slate of Haino releases for the calendar year 2016 rounds out at five.
In addition to these records, there is some information regarding the following releases planned for 2017.
|
|