Satoshi Ashikawa – Still Way: Wave Notation 2 LP

Description

2023 repress; LP version. 350gsm sleeve with selected UV high gloss varnish. Liner notes byMidori Takada,Satoshi Ashikawa, andGareth Quinn Redmond. WRWTFWW Records announce the reissue ofSatoshi Ashikawa‘sStill Way (Wave Notation 2). Initially released in 1982 as part of theWave Notationseries (which includesHiroshi Yoshimura‘sMusic For Nine Postcards),Still Wayis, without a doubt, a seminal Japanese environmental/ambient/minimalism album, often mentioned alongsideMidori Takada‘sThrough The Looking Glass(1983) (WRWTFWW 018LP, WRWTFWW 019CD/LP) and Hiroshi Yoshimura’sGreen(1986) as one of the genre’s most important pieces. “Like the moment of stillness, after the wind passes through the garden, when the rain stops for a brief second…” Notably inspired byErik Satie‘sFurniture MusicandBrian Eno‘s ambient work, Satoshi Ashikawa aimed to compose music “intended to be listened to in a casual manner, as a musical landscape or a sound object — not something that would stimulate listeners but music that should drift like smoke and become part of the environment.” The result is simply phenomenal, subtle minimalism and emotional elegance exquisitely orchestrated by Satoshi Ishikawa and his team consisting of his wifeMasami Ashikawa(on flute), Midori Takada (on vibraphone),Yuko Utsumi(on harp),Tomoko Sono(on piano), andJunko Arase(on vibraphone). In conjunction withStill Way, WRWTFWW Records is releasingLaistigh den Ghleo(WRWTFWW 039CD/LP), a companion album by Irish ambient/minimalist composerGareth Quinn Redmond, inspired by Ashikawa’s approach. Liner notes by Midori Takada, Satoshi Ashikawa, and Gareth Quinn Redmond.