- The Japanese artist's first new house tracks in 25 years recapture the exuberance of his early work.
- As a veteran of the '90s house scene, Tokyo-based producer and video game soundtracker Soichi Terada has a knack for crafting dance music with an East Asian flair. His latest album, Asakusa Light, is the long-awaited follow-up to 2015's Sounds From The Far East—which was a collection of unearthed material from Terada's self-run Far East Recording label. Heading back into the studio for the first time in 25 years, Asakusa Light finds him trying to channel the same processes that shaped his older material. A lot has changed in the world of electronic music since Terada's heyday, but this collection of tracks doesn't play like a comeback record. Bouncy and spirited, it's as warmhearted as Terada's signature smiley disposition.
Terada used his original gear to make the album, but found it difficult to rediscover his youthful mindframe at first. He skimmed through his old MIDI data and tried to harness nostalgia for his years as an active figure in the dance world. Finally, thanks to a little help from Rush Hour, he was able to find what he describes in the liner notes as "some light from his heart from 30 years ago." He called this energy Asakusa Light, and its liveliness is transcendent. These tracks play like exceptional outtakes from the sessions that shaped the material on Sounds From The Far East.
Terada's trademark techniques sound refreshingly hi-fi on Asakusa Light. "From Dusk" is blissed-out, but its dense low end could get just about any dance floor moving. "Silent Chord"'s crystalline synth pads cast the track in a lush nocturnal glow. The minimalist closer "Epoxy Lamp"'s crisp, trebly drum groove features some of the most well-recorded percussion I've heard in a while. Asakusa Light revamps the pulsating, pretty music he made all those decades ago for the Internet age.
The project is tied together by a sonic palette that embraces pristine tones. "Soaking Dry" is centered on digitized disco strings and a lead that clatters like a wonderfully resonant pan struck with a mallet. The record's most ethereal moment comes on "Runners," when a music box motif rides atop a springy, four-on-the-floor groove. On "Blinker," electric piano chords (played on what sounds like a Yamaha DX7) lay the framework for a funky, undulating bassline. Terada's work frequently employs the use of FM keyboards, and Asakusa Light's bass and lead tones consistently showcase his mastery of the notably complex synthesis style.
In the time that Terada took off from crafting dance tracks, he stayed busy writing video game music (he's notably composed pieces for numerous installments of the Ape Escape series). Asakusa Light possesses a similarly cartoonish quality, which reminds me of playing a driving arcade game like Cruis'n USA or California Speed. This really shines through on "Bamboo Fighter," whose bouncy bassline and fabricated flute would fit nicely on the score to a charmingly kitschy '80s spy movie. His prior work was already uplifting, but there's something especially joyful about this album. Asakusa Light captures the magic of an artist re-discovering his love of radiant euphoria.
Tracklist01. Silent Chord
02. Double Spire
03. Bamboo Fighter
04. Diving Into Minds
05. Marimbau
06. Takusambient
07. Soaking Dry
08. From Dusk
09. Runners
10. Blinker