Search - Takemura Nobukazu :: Scope

Machine music with heart

Rinchen Choesang | Melbourne, Australia | 12/27/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Nobukazu Takemura is clearly a prodigious talent, if this CD is an true indication of his abilities. I find this kind of 'deconstructionist' music fascinating anyway, but this is a rivetting example of this genre.



- 'on a balloon' - opening synth 'theme' is like an electronic lighthouse signal, warning us to avoid being wrecked on the rocks of the stark and bleepy minimalism to follow. While it didn't grab other reviewers, it certainly has me drooling for more

- 'kepler' - more approachable, with its insistent rhythms and synth throbs and bleeps, this is a fabulous foil to the first track. The track has an almost Steve Reich-like drive to it in parts. Captivating!

- 'taw' - here we are back to the less safe ground of synth bleeps and squelches. this track has a cheeky ambience that is very engaging - machine music with food for the head and heart

- 'icefall' - radiant and almost catchy, this is a welcome return to the warmer 'kepler' style, while it manages to also maintain an almost industrial starkness. A glitch track that stands tall with the best of that genre

- 'tiddler' - carnival-like tune cleverly deconstructed to finally become a stark synth-chord ending



Avoid this album if you want tunes that stick in your head, or background music. Buy it if you love innovative and emotionally centred electronica that tickles the cerebral cortex and releases floods of endorphins, bringing a wry smile to your face and a warm and blissful buzz to your body and soul.

"

Worth it for icefall alone!!

Ryan Scott Frances | Sydney, NSW Aust | 04/17/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I only own the track 'Icefall'off the Scope album & feel that any music fan should hear it just because it's so unashamedly different & I should imagine would change anybodies opinion of electronic music.
I agree that some tracks off the album are just blips for sounds sake & sound like Jan Boerman's first toyings with a keyboard. Icefall is a real melodic treat that really is attractive & it grabbed my attention on first listen.
The synth is quite fast-paced & repetitive the melodies sort of
move in a loop & keep popping up at about half way through & sounds a bit like a digital flute being played by a robot in an igloo the size of the Opera House.
The shuffling sort of pitter-patter sound really gives a cut n' paste imagery which really the whole 10 minute track is.
So to me this track is everything, fast, beautiful, vertigo & a masterpiece which kinda blows me a way that electronic music can be so lush. I've always loved electronic music for the main reason that the possibilities of sounds are endless & anything can be sampled, something that radio & music video shows dont seem to comprehend, indeed it is far more meaningful than pop lyrics.
Another fav Kyoto producer of mine is Takagi Masakatsu, much more minimal & ambient songs & is very nice audibly!
So everybody do yourself a favour & purchase this, it's a far cry from what electronica is commonly referred to as techno or 'club' today, if you dont like it, then keep your mind closed."