New releases last four weeks: Funk Soul & Jazz

Review: Both of these funk gems are taken from a cult compilation Trans Groove Express, which explored the sounds of Express Records and was assembled by MURO. Fourth Wave now serve them up on a superb 7", starting with Maki Asakawa. 'Hohi Hitotsu' is a delightfully gentle and subtle dub with funky guitars adding movement while the sultry vocal soars. Yasuhiro Abe's 'Night Fish' is a brighter and more retro 80s soul and boogie sound with glowing chords and snappy hits. The Japanese language vocal is emotive enough to mean plenty without understanding the meaning of the words.

Review: This classic Japanese funk tune has long been adored by erudite boogie, 80s funk and soul fans in Japan but also more internationally, and for the first time here it is now available as a 7" single. Produced by Toshiki Kadomatsu, the release includes one track each from the Jadoes albums It's Friday from 1986 and Free Drink in 1987, both of which are considered iconic in the Japanese boogie canon. 'Summer Lady' is full of glossy 80s drums and sparking melodies that bring unbridled joy and 'Friday Night' is a little more paired back but the stepping drums and male-female vocal interaction is a thing of beauty.

Review: Renowned DJ and selector MURO is a Jedi-level compiler and this new collection of his delves into Victor's extensive archives to spotlight a world of Japanese jazz, fusion and AOR. It take sin plenty of internationally known names like Yasuko Agawa on the sunset sounds of 'L.A. Night', Sadistics who offers the more psyched out guitar leans of 'On the Seashore', Yuji Ohno's neo-Balaeric bliss-out 'The Dawn of Seychells' and Hiroshi Fukumura's soul soothing Ry Ayres-style melodies on 'White Clouds.' These are luxurious sounds and timeless tracks with MURO's signature funky perspective making this a brillaint choice for brighter, warmer days.

Review: Fourth Wave reissue one of the great works of Japanese composer, keyboardist and producer Hiroshi Sato. Forming part of a fresh flood of reissues that the label have explicitly mandated, Sato's are highlights among a discrete period of exquisitely recorded and visually designed LPs from the late 70s and early 80s. With a sleekly surreal cover artwork by Tadanori Yokoo - psych rock's pastiching answer to Vaughan Oliver - Sato brought chilled finger-flair to his various recorded synth patches, electric pianos, chamber brasses and guitars, all of which are recorded to produce a precise, razored sound in xpander-funk. Something latent - something much more - than mere smooth AOR is conveyed here. Perhaps it can be focalised in the LP's aura of effortless, disengaged mellowness, as if good comportment and style is an inevitability of life in cosmopolitan 80s Tokyo.

Review: Japan's Fourth Wave Record Factory sure does know how to serve up brilliantly beguiling sounds that ate you well out of your here and now. Next up is this, 'Dondon Bushi' 7" by Shoukichi Kina, Champloo and Tomoko Kina that explores a mix of Okinawan traditional sounds and modern grooves. The Mbira dance mix of the A-side jam is a bubbly rhythm with worldly percussion and soulful melodies that echo folk majesty and are topped with a wonderful weird vocal from Shoukichi Kina. On the flip, there is a more lazy and downtempo style dub rhythm, 'Tie Island' (No Man's Island mix) which is another worldly trip.

Review: 'Sayonara Ha Syuppatsu No Kotoba' roughly translates as "Goodbye is the Word for Departure" and is a striking blend of Japanese indie and folk music. The album combines rich acoustic melodies with introspective lyrics to make for often poignant and nostalgic atmospheres with Yasuda's emotive voice at the heart of the sounds. The band's intricate instrumentation reveals more with each listen and the record explores themes of departure, self-reflection and the bittersweet nature of transitions. They might sound heavy but the delicate soundscapes also capture both moods of vulnerability and resilience which adds to the tender, affecting nature of the record.