Flower Japan Schallplatten & CDs

Review: Cruisic are a Tokyo-based two piece dealing in electronically-charged jazz fusion. Ryusuke Kakizawa and Yukinari Iwata kicked the project off in 2019 with a cover of 'Inspector Norse', while last year they did their own rendition of 808 State's 'Pacific-707'. This time around they've invited Baku Furukawa to lend some smooth singing to a cover of Tania Maria's classic 'Come With Me', taking the song into dreamy bossa nova territory and providing they can handle vocals just as delicately as the instrumentation with their on-point covers series.

Review: Twilight is the latest piece by long time DJ, producer and remixer, Dominic Dawson. The Japanese label Flower, has released this single to 7" complete with a remix for the second side. The title track is a catchy and funky house track that while the remix is a bit more Balearic and beachy. Both versions have their place in any house setlist and will set the tone for any eclectic DJ set. With the DJing background Dominic has, he is a great guide to setting the mood with music. Like the title artwork suggests, this is perfect music to watch the sun go down to.

Review: So the legend goes: Tokyo dance music aficionados DJs Nori, Fukuba, Alex From Tokyo, and Kenji Hasegawa came together sometime in 2003, with but one ultimate goal: to bring together, in their own words, the best music, with the best sound system, the best hospitality, by the best management staff, in the best location. The result was Gallery Connection, a venue and soundsystem situated right next to Omotesando station, in the the heart of the city's upscale cultural rampart, Harajuku. Famously held on Sunday afternoons, this dream team's party is once again started with two reissued versions of their original CD fixture and DJ set go-to, 'Smile', flaunting its stylistic versatility: a signature Balearic-scenic Shibuya-kei track that resounds in memory as the time-honoured party's de facto theme tune.

Review: Having previously impressed with reggae and rocksteady style covers of such classics as Frankie Knuckles' 'The Whistle Song' and Neil Young's harvest Moon', Reggae Disco Rockers have now turned their attention to Yazoo's early-80s synth-pop classic 'Only You'. Featuring Asa on vocals, the Japanese band's interpretation is emotive, super-sweet, instantly recognisable and pays tribute to the glory days of lovers rock in the early 1980s. In other words, it's a genuinely inspired and entertaining cover version that's bound to do the business on dancefloors. Over on the flip, Japanese toaster Maguroman and singer Sakka guest on 'Love Light Shining', a slab of celebratory, sun-soaked reggae laden with tidy sax solos and Japanese vocal hooks.

Review: Several countries have a great traditional of bands performing covers of the classics in various weird and wonderful styles well away from the original. Enter Ska Jazz Messengers with this one - they are a Venezuelan ska and jazz collective who have a new album icing on Flower but tease it first with this new 7". It opens up with a soulful reggae cover of Tears for Fears' classic jam 'Head Over Heels' which has a nice snaking rhythm and retains the cursory of the original vocal. And on the flip is a powerful remix by Slowly. This outfit is big in Japan having collaborated with Emerson Kitamura, Toru Nishiuchi and many more, and you should be just as fanned up.

Review: Since emerging in the late noughties, Masato Komatsu's Slowly project has amassed an impressive catalogue that blends dub, lovers rock and roots reggae grooves with nods to soul, boogie and electrofunk. The Japanese producer continues to impress on his latest single, 'I Get High (On Your Memory)', a killer cover of Freda Payne's 1970s soul song of the same name - a track that has famously proved popular with sample-loving hip-hop beat-makers. As you'd expect given Komatsu's track record, it's a superbly sun-splashed cover, with Jasmine Kara's gorgeous lead vocals seemingly floating above bubbly boogie synth sounds and a languid, mid-80s UK lovers rock groove. The producer's sparkling instrumental version, situated on side B, completes a strong package.