i agree w/the general opinion expressed in this thread--it's hard to find
modern japanese musicians incorporating more of their traditional
instrumentation in modern contexts. however, foreigners, ex-patriots &
their
descendants seem quite intrigued by the traditional sounds--a longing for
their roots, maybe?
while i don't agree w/elson about the "dance-ability" of "ni ten ichi ryu
(two sword technique)"--i.e., i find it *quite* danceable, much moreso than
most of photek's stuff--i'll give a second on the music elson's been working
on. yes, he's a friend of mine, but the shit's still good!!! i've been
scheming to get the stuff on acetate so i can play it at gigs...
-t
p.s. what *has* hiroshima been up to? early stuff is interesting, but later
on they got "wave-y" (term for stuff played on l.a.'s ktwv fm 94.7 "the
wave"
--trip-pop and fuzak).
... the riptones & david ben-wa balls...