Tracklist
1 | TENNISCOATS – Hakka | |
2 | TENNISCOATS – Aurora Curtains | |
3 | TENNISCOATS – Cacoy | |
4 | TENNISCOATS – Kimininaritai | |
5 | TENNISCOATS – Broome | |
6 | TENNISCOATS – Donna Donna | |
7 | TENNISCOATS – Jitsurei | |
8 | TENNISCOATS – Before Noon | |
9 | TENNISCOATS – Hirei | |
10 | TENNISCOATS – Rasen | |
11 | TENNISCOATS – Midori | |
12 | TENNISCOATS – To Do First | |
13 | TENNISCOATS – Takashi's Swing (bonus track) (bonus track) | |
14 | TENNISCOATS – Cacoy (bonus track - song demo) (bonus track - song demo) | |
15 | TENNISCOATS – Rasen (bonus track - Slowmix) (bonus track - Slowmix) | |
16 | TENNISCOATS – Tennimonium |
In 2005, Tenniscoats toured Australia and as part of that visit Lawrence English arranged a concert in Brisbane. Their show was a wildly-flowing flux of song, improvisation and sheer melodic freedom. Following the performance Saya, Ueno and drummer Yoshinari Kishida spent a few additional days in Brisbane, and it’s during this time that the majority of »Totemo Aimasho« was recorded. This special 15th anniversary edition, is remastered and contains a couple of demo versions.
A note from Lawrence English
Some time in the early 00s John Chantler, who was living in Japan at the time, sent me a couple of curious sound pieces he’d just recorded with musicians he’d met from Tokyo - Tenniscoats. This was my first introduction to Saya and Ueno, who have subsequently gone on to become longtime friends and a wellspring of sonic inspiration.
In 2005, through their connections to Guy Blackman in Melbourne, Tenniscoats under took a tour of Australia and as part of that visit I arranged a concert for them in Brisbane. Their show, held at Rics Cafe in Fortitude Valley, was a wildly-flowing flux of song, improvisation and sheer melodic freedom. Following the performance Saya, Ueno and drummer Yoshinari Kishida spent a few additional days in Brisbane, and it’s during this time that the majority of Totemo Aimasho was recorded.
The recording itself took place in a reappropriated office building, where my friend Heinz Riegler had set up a small recording space. We were able to use the various offices as somewhat isolated recording zones. The results were surprisingly rich, a testament to office room design I suppose.
For this special 15th anniversary edition, I spent some time going back over the recordings to remaster them. This version is perhaps a bit more faithful to the dynamics of those sessions. I also spent some days going through archival materials that were not included in the original Totemo Aimasho sessions. To my surprise I found a couple of demo versions of Cacoy, one of my favourite pieces from the record, as well as some variations of other album pieces and also a couple of experiments not included on the record.
There’s a certain radiant joy to this music. The record is equal parts curiosity, porousness and generosity. It's a mixed methodology that informed this collaboration, and equally the creation of Totemo Aimasho itself.
I want to send a special note of thanks to John, without whom this project, and many subsequent other connections, would not have occurred.