Misuto – Rainbow EP (2018)

Totokoko

• Electronic pop 
• Toytronica 
• Alternative pop 
• Art pop 
• J-pop 
• Shibuya-kei

Comment: as it is well known to a wide audience the Japanese weblabels and related artists enjoy an exceptionally huge popularity within the homeland and beyond the borders at a lesser extent. Night clubs gather thousands of participants if there is the time up to celebration. One of such imprints is Totokoko, an imprint penchant for acoustic and electronica mixed issues for an approximately 10 years. Misuto's two track record is a gentle amalgamation of gracefully rolling piano chords, jangly acoustic guitars, faint and even naive electronic endeavours and angel touched glockenspiel chords being underpinned by upbeat carnival-drenched rhythms and thriving Japanese singing imbued with a decent joie de vivre and moderate articulation. Very nice.

Junya Nishimura – Vitality In The Blank (2016)

Totokoko

• Modern classical 
• Minimalism
• Avant-garde 
• Post-classical 
• Piano music
• Improvised music 
• Mood music

Comment: I am glad to be back by choosing out from the discography of a Japanese imprint, Totokoko. This set of 16 tracks is a simplistic one by its format and accomplishment because of consisting of sparse and silent piano chords. It chimes like it would have been played by a lone piano player in the corner being depressed for a while but yet ready to come out from that mentally deranged hole. Indeed, you can hear silver lines and waking mood on the album especially when the artist employs faster chords in his playing. Furthermore, despite being simplistic by its format and outer shape its inner qualities are superiorly arousing and suggestive full of invisible touch and intangible magic. It reminds of the simplicity of the music of Steve Reich, and Philip Glass but it is in that way at the first glance. Less is more in that context because Junya Nishimura can handle the lonely chords in an improvisational manner. By kindred souls I recommend listen to such artists as Lubomyr Melnyk, Oskar Hallbert, Nils Frahm, Bosque De Mi Mente, Ólafur Arnalds, Jacaszek, Max Richter.

The Bumblebee Bats – Leaving It Broken (2009)

Totokoko

• Lo-fi 
• Singer-songwriter 
• DIY
• Art folk 
• Indie folk 
• Folk indie

Comment: at times I guess it is much harder to speak something reasonable and appealing about the so-called simple musical issues in comparison to the more sophisticated ones. It is not surprising at all because those simple ones have been produced without pretense to embark on a new beginning (being the illusion and thereof eventually disappointment in most cases) and because of that these issues are frequently more direct and honest as well. Let’s have a focus upon this swarm of five compositions. It is composed of strumming guitars and affectionate singing which in turn are spruced up with lovely keyboard whiffs and synthesised orchestrations converted into catchy melodies and harmonies for opening the way for little joys and tickling delights. Yet having listened to these gentle moments many times in a row these ones got magnified inconspicuously into something elemental and immanent. The songs` intimate touch and awkward buildup used to make difference which as a result are immensely more worthy than many issues being produced throughout innumerable hours within the walls of professional studios. Catch the touch! It is easy to do thanks to a humble, home recording feel. For instance, listen to Better When You`re Dead. That`s mesmerizing. In a nutshell, as you could see by now I have found out many words and sentencesto describe his fabulous issue. Leaving It Broken just is. Just for me, just for you, just for the world, just for all the universe. And leave it broken. The issue is a bit in the discography of the Japanese imprint Totokoko Records. 

Irifune – Loomur (2011)

Totokoko

• Folktronica 
• Indietronica 
• Organic electronica 
• Alternative 
• Drone pop 
• Organcore 
• New Weird 
• Free folk 
• Weird folk 
• Epic 
• Art folk

Comment: this 7-notch is an issue of the discography of Totokoko imprint from Japan, which predominantly is being a platform for indie and folk and mellow electronic mixed songwriting. The same could be admitted about this issue. More profoundly, one can hear drowsy melodica-based drones, lone string plucking, hovering electronic motives, poignant semi-orchestrations making your soul bleeding (at Cinematic Twin Leaf, for instance). In fact, all the other compositions have been made in a similar vein though inner relation between the aforementioned elements might be different. At times the composition is complemented with psychedelic organs and fragile singing and found sounds thereby giving a feeling as if sitting on the bench nearby the picturesque woods of emitting otherworldly energy and power. At times you will fall into sleep, dreaming uncanny stories with sprites and faeries. The outing is quite austere but any chord of it is adeptly drawn and made visible. Any detail makes sense. The release is short-running thereof I would have liked to hear more from the artist.  Ultimately it could be admitted it is a bloody great issue. Get it.

Ryan Cohen - Under the Lilac Sky (2010)

Totokoko

Bandcamp

• Ambient pop
• Indie folk
• Modern classical
• Epic
• Post-pop
• Folk indie
• Art pop

Comment: the Japanese imprint Totokoko is a platform for sharing music which could mainly be categorized as “indietronica”, “folktronica”, “toytronica”, “modern classical”. The latter one of the styles is the pre-dominating part of Ryan Cohen`s issue Under the Lilac Sky. Indeed, those 9 compositions are intimate insights based on appealing piano chords and minor yet attention-getting sonic effects around it. At times the elements are more ambient soaked, at times more silence attracted, at times just passing by to visualize their paths in an effortless way. However, the last couple of pieces (I Want You to Know I'm Around, Now I Know For Sure (live ver) ) are the lyric-centred indie folk ones. The favourite of mine is Transmission which is an ambient pop terrain with lofty orchestrations to flit in around now and then. Another favourite of mine is Wintersleep to depict a picturesque landscape while the snow is falling and the faeries are dancing over there. All in all, the result is a solid, fulfilled one with visceral hold.  

Petitoto – Le Petit Circus (2015)

Totokoko

• Primitive pop
• Toytronica
• Electronica
• Alternative

Comment: oh yeah, the babies are singing, or at least the adult persons mimicking their babbling and vowels. However, musically it is the extraordinary experience because of providing such infantile threads and cunning hypocorism throughout the course. Furthermore, the idea is good and it is expertly accomplished. The vowel layers are backed up by dreamy toy chords and low-end synth semi-orchestrations which are at times saturated with somniferous crunching and different kind of sonic effects. The issue is a part of the discography of the Japanese imprint Totokoko. 

Makoto Tanaka - The fluttering we Original Soundtrack (2015)

Totokoko

• Chamber music
• Folktronica
• Modern classical
• Post-pop
• Conceptual
• Soundtrack

Comment: as the title hints at the Japanese musician Makoto Tanaka`s 6-track issue is a soundtrack for Yu Katsumata`s documentary film called The Fluttering We which is about rehearsal to public performance. The issue is a short-running glimpse through majestic chord progressions sprinkled with soothing piano chords, some electronic undercurrents, and beautiful orchestrations which used to emerge behind the horizon and brush over the soundscape.

Hico – Modus (2014)

Totokoko

/Folktronica, Conceptual, Experimental folk, Baroque folk, Cowbell indie, World music, Epic, Chamber folk, Art folk/

Comment: sort of a folk music within this handful of tracks presented by Hico is certainly my cup of tea. It is artsy, it is dreamy, it is crafty, it seems to be concise and bountiful at the same time. Stylistically the issue is a place for different styles to encounter on the same line and plateau. For instance, the world music motives start off to permeate from some tracks into modern electronic rhythms and panoramic orchestrations resulting in cinematic looming and build-up of full-fledged emotions. The album is partly conceptual due to deliberately crossing some instruments with one another to reach the goal (for instance, organ and ensemble, and banjo and upright bass). The result is coherent and having no scattered seeds within the course. Organ & Ensemble reminds of one of the favourites of mine, Penguin Café Orchestra with regard to light-hearted harmony blossoming and cloudless visions in sound. Furthermore, the same could be admitted about the subsequent piece Fushigi either. Of course, Hico is able of translating those enterprises into a nowadays sonic form. In a word, this excellent make-out is obviously one of the best issues I have heard in the discography of Totokoko Records (it does not mean at all that other outings of the imprint I have listened so far were somehow inferior or lame ones on its own).

Koji Maruyama – Isos (2015)

Totokoko

/Piano music, Modern classical, Mood music, Experimental, Musique concrète/

Comment: once I read that piano is the most disturbing one among the music instruments. However, there are plenty of albums which used to proof otherwise. For instance, Koji Maruyama`s tiny issue Isos (providing a length of 16 minutes only is a sublime drift between minor chords and major chords, between rough taps and subtle chord choices, between ruckus and still life thereby resulting in the emotive content. The artist seems to exert minimal energy to create a truly organic, picturesque whole for your sake. At times those facile chords are mixed up with concrete sounds thereby embracing elements beyond the artificial music compartment (Prelude/Isos). Of course, there is represented electronic music and synthesised orchestrations though at a minimal extent (particularly at Land/Weiter).The favourite of mine is Fluid/Door which brings forth a dynamic flow and moody changes throughout the composition. In  a word, it is a marvellous bunch of tracks indeed. The issue is a bit of the discography of the Japanese imprint Totokoko Records.

Totokoko Christmas Compilation 5 (2014)

Totokoko

/Folktronica, Modern classical, Alternative, Indietronica, Conceptual, Cowbell indie/

Comment: actually it is never late to listen to Totokoko label related (Xmas) compilations because music represented over there has no time related barriers. The compilation reflects upon the Japanese label`s sonorous nature – from soothing indie electronic and folk related programmed music to more IDM and modern classical centred compositions. Some songs are embellished with field recording/electro-acoustic shells. Despite their predominantly glitchy body nine artists/compositions inhabited over there will reveal their sensitive soul and warm-riddled heart. More concretely, there are up such projects as Henri Almond, Morimoto Naoki, OOOQ, Mitsuyoshi Matsuda, Shayou, Junya Nishimura, Koji Maruyama, and Ryosuke Miyata (ex.Miche). Enjoy modern Xmas songs.  

Totokoko Christmas Compilation 3 (2012)

Totokoko

9.1

/Indie pop, Psychedelic pop, Singer-songwriter, Indie folk, Baroque pop, Folk indie, Cowbell indie, Alternative pop, Conceptual, Dream pop, Electronic pop/

Comment: it is undoubtedly a nice tradition of the Japanese label Totokoko to provide the Christmas compilation at the beginning of December annually. This batch of 16 tracks used to extend from dusty keyboard passages and chiming guitar layers to picturesque dream pop/shoegazing/cowbell indie and glockenspiel-heavy folk progressions and fluent or thoughful piano-centered and more electronica-tinged ditties. There are up such artists as He Died While Hunting, American Green, Michikusa, Mitsuyoshi Matsuda, Zmi, Dot Tape Dot, Netherland Dwarf, Kaziko Uchida, Masato Abe, M.e, Popolo, Shingo Makino, Asa, Sonicbrat, Conte. The Christmas season will have been on a full swing.  

he died while hunting - we used to dream awake (2011)

Totokoko
Lastfm

9.2

/Folktronica, Organic electronica, Drone pop, Experimental folk, Singer-songwriter/

Comment: a handful of nice electronica-drenched folk songs from Belgium. These are enough mellow and cute ones to attract attention for you and me. Finger tapped rhythms and synthetic bleeps are fused with suggestive guitar sounds and microscopic near-noise feeling to make out an accomplished whole.

Yutaka Hirasaka - Colors (2011)

Totokoko

8.8

/Folktronica, Organic electronica, Musique concrète, Experimental folk, Laptop folk/

Comment: a nice folktronic album from Japan. Reversed loops, melodica-relied snippets, half symphony-loaded backgrounds, and floating water around there. At times it will evolve into a highly lofty one (for instance the track number 6).

Bed. - ame_to_wonder.ep (2011)

Totokoko

9.7

/Folktronica, Ambient, Organic electronica, Avant-folk, Dream folk, Post-pop, Experimental folk, Toytronica/

Comment: Having no distinct preference of this 11-pieced whole`s general impression, however, should it be categorized either "electronica" or "(indie) pop"/"folk music"? This can be dissected as similar as whenever you were lost in thought regarding the sound by the Icelandic elfin combo mùm. Lots of feyness is played up here via naive glockenspiel/clockwork toy-relied snippets, slow melodica-based shifts and excellent chiming guitar approach as well. Moreover, such kind of sound is the brand one for Totokoko label, a Japan-based records. All is very fine on it, from the very start to the closure point, though, my special tracks are fourth (heartbreaking harmonies!) and tenth (otherworldly soothing minimal ambientas if coming from a remote, aluminium-coated wasteland) in the song list, respectively. Thank you, Daisuke.

Kraffa - Short Note From Time (2010)

Totokokolabel

8.9

/Folktronica, Post-rock, Laptop-folk, Indietronica, Dream folk, Experimental folk, Cowbell indie, Experimental indie/

Comment: This 4-track comes from Thailand, behind Kraffa is Norrasak Ramasute, who used to design form and function in complete harmony. In any cases, he has masterfully succeeded his doings on the recent issue as well - silence is laced with impetuous changes, jiggling drum programmings are set under dream-alike harmonies, bucolic near-nature narratives are replaced with lucid post-rock-ish breaks- and vice versa. All is finely balanced and elaborated, resembling of the other outputs under the Totokoko, and La bèl label either.

Naomu - Amanita (2011)

Totokoko

8.8

/Folktronica, Primitive pop, Weird folk, Acousmatic, Avant-folk, Minimal, New Weird Japan, Experimentalism, Weird pop, Toytronica/

Comment: This semi-detached album under the Japanese label totokokolabel resembles of the first releases by CocoRosie - it is female voice-lead, deliberately primitivistic, swaying between the ancient eras and recent recording technologies. Beatific and weird and a little bit schizoid acousmatic pop. But satisfyingly relaxing in its naive and restrainted prosperity in any cases.

The Crayons - The Only Real Place (2010)

Totokoko

8.7

/Electro-indie, Electronic, Lo-fi, Dance rock, Art-rock, DIY, Alternative pop, Remix, Cover/

Comment: The American duo The Crayons made their first appearance with the album Raised by BestFriends (2009) on the Rack & Ruin label. However, now the duo is an artist under the Japanese label Totokoko showcasing their solid abilities to write catchy electro-backed rock tunes, for instance, Finding a Black Hole is a mesmerizing track which should have been stuck by the whole indie pop blogosphere. Through the tracks like Mr Bug, and Summer Camp With The Crayons they made a big bow toward the mister R Stevie Moore. The ending part of the album is reserved for a heavily effect-loaded remix (helped by ADK) and in live made cover (of Sam & Valley`s track) respectively.

[Compilation] Totokoko Christmas Compilation (Totokoko)

Here is a compilation of 19 tracks from Japan, though, more concretely, if to check out for the names, not all the artists are the Japanese heritage by their roots. For instance, Ryan Cohen, who offers opportunity to Ron Sexsmith`s Maybe This Christmas. This is a compilation which is dedicated to the Christmas (as the Christmas present with music, drawings/illustrations/photos and one video by the Totokoko label) showcasing a vast array of diverse indie spheres, veering from restrained keyboards-driven indie pop and folktronica/fingepicked guitar pop wrapped in by glockenspiel chords and accidental concrete music sounds to more shibuya-kei-touched dynamic outputs, chamber-alike infused progressions, lo-fi-inflected sonic backbones, creeping, capella-near notches and some instrumental, piano-relied "interludes". The only exception is the closure track Wallpaper of the Soul by Kraffa which is used to be a 100 percent-electronic one being deep(ly) techno(-)reflected and even slightly dubstep-hued. The favorites of mine are [.que]`s Silver Light, Wool Strings`s Sleep Green, and AMERICAN GREEN`s The Clock Tower And The Fountain, and Ibuki Yushi`s Noel Readying Experience.

All in all, in fact, it may be seem at times that the compilation is not pretended to be upon the highest aesthetical level because of the natural restriction of conceptual thing on its own, on the other side, it is filled with heartful touches for the biggest red-letter day and quiet times.

Listen to it here