Free improvisation has rarely seen significant new movements as influential as the small group of Tokyo musicians once labeled as “onkyo”. Sachiko M, Toshimaru Nakamura and Otomo Yoshihide are three of the scene’s driving forces (along with Taku Sugimoto), and on Good Morning Good Night are documented together as a trio for the first time.
Sachiko M is best known for her innovative use of the sampler, extracting pure, piercing sine waves from the device’s built-in test tones and forging an original and much-imitated sound. More recently, she has expanded her palette through the use of contact mikes. Sachiko has worked extensively as a solo artist, as well as in groups such as Cosmos, Filament, and I.S.O., and in duo with Toshimaru Nakamura. She won the 2003 Prix Ars Electronica, along with Ami Yoshida and Utah Kawasaki, and also founded and runs the groundbreaking Amoebic label.
Since 1998, Toshimaru Nakamura has been exploring the possibilities of his “no-input mixing board” in contexts ranging from solo to collaborations with Keith Rowe, Günter Müller, Sachiko M, Andrea Neumann, and the duo project Repeat (with drummer Jason Kahn). Nakamura was a prominent presence throughout the AMPLIFY 2002 box set, appearing on five of the seven CDs, and will be recording the much-awaited follow up to the highly acclaimed Weather Sky CD with Keith Rowe later this year.
Otomo Yoshihide’s prolific career has been unified by a primary objective: the investigation of the nature of sound from every conceivable angle. In the mid-90’s, he explored the limits of sample-based turntablism, predominantly through his band Ground Zero, as well as in collaborations with Christian Marclay and Yamatsuka Eye. Over the last few years, Otomo has become increasingly interested in minimal wave-based electronics, as heard in his Filament, I.S.O, Cathode and Anode projects. Other projects which he is currently involved in include his New Jazz Quintet, as well as an ongoing duo project with Martin Tétreault. Otomo has also composed many soundtracks for movies, and has written numerous articles and essays for Japanese music publications.
While these three musicians have worked together in countless configurations in recent years, Good Morning Good Night is their first meeting as a trio. Recorded in August of 2003, the 2 CD contains essentially the full recording sessions, four tracks totaling over 100 minutes. Good Morning Good Night is a very conscious step in a new direction, an attempt to create a “vertical” music (as opposed to most music, which moves in a linear, horizontal plane). The pointillistic placement of sounds by these three masters of delicacy results in a music that exists somewhere between foreground and background listening. Friederike Paetzold’s design is inspired by James Turrell’s work, and features four different covers for the four tracks/times of day, which the listener can fold according to their preference.