Kurushimi re-emerge from the void with 'Return: 1 - Kimon', the first EP in the ‘kikan’ (return) series, through which Kurushimi revisit and dramatically reinterpret pieces from their past.
This EP returns to 'Kimon' from Kurushimi’s acclaimed self-titled debut. Here, the original track’s intense mix of free-jazz, grindcore, dub and deconstructionist noise is replaced by an eerie calm. Sounds drift by as if in a dream: ethereal drones float alongside reverb-drenched saxophones stretched out to infinity, and guitars are transformed into the dirge of Tibetan Rag Dung horns.
The blast beats aren’t completely gone. Instead they flash in and out of existence, drifting on some daemon wind.
It’s a dramatic re-imagining of the original piece, but perhaps one that is more in line with the song’s original concept. In Japanese mythology and folklore, kimon (“the demon gate”) refers to the north-east direction - the direction through which evil spirits pass, gather and the entrance to the evil spirit world.
Return I: Kimon is an impressive achievement from a Sydney band that has already demonstrated exceptional creativity, and calls to mind the work of Bohren & Der Club Of Gore, Bill Laswell’s ambient work, Brian Eno and Tangerine Dream.
Producer and bass player Andrew Mortensen says:
“With ‘Return I: Kimon’, I wanted to return to one of my favourite tracks from the debut album.
The idea was to create an ethereal vibe, trying to imagine the listener is back in the real world yet with mankind’s curiosity of the dark and macabre, they must return to the demon-spirit world to experience the darkness again.
I wanted to create something both beautiful and menacing.”
The EP is rounded out by two previously unreleased live pieces that return listeners to the familiar form of dissonant, deconstructionist noise-jazz that Kurushimi have made their own.
released November 12, 2017
01– Return I: Kimon
Mixed by Andrew Mortensen at AM Frequencies, September 2016 – July 2017
Recorded at The Brain by Matt Clarke and MusicFeeds by George Sheridan
Mastered by Andrew Mortensen at AM Frequencies, August 2017
Processed, edited and arranged Andrew Mortensen
Music improvised by Mortensen/Dawes/Allison/Lawson/Pieterse/Soole/Seki/Kerr/Bartholomew
Andrew Mortensen – bass, effects
Simon Dawes – guitar
Chris Allison – drums
Kim Lawson – alto and tenor saxophone
Ian Pieterse – baritone saxophone
Nick Soole – synth, vocals
Kazehito Seki – vocals, microphone
Lachlan Kerr – conductor
Simeon Bartholomew – conductor
02– Movement I (live)
03– Movement II (live)
Recorded live by Jonathan Eklund at Cosmo’s Rock Lounge 7th November 2015
mindfulvibrations.audio
Mixed and Mastered at AM Frequencies by Andrew Mortensen July – August 2017
Music improvised by Mortensen/Dawes/Allison/Lawson/Pieterse/Kerr
Andrew Mortensen – bass, vocals
Simon Dawes – guitar, general defiance
Chris Allison – drums, random laughter
Kim Lawson – alto and tenor saxophone
Ian Pieterse – baritone saxophone
Lachlan Kerr – conductor
Produced and conceived by Andrew Mortensen.
Art and Layout Sam Harwood: @harwood.s /
samharwood.com. Concept by Andrew Mortensen.
Thanks: The guys for their continuous suffering - Dawesy, Cheggs, Kim, Ian, Lachlan.
Nick Soole, Kazehito Seki, Simeon, Will de Monchaux and Scrotal Vice, Jonathan Eklund, Tsuji Takafumi, Takahashi Yu-ki, Lachlan Dale and Art As Catharsis, Oz Fritz, Sam Harwood, our other bands and projects, fans, family and friends.
AAC074
C&P 2017 Kurushimi