In their insatiable thirst for new sounds, the Fat-Cat
crew have once again turned to Japan for their latest
signing. After the noise assault of Xinlisupreme
last year, the excellent Brighton-based label have unearthed
their almost anti-thesis with 30-something female musician
Yukiko Chiba, aka Chib, from Tokyo. After a first track
included on the label’s 2001 No Watches. No
Maps, which also appears on this mini-album, Chib
finally collects some elements of her musical journey
and posts them for us all to contemplate.
Chiba studied piano for ten years, but dropped out because
she found lessons lacked of a fun element. Yet, the
melodic touches expressed on these eight songs are directly
inherited from the musical teachings she went through
during her formative years. Although her compositions
are based on found sounds recorded in restaurants, friends’
houses, parks or in her own home, she almost imperceptibly
turns them into melodic elements, creating repetitive
patterns on which she hangs other sonic vignettes, bringing
multiple layers and spaces into her creations. Often
reminiscent of the approach developed by other female
musicians such as Mira
Calix or, more recently, Colleen,
her work is extremely delicate and requires undivided
attention, for each individual component adds to the
emotional structure of a track and contributes to the
general mood of the record. Reaching for the unheard
sounds in our lives, she exposes them, giving them context
and shape. By doing so, she constantly works the emotional
canvas of her compositions, giving them a beautiful
melancholic nature. The opening track, Chips,
is simply astounding. Split between the piano line of
its first half, underlined with a recurring cello line
which repeatedly morphs into found sounds, and the fragile
acoustic guitar of the second half, this track evolves
gently from one atmospheric setting to another without
appearing to loose any of its subtle touch. Swapping
guitar and piano for a music box on the following track,
she continues to explore the rich melodic nature of
her music and distort her sound sources to stunning
effect. Furtively bringing voices into her soundscapes,
at times used as recorded, at others voluntarily turned
into musical components, Yokiko clearly states the organic
fibre of her work all the way through. Each track has
its own personality, yet Moco is incredibly
consistent over its length, and proves entirely captivating.
Part life documentary and part organic experiment, Moco
is a beautiful and promising first effort from Yukiko
Chiba, and should help establish her name in Europe.
Despite being just under half an hour long, this mini-album
shows a great maturity of sound processing and melody,
giving it a undisputable edge.
4.7/5 |
