Sora, by Tamio Shiraishi

Sora

by Tamio Shiraishi

supported by

Noroît Jiminy Philip (Une vengeance) thumbnail

	/

Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album
digipack

Includes unlimited streaming of Sora via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

ships out within 1 day

Purchasable with gift card

$15 USD or more
Streaming + Download

Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

Tamio Shiraishi’s Sora is the fourth release in the Relative Pitch Solo Series, a collection featuring artists whose solo work deserves wider recognition. In the 1970s, Tamio Shiraishi was an integral member of Japanese avant-garde group Fushitsusha, which he founded alongside Keiji Haino. Since moving to New York, Shiraishi has honed his unique approach to the alto saxophone in the city’s cavernous subway stations; Sora sees his microtonal exploration of the altissimo range on full display. The recording opens and closes with Shiraishi exploring the rich reverb of Issue Project Room's Boerum Place location, filling another echoing chamber with an ossicle-rattling sound.

Purchasable with gift card

$10 USD or more

	1.	い 12:22
	2.	ろ 05:03
	3.	は 07:06
	4.	に 03:12
	5.	ほ 00:52
	6.	へ 08:56
	7.	と 03:02

about

Sora is the most recent solo release from alto saxophonist and Fushitsusha co-founder Tamio Shiraishi. Shiraishi has worked out of Queens, NY since the early 1990’s and regularly plays solo sets in the NYC subway system which have accumulated a small but dedicated following. Much of Tamios’ solo aesthetic is built off of interactions with a physical space. This latest solo release was recorded in two locations, a cavernous performance space and a studio, and true to form they play as much a part in the recordings as Shiraish’s horn.
Sora (Sky) doesn't translate well into a blow-by-blow style of review. Shiraishi's minimalism is only such on a macro scale, like Richter's grey paintings rendered in altissimo, his playing forces you to listen more closely in terms of the qualities of the individual pieces and as they pertain to the collection as a whole. But unlike most music you hear the phrase "deep listening" tied to, Shiraishi doesn't make it easy. His voice on the alto is challenging and resides on the extreme high end, far beyond the instrument's general utility. This album is a raw masterclass in Shiraishi's personal language of microintervallic saxophone.
The set is bookended by a pair of tracks recorded in October 2019 at Issue Project Room's cavernous Boerum Place, where Shiraishi cuts sets of thin, piercing lines that echo and superimpose through the space. Tracks 2 & 6 were recorded at the Thousand Caves in Queens, NY in June 2019 and find Tamio utilizing complementary electronics that are rendered sparsely and in stark contrast to his saxophone playing. The 3 middle tracks (3-5) were also recorded at the Thousand Caves but during an earlier session in November 2018. These ‘center’ tracks are notably the most distilled examples of Tamio’s alto playing here, recorded simply in order to make all nuances plain. This is a terrific album. Nick Metzger

credits

released April 17, 2020

license

about

Relative Pitch Records New York, New York

NYC-based independent record label specializing in avant-garde, free jazz, free improvisation, experimental.

instagram.com/relativepitchrecords

Video:
youtube.com/KjReilly

contact / help

Contact Relative Pitch Records

Streaming and
Download help

Shipping and returns

Redeem code

Report this album or account

If you like Sora, you may also like:

Sun Beans of Shimmering Light
by Wadada Leo Smith / Douglas R. Ewart / Mike Reed

supported by 13 fans who also own “Sora”

Simply amazing to hear a new album with Wadada and Ewart!! ...And Reed rounds out this trio beautifully. Just gave it my first spin. Absolutely magical. jeffrey maurer
go to album
Live in Florence
by Otomo Yoshihide & Chris Pitsiokos

supported by 13 fans who also own “Sora”

Best Otomo Yoshihide duo since DJ Carhouse & MC Hellshit? killtime
go to album
Luke Stewart Exposure Quintet
by Luke Stewart

supported by 12 fans who also own “Sora”

I saw their return performance at the 2022 Catalytic Sound Festival and it was magnificent! Mark Bernstein
go to album
DRANG
by STROMBOLI

Noise maestro Stromboli creates haunting industrial atmospheres with a visceral feel. Bandcamp New & Notable Sep 26, 2023
go to album
MAROMAS
by Cecilia Lopez & Ingrid Laubrock

A brave experimental record from the Cecilia Lopez & Ingrid Laubrock running darting sax lines through dense electronics & processing. Bandcamp New & Notable Sep 10, 2023
go to album
Intruder EP
by Simularchon

Purposely scaled-back electronic music, “Intruder” is all about the texture of a few pieces of gear playing off one another. Bandcamp New & Notable Aug 26, 2023
go to album
Lost and Found
by J. Pavone String Ensemble

supported by 12 fans who also own “Sora”

This is an unusual string quartet – with two cellists and two violinists. The lines of their instruments clash, overlap, build a quasi-resonant echo or sinusoidal forms, harmonize, but also verge upon Penderecki-style horror. Yet this is not a conceptual digression, but a complete composition that requires the listener’s attention throughout – and the result is perfect. More: http://noweidzieodmorza.com/14428-the-best-of-astral-spirits/ Jakub Knera
go to album