Shinichiro Yokota Do It Again Fabio Monesi Remix

Business firm Hunting #22 – Far East Recording

House Hunting had the award of hosting a room for United kingdom of great britain and northern ireland institution Boy's Ain last weekend (shouts to Thunder/R$North's Miles Simpson for joining me in droppin' house Holy Grails and basement bargain belters plus Terry Farley for having usa downward killer dark) so with preparing/playing at that and surviving a family gathering the side by side solar day at that place was no time for my pastime paradise of house platter perusal. As I had a couple of tardily shifts due I was planning a potential pre-piece of work house pursuit and was gonna take a jaunt to a wax haunt or two – possibly Notting Loma Music & Video Exchange as hadn't checked that out for a while or the reliable sources of Soho'south tape joints. Still an unexpected source presented a surprising Business firm Hunting opportunity…

I was on Facebook wasting my life away and as ever posting/chattin' about vintage business firm records when suddenly I did a double-take as I saw the post-obit post "Rh early birds…. New imports and some copies of a rare original Far East recording……" It was the Blitz Hour Record diggin' page that had shared this and also posted a link to their website where you could cop the EP. If you don't 'like' this page I suggest you follow it as it posts/shares about dope wax finds, the latest killer cuts and recommended reissues whether rarities, obscurities or speculator specialties… If you lot're a savvy selector so Rush Hour should need no introduction – from its inception in '97 equally an Amsterdam-based record store and postal service-order enterprise Rush Hour has evolved into a distribution behemoth that has besides established a tape label with countless subsidiaries encompassing many genres. Now an influential institution, when the Dutch tastemakers release a new record or recommend a piece of wax you know you gotta check it out… I could proceed for years but on a house tip I recommend their 'Hour House Is Your Rush' sub-label with releases past Factor Hunt, Tevo Howard and KiNK & Neville Watson keeping the spirit of Chicago live plus cheque their small-scale just perfectly formed 'Firm of Trax' series in tandem with iconic Chicago imprint Trax Records reissuing some long lost Windy Urban center weapons by Ron Hardy, Ace & The Sandman and Jamie Principle. They rounded off the series nicely with the Mitchbal Records business firm Holy Grail 'Fantasy' past Z-Factor aka house pioneers Jesse Saunders and Vince Lawrence – the first firm track ever recorded dorsum in '83 (older than me!) let's rewind and go back in time…

Rush 60 minutes have too proved to be the reissue kings of late whether information technology's rereleasing some proper obscure allure like the oozing warmth and dripping keys of Dream 2 Science, comprehensive retrospectives from the likes of Nu Groove mainstays the Burrell Brothers and L.B Bad or delving into the dusty DATs of forgotten Chicago enigmas such as Virgo Iv – they've likewise raided the vaults of Vincent Floyd hold tight coming before long…

Anyway, dorsum to the record and this was i of those hallowed 'Warehouse finds' (are these e'er for real or pure firm hype?) with all copies mint and still sealed! The EP in question is the 'Far East Recording 2' release from the eponymous stable outta Japan that came out dorsum in '93. Coincidentally I just sold my VG+ copy I had via Discogs for £30 the week before (can command over £l merely I own't a speculator…) every bit I was subsequently a mint copy with original stickered sleeve (OCD!) so very fortuitous to cop a sealed re-create for a bargain eighteen.50 euros – you don't often see these UFO'south hovering in the vinyl frontier! Also an opportunity to cop a free copy of Rush Hour'south new fanzine 'House Of Music' and so had to be done…

So who'south behind the bearding sounding Far East Recording? Well, it was founded in '89 by Information science graduate Soichi Terada who having also studied Electric Organ wanted a platform for his compositions. He didn't make a bad start in collaborating with Japanese pop sensation Nami Shimada the same yr on the Paradise Garage canticle 'Sunshower' – two years subsequently the late Larry Levan himself contributed with one of his terminal remixes on the Columbia pressing along with Madonna'due south muse Mark Kamins adding some NY flavour to the articulation. Though both fine interpretations in their own correct I think I'm committing Paradise Garage sacrilege here past preferring the majesty of the original and it's instrumental to the Larry Levan version – listen to 'em all here and I'll permit yous decide…

Whether it's the original '89 promo or the '91 release on Columbia with the Larry Levan and Mark Kamins remixes practiced luck in sourcing the originals as these are proper house Holy Grails in the vein of the James "Jack Rabbit" Martin 12" on Yoton or long lost Chicago 12"south by Joe Lewis, Marcus Mixx et al – one re-create of the Columbia pressing on Discogs for £500 ridiculous… If you don't fancy rinsin' a month'due south rent then DJ TLR's Crème System reissued the original and instrumental complete with a modern estimation coming courtesy of Legowelt adding some proto-percolation to the mix. My personal favourite the 'Instrumental Mix' can likewise be found via King Street Sounds' dearest letter to Nihon with their 'Sounds Of Far Due east Trip the light fantastic toe Music – Compilation Vol one' and is far easier to track down. I've merely scored a mint copy of the 'Oldies' EP on Far East Recording that has the original vocal version for a very fair price (I succumbed to Discogs impale me now…) though hunting downwards an original will be one of my life'southward missions…

Bringing it back to Far Due east Recording and Soichi's outset releases forth with partner in crime Shinichiro Yokota were 'Got To Be Real' (complete with unique Pepsi-manner artwork on the characterization!) and 'Let'south Groove' (a embrace of Earth, Wind & Burn) though it'due south the first 'Far East Recording' EP that is my personal favourite with the infectious 'Do It Again' by Yokota on solo duties that'southward my choice articulation from the characterization check it out here…

Once again this is another Discogs wantlist weapon and so trackin' downwards an original may be a lifelong quest even so the rail got a deserved reissue with new house imprint HHATRI (History Has A Tendency To Repeat Itself) including it on their debut release along with more Far East rarities complete with a Fabio Monesi remix adding a rawer aesthetic – bank check 'em all out hither.

Too as his own Far E Recording characterization he contributed to other labels. In '91 he as well released the transcendent opus 'Low Tension' forth with Manabu Nagayama (who released 'I Got The Rhythm' on Cabaret with Pal Joey and Toshihiko Mori every bit Beautiful People) on King Street Sounds' earlier incarnation BPM Records. The track along with their ambient interlude 'Walker' features on the super-rare 'La Ronde' compilation along with the firm crème of New York and Tokyo including Pal Joey, Nick Jones & Kaleem Shabazz, Toshihiko Mori, Men From The East and Hiroshi Matsui. Typically another speculator special (£200 and upwards Jesus…) though the equally rare 2nd edition 'La Ronde Two' which was a dedication to Larry Levan recently got repressed then worth coppin' if early 90s Tokyo/NY house your flavor… As well worth checking on BPM is Soichi Terada and Shinichiro Yokota'south 'Tokyo 30' EP with 'Shake Yours' my pick track a proper jam-hot groove – hither'south some of those BPM rhythms for yous…

In the mid-nineties Terada turned his hand to other genres including Drum & Bass which was nowadays on 'Sumo Jungle' LP – he also composed scores for computer games including (here's some pub quiz trivia for you) the 'Ape Escape' serial on the Playstation I had that in my youth! However it'southward his business firm endeavours that I love and will always be seeking out – one twenty-four hours a diggin' trip to Tokyo may exist the answer…

Though all these records are super limited Japanese editions which are super hard to rails down (I'm not trying to write an elitist slice – they're all just are well rare and collectable) thankfully superior selector Hunee is curating a Soichi Terada compilation for yeah y'all've guessed it Rush Hour! Information technology'll be a compendium of the sought after and unreleased Far E Recording and BPM record – here's an sectional listen to the 'Alternative Version' of Soichi Terada and Manabu Nagayama's Low Tension that'll be featured on the LP watch out coming soon…

In the meantime the 'Far Due east Recording 2' EP is a great introduction to the sound of Soichi Terada and Far East Recording. Rush 60 minutes have still got copies then don't slumber equally for nether twenty euros I can assure you this is a killer deal for this Far Due east wax wonder – cop i hither and have a listen below. I'll leave you lot to soak in the inimitable sounds of the Far East soundscape…