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Selected Works is a 2xLP compilation highlighting the definitive material of the cassette releases of Juma, a project led by hyper-prolific Hiroshima artist K. Yoshimatsu that existed from 1981-1982. Yoshimatsu released six cassettes with his Juma project (as well as 20+ under his own name) on the legendary cult industrial/experimental label DD. Records run by prophetic artist T. Kamada.
While attending Yamaguchi University in 1978, Yoshimatsu was introduced by classmate and future Juma vocalist F. Yasumura to a now long-lost Japanese communication magazine entitled PUMP, which ultimately led to the creation of a tape trading group of like-minded individuals called "The Recycle Circle." This group included not only future Juma saxophonist T. Isotani, but medical student T. Kamada, as well. Kamada's peerless curatorial passion and aesthetic vision led to the creation of his singular DD. Records, a primarily (though, not exclusively) cassette release label home to a few dozen progressive musicians in Japan's burgeoning underground.
Most of Yoshimatsu's earliest work for DD. was released as Juma, a group born during his tenure at Yamaguchi University that featured frequent collaborators the aforementioned F. Yasumura and T. Isotani, as well as a slew of other guests. Citing Mike Oldfield and Yes as his main influences, Yoshimatsu's material with Juma perfectly encapsulates the audacious experimentation of both the cassettes format and his newfound love of the synthesizer. He produced music at a furious pace ranging from jarring industrial to minimal synth to sax-heavy rock 'n' roll rave-ups to tubular ambient soundscapes to playful new wave...and much more. Juma released these six cassettes in 1981 and 1982, which marked the end of Yoshimatsu's time in Yamaguchi, as he graduated and moved to Hiroshima to pursue filmmaking. He would continue to record solo music for DD. Records over the next few years.
Selected Works marks the first appearance of K. Yoshimatsu's recorded output on the vinyl format. It is an honor for us here at Bitter Lake Recordings to help bring light to his extensive discography, as well as to the memory of DD. Records, as a whole. This collection is limited to 250 copies.
"Hong Kong Dancing" and "化石になる日" originally released in 1981 on Faust And Lost CS (DT07)
"Jurassic Cycle" originally released in 1981 on Jurassic Cycle CS (DT11)
"Natural" and "Aqua Cosmos" originally released in 1981 on Aqua Cosmos CS (DT16)
"Pulse Dance" and "Lizuid Asteroid" originally released in 1981 on Cross Parallel CS (DT24)
"Ammonite Legend" originally released in full in 1981 on Ammonite Legend CS (DT28)
"Enigma" originally released in 1982 on Ocean Zero CS (DT37)
Our take: Double LP compiling tracks from presumably obscure early 80s cassette releases by this Japanese project. Juma is right in Bitter Lake’s wheelhouse, playing an out-there and experimental blend of post-punk, Krautrock, no wave, and new age-inspired music. Across Selected Works‘ two LPs you’ll hear everything from new age-y song-oriented material to harsh, grating noise. In fact, when I was listening to the record’s first side-long track, “Enigma,” my girlfriend made me turn it off because one of the main instruments makes a scraping noise that may or may not be actual nails on a chalkboard. I can understand why you wouldn’t want to have that noise foisted upon you, but I was digging the track hard, particularly the trippy, Krautrock-inspired groove underneath the relentless scraping. Fortunately the rest of Selected Works is easier on the ears, exploring the repetitive rhythms and interesting sonic textures I love to zone out to. While this might be one of the most out there releases on Bitter Lake so far, it may well also be my favorite one yet.