Malav Shah
One of the best albums I've heard this year. As a pianist, I'm in awe of the stunning melodies. The music captivates from the first note, feeling like a warm blanket during tough times. It beautifully balances chaos and beauty, creating an inspiring experience. Highly recommended!
Favorite track: Outside (Soto).
1 x - BF140, Lilac smoke marbled 12” vinyl, black paper inner, housed in a 3mm spined sleeve. Includes insert. Artwork by Shanliang and design by Takeaki Emori.
1 x - BF137, First pressing on vinyl! Ltd edition translucent green vinyl. Illustration by Momoka Aiso. Design by Takeaki Emori. Features exclusive previously unreleased track ‘Doku (SCREWED)’. Includes MP3 album download code.
Includes unlimited streaming of Mahōgakkō
via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
Download available in 24-bit/48kHz.
ships out within 3 days
Purchasable with gift card
$56USDor more
Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
Includes:
1 x - BF140, Lilac smoke marbled 12” vinyl, black paper inner, housed in a 3mm spined sleeve. Includes insert. Artwork by Shanliang and design by Takeaki Emori.
1 x - BF138, First pressing on vinyl! Ltd edition gray marbled vinyl. Artwork by Taishi Urakawa & Namonaki Sanemasa. Design by Takeaki Emori. Includes MP3 album download code.
Includes unlimited streaming of Mahōgakkō
via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
Download available in 24-bit/48kHz.
ships out within 3 days
Purchasable with gift card
$56USDor more
Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album
Japanese import CD in a 5mm spined wallet with a sticker and 32-page booklet. Artwork by Shanliang. Design by Takeaki Emori.
Includes unlimited streaming of Mahōgakkō
via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
Download available in 24-bit/48kHz.
ships out within 3 days
Purchasable with gift card
$20USDor more
Streaming + Download
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
Purchasable with gift card
Download available in 24-bit/48kHz.
$10USD or more
Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
Lilac smoke marbled 12” vinyl, black paper inner, housed in a 3mm spined sleeve. Includes insert. Artwork by Shanliang and design by Takeaki Emori.
Includes unlimited streaming of Mahōgakkō
via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
Download available in 24-bit/48kHz.
ships out within 3 days
Purchasable with gift card
$29USDor more
Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
Includes:
1 x - BF140, Lilac smoke marbled 12” vinyl, black paper inner, housed in a 3mm spined sleeve. Includes insert. Artwork by Shanliang and design by Takeaki Emori.
1 x - BF137, First pressing on vinyl! Ltd edition translucent green vinyl. Illustration by Momoka Aiso. Design by Takeaki Emori. Features exclusive previously unreleased track ‘Doku (SCREWED)’. Includes MP3 album download code.
1 x - BF138, First pressing on vinyl! Ltd edition gray marbled vinyl. Artwork by Taishi Urakawa & Namonaki Sanemasa. Design by Takeaki Emori. Includes MP3 album download code.
Includes unlimited streaming of Mahōgakkō
via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
Japanese musician Hakushi Hasegawa/長谷川白紙 proudly announces their new album Mahōgakkō/魔法学校 for LA-based Brainfeeder Records, out July 24th. As part of the announcement, Hasegawa shares a new single and video – “Boy’s Texture” – serving as the album’s second single after last year’s “Mouth Flash (Kuchinohanabi)”. The news arrives alongside Hasegawa’s grand gesture of revealing their face to fans for the very first time, unveiling a new side of the elusive and compelling artist.
“Boy’s Texture” sprints with all the energy of springtime. A warm, easygoing guitar forms the track’s main center, a through line as skittering synths, pounding drums, and a chorus of voices swirl around it. The video, directed by Gauspel (Brandon Saunders), explores the desire to find a missing piece of yourself in the wild. “Most people hold this preconceived notion that your being will be complete upon this revelation and that the broken pieces that comprise you will find their final puzzle piece,” he explains. “But there is no such grand revelation, just self-reflection… just you.”
Mahōgakkō, translating to “Magic School,” also seeks to make sense of a chaotic, vibrant world by letting itself get swept up in it. A balance of pop and pandemonium, the album is one of extremes, where chipmunk-pitched voices square off against percussion set to speed metal’s tempo and volume. Noise and melody, cutesy and aggressive, acoustic and electronic — all come to a head in a process Hasegawa calls the Explanatory Ratio.
“The balance is probably the only thing in my work that is intentional and very important to me,” shares Hasegawa. “In many of my songs, I use a scale that I personally call the ‘Explanatory Ratio’ to guide my work. This is not a sophisticated musical theory at all, but simply a subjective scale that looks at the balance of sounds that are explainable to me and sounds that are not explainable to me, and whether or not they are distributed in the ratio that I set for each piece.”
Mahōgakkō finds Hakushi pushing their boundaries to the absolute limit, with hyperspeed jungle and breakcore traded up for the even more pummeling onslaughts inspired by Tanzanian singeli so that they become just another texture in the wild sonic landscapes. And just when your senses are bordering on overloaded, Hakushi gifts you a moment of sweet reprieve before the roller coaster sets off again with hectic syncopations and harmonic jumps not for the faint of heart.
Impressively, the eye of this maelstrom revolves solely around Hasegawa, who taps only a few select collaborators to enliven their vision. Those who caught lead single “Mouth Flash (Kuchinohanabi)” will recall bassist Sam Wilkes added depth to the track juxtaposed against Hasegawa’s high-pitched singing. The lone featured vocalist rapper KID FRESINO lends his voice to “Gone,” where FRESINO’s determined flow seems to ground the skittering drums from spiraling out of control. NYC-based jazz composer Miho Hazama likewise lends her own form of control to “KYŌFUNOHOSHI”, guiding horns and saxes brought in by Yohchi Masago, Ryo Konishi, and Tomoaki Baba (J-Squad).
With Mahōgakkō there is no doubt that this is the sound of a once-in-a-generation artist not just breaking boundaries for Japanese music but global music culture and it will leave you with no doubt that Hakushi Hasegawa is only really just getting started.
a lot of very strong discography-defining tracks on this one. incredibly rich in its atmosphere and the clever sampling that dds is known for is prevalent in this one. digboye
This was the first album that made me discover JPEG & Danny. And holy fuck they both dominated this project. Still one of my favorite album from those two, an album i’ve never heard before. Lean Beef Patty just instantly blows you away and i love it. Thank you guys for scaring the hoes ❤️ CodeVeronica
Oh dear. This album has a grip on me. And little else melts my heart as fast as the intro to Real Nice Moment... I thought it was sequenced until I saw the live sesh recording!!
Favorite track: Real Nice Moment. chobie
The Oxfordshire-based electronic musician's debut is a collection of tracks made from abstract samples, de-tuned synths, and found sounds. Bandcamp New & Notable Oct 19, 2024
The British beatmaker is back with another batch of club classics, with guest turns from BUKKY, Archy Moor, Mysie, and others. Bandcamp New & Notable Oct 6, 2024
•AOTY 2022•
This album is a masterclass on how to stir up chaos without getting lost in the madness. Every nook and cranny of this album is slathered with intricacy. There are many claustrophobic moments throughout this album, but clarity is not lost in the process. From front to back, this album does not let up in the slightest. jinxtriplejinx
