Glossy Mistakes Vinyl, CD & Tape 16 Items

Ambient and environmental Japanese scene has flourished stronger than ever in the last years. The pioneers of this sound and the creators of an innovative way of making and understanding ambient music, such as Hiroshi Yoshimura, Yoshio Ojima, Toshifumi Hinata or Takashi Kokubo have been championed and their works have been successfully unearthed by reissue labels. Continuing in this endless path, Glossy Mistakes adds Takashi Kokubo’s brilliant “Volk Von Bauhaus” to its catalogue, with the Japanese masterpiece as the third official release of the Spanish label. As most of 80’s Japanese ambient and environmental music, “Volk Von Bauhaus” is an audio impression designed to give a multi-sensory experience to the listener. An effort to make things audible, an exercise of understanding and soundtracking objects or situations. The main objective of this sound is to create an iconic musical landscape to accompany a specific place. Though his name might be unfamiliar to many, Kokubo has crafted music that has impacted virtually all of Japan, from national mobile phone earthquake alerts to contactless card payment jingles. He was one of the first artists to create ambient music strictly through loops. As he mentioned when release this album, "this recording used no keyboard players, no multitrack tape recording techniques, no analog sounds”. A shift on the process of imagining sound. “Volk Von Haus” is and ode to this ambient, new age and environmental music created in Japan throughout the 80’s. Throughout 9 cuts, Kokubo handcrafts his own sound and immerses the listener in a peaceful yet challenging adventure. The record is the first piece of his Digital Soundology series, and arguably his most interesting work due to the groundbreaking techniques he used.

Celebrated new wave compilation from Japan reissued for the first time on Glossy Mistakes.
A much-cherished gem from the 1980s underground Japanese music scene returns as Soft Selection 84 is reissued by Glossy Mistakes for its 40th anniversary. Originally released on DIY label Soft, the compilation sees 13 tracks from nine acts spanning minimal, ambient, zolo and more for a beguiling listen.
The result is a charming time capsule of eclectic creativity in which nothing sounds dated. Take La Sellrose Can Can, whose two party jams predate Kero Kero Bonito's hyperpop by decades. In addition, an impeccable remastering from the original master tapes adds to the "could have been recorded yesterday" feel of the collection.
Soft Selection 84 also includes the eccentric Picky Picnic. One of the few featured artists with recordings beyond the anthology, the trio is an essential act for those curious about Japanese art pop of the era. There is also new wave introspection from Name, whose "Do We All Need Love" plays out as a sensual nod to John Lennon. In a similar vein is Clä-Sick, the recording name of Goro Some, the compilation's original producer and founder of Soft.
The record's rerelease comes with Some's blessing, along with his original artwork and photography. Ultimately, the listener is left tantalised by his selection and its bold excursions into no wave, synth pop, radioplay and bizzaro house. Most of the artists on this release would fade into obscurity, but the transient nature of the potential showcased has helped cement the compilation's reputation over the years.
Soft Selection will be released on vinyl LP by Glossy Mistakes on March 2024, with a remastering from the original master tapes.

Magic Mountain is the third full-length album from the itinerant American businessman, composer, and producer Martin Glass. Inspired by German electronic music pioneer Edgar Froese, Vangelis, early Warp Records releases, The Orb and The Future Sound of London, the album is a Fellinian memory maze of new age wellness culture, mid-20th century Hollywood glitz, exhaustion, dreams, fantasy, desire and listless ennui. The less sense it makes, the more we can't stop listening to it.

Drawing from the impressionistic recollections of an unreliable narrator with an ever-loosening relationship with time and space, Magic Mountain tells the story of Martin’s feverish stay in a celebrity health resort in the hills beyond Hollywood. Over the course of thirteen evocatively titled tracks, the album unfolds like a half-remembered dream of a place somehow lost and imagined but not beyond our reach. Expressed through sweeping, retrofuturistic synthesisers, haunted old-time melodies, grainy samples and the occasional gently lulling rhythm, it plugs directly into emotion and pleasure, calling the listener to fall into the fantasy.

“As I’ve got older, I just want the music to be evocative, to take people away, to transport them somewhere, to move them,” Martin says. That’s such a basic requirement of music, I know, but – to me, increasingly – it’s becoming the only requirement! How can this record stop somebody on their mobile phone and make them feel something or yearn for something?”

Limited first run of 300 copies.

"Momento Claro", a dream-like landscape crafted by funcionário, influenced by Jon Hassell and Hiroshi Yoshimura's latest works

Glossy Mistakes proudly announces the upcoming release of "Momento Claro," the latest full-length album by Portuguese artist funcionário. Scheduled to drop on May 10th, "Momento Claro" will be available digitally and on vinyl, inviting listeners to embark on a profound auditory exploration.

Following the success of his previous work "Cavalcante," released on Hozulam, funcionário returns delving deep into the realms of ambient and Fourth World. Inspired by the likes of Jon Hassel, Brian Eno, and Japanese environmental artist such as Hiroshi Yoshimura and Takashi Kokubo. "Momento Claro" offers a sonic tapestry rich with textures and layers, evoking a sense of spirituality and introspection. A split second.

At the heart of the album lies a collection of eight tracks, each a testament to funcionário's craft. The journey begins with "Esperança," a mesmerising nine-minute meditation adorned with the soothing sounds of the ocean, setting the tone for the ethereal voyage ahead. From the tranquil atmospheres of "Retrato" to the contemplative depths of "Momento Claro," each composition invites listeners to immerse themselves fully in the sonic, dream-like landscape crafted with care and depth.

Here a glimpse into the intricacies of day-to-day experiences and interactions collide throughout a collage of organic layers, atmospheres and approaches, "Momento Claro" serves as a poignant reflection on the contemporary working society, where "the power of sound as a bridge between memory and the imagination that interprets it".

Mastered by Damian Schwartz, "Momento Claro" achieves a sonic clarity that enhances the album's immersive qualities, ensuring that each note resonates with precision and depth.

Prepare to be transported to a realm where time stands still and the boundaries between reality and reverie blur. A deep journey that promises to captivate the mind and nourish the soul.

Vocal harmonies and arrangements and excellent guitar work are masterfully combined creating a joyful journey featuring the undisputed talent of Raymundo Bittencourt, Octávio Burnier and Paulo Moura. "The human voice is more than just a musical instrument; it is ally to the thought. Vocal art is one of the most beautiful forms of musical expression and an endless resource. It's a shame that so few devote themselves to it in our popular music. I would therefore like to congratulate Aquarius and Continental for the release of this LP and may it be received by all with the same affection and attention than those who dedicated themselves to making it" Paulinho Tapajos These notes, originally printed on the back cover of this 1976 beauty, are a perfect introduction to the vocal harmonies and arrangements and excellent guitar work that are masterfully combined creating a joyful journey that features the undisputed talent of Raymundo Bittencourt, Octávio Burnier and Paulo Moura. An amazing bit of Brazilian samba funk that also touches on MPB, bossa nova, jazz… This sought-after gem opens with the beautiful version of Burnier & Cartier’s ‘Só Tem Lugar Prá Você’ (one of the two B&C versions included on this album, with a pitched-down ‘Europanema’ sparkling on the B side), building up a mellow, airy vibe that stays throughout the entire album. This release is the result of a collaboration between Vampisoul and Glossy Mistakes.

* First official and remastered reissue
* Featuring Midori Takada and Bill Laswell
* Sought after cult Nippon avant-garde album * Includes liner notes

Genji Sawai’s classic LP “Sowaka”, featuring Midori Takada and Bill Laswell, reissued for the very first time. Sowaka, recorded in 1984, displayed an innovative sound that went beyond genre – mixing dub, world, jazz, electro, hip-hop and avant-garde. A perfect match of some of the most experimental artists of that time resulting in an extremely sought after and singular piece of music of the golden Japanese era. A talented crossover. In 1984, working with Bill Laswell, Michael Beinhorn and Midori Takada would be unlike working with anyone else Genji Sawai had before, pulling him out of the J-jazz experimental scene he was based on. Rather than work off written music, they’d build songs like cooks. Genji might supply the ingredients, perhaps the tonal choices – sax, FM synths, drum machines, and Bill would task himself to do the “cooking”, creating the overall image of the song. It’s the use of imagery to have a conversation with each other, musically, that just felt so different to Genji. Unlike the other musicians who contributed to Sowaka, musicians of impressive, rarefied technique like Midori Takada, Shuichi “Ponta” Murakami, and Kazuhiko Shibayama, notation or sheet music wasn’t a part of Genji’s vocabulary with Bill. With him, drawings were how songs were built from the ether. Whatever image a demo conjured up – that’s where the song had to go. You hear it on songs like “Hikobae” that predicted the chopped and screwed sound that would revolutionize hip-hop years later. On this track what started with a mental picture, of some kind of tree shoot, metastasizes a vision full of no-wave sax skronk dosed with pointillistic dub affectations. Although, Sowaka wasn’t tied inherently to it’s original meaning – the final utterance from the Buddhist Heart Sūtra – it’s philosophical meaning wasn’t too divorced from the true meaning (or at least, his truest meaning) Genji placed on it here: getting things done. Simply put, all his high-minded ideas wouldn’t have come to fruition unless all involved put some serious work into getting the project over the finish line. In five cracking days the album was put on tape and was then jettisoned off to NYC for Bill to put its final touches. What’s fascinating about Sowaka, or at least what will make it so, is just how it perfectly captures a certain atmosphere, somewhat alien to overground Japanese music at the time. Forget about a starry-eyed, futuristic, technopolis. The Japan heard in songs like “1969 (The Real)” is found in its iconic back alleys and constantly changing cityscape. It would use hip-hop, jazz, folk, and world music, to drop its sonic graffiti. That pull of “tradition” trying to co-exist with increasingly hypermodern ideas is palpably heard in music defined by its mix of organic and synthetic instruments paired with hard-nosed melodies. Genji’s Japan, as heard in Sowaka, pulls no punches, it wants you right in the middle of that public maelstrom. It wants you to sonically be there. Behind the mysterious chopped-and-screwed-with jazz of songs like “Hikobae” or the no-wave, nu wave-fried jazz of the titular track, there was a new kind of fusion being presented. Moving beyond world music, there was territory to be uncovered that was even more unplaceable. Somewhere, between the mind, body, and spirit, closer to one’s neck and booty, was this music urging you to simply move elsewhere, further, until you’re closer to where Genji’s music would land. Somewhere between history and his story, there’s still room to rewrite our story by absorbing this spectacular music that remains completely, forever, out of time.

Tokyo. 1981. A couple of fashion designers decide to go for it and start recording music with a third musician. Their debut album, Dance, is an influential synth pop and wave album twisting the boundaries of the genres.

Earthling consisted of the couple: lead vocalist/guitarist John, bass guitarist Yoko Fujiwara, plus keyboard/sythesizer player Jin Haijama. The group was formed in Tokyo in 1979 when John and Yoko, previously fashion and textile designers, felt the desire to give the music they'd written a more permanent environment. They recruited Jim, who was working in an amusement park, and evolved a musical form which pulsed with a steady beat, yet was tempered by hypnotic vocal chanting. The sound of Earthling reinforces the subtle and sensitive connections which link modern music to dance to, with hints of synth-pop, new wave and heavy punk vocals tainted by drum machines.

While the group uses a rhythm-machine to epitomize the sustained beat of Tokyo in the early 80s, the emotional vocal impact of songs like ''Heavy Feeling in My mind'' and ''The Guard of Sensitivity'' add an urgent, street-wise dimension to their precise instrumental presentation. Earthling are sound pioneers, painting future dreams that transcend the present day.

Their music crossed borders also internationally: "You go on Natural" became a well-known banger in the late 80s in La Ruta Destroy in Valencia, championed by local djs back then. The band also toured the United States in the early 80s.

Wave to Mikey, the fourth album from the Los Angeles-based actor, musician and photographer Danny Lane is a nocturnal, neon-lit ode to the friendships that shape us. “I made this album for my friend Mikey from back home,” Danny explains. “We were pretty much inseparable for a large part of our lives, and our musical and social minds were always in sync in a special way. Then with age, we drifted apart, especially since I moved to Los Angeles. This album is just a little wave hello to an old friend and a kindred spirit.”

Equal parts avant-garde composition, instrumental city-pop, ambient, Kankyō Ongaku (environmental music) and Fourth World music, Wave to Mikey is an impressionistic and reflective cycle of eleven richly detailed memory portraits. Throughout the album, the influence of Jon Hassell, Arthur Russell, Hiroshi Yoshimura and Yellow Magic Orchestra hangs in the air like late-night mist, adding character but never overshadowing the rhythmic ambience of Danny’s musical visions.

Wave To Mikey began as a series of sketches on analog synthesisers, guitar, sample and found percussion sketches, initially recorded in Danny’s home studio. Once he’d located the vibe, Danny called on his friends E Talley II, Solange collaborator John Carroll Kirby and Destroyer session musician Joseph Shabason, who respectively added flute, spiritual synth textures and saxophone to the record.

For Glossy Mistakes founder Mario G.R., who originally discovered Danny through his photography, Wave To Mikey captures a vivid feeling of melancholy and peace. “He's able to encapsulate emotions in a very straightforward way, either in his portrait or songs,” Mario says. “I think that's a kind of virtue or skill given to talented artists, no matter the field.”

Born and raised in Staten Island, New York, Danny began playing music with his friends when he was thirteen, before putting that passion on pause to study Fine Arts (Theatre) at Rider University in Lawrence Township in pursuit of an acting career. Acting led him to photography, after playing a photographer in a film, he was inspired to pursue the medium. Danny began shooting photos on film for magazines and lifestyle brands, spent a stint living in New York’s Chinatown neighbourhood, and eventually relocated to Los Angeles in 2017.

Four years ago, Danny started recording and releasing music under his own name, leading to the trilogy of releases that preceded Wave To Mikey, How To Empty A Cup (2019), Memory Record (2019) and Caput (2021). Over the course of these releases, he’s revealed himself to be a sophisticated composer and producer with a studied ear from years spent digging through record bins for ambient, experimental, new age, jazz and electronica records from around the globe, with a particular emphasis on Japan.

“Music is something that’s always been involuntary for me,” Danny reflects. “It’s unconditional, always there. It’s something I just have to do. I’ve taken breaks and it’s always gloomy when I’m not playing. I just want to get better and better and understand more and more.”

Here at Glossy Mistakes, Wave To Mikey marks our second contemporary album release, following on from Evenings by Japanese composer Metoronori. We’re proud to be able to present Danny, Metoronori and other modern musicians' work alongside reissues of classic works from Stevia aka Susumu Yokota, Akira Ito, Yuji Toriyama & Ken Morimura, and Takashi Kokubo.

Mastered by Damian Schwartz, Wave To Mikey will be released on Vinyl LP Glossy Mistakes on June 27 2022. Besides the regular black vinyl, a limited clear vinyl will be available in an edition of 100 copies. Both editions come packaged with original cover art photography shot by Danny.

"Dreams are painful experiences; they are not real, but they are true," says Metoronori, whose very own ‘Evenings’ will finally see the day of light on vinyl thanks to Spanish reissue label Glossy Mistakes.

The label’s first release of 2022, by Japanese musician Metoronori, whose electronic sounds have previously appeared on Orange Milk Records and Virgin Babylon Records, will mark the start of a busy year for Glossy Mistakes. After appearing for the second year in a row on the prestigious ‘Best reissues of the year’ list for The Vinyl Factory, the label continues its own discovery path with what is meant to be one of its most cherished releases to date.

‘Evenings’ is a unique and nocturnal collection of songs. The 13-track record came from an unstable few years for the artist, during which she found solace in the night-time atmosphere of the various Tokyo wards that became her home. A voiced ode to dreams.

With her musical alias as a fun play on words meaning 'metro rider', ‘Evenings’ is a seamless and insular night-time journey from Metoronori, real name Hikari Okuyama. The journey though isn't charting train tunnels and rail tracks, but various dreamscapes, as underpinned by electronics and hints of free jazz.

While musical influences are too broad to pin down for such a singular sound, ‘Evenings’ comes with visual inspiration from esteemed directors such as Michelangelo Antonioni, Kiyoshi Kurosawa and Fritz Lang. Surrealism and noir bleed through the sounds, making for the visual texture of an out-of-context movie scene, much like part of a dream.

Dream pop sounds merge with ambient pads, soft vocals and oniric instrumentals throughout the whole piece, on a rollercoaster of emotions and feelings. An album to enjoy from start to finish, paying attention to detail as every sound on the records sums up to the overall meaning of the concept.

Some artists have gained huge recognition, some records have been idealized to the point of becoming cult albums… and that’s exactly the case of Marine Flowers, by Japanese multi artist Akira Ito. An album that is unique, delicate, exploratory… a true one-of-a-kind sonic adventure that 35 years after its first release comes back in the form of a reissue via Glossy Mistakes.

Looking back, Akira Ito’s artistic career began not in music but in acting. Born in Japan in 1945, he developed a prodigious ability to perform and a childhood acting career blossomed. However, as acting gigs dried up, actor/director Shintaro Katsu encouraged him to follow his steps into the music industry. With the rise of Western rock and soul music lighting up Japanese radio, Akira Ito stood to capitalize in the localized mid-60s “Group Sounds” craze by becoming a performing musician, joining touring bands across Japan fusing western and Shōwa-era pop styles.

But Akira’s musical interests changed throughout his life experiences and travels, up to the point when he knew exactly what he wanted to do (without knowing how to do it): healing music. Akira understood that once he set up shop at Hitokuchizaka Studios in Tokyo the work of translating these ideas began in earnest. First, he started his own record label, dubbing it “Green & Water’’ to promote a series of releases that would strike a more organic tone, envisioning a series of Japanese Environmental Music records. Marine Flowers would be one of four self-penned albums on the label dedicated to esoteric symbolism like “Hopi Prophecies”, “Prayers”, and the “Four Corners Of Water”. Originally released in 1986 and on its 35th anniversary, Marine Flowers deserves this fresh reissue, making this masterpiece available for everyone.

Liner notes are written by Diego Olivas, author of the blog Fond/Sond, from an interview with the artist coordinated by Ken Hidaka.

Originally released in 1980, ‘Amanita’ is an early approach of Canadian artist Sherine Cisco, formerly known as Stu Cisco, to the limitless world of synthesizers in music, through ambient, progressive rock and drone noise. A unique combination of ambient, progressive rock and even drone noises and space-age that converged in ‘Amanita’, her first full album and a piece of music history. This LP marks a milestone in the investigation, experimentation and evolution of musical instruments, where the Mini Moog demonstrated its versatility and creative potential, opening Sherine a path of limitless possibilities.

In a time where dancing has a kind of nostalgic feeling attached to it, Glossy Mistakes kicks off its brand new series of dancefloor-oriented EPs, Glossyfloor. The starting point of this adventure from the Madrid based label comes with the reissue of the highly demanded Cover Boys’ banger ‘Reality’, an absolute ode to one of human beings most basic instincts.

Protoelectronics psychedelic Mexican Holy Grail rediscovered by Glossy Mistakes. Inspired by Vangelis, Tomita or Kraftwerk, this unknown rarity gets a second life sounding fresh and pioneering today. Tito was born in 1946 in Ciudad de México, the son of two Spaniards. Since he was a youngster, he had felt the passion for music and instruments. In the meantime, he started a career as architect. Since his early years, he joined various teen rock bands, where he played bass and guitar. Slowly but surely, his interest in synthesizers started to grow. And the rest is history. Tito defines himself as an “electronic sounds fanatic”. Quetzalcóatl is a truly authentic cornerstone in those terms: an inspired and eclectic artist gives shape to a unique sound through legendary synthesizers such as the MiniMoog or the Arp Odyssey. His passion was so embedded that he even built his own guitars and equalizers; some of which appear on this LP. Quetzalcóatl, his debut solo album, was originally recorded in 1977 (now remastered) in his bedroom using a four-channel Sony recorder in a truly DIY way. This álbum could be considered as a rarity. But if we listen hard enough, we find a pioneering treasure. Somehow, Quetzalcoátl anticipated the sounds of future decades with simple but inspired compositions. It is a mythological trip to the Pre-Hispanic México. This album is an allegory of the Aztec world. Quetzalcoátl is the most important God for Mesoamerican cultures: it represents the inherent human dualism between the body (represented by the snake) and soul (the feathers). In the song “Profecía”, Quetzalcoátl emerges, announcing the end of the world at the hand Spanish colonialism. Limited edition, 600 copies, remastered in Amsterdam by Wouter Brandenburg.

Hannah Archimbault is a multidisciplinary French artist based in London. Hannah opens up her inner deep emotions throughout minimal sequences and loops of sustained and touching organ notes, with reminiscences of Philip Glass, Eva-Maria Houben, Harold Budd or Kali Malone and a contemporary vein that questions love in current times. "The EP came after a break up as I decided to compose in the process of going through this love grief and how you could grow from it, learn to love oneself after the break-up. Each song represents a different stage on this life chapter.". Indeed moving anger, sadness and acceptance are well represented on this sonic, brave redemption of the grief through the artform.

Fake Yourself is an act of revolt as much as it is a celebration of life and an expression of human alienation. As usual in most of his work, soFa here reflects contrasts and contradictions as our existence so often does. It’s about sadness and joy, ups and downs and the fine line which connects them to tell a story. Fake Yourself comes as a spontaneous output of an artist escaping a scene of which the constant superficiality is unavoidable. Mistakes and wrong production with a strong DIY flavor are a conscious choice to not lose the spontaneous feeling which defines these recordings. A pure and direct self, exploring a realm of sound with sharp curiosity, emotion and humour. Where simplicity and complexity marry. This album is a good example on how some of the most authentic musical explorations are the most personal ones. soFa leaves all boundaries behind and let many of his influences confluence. Unconsciously or not, traces of IDM, Disco, New Beat, Dub and mostly Krautrock cross heavenly paths, followed by ironic and confronted vocals and his hypnotic signature basslines. Everything seems to make sense, to fill the chapters of an adventurous short novel.

What makes Fake Yourself remarkable is not the deep blend of genres, but the definition of one man shaping and finding his authentic sound. Killing boundaries to create this journey in his very own "style-no-style".

All tunes were improvised, recorded and arranged within 10 days in a wooden cabin, isolated in the middle of the nature in Alentejo/Portugal in 2022. This album was not meant to happen and one can strongly feel its spontaneous soul. No overdubs.

"Pulso de la Madera" comes as the definitive official reissue of the first album by the legendary band, along with previously unreleased remastered material, on a double LP with extensive liner notes and previously unseen pictures of the band. Essential to revisit the work of a band that inspired fourth world and organic ambient as we know it today; these tunes sound immersive and still contemporary.

On their short but influential career, Finis Africae proposed an informal and decentralized model of creativity that was decades ahead of current practices linked to technological advances; they explored unknown worlds and imagined landscapes of the “fourth world” apart from their present; they neither affirmed nor denied any of the labels they were to assign to them (“New Age”, “ethnic music”, “world music”, etc.); they recreated, used, and nourished foreign cultures without fear.

And most importantly - they shaped a sound “finis”. Your own space. Where there were no rules. A dimension in which the collective was submerged in long sessions of improvisation; where they could be goblins and magical entities; a place where they could imagine scales and structures unreal; where they could play any instrument in the known world; where they could tour the Mediterranean, Africa, and the Middle East in a blink of an eye; where they could be themselves without caring about anything that happened outside.

The unreleased tracks come as a careful selection of a deep-dive over hundred tracks and demos, compiled by Urba and Glossy Mario. The license comes from Juan Alberto Arteche's family.