Shugo Tokumaru was born in Tokyo in 1980. Tokumaru’s musical activities began as solitary home recording sessions. Holing himself up in his bedroom for a ‘short’ two-week period, Tokumaru completed his debut album, Night Piece, which was eventually released by the New York independent label, Music Related. The record’s distinctly beautiful sound garnered strong reviews throughout the international music community. In addition, Tokumaru began to play solo live shows almost by chance last year when he was dragged out on stage at a Map Magazine sponsored event. Using delay loops and the sounds of prepared toys, Tokumaru’s music offers the listener an overwhelming floating sensation. Witnessing him perform live becomes a kind of revelation.

Without almost any precedent, the New York label Music Related (distributed by Compare Notes in Japan) dropped Tokumaru’s debut album, Night Piece to accolades from media outlets such as London’s WIRE magazine and the popular American music webpage, Pitchfork (which awarded his album a high score of 8.6). Throughout the world, Tokumaru Shugo’s spirited ‘bedroom music’ was met with nothing but high praise.

Instead of using synthesizers and other electronic instruments, Tokumaru opts to tailor his sound out of instruments such as the guitar, ukulele, musical saw, and other elaborate effect-makers. His unforced vocals have no intention of disturbing the music’s emotional balance. The best way to describe the beauty of Tokumaru’s musical world might be to call his sound works, ‘the High Llamas of the night-time.’ As if these aren’t enough reasons to declare Tokumaru’s immense talent to the world, his whisper-like voice has been praised by the international music media as being on the same plane as Devendra Banhart and M. Ward. This is especially notable when you consider that Tokumaru’s music is not merely instrumental, but vocal pop music with lyrics entirely in Japanese. (Side note: When Tokumaru performed as an opening act for M. Ward’s 2004 Japan tour, Ward himself couldn’t stop lobbing praise upon Tokumaru).

Now, we arrive at Tokumaru’s second album, L.S.T.. It sounds a lit bit different than Night Piece. Of course, L.S.T. still shares the intimate atmosphere, elegant melodies and chamber-music-like harmonies that defined his debut. Though the adjectives used above might suggest a ‘light’ sounding album, on the contrary, there is something rougher and heavier about this record. On the surface, one will hear comfortable pop music. However, behind the conventional pose, three different ‘layers’ of Tokumaru Shugo’s sound become apparent; the overcoming of sound’s three-dimensional depth, the growing confidence of an artist as songwriter and sound designer, and the artist’s expression as a mad scientist who continuously carries on musical experiments. By trying to chug down the thick soup of decades of pop music history, Tokumaru’s music has turned out to be the dynamic pop expression of the next generation.

The song ‘Mizukagami’ is like a wind-up toy pop song. ‘Karte’ is an instrumental that reminds one of Pascal Comelade. The last track, ‘5.A.M.,’ is experimental yet filled with a certain transparency. All the songs are finely crafted with utmost sincerity. It is another favorite album that will find you continuously reaching for the ‘replay’ button.