SORANE

Test Tone (yet again) brings you music almost before it's happened: Sorane has been in existence for only a month, yet with members formerly from Umegaoka and Zero Gravity, their music – abstract ambient psycho-melodic groove – already sounds assured. The trio's simple, stripped-down instrumentation consists of synthesizer, guitar and violin, the synth providing solid ground for the flights of delayed, circular guitar patterns and angular violin melodies.

Sorane are currently in the final stages of recording their first release due out later in the year. Their debut appearance at Test Tone will offer a glimpse of what to expect from those studio sessions.

Sorane on MySpace

KANEKO YUKI

Kaneko Yuki describes himself as a musician, sound designer and soundtrack creator. The landscapes he creates, based on a mix of field recordings, laptop processing, guitar, outboard effects, toys and Casiotone, could well serve as the backdrop for a road movie through the deserts of Arizona. The crackles and splinters and hints of analog devices on the brink of feedback form an intricate net over the rolling Casiotone chord progressions and the chop & start bass lines.

Kaneko Yuki's first solo album, "rut", is due for release shortly; check out this live appearance at Test Tone for a preview.

Kaneko Yuki
Kaneko Yuki on MySpace

EJE (gO, Atsushi Tatara, Yann Cleary)

First forming in 2005, Tokyo-based unit eje effortlessly blends pop sensibility with electronic composition, creating a melodic universe that is at once both haunting and accessible. Their music seems to exist in a suspended world that brings to mind underwater voyages, or maybe a cross-ocean trip in an hot air balloon. When hearing eje's music, even YMO's Ryuichi Sakamoto commented, "I've never heard such slithering music". With gO on vocals and acoustic guitar, Atsushi Tatara on bass, and Yann Cleary on electric guitar (and a plethora of small instruments), they create a vast sound that belies the three-member lineup. All members have also been involved with their own musical projects for a number of years, so perhaps this is what comes from a complementary blend of experienced musicians.

Eje
Eje on MySpace