{"product_id":"niningashi-heavy-way","title":"Niningashi - Heavy Way","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003eAlthough he was training as a pharmacist, Kazuhisa Okubo was much more interested in prescribing musical medicine.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA coming-of-age album, Heavy Way captured a turning point in Okubo’s life, and Japanese society more widely as a nostalgia for the pastoral calm of the traditional life, met the cosmopolitan thrill of coffee, sex and cigarettes in the big city.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIntoxicated by Tokyo, driven by a passion for music and surrounded by a thriving acid folk scene, the young student filtered his experiences through a psychedelic cocktail of soulful influences from the US and Japan.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNiningashi was his first band, and Heavy Way was their only album. It was honest and raw, deep and strangely funky, in an off-beat kind of way. Across nine tracks, Okubo and the 6-piece band put their own spin on the new folk sound of Japan, combining witty lyrics with electric guitar-driven solos and crisp, understated grooves.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMelancholy and profound, opening track ‘Ameagari’\u003cspan class=\"bcTruncateMore\"\u003e feels like a synthesis of Harvest-era Neil Young and Haruomi Hosono’s Happy End. Then there’s the whimsical washboard country sound of ‘Semai Boku No Heyade’; the moody, low-lit charm of ‘Restaurant’; and ‘Hitoribotchi’, a sensitive portrayal of childhood, steeped in memories of rainfall that will resonate with fans of Woo and Mac Demarco.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhile Okubo would go on to taste success with psychedelic folk bands Neko and Kaze, the latter of which scored three #1 albums, little is known about his mysterious debut with Niningashi.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSelf-released by Okubo in 1974, and featuring album artwork by his brother, it has slowly generated a cult following online, intrigued by its soft and enchanting sound. So few records were ultimately pressed that those remaining have fetched up to £1,500 online.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFeatured on Time Capsule’s era-spanning collection Nippon Acid Folk, Niningashi’s Heavy Way is a deep-cut grail of a vibrant time in Japan’s musical history, where even the pharmacists were making jams.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan class=\"bcTruncateMore\"\u003eReleased April 19, 2024\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAll songs are written \u0026amp; composed by Kazuhisa Okubo\u003cbr\u003eRemastered by Andy Baldwin at Metropolis Studios, London, UK\u003cbr\u003eLiner notes by Anton Spice \u0026amp; Kay Suzuki\u003cbr\u003eArtwork by Leon Moh-Cah\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Time Capsule","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53771170185553,"sku":"TIME019","price":32.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0433\/9574\/3906\/files\/a3040676420_10.jpg?v=1778690758","url":"https:\/\/very-special.com\/products\/niningashi-heavy-way","provider":"VERY SPECIAL","version":"1.0","type":"link"}