Ikebana - When You Arrive There (2013)

Japanski djevojački duo. 
Minimalizam za potopljene sjene i lišće u staklu.

 

IKEBANA, in Japanese, is an art of flower arrangement.
Unlike conventional flower arrangement, it often focuses on other areas of the plant, such as its stems and leaves, rather than its blooms, and lays emphasis toward the shape, line, form of the arrangement.
IKEBANA is about minimalism, about beauty in space, and about calmness.

And so does the music of flau label’s latest signing, the Japanese female duo IKEBANA.

Japanese female duo IKEBANA is consists of 2 very gifted female artists, maki and en. maki, from the legendary Japanese shoegaze band INCENSE, is a very traditional Japanese. She only owns an old mobile phone, she doesn’t have a digital equipment nor uses the internet. Her musical influence is limited to those of the 80's.
The story started when maki recorded the music she made into a cassette MTR. One day, moOog Yamamoto (of Buffalo Daughter whohas released the album from Beastie Boys own Grand Royal) bumped into her music in this cassette, and he immediately felt in love with it. From there, maki, Moog and their friend DJ Codomo decided to come together to form a band, and they named it “IKEBANA”. After some time, Moog and DJ Codomo left the band, and en took their place in joining IKEBANA.
In 2012, Yo La Tengo picked up IKEBANA's self-released album as one of his best albums on STUDIO VOICE.

In additional to music making, maki also makes hand-made clothing (second-hand clothing with her own collages) with the clothing label FLANGER. Artists like Cornelius, Buffalo Daughter and Kiiiiiii are taking  these clothing. (wei@mu-nest)

Their unique music is infused with a strong sense of Shoegaze and Ambient, but in a very much stripped-down form. Phases of minimal guitar noise floating through the space of sounds, like a wavering light in darkness, with deeply reverbed female voices drifting in to create a calm universe between a dream and the reality.
Unlike the current style of psychedelic/drone music for overseas, IKEBANA’s music is about minimalism, about beauty in space, and about calmness, just like the art of flower arrangement of IKEBANA itself.
 - flau.jp

"an album of beautiful, tense, secret dream-music that sounds like nothing else, ever" - James McNew (Yo La Tengo)

Beautifully Blooming...Japanese duo constructs minimal shoegaze music - SPIN MAGAZINE


It’s flooring stuff, suited for fans of Windy & Carl and Grouper
- The FADER

IKEBANA‘s brooding drones and shoegaze tones give way to songs still tinged with hope; not dark or sad, but simply pensive and aware…Sometimes being alone isn’t a bad thing at all.- DECORDER Magazine

The message is sincere, and as focused as its title. The pacing is unforced, its end result reaching something uniquely sublime
- Studiums & Shrines


minimal shoegaze, reminiscent of Slowdive’s Pygmalion or Grouper’s works. Breathtaking.e - No Fear Of Pop

the drone-indebted shoegaze outfit Ikebana has a sound that seems to decidedly draw inspiration from its moniker—one which is considerably restrained and sparse, relying on the repetition of delicately embellished chordsl - XLR8R


where the guitar strums and vocals illuminate the chill of night with only the glow of the moon in the sky for comfort - IMPOSE Magazine