Saturday 24 October 2015

Brilliant Streams (Asturias, 1990)

Asturias' name could fool many listeners, so let's immediately say that this is not a Spanish band. In fact, Japanese multi-instrumentalist and composer Yoh Ohyama chose this label to release his works with the helping hand of some guest musicians. This is the title track from the second album credited to Asturias and actually is an undivided suite of more than 22 minutes, a delicate and classically arranged trip into a fairy world, with a gentle touch of Eastern sounds. Just a touch.

Abstract and full of details. The cover art announces the music.

The themes are pleasant and the whole composition could be described as Mike Oldfield meets Ant Phillips. I really like the way Yoh and his friends alternate slow tempo, ethereal passages and folkish dances, but also the fluid appearance of this music, that actually flows like a brilliant stream and offers an almost visual sequence of sketches that remind me a Japanese garden. Excellent music, IMHO.

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