L.S.T.

Shugo Tokumaru | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 27, 2006)
• Original Release Date: June 27, 2006
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Clapping Music
• ASIN: B000FDFOAI
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #245,877 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Shugo Tokumaru was born in Tokyo in 1980. His debut album, Night Piece (released on New-York based Music Related) was recorded over a period of two weeks. A singular miniature of bizarre folk pop, this first record, which was elaborated as an experiment, assembling ukulele, guitare, musical saw and a whole range of unexpected effects, immediately made his reputation as major miracle, by all those who, in the world, spontaneously began to champion him (especially Pitchfork, which fell in love with the record and grated him with an exceptional 8.6 mark). What is better to begin one’s career with but with an accidental masterpiece? His first concert, for a Map Magazine evening, was done on the latter’s request, and with similar accidental purpose – which didn’t prevent Shugo’s brilliant constructions of loops, delay and toy instruments, to provoke nothing but awe and admiration. So what: a Tokyoite folk singer singing in Japanese, and who manages to convince everybody with a simple thirty minute affair? This was just the beginning. L.S.T., its follower, renews the miracle, with the further will to accomplish a real album as additional baggage. Guitar sorcerer, discreet virtuoso, mutant songwriter who seems to experiment like he breathes, nothing was missing but Shugo’s will to convince all and blow your mind. This second album thus shares with its predecessor the love for intimate atmospheres, elegant melodies, chamber music-like harmonies. But, more self-confident, it is also less discreet, rougher, less blithe and happy-go-lucky. A dazzling explosion of inventiveness, swarming with details as subdued as they are conclusive, L.S.T. is dense like a masterpiece, mixing a few decades of pop music and crazy folk music, but never compels, never obliges the listener, a bit in the way his Tokumaru’s voice itself goes its way, soft and discreet too, almost feminine, always buried yet never hidden in the bodies of guitars, or in the way of his songs, weirdly blurry, yet the melodies of which print! in your mind and never go away.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A majestic slice of contemporary psychedelia, October 28, 2007

By 

David Alston (Chapel Hill, NC, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: L.S.T. (Audio CD)

Shugo Tokumaru emerged from the Japanese indie-pop group Gellers (he is still a member) a few years back, launching a seemingly low-profile side, solo career with the first of three discs - this one, LST, is the 2nd of three.

Touring and great press have gathered a significant fanbase in Japan; with only spotty distribution (and with very little international touring thus far) outside of Japan, all three discs have also begun to steadily generate a following internationally, which speaks to their rather dramatic level of quality.

LST features a densely layered mosaic of shape-shifting pop, generally inclined towards the psychedelic, but also filled with other stylistic intricacies, with some Eastern and Western folk influences, and perhaps some ambient interests also well-reflected throughout. I'd throw out some lofty praise - Tokumaru's interest in textures and idiosyncratic ambient sounds recalls Eno, his very fine-tuned studio craft recalls Todd Rundgren, his love of ornate harmonies and lavish pop constructs recalls Brian Wilson, and his tendency towards psych whimsy (not overdone) evokes Syd Barrett. I don't think that Tokumaru hits those heights always, and the rush of ideas being expressed in his detailed and densely constructed songs seems - at times - almost overwhelming. But there is a real thrill of discovery in listening to his intricate and often very surprising psychedelic pop constructs.

Tokumaru does update his many varied influences with a number of contemporary ideas (the range of instruments being used on this presumably one-man recording job is vast and impressive, including the likes of banjo, shamisen, mandolin and musical saw, along with more trad rock intrumentation), and based on the sound of this disc (along with the other two), he's well on his way towards a potentially spectacular career.

Very highly recommended.

-David Alston

5.0 out of 5 stars Whimsical, Fresh, and Just Happy, March 24, 2011

By 

Jim - See all my reviews

This review is from: L.s.t. (MP3 Download)

I stumbled upon Shugo Tokumaru's work recently, and I find it to be extremely different. It's fresh and light-hearted, and just hits my fancy. I'm sure his style isn't for everyone, but those of you who enjoy a more indie flavor, he might be to your taste, too!