Shintaro Sakamoto - Yoo-hoo

 

When I posted 'On-Gaku' in January, in a moment of synchronicity/oversight I came to realize Shintaro Sakamoto also released his newest album the same month.  'Yoo-hoo' is Shintaro's 5th full-length solo album, following 21 years of fronting Yura Yura Teikoku.

His former band had a more prevalent psych/rock aspect propelled by his guitar/singing, but much like his solo work exists a common thread of dreamy/dreary unconventional pop/surf that he continues to explore and refine.

This album sounds like lounge music in the coolest lounge in town, complete with sporadic traditional horn/wind/percussion instruments and outlier inclusions Shintaro's style is known for (e.g. whatever that little instrument is on "Is There A Place For You There?").  I won't bother dissecting this track to track, as fans of his past work will probably be onboard regardless, but for everyone else I would give it my rubber stamp of endorsement of being my favorite solo album he's released.  'Yoo-hoo' is maybe not his most experimental album, but likewise a reminder that you're always in for a surprise.  Ultimately the dreamy+dreary/surf ventricle throughout much of his sound is (in my opinion) beating better than ever on 'Yoo-hoo'.

Can check out the three singles released below.  Bandcamp for prior releases (hasn't made its way there yet) and direct purchase link through his label.

Bandcamp

Purchase

Converge - Love Is Not Enough

Converge released their new album, 'Love Is Not Enough' today; vinyl is already sold out (on Bandcamp) but I'm sure more will be coming.  The album feels relatively short but it definitely checks all the "this-Converge-album-is-great" boxes.  Just one of the best bands to do it, and still excellent 30+ years into their discography.  Also recommend checking out their recent Audiotree performance.

Bandcamp

On-Gaku: Our Sound

I've been trying to commit to posting at least once per month in my spare time; being sick the past week or so and not having any albums recently that have blown my socks off, I figured I would switch it up and post a movie recommendation that is music-adjacent.

'On-Gaku: Our Sound' by Kenji Iwaisawa came out in 2019, based on the 2005 manga 'Ongaku' ("Music") by Hiroyuki Oohashi.  This movie has particular relevance to me/this blog, because one of the main characters, "Kenji" (center above), is voiced by Shintaro Sakamoto (singer/guitarist of Yura Yura Teikoku, now solo), the first I believe of his voice-acting credits.  Some of the voice cast is also handled by other venerated Japanese musicians.

I won't give a movie review/film essay aside to say it is a very visually (and auditorily, with Shintaro also contributing to the soundtrack) appealing anime featuring rotoscoping with hand-drawn emphasis, centered around three teenage delinquents who decide to start a band together -- with none of them having any musical background.  As you'd imagine, the hijinks and roadblocks that follow make for an entertaining and inspiring film.  The plot builds to them performing live for the first time, and the result is indeed the "climax" in all senses of the film.

Just thought I would shout this out, sans an awkward scene (you'll know when you see it), it's a very enjoyable movie with slightly more deadpan comedy than drama, but overall a lot of heart; no doubt resonating with anyone who has jammed in a room with bandmates, especially for the first time.

I don't think any "regular" streaming services currently have this available (possibly Amazon for purchase?), so you might have to get creative or do extra digging to find it.  But physical copies can be bought from Amazon or wherever.

Steve Lyman - SIGNAL TO BURNING

I've been seeing posts of an upcoming project featuring Cedric Bixler-Zavala (At the Drive-In, The Mars Volta, etc.) and drummer/synth player Steve Lyman (Utah to Brooklyn, NY), whom I was unfamiliar with prior to this upcoming collab, 'SIGNAL TO BURNING', on April 1st, 2026.  

Lyman is primarily a jazz drummer/composer/educator mashing up electronics and occasional brass (woodwind if you want to get technical, which his music is), referring to his latest solo record 'SPIRAL' in 2024.  This conglomeration probably explains how he paired up with Cedric in the first place, mirroring his/The Mars Volta's often unconventional ingredients in a musical blender, while maintaining a strong jazz...exoskeletal? framework.  

His last solo record also features a number of collaborators I wasn't familiar with, sans the very jazz-centric Jimmy Chamberlin (The Smashing Pumpkins, Jimmy Chamberlin Complex), featured on the closing track "CIRCLE", which is probably my favorite track on the album.

There has been a couple singles released so far ahead of the album (below), and while I'm not positive Cedric is on all or more of them (he mentions other collabs on it with Tigran Hamasyan and Nathan Schram, the latter of which is also on the released single "BIRDS SINGING ON THE MOON"), the first two singles of the 14 total tracks have been their collaborations.

I'll link his Bandcamp below, which features the aforementioned 'SPIRAL' from 2024.  He had another solo record called 'Revolver' in 2013 that I haven't tracked down yet.  Their upcoming record 'SIGNAL TO BURNING' will be out on April 1st.

Bandcamp

Moonstone - Age of Mycology

Moonstone is a 4-piece doom/stoner rock group from Kraków, Poland.  Their 3rd full-length album 'Age of Mycology' came out on November 7th.  This is my first time hearing the group, and while the album doesn't re-invent the doom/stoner rock wheel, it puts enough playing cards and flashes on the spokes that it caught my attention.  The album is constantly peeking out of the doom trenches, unlike many who are determined to see how far down they can dig.  Altogether the album comes from a lot of genre/influences but it had enough surprises throughout that kept my attention and subverted it, with the closing title track showing a lot of promise for how far they can stretch their legs going forward.

Bandcamp

Youtube

Monkeys On Mars - Monkeys On Mars

Newest EP from Mars Red Sky, collaborating with Swiss prog/instrumental band Monkey3, under the moniker and debut of Monkeys On Mars.  The collab is just two tracks (technically three but 'Tiny Flames Edit' [video below] is a reworked/shortened version of opening track "Seasonal Pyres") but I definitely enjoyed both, especially the more metal-tinged build-up of "Hear The Call".  

It released on October 17th; if looking to purchase/extra bundles I'd recommend here.

Bandcamp

WITCH - SOGOLO

Emanuel "Jagari" Chanda, Patrick Mwondela

WITCH ("We Intend To Cause Havoc") is a Zambian funk/rock band (with a brief dance with disco) regarded as among the most popular/influential of "zamrock" bands of the 1970's, a genre coined via their creations.  Formed about a decade after Zambian independence, the band is led/founded by Emanuel "Jagari" Chanda, who also took in influences from Europe, America, and rock/pop music of the West.  

Chanda left the band in 1976, after releasing four albums, to pursue teaching.  The band went through a series of member/genre switches afterwards until after 1984 when the band quit performing live.  The band revived in 2012 when their re-issued records started gaining traction to new audiences, with Chanda making new material alongside new members from the Netherlands, Germany, and Switzerland (as well as keyboardist Patrick Mwondela, who first joined the band in 1980).  They released their first album since 1984 in 2023 with their eighth studio album, 'Zango'.

'SOGOLO' is their newest 2025 release, and ironically I stumbled across this thinking it was a new album from J Mascis (Dinosaur Jr.) adjacent side-project 'Witch'.  The opening track "Kamusale" and following "Nadi" are the power combo and my favorites, but the entire album is solid.  After my introduction to 'SOGOLO', I have good reason to check out their previous eight albums; as mentioned earlier all of their older studio albums have been re-issued.

Bandcamp