Dojo Zone
The Abduction EP (Incl. John Shima ‘Extraterrestrial’ Mix)

I met SUGAI KEN a few years ago in Tokyo, outside the Dommune radio studios. His personality and music, a very special brand, touched me. His music is a coded vision of a dream world. A trade that is progressive yet traditional - in the most positive sense of the word.Recently out of the blue, Sugai San sent me a collection of personal field recordings he made of folklore groups and public performances in Tokyo, Toyama, Kanagawa, Kyoto, Tottori, … The close listener already knows that Sugai San’s aesthetics speak of a great knowledge of these performing arts.An open invitation: “the traditional local performing arts in the 21st century intrinsically conceive “fragility” as they are vulnerable to extinction. The Japanese local performing arts that appear in this recording is no exception, endangered by the declining birth rate and aging population which are typical to the country. (SUGAI KEN)”I bring the original recordings into conversation with new elements (corresponding field recordings and or additional percussion and strings, performed by Antwerp musicians Jeroen Stevens and Roman Hiele) like a ‘monomane’ - tr. imitating – sound game. But when i throw these old and new figurines together on the podium, the objects immediately disappear in the cracks of the stage wood. Thus only the understament of the suggestion remains. And relentlessly the significance of every movement now becomes a question.Furthermore, what’s in focus? The manipulation? Or the content? Or are we zooming in on the aspect of archiving ~ preserving? Dubious.In KAGIROI – tr. heat haze - people coexist for a moment severely carved in time like a high contrast still of dancing flames. When you bring this composition home, it will never boil yet merely evaporate. And when you gaze at the clouds of condensed droplets inside your own darkness, on a soft volume, You complete our puzzle.SUGAI KEN - field recordings, liner notesLieven Martens - collage, additional sounds and field recordingsJeroen Stevens - additional percussionRoman Hiele - double bass, masteringKohei Oyamada - liner notes translation

After this pair of Leeds residents made waves last November with their first EP for Pilot, Bobby O'Donnell and Reeshy return to lay down four new tracks that definitely stray towards the electro end of the breaks/electro spectrum. There's a sense of continuity, as the first EP's tracks - labelled 1-4, are followed by tracks 5-8, as well as being executed with a proper human touch that not all such machinefunk can boast. '6' is full of spiralling Drexciyan mystery, before being pared down to an LFO-style bass prod. '8' also echoes the former legends of Leeds with its dreamy pads and acid backdrop - something in the local water supply. Definitely funky enough to keep the breaks DJs onside, but with a thorough knowledge of love of 40 years of electronic music heritage at its disposal too, this is one release you should make sure you not miss.

First ever vinyl press. Mastered and cut for Vinyl by Andy Miles at Star Delta Audio Mastering.

Following the release of the spacious Six Rooms EP on his own newly-minted Akita Club label, rhythmic master Nico returns to Midnight Shift to fuse the mind and body.On this latest missive, he crafts a space inhabited by wayward rhythms, urgent percussion and lead lines that feel like they’re about to cave under the pressure of The Groove. From the rain-brain dance of ‘The Driving Rain’ to the mental massage of ‘Elements’, a neat transition straddling both 104 bpm and 155 bpm, complete with directions for …something.Four explorations of nonplaces in the fourth world. Experiments in rhythm that come close to falling apart, held together by a backbone of bass.All tracks written, mixed and produced by Nicolas GuerreroArtwork by Olmo U. AguirreLayout by GramrcyMastered and cut by Simon from The ExchangeFull-coloured printed sleeve with original artwork from Olmo U. Aguirre, finished with limited edition coloured vinyl.

For this twelfth release, Daydream is very happy to welcome two new talents in the family – Lorik and Rupert Ellis – alongside two historical members – MJOG and Stevn.aint.leavn. Four top producers who deliver a punchy and groovy various filled with micro vibe and dreamy sounds.

Session Restore teams up with good friends Bernhard and FL_000 for a colorful, groovy techno EP.