Dustin Wong & Takako Minekawa - Are Euphoria (2017)

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Dustin Wong & Takako Minekawa - Are Euphoria (2017)

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The sounds of Dustin Wong & Takako Minekawa are a coalescence of the complexities of life, with the sheer joy of imaginative creation. Are Euphoria continues to dive deeper into the dreamlike technicolor tapestries their songs have always explored, blossoming forward with each cycle of loops. Completely characteristic of their style, Wong and Minekawa achieve a density of textures, timbres, beats, and harmonies while remaining totally weightless, suspended in the air.

Music in Japanese is written in two words, sound and enjoyment. Counterpoint, dissonance, odd time signatures - when all these things accumulate and coalesce in interesting and harmonious ways, it is like hearing or seeing an idyllic perception of Humanity. Like a curving line that streams up in to the sky, like a flock of birds or a school of fish, the directions and shapes change in seemingly random ways, yet create patterns that dance and seduce consciousness.

Every beat, melody, is a unique metaphor to each individual. The variety of peoples, cultures, religions, thoughts, hobbies, races, these differences molten together, the differences are the elements needed in creating harmony. The same sound on top of the same sound doesn't form harmonies. Harmony is created by differences. Depending on the desires and sentiments that go into sound, the music changes, the power of the individual's metaphor and imagination can take the listener to profound distances. Each person's impression, are all unique and completely limitless.

Are Euphoria is deeply influenced by a branch of “fusion" that is more about creating a world rather than focusing on performance or technical dexterity. Musicians like Yasuaki Shimizu, Motohiko Hamase, Mono Fontana, Joe Zawinul, Steve Shehan, and many others that were able to create musical environments helped to inspire the worlds created on Are Euphoria.

Takako Minekawa and Dustin Wong, sought out Co La (Matthew Papich) to co-produce the album, due to his unique ability to place sounds and build compositions, which is leading a new type of expression in music. His surreal and conceptual approach made for a perfect combination with worlds created by the songs on Are Euphoria.

Based in Tokyo Japan, Wong and Minekawa are part of a growing DIY community, frequently performing in smaller spaces such as Nanahari, Fuchi-kuchi, and Ochiai Soup. Their artistic focus is to create the unexpected. It is a scene that encourages this adventurousness. Wong and Minekawa use their considerable technical skill to create the psychedelic, surreal, and conceptual, and with dexterity and inventiveness. While Minekawa still contributes to J-Pop releases and Wong is still connected to his Baltmore roots, their joyous collaboration is as delightful and challenging as it is innovative.

AllMusic Review by Heather Phares
On Are Euphoria, Dustin Wong and Takako Minekawa take their already vivid music to dazzling new heights. While it would be easy (and probably inaccurate) to say that their debut Toropical Circle was led by Minekawa's contributions, and its follow-up Savage Imagination found Wong taking the lead, their third album still feels like the best balance of their individual and collective gifts yet. As they combine the sun-dappled melodies of the former with the slow-building structures of the latter, they craft sound sculptures full of wonder and delight. "7000000000 Human Elements" starts big and gets bigger, adding more and more layers of lilting guitars and radiant vocals to kaleidoscopic effect. It sounds like many people were involved in making it, but in reality, the duo added just one person: Co La's Matthew Papich, who was also Wong's partner in the revered Baltimore outfit Ecstatic Sunshine. Though he's listed as producer, the way he helps Minekawa and Wong animate these songs makes him feel more like a third member of the project. Thanks to a hearing problem Wong suffered while making the album, Are Euphoria is in constant motion, most notably on "Benbelo," where arpeggiated synths and acoustic guitars pop in and out in an equally sophisticated and adorable fashion. "Akubi"'s call-and-response percussion evokes Raymond Scott's pioneering experiments while its shimmering melody adds another surprising dimension, and "Zaab"'s shift from jagged electronics to gentle acoustic instrumentation captures the full scope of the duo's artistry. The album's calmer songs are still intricate, with the rippling "Haha Mori" conjuring a laughing forest and "Electric Astral Peel" juxtaposing the playful and mystical sides of Wong and Minekawa's music and emphasizing how important both are to their music. Are Euphoria is folky and futuristic, innocent and artful, and experimental and approachable. Most importantly, it bubbles over with joy, and captures the sheer pleasure of being – and being together – from a pair of artists whose collaborations only become more rewarding with each release.