we met in 99 and I you know I used to
release records em on Washington
classics and back then I used to put my
mobile number and ship the map and he
had a record store in Japan called
Guinness records and he um he would
order my Records in things and one day he
just corny Wow just robbers I was
sitting in my room and my phone rang it
was him his name was Seba Jun also
known as nujabes
one of the few hip-hop producers in
Japan to break onto the world stage a
reality sever wouldn't see coming in his
youth making music was a passing thought
that was until 1998 when sever opened
his own label hideout productions with
funky DL a British MC as his first
official collaborator their worlds were
miles apart but Jun was so passionate
about deals work that he needed to
collaborate by any means including
paying for the plane ticket to his
studio in Shibuya nujabes or DL making
the kind of music he envisioned an East
Coast hip-hop sound or summer sebas
first tracks included abstract beats
spacey production with some serious DJ
scratching it was don't even try it with
funky DL that would set the course for
Jun's approach as he went forward funny
since the topic of the song is how you
shouldn't try an irk but the out style
because no one can beat this however new
Jabez wasn't trying to beat D al but to
discover his own style which is what
these collaborations pushed him to do if
it was through mixtapes collections or
producing LPS but his first album
metaphorical music was nujabes is a
turning point where he became confident
in his sound
he's from that era he's from that sound
you know that jazz food you know lay
back almost melancholy lament food hip
hop sound you know the Pete Brooke
dinner type gangs for our type it always
feel sad for uplifting even if things
are bad you can rise up against them
it's hopeful this emotional resonance is
palpable you can feel it for the
nostalgic beats seeming lessly while
anyone could attempt to sample the new
Jabez way most are now than ever
it was severs dedication to his process
that set him apart Jun owned several
record stores and would spend days
digging for the finest rag rooves they
may not be as intricate as a J Dilla
beat but nujabes s strength came from
his project's purity his minimal beats
led to the group's dig deeper into the
consciousness of the viewer each choice
crafted with painstaking detail ironic
because even if nujabes is process
seemed simpler the level of equipment
and time dedicated would say otherwise
rather than JD's one-man band approach
firing out beats on the our nuJabes
set up in contrast was a mixture of
analog devices such as
to go with that mixing sever sliced in
fresh instrumentation to give that
sampling more variety
achieving a sound that encapsulated the
live experience even so digital programs
weren't off the table but rarely digital
samples nuJabes lived and died on
analog media which is no surprise since
he owned several stores full of it the
sauce may take time to form but the
results speak for themselves
nuJabes took many old worldly tracks
and distilled them into an energetic
blender production making something new
on metaphorical music which brought a
cohesion to his output lacking
beforehand
a 15 tracks when he were going the
distance it's as smooth as ice but
nowhere is cold the first track blessing
it brings this hypnotic piano with a
track full of texture drawing you into
its world the jazz improv of horn in the
middle combines these archival sound
bits into a new light echoing the
nineties instrumentation hip-hop style
while making it his own it's the calm
before the break beat storm each quote
sticking with such reverence you'd
expect them to only exist for the music
turned the story of how John Coltrane's
separated from the Miles Davis quintet
to define his own musical path we then
move on to the Latin flavors of Lady
Brown one of the finest tracks on the LP
showing off nujabes trump card is a
elective collective of emcees with a
dense wordplay uplifting and conscious
themes on overcoming struggles and
making the world a better place but
sometimes it can just be about smug
wordplay on the bling errors but wait
who's who's that cool then is that
latitudes radical remix which sounds
like surfing through cyberspace in
search for MP fries in fact one of the
lines that gets more emphasis on this
version is about sharing music through
sound waves
internet waves in a way that started
nujabes his career connecting worlds
that would never mean years before which
I relate to because I would have never
became a music listener if it wasn't for
that digital age metaphorical dedicates
a large portion of the LP to his
instrumental pieces those at times
serene and soulful takes
such warm and comforting samples for
those downtrodden and overworked
such as letter from Yokosuka produced by
UYama
hiroto his saxophone erupting
throughout it was his first feature on a
nuJabes project but far from his last
their relationship would continue for
out severs whole career uro toes jazzy
talents gave fresh flavor to each
project and jazz is something that was
important to sever every morning he
would wake up right in early of an
ice-cold latte in hand to perform
saxophone without some of those classic
records I may not even be talking about
this guy the final track is an attempt
to see how long nuJabes can stretch a
beat going for a whole eight minutes
from one sample pulling instruction and
distorting it to keep it going before it
burns out breaking it down piece by
piece although if there's one critique
you could throw out this album it's that
despite the subtle movements the
instrumental songs could be tighter with
less repetition but as a starting point
metaphorical music is very good in
particular tract filo featuring Shingo -
out of all his collaborators Shingo -
would go on to be nujabes is most iconic
becoming best known for their lovesick
series which upon his release turned
heads in the underground yet they break
even more ground on their next project
together and how did he find these
artists someone on this get all that I
gathered the artist through various ways
but for all four artists that were used
in samurai Champloo I've liked them for
quite a long time and in the case of
force of nature and new Jabez they're
working for an independent label and so
I just called the label and they were
happy to get involved in the project
with Champloo watanabe needed to compete
with his infamous legacy however nuJabez and company were also up against
one of the most iconic soundtracks in
anime making it all the more impressive
when I say their sound tract surpasses
Bebop
well I mean maybe I don't know it's hard
to tell because they're completely
different genres and how do you even
quantify that another musician on the
project fat john of 5ds nuJabes as he
produced and released another member of
5ds only solar project one
John came to Tokyo he'd visit nujabes
the studio and they just hang out
looking at each other's tracks talking
about cool drum samples and just having
a bit of fun
it sounds like they all had a lot of
freedom on this project to produce the
way that they wanted cries hard-edged
hip hop sets the tone of the show for a
song called battle cry it's serene as if
in the eye of the storm there's an
ethereal sample repeating a single note
drenched in an undercurrent of fuzz the
subtle pulsing kick drum is a calm
heartbeat next to the clash of the
metallic snare piano chords swaying in
and out always off-key in its solo
off-kilter like fading in and out on the
battlefield the lyrics speak about the
ice-cold efficiency of a lone samurai
even in life-and-death duels ever solve
is as steely as that blade come rain or
shine night or day the battle of the
samurai is never over until one man is
dead but they still must grow and mature
to protect those they love it's hot and
it will get you ready for that samurai
action with a hip-hop soul after the
episodes over the ED theme will make
you reflective reworking a prior song
beat laments the world with vocalist min
me her vocals adding another layer
fitting like the missing puzzle pieces
of the song but we couldn't forget or
orient dance every old video essays
hallmark are not without reason the
track sets in a relaxing and entrancing
atmosphere spinning loops catchy rhythms
pique new jube s if I do say so myself
rising to become one of his biggest
tracks the more Samba and bossa nova
vibe derives from its sample the lamp is
low which in itself is a Brazilian cover
of a reworking of an even older French
classical piece yeah we're getting
historic here all those creative
decisions intertwine so we could listen
to Aruarian dance on YouTube or
procrastinating you know it's earth it's
a beautiful world out there the highest
accolade I can give the Champloo
soundtrack is it's one of the few animes
where I won't skip the intro nor outro
to the dismay of Netflix that is it made
hip hop and
may a reality before that idea was just
a novelty but now those two worlds live
in harmony solidifying the culture no
champloo no lo-fi beats to study and
relax to the subject matter of Champoo
gained a sizable western audience for
its continued run on Adult Swim and
latest syndication on Toonami it was a
lot of people's first exposure to new to
bestest music myself included not only
was new to us a refreshing change of
pace from the bling era but those
listeners were about to be in for a
special kind of surprise I'll do
whatever you want me to do Kenny in 2005
nujabes released modal Sol considered by
most fans to be the apex of his career
now why is that modal Sol is improvement
on mm in many ways at 14 tracks
it's a pitch longer than metaphorical
even if you don't feel it with stickier
hooks that complement that intricate
textured soundscapes modal Sol is a
full-force display of June's strengths
as a producer many of the tracks having
that straight-up hit quality catchy
dense but accessible starting off the
album with heavy hitter feather sister
on the beat bringing his crystal smooth
flow and clever wordplay
including a plethora of references to
classic literature as he speaks of the
struggle of the common man wandering
alone in the world full of hurt and
despair but he's found his path to treat
people better and pass on his message
with a silver tongue until the day that
he dies while it's a simple enough a
message CISTAR's performance turns it
into a statement of grandeur
like a religious experience and this is
where nujabes is lush and focused sound
transforms the song into an absolute
classic the same could be said for
original Joe or reflection to turn on
their dreamlike atmosphere with rich
melodies those biting choruses that both
recontextualized their lyrical samples
into something brighter and breaking
fresh life into those original
recordings great
then we have lovesick part 3 where
Shingo to returned after the success of
shampoo striking with his Ronin style
precision the string sliced through the
cloud and backing instrumentation with
waves a piano
bringing a nostalgic sense of longing as
the chorus fires up song spends a tale
of love and how music takes us through
hard times this sentiment resonated with
listeners as part free became a favor in
the series out of all nujabes s projects
modal soul houses some of the finest
wordplay ito is v guest rappers bringing
their own topics that all intertwine
into this group philosophy ya ohm is
front loaded with these emotive vocal
driven tracks that grasp our attention
but then it loosens up for the the
following tracks you know yet the jazz
improv of music's mine a gentle tone of
Eclipse which is a distant love letter
bringing us down to a tender space
opening up the room for a slam poetry
session by paced rock pushing the
conscious topics to the forefront in the
sign it's the halfway point to the album
a palate cleanser you could say almost
an interlude also shakers killin it
Frank use playful energy leads into
World Ends Rhapsody a classic dance at
the end of the world its soulful mastery
supported by such a wonderful collage of
percussion to keep that rhythm alive
creating a rock-solid groove long side
flourishes of of instrumentation an
example of nujabes is sampling and its
best Self tiled highlights the mixture
of sebas defining influences soul and
jazz I mean hence the title the song
brings a varied a drum pattern next to a
soothing horn sample that reverberates
in the distance as he roto breaks into
the foreground playing one of the best
melodies we've seen throughout their
collaborative career the last stretch of
the album cools down the instrumental
cuts come out to play but in comparison
to metaphorical music they bring a new
versatility the final track horizon
plays the same role as peace land in the
last LP it's the longest track
seven minutes twenty but has his
late-night five and takes you as if we
were on the last train looking out to
the horizon
rain trickling down the glass unlike
peace land where Isaac Hayes's sampled
repeats until broken horizon sampling
takes a backseat to the instrumentation
the live instrumentation that is pianos
and flutes swelling all around building
throughout the song adding a new dynamic
before the lights go out for good
modal as a whole takes a balanced
approach to collaborators and
instrumentals it has less MCS in the
prior record thus the focus becomes new
Jabez bouncing off instrumentals with a
harmony between cohesion and mixing up
the tone Jung is a breeze to get through
but not ready to write about just just
know that this is one of my favorite
hip-hop albums check it out after modal
sole information about new Jabez is
scarce sever only participated in one
written interview for sound and
recording in 2003 he was a notoriously
private person and wanted his music to
stand by itself what we can see at this
point is nujabes moving away from bigger
projects like anime or his own records
he spends a little more time producing
and collaborating within his own record
label in 2007 we see the release of
hideout collection to a tighter and
follow G than the first with a few of
his finest tracks specifically the track
imaginary folklore that hits a new
dynamic for nujabes with ecole Coloradas
longing and sorrowful performance
phantom pianos weep as Harada gives her
whispered serenade a cyclone of noise
builds around her only cut through by
the horn section as her artists voice
rises singing from the perspective of a
woman looking at her city destroyed by a
typhoon recontextualizing that ending
chant into something lacking the typical
nujabes sentiment oh and the rest is
pretty cool too with each passing
hideout for lease nujabes took less
center stage producing his jazz
companion hero toes first LP then going
on to master a couple tribute albums of
course live shows increased during this
period as his digital presence took an
uprising through myspace YouTube and the
Internet as a whole there was a growing
quotation that brought a new pressure
nujabes was anxious about his legacy and
then he was he was definitely not into
it lamenting yeah he was definitely
lamenting the fact and possibly he was
at a loss on how he could top what he
had done I don't think he wanted to make
the exact same music he was known for he
was looking into different styles and I
could understand that as an introvert
being the center of attention wasn't
going to be what's ever wanted is this
the reason we didn't see a modal soulful
in this four year period I'm sure
there's a lot of factors into this so
this is all speculation on my part and
we got to say that while being
introverted sabes showed a bold attitude
to go for what he wanted in this period
he would move away from the city to live
by the coast and as of 2009 we do know
he was working on something I have some
very somber news for the today community
on February 26 2010 nine years ago
Jun Sabah passed away after a tragic car
accident later Hydeout productions
announced a posthumous album will be
released next year
this became 2011's spiritual state would
this be a changeup in his style
redefining how we see nujabes
well not really spiritual state is 14
tracks into the celestial moving away
from the melancholy an uplifting
contrast of his prior LPS but still
recognizably a nuJabes experience who
Yamashiro tow finished the album as a
whole were not as polished as prior
projects that's not a bad thing it
starts strong the live performances of
her otos piano accompanied by a light
percussion bursting through the serenity
comes a blooming sax played in contrast
to classical Japanese arrangements east
and west merging together skies tumbling
featuring sister begins with a
spellbinding loop a spiraling piano
Schieffer vin to those dreamscapes gone
other days as his pulsing live drums
hi-hats sinking you further into that
jazz coated round the pretext of hip hop
all that melts away only popping in to
remind you yes there are a couple MCS
here and yes occasionally the drums do
come out of machines spiral is an
evolution of reflection eternal style it
echoes of a baroque voice from the past
brought to the present and then what
follows after is the phantom of old jazz
rising through these instrumental
vignettes the embers of city lights into
the color of autumn dawn on the side of
any way back home but there's a lack of
variety and sound or tone here even if
at times this journey is mesmerizing the
sleepy side becomes too of a powering
that's with the exception of yes
featuring paced rock punching life into
the scene is percussion chunky and
pulling the rest of the sound into a
vortex paste rocks rhythmic performance
standing tall
peace amongst his contemporaries next
the plaintiff on ik detour fellows
pause nujabes full circle back to the
late 90s while waiting for the clouds
sees a sour message about dealing with
depression using creative outlets to
fight back learning to deal with bad
things from your past and move forward
into a brighter future if only those
clouds would move a little quicker is a
classic nujabes joint that plays with
hope and melancholy not seen on the rest
of the album prayer dips us back into
the FO an affair you'll trip through the
ocean of flutes serenaded by a dissonant
vocal blindness into the final track
island which is like a deserted island
itself on the beach at sunset its delay
lead and percussion sets a slow beat
reverberating pianos washing over the
shore soft flutes in the air a favorite
December's shakers next to bongos the
whole track feels akin to a Long Goodbye
even if it's shorter than two prior
ending tracks
it's a soothing finish if it tones down
the whole experience before it fades out
and vanishes for good spiritual state is
a good release at times fantastic
especially the first four songs
mellowness and serene vistas are the
name of the game here perhaps a
reflection of his new studio location or
just his mood at the time the project is
a quarter-turn interaction yet I don't
think it was ever trying to reinvent his
style but celebrate it and we know it
wasn't a hundred percent complete before
he passed away
how finished was it well we'll never
know but I imagine the recording must
have been finished and maybe some of the
mixing if his record label was to go out
of their way to release it and not all
of his other like scrapped unfinished
content that was lying around so I don't
think this was a decision made to for
quick profits if that's what you're
thinking yes modal Sol is a better album
but that doesn't mean spiritual state
isn't worth lesson now where was Shin go
to in all this while he was working on
his own nujabes collapse creating a
lovesick hex ology with Hiroto you have
to give me something there
camera shoots in Virginia that's good
enough that I can't refuse so you know
we actually did a lot of acting for a
fail to at least that he sent me you
know one was but foreign one good bases
foundation became part fuck it persists
and we discovered it but here he had a
retitled these tracks are a true send
off to nujabes and his legacy now legacy
was something that nujabes struggled
with in the past living up to his prior
successes was tough Seba June was a lot
of things and producer
a great curator Hugh went have his way
to get talent from all over the globe
yeah at the same time in his own words
he was just a regular guy a short
introverted dude who loved noodles maybe
a bit too much and that's the beauty of
his legacy you know it may be the story
of a tragic musician taken before his
time people deify them turn them into
idols beyond reality and when they've
left us a huge cultural impact it can be
inevitable you know it's the legacy of a
man who's seen as irreplaceable well no
one will be the next nujabes this isn't
within his message which is anyone can
enjoy music
anyone can make music taking the passion
and turning it into something that
reaches people to resonate with them for
years to come leaving a mark in the
digital space with the rise of lo-fi hip
hop study beats and countless other
channels nujabes
is looked at as the grandfather of low
fine so I think he got his wish in the
end so let's end this with a tribute to
nujabes restin beats and that the spirit
of music making live on in your
collaborators and fans this was one of
his favorite songs
if you want to learn more about the
genre and nujabes brought to prominence
lo-fi hiphop check out pads video on
ginseng over here so thank you the
patrons especially Fernando Diaz and
bear he knocks among everyone else you
really make this a lot easier to do next
time we're going to be talking about
what an are they so I'll see you then
space cowboys later
