● 180g heavyweight vinyl ● Gatefold jacket Based in Tokyo, saxophone and flute player Shinsuke Fujieda's group recorded the live album "INFORMEL" in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, with the album originally released in 2021. Originally an ambitious 2CD + DVD set, this landmark work has been reconstructed from a contemporary perspective, remastered, and now released on vinyl in a deluxe edition. Following the excitement of "Fukushima," a contemporary Japanese spiritual jazz and modal jazz studio recording released in 2025 that quickly drew attention from jazz fans around the world, this album captures the historic moment that gave rise to "Fukushima." Featuring live painting performed simultaneously with the music throughout the concert, this approximately 73-minute epic is packed with performances that capture the energy, depth, and emotion unique to a live setting. From the visceral, almost primal modal jazz of "Fukushima," performed here for the first time, to the approximately 19-minute tour de force "Gentle Erosion," the gradually intensifying "Informel," driven by a looping rhythm, the classical-leaning "Nobody Knows," where light string textures intertwine with soprano saxophone and piano, and the buoyant "Parade," the album is filled with the dynamic vitality of a live performance. Listening to the sound, one can feel that the prototype of "Fukushima" had already taken shape at this point. The reconstructed version of "INFORMEL" created specifically for this vinyl release reveals that it is not simply a prototype or straightforward reissue, but rather the starting point of a swirling mass of sound within the larger musical lineage Shinsuke Fujieda Group has developed since the COVID-19 pandemic. While "Fukushima" is a meticulously crafted studio recording, "INFORMEL" forms its counterpart with the dynamic, ever-moving sound that can only emerge from a live performance.
