12.28.2011

Out with the Rabbit... In with the Dragon!

Update: The download has been disabled as of January 10, 2012, but streaming will be left available indefinitely. :)

Happy New Year!

Forget prophecies of destruction! For those of you who don't know, 2012 marks the Chinese Year of the Dragon (), a symbol of great success and new beginnings. In celebration of this auspicious year we would like to share a free download of one of our completely new and fresh tracks with you, our fans. The song, "Back-alley Lounge," is open to everyone from now until January 10, 2012. (Feel free to spread the love by forwarding the link to this blog post.)

Here's a streaming widget just to give you a taste...

Back-alley Lounge by massa takemoto

So what are you waiting for? Just click on the nengajo (New Year's card) below to start the download. And while you're at it, feel free to let us know what you'd like to see here on the Echolocation blog in the coming year by voting in the poll on the top right-hand corner of the page. 


Happy 2012, and thanks for your continuing support!

Peace and Love,
Massa & Tetsuroh

12.23.2011

Mix Fix: Chill 'M All Vol. 1 Promo Compilation 2011

It's been a long while, but Echolocation is excited to bring you a long-overdue Mix Fix!

This time we've got Chill 'M All, a sweet PodOmatic podcast from GROOVISSIMO.FM of Amsterdam. This mix is silky and intoxicating with just enough spice to keep you wanting more - just like  Christmas mulled wine. There's no playlist to provide information on the individual tracks, but we're sure you're going to enjoy this smooth and sexy hour and fifteen minutes of chilled, downtempo tunes.

Genre: Lounge Chill Out / Nu-jazz / Downtempo / Hip Hop / Eclectronica

12.16.2011

All I want for Christmas...

(by Massa Takemoto, intro by Lydia Takemoto)

Looking to pick up something special for that special someone at the last moment? Or want a few ideas for treating yourself this Christmas?

Finding a great gift for a music lover with a taste for the non-mainstream is never an easy task... And being married to a musician, I know this better than anyone. So to help me out this year, Massa has put together a list of five CDs he'd like to find stuffed in his stocking on the morning of December 25th, complete with his own mini-reviews highlighting what makes them so awesome. If he's lucky (and stays on good behavior), "Santa" just might bring him more than one.
-Lydia

"Dear Santa"

The problem is a lot of the albums I want are only available in MP3 format, and that makes it hard to choose the CDs I want. Also, I prefer to have a variety of albums from different genres, and to keep things new, ones by artists who aren't too big.

But in the end, it's down to these five.

Choice 1 
My Hidden Playground
by Mollono Bass
Label: Acker
Genre: Techno / Minimal House / Tech House

Usually, when I'm looking into this category, I can only find stuff that is either too catchy or too minimal. That's not really what I am looking for. I want something interesting. something innovative and stylish. I think this one's got the best of both worlds. Each track has influences from other genres and they're simple, yet each has a distinctive touch so you can recognize the track.




Choice 2
New Moon
by Almunia
Label: Claremont 56
Genre: Disco, Balearic

This is a very interesting album. Most of the elements are very organic with familiar elements: guitar riffs... the texture of the drum sounds, etc... However, the way this guy puts things together is very cool and very new. I absolutely love this album.




Choice 3
Medicine Show No. 7: High Jazz (Yesterday's New Quintet)
by Madlib
Label: Madlib Medicine Show
Genre: Electronic Jazz

Well, this guy's been around for long that I don't really need to say much about him, but I really like the texture of this album. It somehow reminds me of "On the Corner" and "Bitches Brew" by Miles Davis, but with a modern touch.




Choice 4
Luminal Remastered
by Sounds from the Ground
Label: Upstream Records
Genre: Downtempo

Spacey stuff with groove. It's not any of that cold medium stuff. The combination of lo-fi texture and spacy analog synth is very pleasant. "Stampede" (featuring Rachel Calladine) is my favorite track from this album.




Choice 5
The Jazz Thing
by Christian Prommer's Drumlesson/The Diningrooms
Label: Schema
Genre: Broken Beat / Nu Jazz / Nu Soul

This is definitely a "jazz thing." It takes you to the old black-and-white period, and would go nicely with some wine and a fire place. (But I prefer listening to this kind of album quietly and alone.) Cold winter night stuff. 





12.04.2011

Happy Holidays from Echolocation!

Happy Holidays!

Echolocation would like to thank all our fans for a terrific year, and we wish you good tidings. To celebrate the Holiday Season, we have a few specials this December, including a CD Baby Christmas Sale on digital downloads and a New Year Clearance special on our physical CD, Beauty in an Empty Glass.

Additionally, we'll again be offering a free track download via SoundCloud at the end of December, this time in celebration of 2012, the Chinese Year of the Dragon. Stay tuned for updates! 

Out with the old, in with the new:

Echolocation is looking forward to the year of the Dragon, and we're keeping our fingers crossed for a new release. But before we can do that, we need to clear away some of our old inventory and save up for CD pressing expenses!

In other words, our 2011 physical album will be on sale at CD Baby until the end of the year: $7.99 $5.99

Christmas Special:

And since we're in a giving mood, we're also marking down all digital downloads through CD Baby until Christmas Day!
  • Full album: $5.50  → $2.99
  • Individual track downloads: $1.50$0.99

Peace and Love,
Tetsuroh & Massa

Echolocation News Digest for December, 2011

Compiled by Lydia Takemoto

Featured topics for December, 2011:
  • A few words to our fans
  • Massa's track, "Out after Curfew," now out on Red Carpet Lounge 2
  • Massa's EP, Final Wave, to be released by Geyser Recordings 

A few words to our fans

As they say, "no news is good news..." In other words, we've been so busy we haven't had time to write any updates lately. We sincerely apologize for the delay, but Echolocation currently has its hands full making some great tunes and other goodies for you, our fans. We currently have in the works:
  • a music video for one of our upcoming releases;
  • more great tunes in the works, many with new artistic collaborators.
Stay tuned for more news, as we'll be delivering updates on these projects as information becomes available. In the meantime, thanks again for all your patience. (Which we hope to reward soon!)

"Out after Curfew" now out on Red Carpet Lounge 2




As part of Peacelounge Recordings' compilation, Red Carpet Lounge Vol. 2, DJ Nova (Yiannis Dorakis) has included Massa's spunky, upbeat track "Out after Curfew" on this remarkable digital-only album. RCL 2 is available from a number of digital distribution channels, including iTunes.

Final Wave to be released through Geyser Recordings




Massa's latest EP, Final Wave, will be released on December 16, 2011 through Geyser Recordings. The five-track album is in digital format only, and will be available for download from various online distribution sites including iTunes, Amazon, Rhapsody, Napster, Beatport, and Juno Download.

Geyser is currently offering an immediate track download of your choice from the album to those who pre-order it from Bandcamp. For more details, check out Geyser's official page.