The second release this year celebrating the 10th anniversary of the outlines label is the album “Dreamachinedrum” from Japanese producer Skip Club Orchestra.
Tatsuya Sasaki is a sound artist based in Hiroshima. Alongside CRZKNY, he is one of the most important representatives of the local footwork scene. His style, initially influenced by classic Chicago sounds, has evolved over the years into his own individual interpretation of the genre. Together with DJ Fulltono and the aforementioned CRZKNY, they laid the foundation for a new footwork hybrid, in which Chicago’s sample-laden music achieved a radically reduced form. It was these three producers who became the direct inspiration for the founding of the outlines label, and Skip Club Orchestra’s groove number 3 represented the stylistic essence of the label’s beginnings. Tatsuya Sasaki returned to outlines in 2023 on groove 13, where he presented his vision of ambient, but it is only now that his full-length album is being released.
Dreamachinedrum is a collection of ten tracks showcasing the producer’s signature sound. It features clearly defined footwork rhythms set against ambient soundscapes. However, Skip Club Orchestra reaches for vintage, dreamy, pastel colors reminiscent of Robert Fripp’s classic recordings. Tatsuya Sasaki also draws inspiration from the traditions of the Raster-Noton and Mille Plateaux labels, and his productions are filled with crackles and clicks. Skip Club Orchestra belongs to a group of footwork pioneers experimenting with tempo transitions between 120bmp and 160bpm. The album Dreamachinedrum also features such tracks.
Skip Club Orchestra’s music has accompanied outlines since its early days, just as it accompanied the beginnings of the Japanese footwork scene. Tatsuya Sasaki, without paying attention to current trends in music, consistently creates his own individual world, which is essential to the identity of the outlines label today, and the album “Dreamachinedrum” is the perfect manifestation of this. Out now on Outlines.
Purchase Cassette: Skip Club Orchestra – Dreamachinedrum
Joyful Union Cassette Resource 