If that sounds spectacularly non-specific: it is! Listening to the nine tracks that make up Kofū III, it is nearly impossible to determine the original character and context of the sonic material on offer. Maybe that’s the point, but the processing of said sounds (read: synthesis) is remarkably consistent throughout, so much so, that the idiosyncrasies of place and technology are passed over in favor of fuzzy tones and hazy effects. Meitei refers to specific places in the tracks’ titles, the most recognizable, “Hiroshima,” which is the album’s final piece. Meitei hails from this area, and its toxic and tragic history is one that haunts Kofū III more generally. Naming specific sites creates an indexical gesture toward origin, but it also establishes a gap in knowledge and experience, for many of us listeners, anyway – the most poignant and productive effect rendered here. 

 

The musical side of Kofū III is mostly familiar territory: lo-fi ambience, reserved to the higher registers of the frequency spectrum. The tracks are soft, with little or no attack, just decay and well-tempered, subtle degradation of fidelity along the way. Much of the material sounds like it is played in reverse, like “Mange-kyo”, where a voice can be heard as it is swelled in the miasma of synthesis and signal processing. “Fujin” opens with a bit of piano, lilting little lines of harmony, whose refrain quickly becomes more maddening and manic as it plays on. “Warosoku” is a more restrained affair, marking the halfway point on Kofū III, with clicks and cuts reminiscent of 90s glitch. Again, if nothing more were known about Meitei and his source material, you might think you landed in the tape-hissed landscape of a few decades ago. I, for one, am happy to revisit the warmth of that era.   

 

Those nostalgic for the loss of fidelity and focus that accompanies glitchy, reverse-wound ambient textures, will find much to enjoy on Kofū III. The haunting memory of place and history remains just that: ghostly and forever out of reach. To find out more