The Japanese keyboardist and composer Ryuichi Sakamoto shows on the atmospheric album Async that he is still lord and master of electro-acoustic music. As a member of the Japanese avant-electro band , he pioneered the electropop, art rock and new wave of the 80s. His solo career always stood out a little with the famous soundtracks he wrote ( , ) and the celebrities who worked gratefully with
… him ( , , , ). His love for classical and electronic music now come together beautifully on Async. Minimal piano chords and melodies, musing voices and organic noises from field recordings and synthesizers dominate. Musical landscapes with an almost bombastic stillness. Async shows why Sakamoto is an icon. (MR)more
