Kaoru Watanabe - The Arch (Vinyl LP) PRE-ORDER

Expected Release Date: 18-September-2026 - This Pre-order will be shipped on or just before this date. Release dates are subject to alteration. Created in deep collaboration with Grammy-Award Winning producer William Brittelle, alongside executive producer Shahzad Ismaily, over the course of a year at Figure 8 as part of its Open Residency program, The Arch is a cathartic celebration of a life in music, of transformation and self discovery. The collaboration with Brittelle, who encouraged Watanabe to dig deep into his personal musical history, opened the floodgates for Watanabe and to use all of the tools at his disposal during the creation of the album. He explains, "William opened things up for me and encouraged me to put everything on the table. I began to experiment with sounds, instruments, and compositional tools I normally would not have. This process really allowed me to explore the entirety of my musical being." Across the 10 tracks on the record, Watanabe places the vibrant timbres of traditional Japanese instruments (shinobue and ryuteki flutes, taiko drums, narimono percussion instruments, and koto, a 13-string zither) in compositions and jazz improvisations. These traditional instruments are contrasted by the many layers of acoustic and electronic instruments—piano, synthesizers, tenor saxophone, soprano and alto flutes, and harp, all played by Watanabe— which he uses to create a unique and shifting soundworld, never quite settling in one place or time but buoyed by his singular artistic vision. TRACKLISTING: A1 The Arch A2 Kazekaoru Gogatsu A3 Whirlpools A4 Hiraeth A5 RUBICON B1 Kitsune No Yomeiri B2 Activities of Daily Living B3 Kumo No Ito (The Spider’s Thread) B4 Wood Snake B5 Unadorned