Hans Fjellestad
Kobe Live House

catalog #: ALP038

Music by Hans Fjellestad
Performed by Hans Fjellestad
Engineered by Tetsumasa Kondo
Mixed & Mastered at Zu Casa Labs
Photography by Junko Kodera
Art & Design by Gerardo Yépiz / Acamonchi
Executive Producer: Marcos Fernandes

In Autumn 2003, maverick musician/filmmaker Hans Fjellestad strapped a synth and powerbook on his back and hit clubs in Yokohama, Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Kobe and Nagoya. Fjellestad has always been drawn to Japan, and this tour (his second) did not disappoint. He performed with local improvisers like Takayuki Kato, Saga Yuki, Tetsu Saitoh, Takashi Kojima, Taku Han-Noda, Masayuki Akamatsu and others. He went into the studio with Kyoto-based laptop artist, Baiyon, to record their duo project JUSCO PUNK (2003/Brain Escape Sandwich). He ate delicious, wiggly things. Fjellestad even took time out of his touring schedule to shoot a scene with Bob Moog in the Harajuku district of Tokyo for his film MOOG (2004/Plexifilm). He visited temples in Kyoto on his day off.

KOBE LIVE HOUSE was recorded live on October 17 at Big Apple, a jazz club in Chuo-ku, Kobe, Japan. This concert was part of Big Apple's 14th Anniversary Special Concert Series. Both sets are unedited and appear as they did the night of the show in Kobe. Fjellestad performed with a grand piano, Nord Lead 3 synth and a custom software instrument designed by Damon Holzborn. Fjellestad describes his rig, "My setup allowed me to be as mobile as possible. I could switch between synth, piano, microphone and powerbook or blend any combination with relative ease, which is really essential for an improviser. So I could literally go on stage with nothing pre-planned and still be confident that when the ideas came, I'd be able to access the right sounds immediately and keep up the momentum."

KOBE LIVE HOUSE is Fjellestad's third solo release (and first live solo cd) on Accretions Records. This album completes a ternary cycle of music experimentation that began with RED SAUCE BABY (2000/Accretions), followed by 33 (2003/Accretions). According to the artist, "KLH is sort of a new realization of the material I'd been working with since 2000. In the Kobe sets, you can hear quotes, mash-ups and new mixes of the ensemble compositions from RSB as well as riffs on the solo piano work on 33. Now the cycle feels complete and I can move into some new areas."