rōnin arkestra: sonkei
Francisco Espregueira
Led by producer, composer, and multi-instrumentalist Mark de Clive Lowe, Tokyo’s Rōnin Arkestra brings together some of the most supreme and innovative players in Japan’s jazz and electronic scene. Formed in 2017, the collective’s debut album Sonkei comes out next friday, via Albert’s Favourites - a blend of ’60s deep and spiritual jazz with experimental electronica. The album follows the release of their critically acclaimed debut EP First Meeting, released earlier this year.
The band, featuring members of Kyoto Jazz Sextet, WONK, Cro-Magnon, Root Soul, Sleepwalker, Sauce81 and Kyoto Jazz Massive, is composed by master musicians coming together to create a vagabond band of like-minded creators - weaving the stories of their lives into a collective sound. Rōnin Arkestra started life with de Clive Lowe wanting to create a project with some of his favourite Japanese musicians, unaware of the sound, shape or vibe it would manifest. The result: Sonkei, an epic soundtrack. Vinyl is available for the collectors.