Iu Takahashi - Sense/Margin (2023) [Hi-Res]

Yokohama-based vocalist and producer Iu Takahashi uses pinpoint-accurate field recordings to elevate her misty ambient textures on her sixth release, singing and speaking solemnly to augment an all-important human element. If there's one thing that stands out above all else on 'Sense / Margin' its the album's sublime sense of peace. Written in Autumn, there's a frosty beauty to the music that feels almost not of this world. On 'Response / Water', Takahashi moans softly over icy pads that ring into the silence, and her environmental recordings are so quiet that they almost disappear completely, leaving just faint crackles and haunted whispers. 'Listen / Season' is sunnier, with birdsong to remind us we're not in the cold just yet, and Takahashi accompanies her feathered friends with warm-hearted pads and the rustle of bracken. And on 'Asleep / Sea' she submerges herself in water, waves lapping over muted synth drones to suggest a drowned, sorrowful calm.

Tracklist:
1.01 - iu takahashi - Awake / Lakeside (5:42)
1.02 - iu takahashi - Response / Water (4:40)
1.03 - iu takahashi - Stable / In Praise Of Shadows (4:58)
1.04 - iu takahashi - Listen / Season (3:08)
1.05 - iu takahashi - Blink / Landscape (3:26)
1.06 - iu takahashi - Asleep / Sea (6:12)
1.07 - iu takahashi - Open / Rain (3:41)