New cover from Remon Nakanishi & Suzumeno Tears

Remon Nakanishi operates in a musical sphere that doesn’t settle easily into just one discipline; coming from Japan’s modern music landscape, his work moves between folk performance, research and visual art, forming a practice that feels just as much about preservation as it does about reinvention. Known for his connection to minyo and Bon Odori traditions, he’s become a visible figure within the world of Goshu Ondo, a song-and-dance form based in Shiga Prefecture.

Long before his arrival as a recording artist, he was drawn to grassroots performance cultures, travelling across Japan as a teenager to take part in Bon Odori gatherings. These festivals, neither fixed nor isolated, became a shared act that exists in the moment and shifts with each interaction. At the same time, his role as a field worker and researcher of traditional performing arts has further expanded his engagement with these forms, allowing him to approach them not just as a participant, but as someone actively documenting and understanding their development.

His path into recorded music came relatively late, shaped by years spent moving between high art contexts, underground culture and folkloristic research. It wasn’t until his involvement with Monogatari Uchūno Kai that his identity as a singer began to take clearer form, leading to his first recorded work in 2022. Two years later, Sparrow’s Arrows Fly so High by Suzumeno Tears marked an important development for music based in local and vernacular traditions in post-pandemic Japan and together, these projects suggested a renewed focus on how traditional forms could exist within contemporary contexts.

Now, continuing his collaboration with Suzumeno Tears, Remon presents a new reinterpretation of “Kuroishi Yosare,” a traditional Bon Odori song passed down in Kuroishi City, Aomori Prefecture. The track moves through a series of shifting textures, progressing with rolling North African percussion associated with Gnawa music as Remon’s lively vocals float through a sparse arrangement of double bass and a dry, desert-toned guitar, creating a sense of space that feels at once transportive and timeless.

As the track flows, its structure begins to shift and a change in rhythm introduces a new layer of intensity, with sweeping strings rising in a way that recalls the influence of The Beatles, an acknowledged reference point for producer and arranger Agatha. Throughout, Suzumeno Tears contribute choral elements that add bright contrast to Remon’s dancing vocal delivery. Their presence introduces a different dimension that leans toward a more expansive, almost celestial tone, creating a dialogue between the traditional and the elevated.

Marching with steady forward motion as the singers apply flickering melodic leads and the twang of electric guitar adds a subtly modern touch, the cover offers a spectacular reimagining of the song. This release forms part of a larger project leading toward Remon Nakanishi’s highly anticipated sophomore album, with five consecutive monthly singles planned and within that framework, “Kuroishi Yosare” stands as both a continuation and a departure, holding onto traditional material while reworking it through a broader sonic vision.

Listen to Kuroishi Yosare below

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