The third offering from idiosyncratic Japanese proggers – after 2020’s Tsumibito No Kioku and 2021’s Sazaki Orite Hikari Overflow – is a 90-minute concept album containing all the elements we expect from a band of the Rising Sun: jaw-dropping technical ability, pin-sharp guitar and keyboard interplay, shifting moods and time signatures, and catchy melodies, all served up with a sense of joyful musical drama that draws heavily on the prog epics of the 1970s.
Veteran keyboard wrangler and composer Madoka Tsukada, who led neo-prog outfit Providence from 1985 to 2002, has assembled a top-notch group of astonishingly good musicians. Guitarist Hideki Kuritani matches Tsukada riff by riff, as well as launching himself into virtuoso lead breaks, while drummer Ryotara Shigamoto and Takumi Kokubi on bass navigate the complicated compositions with muscular ease.
Tsukada also adds some guest musicians, including former Dream Theater ‘king of the keys’ Derek Sherinian, whose aggressive approach to his own solo material is a perfect match with Project Nayuta.
The 11 tracks are based on a set of picture cards that Tsukada came across by chance. They inspired him to imagine the worlds that lay within the cards. He says: “The overarching theme is the journey of a human being from birth, surrounded by various forms of ‘Great Love’. This isn’t limited to romantic love between individuals, but encompasses the love from the world, the universe, and the people standing right beside us. The image I wanted to convey is that we are always embraced and enveloped by these profound forces.”
Taking the cards’ names as his titles, the songs range in length from just under four minutes to a gnat’s whisker over 12, and most of them are delivered at 100mph with barely a pause to wipe the sweat from the drummer’s brow. Opener Birth of Love sets the scene with operatic vocals over piano and bass before a joint synth and guitar riff ushers in a bouncy rhythm over alternating D and F chords.
Overcoming Trials sees Shigamoto channelling his inner John Bonham as Tsukada pounds seventh chords on what sounds like a Hammond organ, while Beyond Boundaries suggests Yes transported to the Iberian peninsula with its heavy prog workout suddenly giving way to swiftly-strummed acoustic guitars. On Return to Nature, the Hammond organ swirls and swells under a Hendrix-like riff before mellotron and acoustic guitar usher in elements of Genesis, and single Arrival suggests Dutch proggers Focus in the guitar and organ interplay, and a bit of Jean-Luc Ponty when guest violinist Miki Fujimoto lets rip.
There are a few brief contemplative moments. Superconsciousness opens with an 80s synth sound before a mind-blowing extended guitar solo makes way for guest flautist Kenji Imai to shine over delicate finger-picked acoustic. Other quieter bits include Kokubu briefly duetting on bass with solo piano, in Call To Awaken, while in Harvest the two female singers croon wordlessly over finger-picked guitar for about a minute before everything is turned up to 11 again. And the shortest song, The Beloved, is a sparse ballad over simple keyboard chords.
But most of the time, this is full-on jazzy prog – loud, confident and challenging. What’s not to love? Well, your enjoyment of Uniomisty may depend on how react to the twin vocal attack of singers Junko Sera and Mika Tsukimoto. They have a full-throated, operatic approach in which their voices soar, swoop and sometimes screech, like Kate Bush at her most histrionic.
You may find their dramatic, even hysterical, approach exciting and entertaining or you may be reaching for the mute button. Personally, it’s a little too much for me, so I’m more impressed when they calm down and let the instruments do the talking.
To sum up, Uniomisty is high-quality Japanese prog that deserves a wider listen than it will probably get thanks to the, erm, challenging vocals. And that’s a shame because there is some jaw-dropping musicianship on display here.
TRACK LISTING
01. Birth Of Love (7:16)
02. Call To Awaken (10:14)
03. Overcoming Trials (5:24)
04. Beyond Boundaries (12.01)
05. Return To Nature (7:30)
06. Introduction For Harvest (Reprise of Birth Of Love) / Harvest (10:23)
07. Abundance (9:39)
08. The Beloved (3:51)
09. Arrival (9:09)
10. Superconsciousness (9:23)
11. Zolba The Buddah (5:27)
Total Time – 90:19
MUSICIANS
Madoka Tsukada – Keyboards
Junko Sera – Vocals
Mika Tsukimoto – Vocals
Ryotaro Shigamoto – Drums
Hideki Kuritani – Guitar
Takumi Kokubu – Bass
~ With
Kunio Suma – Guitar Solo (2)
Wara – Piano (4)
Derek Sherinian – Keyboard Solo (7)
Fatern – Theremin (8)
Miki Fujimoto – Violin (9)
Kenji Imai – Flute (10)
ADDITIONAL INFO
Record Label: Independent
Country of Origin: Japan
Date of Release: 11th March 2026
