Search - Kodo :: Tsutsumi

This is the CD for your subwoofer...and your heart!

Adam Weiner | San Jose, CA USA | 10/21/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Tsutsumi is a sister CD to the simultaneously-released Warabe. Both CDs are incredible, but this one is a little more "traditional" Kodo. Warabe is much lighter in feel and lighter on bass. Tsutsumi is a booming, rumbling beast of a CD. I like both sides of the equation. The first track, "Shake", started out as an encore piece at Kodo's concerts. The energy on this song flows constantly and the patterns are, well, jubilant! There are so many layers and much improvisation, and if you haven't seen it actually played live, you can still feel the *Heart* that Kodo brings to Taiko drumming. For those that love the Odaiko (big drum), there are TWO Odaiko pieces. One of them includes accompaniment on chappa (cymbals), the other with fue (flute) and a supporting backbeat on a second Taiko. Both of them are stunningly powerful. These soloists play for 7-8 minutes straight, and the physicality of what they do is still amazing to a hardcore fan like myself. There is one more piece to mention, and that is track 4, "Orekama". Orekama is the nickname of the daughter of a Kabuki Orchestral player, who inspired this piece. Ryutaro Kaneko arranged this piece, which I can barely describe here. The meter changes constantly. The downbeat jumps around and refuses to stay still. The instruments are never constant. But above all, it *is* Kodo, and it is a beautiful, complex song that has really grown on me. I cannot recommend Kodo CDs to people enough - but then again, I am biased to the extreme. Yet I have never heard anyone regret discovering Kodo music. Once you hear it, you're changed. Once you see it, you're part of it..."