Search - Mark Lewis :: Global Frequencies: Tokyo

Obviously carrying the influence of those mighty Global Underground collections (see John Digweed's contribution, Los Angeles, for details), L.A.-based DJ Mark Lewis has gone a step further with the first in a series of audio-visual diaries of his travels. Alongside photographer Ray Klein, Lewis has crafted his own Japanese experience in sounds, words, and photos. Lewis most certainly appears to have had a grand time of it in Tokyo, as his trance-house BPM tidal waves sound as much like a happy, energetic soundtrack as a compilation of cuts. Stand-out moments are Future Cast's "Life on the Edge," with its neon-saturated, pseudo Goa-trance feel; the delightfully cheesy house strains of Thunderpuss's delightfully named "Fuck Me Harder"; and Base Twelve"s "Deep," which keeps the feet shuffling while providing a fat throbbing undercurrent of bass. But perhaps the defining point is X Tech's "Days Like These," which marries the genuine power of straight-up house music directly with all those Tokyo clichés (neon, yakuza gangsters lurking in the streets, Blade Runner). Lewis never stops long enough for a breath, and by the time Seed bring matters to a close with "Water Song," it's fair to say that Mark Lewis is not a boring tourist. --Steffan Chirazi