Shoko Igarashi - Onsen Music (2024)

Following her debut album Simple Sentences in 2022 which became a hidden gem of underrated album lists that year, Paris label Tigersushi introduces the new record of saxophonist, flautist and vocalist Shoko Igarashi, a record to not be missed.

With this second record Shoko unveils a new genre called “Onsen Music”. Each track invites you on a relaxing journey, much like soaking away your troubles in the steamy hot waters of a traditional Japanese spa (Onsen). The variety of songs mimic the variety of onsens, some are salty and scorching, some are smooth and clear, some are bubbly and colorful, and others are a refreshing dip into crisp clear waters. In every instance, there’s a sense of satisfaction as soothing and delightful as the tracks themselves.

This ode to “relax”, while remaining irresistibly danceable, is filled with good vibrations, melodies and hooks that go straight to the heart, saxophone playing virtuosity, intricate electronic compositions, vocals that make us dream of new worlds, and beats that could keep us on a dancefloor all night long.

The first single from the album is ‘EN,’ which she shares with a music video of the song played live. Shoko explains: In Japan, there is a word, “EN.” It originally comes from the Sanskrit word “pratyaya” in Buddhist philosophy, referring to an auxiliary or indirect cause, as distinguished from a direct cause (hetu). It is a word and expression that we frequently use in our daily lives. It has the power to turn coincidence into inevitability simply by saying, “This is also fate,” and it can also be used to express the close and loving connections between people.

She continues: I have felt this “EN” many times at each milestone in my life. EN is like a circle that moves forward but eventually comes back around again. It is also like a force of attraction. People are drawn to each other without knowing it. Then they separate and meet again. It is like the ebb and flow of the tide or the waxing and waning of the moon. There are many kinds of “EN”, from good EN to bad EN. It seems that the essence of life is condensed into this one word.

Shoko Igarashi was born in Yamagata Prefecture, Tsuruoka city, Japan. An accomplished tenor saxophonist, she is also a versatile flautist and plays alto and soprano saxophone fluently. She has already made her mark as both an arranger and a composer. Shoko grew up surrounded by dreamlike landscapes of abundant nature in the snowy countryside of Tsuruoka, a mysterious and surreal region renowned for producing the best quality rice in Japan, where she says, “the water and the air feel the purest,” and where mountains and shrines overflow with ancient mysticism.

After beginning her musical career in Tokyo, she attended the Berklee College of Music in Boston, where she graduated with a bachelor’s degree of music. She then relocated to Brooklyn, New York where she began regularly performing live alongside innumerable talented jazz musicians. In 2018, she moved to Brussels, Belgium.

Since 2018, Shoko has written and compiled a series of well-crafted, colourful electronic songs curating diverse influences such as Sly & the Family Stone, Earth Wind & Fire, Japanese City-Pop, ’70s jazz fusion, and the anime film music that she grew up learning to play. Her nimble and seamless assembly of these very different elements into her unique sound is astonishingly natural. Her first official solo album Simple Sentences was released by Tigersushi Records in 2022 and received critical acclaim from the likes of Pitchfork, Les Inrocks and more.