Ihunke, by Umeko Ando

Ihunke

by Umeko Ando

supported by

Family Feet September 2023 - Loving this. Sublime. Favorite track: Battaki.

Perry Holt What a beautiful music, I am so grateful to hear this. Honestly, this is the stuff that restores my faith and love for humanity. Big thanks to the folks at Pingipung - and Kompakt.

Takoyaki As well as being in 4/4 so it's easy to sample to be used for modern music production, I love the image and atmosphere it conjures. Favorite track: Pekanpe Uk.

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Streaming + Download

Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

Includes a pdf version of the album's linernotes, an interview with Oki Kano recorded and edited by Andi Otto.

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€9 EUR or more
Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
2023 repress of the long sold out 2LP of "Ihunke". Includes liner notes in form of an interview by Andi Otto with Oki Kano and images of the recordings. Black inner sleeves, design by TEOTH. Comes with an additional download code.

Includes unlimited streaming of Ihunke via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

ships out within 9 days

Purchasable with gift card

€28.90 EUR or more

1.	Pekanpe Uk 05:19	buy track
2.	Ihunke 03:37	buy track
3.	Hutare Chui 02:20	buy track
4.	Rewrew 03:20	buy track
5.	Iyomante Upopo 05:55	buy track
6.	Mukkuri 1 02:33	buy track
7.	Yaisama 02:36	buy track
8.	Mukkuri 2 03:07	buy track
9.	Saraba - Iya Ko Ko 06:02	buy track
10.	Sarorun Rimse 03:09	buy track
11.	Battaki 04:22	buy track
12.	Kusuep Kamuy 00:47	buy track
13.	Herutun Rutun 03:11	buy track
14.	Chup Kawa Kamuy Ran 04:33	buy track
15.	Hekuri Sarari 03:06	buy track
16.	Atuy So Kata (extended version) 03:51	buy track

about

Umeko Ando (1932-2004) was a folk singer from Japan. She was a representative of the Ainu culture on the Hokkaido Island in the north of Japan.
“Ihunke” was her first album which was recorded with the Ainu musician and dub producer Oki Kano in 2000. It was released on CD in Japan only and is finally available on vinyl (2LP + linernotes, DLC included). “Ihunke” is following last year’s single “Iuta Upopo” [Pingipung 58, incl. M.Rux Remix] which had been received with overwhelming enthusiasm and was quickly sold out.
The 16 Ainu songs on “Ihunke” are delicate, natural gems. They are built on Oki Kano’s Tonkori patterns (a 5-string harp), over which Umeko Ando develops her repetitive, mantric vocals, often in a call-response manner. Oki Kano is one of very few professional Tonkori players who performs worldwide with his Oki Dub Ainu Band. The songs possess a mystical energy – when crows call accurately with Ando’s brittle voice in the first song, it seems like natural powers join in with her music. Her voice sounds like animals of the sky and the forest.
Oki Kano: “It was a lot of fun to record with Umeko Ando. Many Ainu hesitate to break with tradition – if Umeko hadn’t been so flexible to work with the younger generation and recording technology, this album would never have happened. Our sessions were intense, and we were proud and happy about making such beautiful music.”

Upcoming in DEC 2018: Remixes of “Ihunke” by Nioclá Cruz, RLHBSLCN, M.Rux, DJ Ground, El Búho, Mark Peters, Andi Otto, Gama, and more.

Historical background: Only recently (in 2008) have the Ainu officially been acknowledged as indigenous people who are culturally independent from Japan. This record is an example of how their music has been passed on through generations in the underground Ainu communities while it was oppressed by the Japanese hegemony. It deserves a huge audience.

Here is a feature on the record in the German Kaput Magazine (in English):
kaput-mag.com/stories_en/the-magic-music-of-umeko-ando_andi-otto-in-conversation-with-oki-kano-collaborator-of-the-late-umeko-ando/

credits

released August 31, 2018

Umeko Ando: Vocals, Mukkuri
Oki: Tonkori
Rekpo: Vocals

Recorded at Chikar Studio in 2000 (Ainu, Japan)
Engineer: Taku Takahashi
Mixed and produced by OKI
Licensed to Pingipung from Chikar Studio 2018
Pingipung 060
LC 09304
© & ℗ 2018 Pingipung

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about

Umeko Ando Japan

Umeko Ando (1932-2004) was a folk singer from Japan. She was a representative of the Ainu culture on the Hokkaido Island in the north of Japan.

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