Suishou no Fune was formed in 1999 by guitarists Pirako Kurenai and Kageo. They were quickly acknowledged in Japan for their unique take on Japanese psychedelic traditions but it wasn't until their inclusion on PSF's Tokyo Flashback Volume 5 they became that their international prominance began to grow. Heavy lyrical emotion transcends linguistic barriers and Pirako's blown out fuzzy free-dream guitar work is an alternate universe psychedelic Japanese shoegaze. They are a forest at night drenched in echoing reverb and soaked with deeply spiritual/emotional melodies. Awash in waves of fuzz Suishi No Fune's control of detail amidst chaos and heavy emotions is their deepest asset. Here's to the past. Here's to the future. Somewhere between Fushitsusha and Windy & Carl there is Suishi No Fune. "The group's sound runs from massively distended nod-outs that recall parts of the first Fushitsusha album through weird duo tracks that orbit a parallel universe where late-period John Fahey was the prime influence on Charalambides, infernal Dead C/Gate style guitar abuse and achingly beautiful comedown ballads. The twin vocalists are massively different in their approach, with Pirako singing in a high wayward style that's all throat and no lungs while Kageo works from the other end of the pipes with a ripped Father Yod/Jim Morrison/Keiji Haino polyglot. Simply one of the greatest out-of-nowhere groups to come out of the Tokyo underground in years and the undisputed stars of PSF's recent Tokyo Flashback 5 compilation." .
(Volcanic Tongue U.K)


Brought to the attention of international audiences by PSF's Tokyo Flashback Volume 5 compilation, Suishou No Fune are a guitar duo formed by wailing psych travellers Pirako Kurenai and Kageo. The group invite Fushitsusha comparisons, not just in terms of their sound but also in the Keiji Haino-style blacker than black imagery of the sleeve art and photography. Captured live on this disc, the duo trade licks and vocals in a blitz of effects and atmospheric psych, all to an oddly wispy sounding backbeat. The recording is a pretty idiosyncratic affair, smudging the sound somewhat, only for a few penetrative lead guitar phrases to break from the rasping swirl that dominates the band's sound. The slowed-down blues of 'You Look At The Night Sea' presents the group in the greatest detail, leaving enough space for you to be able to make out the finer points. The sort of pedals these guys put their instruments through might suggest shoegaze, but musically this stuff is far more tapped into blues and far-out stoner rock, though by the time you arrive at the closing twenty-two minutes of 'The Storm Of Light - Cherry', the drums have dropped away and your left with a glorious, ascendant expanse of guitar texture and distortion. Great stuff.
(Boomkat Limited U.K)


4 tracks culled from 3 separate live performances. Raging, ragged and almost unbearably fragile, this is a stunning document of a band I would love to see live. Strung-out ballads howled from deep within with incredible fuzzed / distorted psych guitar and primal drumming. Highly recommended.
(boa melody bar U.K)


Brand spanking new disc of misty darkness shrouded tunes of mystical Japanese psychedelic powers. Trio recordings from on this go around as opposed to the Archive disc which was just the guitar duo. Adorned with wonderful photography that really transmits the flavor of the works visually.
(archive recording U.S.A)


There’s not much better than some black clad Japanese dudes wailing away over ringing guitars while cymbals crash like big boulders into deep black oceans. As heirs to the Les Rallizes Denudes saga, Suishou No Fune play the part like true soldiers. Without actually aping their ancestors, their jams are way more structured for one, they create huge streams of emotional heaviness, like preachers of the psychedelic church on the brink of hitting ecstasy.
“Shining Star (Live)” is their 3rd release this year and although I haven’t heard the album on Archive yet, this one stands out as their most consistent so far. “Writhing Underground Flowers” (on Lotus Sound) was magnificent but played the slowed down blues card just a tad too much. This live recording captures all the raw energy that goes into their playing and without understanding a word of what they’re singing about, I find myself completely immersed in their emotive realm of mystic vocals.
The duo of Pirako Kurenai and Kageo exchange vocal duties throughout the album. Two different styles, Pirako inhabits the more ecstatic emotion while Kageo sings his lines with an inwardlooking gaze. The production is a bitt off though, all the songs sound relatively mid-level while closer “The Storm of Light ? Cherry” slams in the door with the volume a couple notches up. A minor issue, the shock effect is nice and the guitars rage with such a forceful power that I can’t bring myself to turn it down, it’s completely overwhelming and beautiful.
“Your Tears Drop from the Sky” is the kind of opener you wish for when they play your town. Chiming guitarmelodies searing across a backdrop of heavy drumming, Pirako wails his lines like the world will soon explode. Spacious, echo-y tales. Probably of desperation and love, and what they have to do with eachother. Crushing and epic, Pirako’s guitarwork nails it all throughout it’s thirteen minutes.
The euphoria present in the middle parts and endings of these songs are extremely rewarding but the build ups and break downs leading to those parts are just so damn gorgeous, you instantly get in a zone when “You Look at the Night Sea” begins it’s journey through melodic break downs and Kageo’s mournful singing. And the vocals are perfect. When Pirako starts off “A Rain” with soft “la la la la”’s, it hits as hard as all the thunderous guitars swirling around the place. This album is essential, as part of the Japanse psychrock tradition but also as a part of the experimental subculture blossoming all around the globe these days. One of the albums of my year, no doubt. 9/10.
(foxy digitalis U.S.A / Joris Heemskerk 31 October, 2007)
http://www.digitalisindustries.com/foxyd/reviews.php?which=2892


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