This month, artists from 34 countries will congregate in Tokyo for the latest edition of the Red Bull Music Academy (RBMA), a caffeine-fueled creative hothouse organized by the world¡¯s most ubiquitous energy drink brand. For participants, the event offers a chance to attend closed-door lectures with a host of well-known musicians and DJs, and to collaborate with each other at a newly built studio complex in Shibuya.
However, there¡¯s reason for the rest of us to get excited, too: In the course of the RBMA¡¯s two fortnight-long sessions, Tokyo will be treated to a generous serving of concerts, club nights, talks and art exhibitions ¡ª and everyone¡¯s invited. Kicking off with a party featuring deep house pioneer Kerri Chandler at Daikanyama club Air this Sunday, the lineup offers some rich pickings, ranging from a multiroom takeover at the Karaoke Kan complex in Shinjuku to a geek-tastic concert at Shibuya¡¯s Womb in which contemporary laptop musicians will wrangle with vintage video game soundtracks.
There may only be a couple of Japanese musicians enrolled in this year¡¯s academy, but homegrown artists feature heavily in the program of events. Acclaimed sound and visual artist Ryoji Ikeda will transform Omotesando¡¯s Spiral Hall into an immersive installation; psychedelic voyager Keiji Haino will preside over a combo noise gig and ambient slumber party at Roppongi¡¯s SuperDeluxe; avant-garde icons Otomo Yoshihide and Eye will conduct a group improv session at the Shinseiki dance hall in Uguisudani. And then there¡¯s one of the most intriguing offerings: a live collaboration between underground hip-hop producer DJ Krush and a quartet of traditional Japanese musicians, held in front of the Yoshio Taniguchi-designed Gallery of Horyuji Treasures in Ueno.
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