Masaru Okuyama

Erisa Ogawa (ERiSA) is a flutist, voice percussionist, and composer whose second album, /Where Have U Been? (/2019) is a jewel box of jazz and pop, mixed together into a smooth and stimulating album. Colorful like sprinkles on donuts, the vibrancy extends from the cover design and illustrations (also by Ogawa) down through to her music. Her flute playing is jazzy, quick, and skillful, obviously the result of years of dedication and study of jazz and flute, but can also be petal-soft with a charming, tremulous vibrato that tugs the at heartstrings for an extra emotional charge. ...

Easy and breezy, as if dozing in a hammock between palm trees, Layla Tomomi Sakai’s The Island stirs up visions of vacationing and relaxing in sultry lands as music floats softly by. Sakai’s deep voice embraces the listener, dancing lightly through bossa novas and Latin-tinged music. The music is comforting, the musicians performing pieces that come and go in an uncomplicated manner, lulling the listener into a state of reassuring comfort. Sakai uses her voice gently yet confidently, producing an effect of sweet directness with an affectionate touch. ...