Asura - Asura

‘Asura’, the gorgeous debut album from Los Angeles producer Ryan York, is the inaugural release from new LA label Non Projects, an associate imprint of Alpha Pup, now distributed in the UK by Cargo. This CD version, with three additional bous tracks in oversized gatefold card jacket, is released in a limited edition of 500 copies by Japanese label Moamoo / Art Union. While firmly planted within the ever-growing Los Angeles beat scene, Non Projects simultaneously seeks to push beyond with disciplined studies of free jazz, modern classical composition, folk song, sound design and more. The concept of Asura, inspired by the work of Japanese poet Kenji Miyazawa, is that of a dissolution of self and environment in the face of strong emotion. By employing this guise in the electronic ouvre, and drawing on his training in the classical and jazz worlds as a bassist, cellist, guitarist, and trumpeter, Ryan York produces a truly organic new form of digital music. The experience of falling in love in the backdrop of modern Los Angeles is central to his debut album, as its simultaneously decaying and awe inspiring environments are represented in the same space, along with the beauty and struggle of a new relationship, each abstract idea lending their own cracks, hisses, and echoes to the music. Keen-eared listeners will hear similarities in Asura’s work to artists such as Clark, Flying Lotus, Nosaj Thing, and Boards Of Canada. Asura’s sublime pulsing electronics and layered bliss won early support from Mary Anne Hobbs, who called this album “an absolutely magical record, really unique and truly immersive...", quickly commissioning an exclusive mix for her Radio 1 show in April. Asura has also produced an acclaimed mix in collaboration with D-Styles for Episode 16 of Low End Theory’s podcast series.

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