Yui Onodera is a Tokyo-based composer, sound artist, and new media artist whose work explores the relation between musical form, acoustics, and space. His work extends into teaching, with positions at Rikkyo University and Musashino Art University, as well as collective practice as a co-founder of nor, a group that creates multidimensional installations combining sound, design, and science.

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Founded in 2008, Field Records has grown into a trusted home for exploratory music that values subtlety and patience. What began with split EPs from Dutch producers has expanded into long-form releases from an international roster, united by an organic sensibility to sound.

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This outlook finds sharp focus in the label’s Waterworks series. Japan has long faced floods, typhoons, and earthquakes, and during the Meiji period (1868–1912) rapid modernisation placed engineering at the centre of new infrastructures. To meet these challenges, Dutch hydraulic experts were invited to design dams, waterways, and erosion control systems. Among them was Johannis de Rijke, who redirected the Kiso, Nagara, and Ibi rivers to protect Nagoya from flooding. Their confluence on the Nōbi plain had long been both a source of danger and vitality, and reshaping it marked a decisive moment in Japan’s relationship with water.

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It is on these rivers, and their engineered histories, that Onodera’s Kiso Three Rivers finds its focus. Concluding the Waterworks trilogy after SUGAI KEN’s Tone River (2020) and Chihei Hatakeyama’s Hachirogata Lake (2023), the album balances microscopic field recordings with tonally rich instruments. Eight pieces unfold in two parts: the A-side presents pieces built from bells, treated guitar, and soft pads, while the B-side expands into extended suites centred on sampled water sources.

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At the album’s midpoint sits Kodama 4, this week’s premiere. It draws on the finest traditions of Japanese ambient music, pairing blissful drones with a rich, textured low end. A rustic grain runs through the piece, adding depth and warmth, while its slow layers build weight below and a sense of floating above.

Full tracklist

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1. 木霊 壱 / Kodama 1 

2. 木霊 弐 / Kodama 2 

3. 木霊 参 / Kodama 3 

4. 木霊 四 / Kodama 4 

5. 木霊 伍 / Kodama 5 

6. 木霊 陸 / Kodama 6 

7. 水鞠 其の一 / Mizumari (Part 1) 

8. 水鞠 其の二 / Mizumari (Part 2)

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Order a copy via Bandcamp.