As the years have gone by, Mijonju has become one of my oldest pals in Tokyo. We’ve been bouncing around and crossing paths in this city for well over a decade and probably soon a decade and a half! In a city that sheds its sometimes transient residents as frequently as it sheds its own skin, it’s just nice to have some familiar faces, and Mijo is certainly that. He famously “loves cameras like a fat boy loves chocolate cake” (the jingle from his legendary Mijonju Show on YouTube) and for that reason, we’ve always been close buds, but he’s also a talented musician and singer as well as magician, artist, and has too many more talents to name. He’s a hard one to keep up with creatively, the guy is a fountain of passionate energy, but I’m especially happy to be connected to him more and more through music, as much as photography.
I could honestly go on and on about MIjonju (AKA Mijo, AKA Michi, AKA Mitch, AKA Michio, AKA Michel, AKA Jonesy) but I’ll simply leave with thi:
When asked “Hey Mijo, why do you love records when you can stream it all?”
…(after a long thoughtful pause)…
“Well, it’s like when you’re cold …sure you can go to the thermostat, and simply turn on the heater and soon you’ll be warm, …or … or or or, you can gather wood in the forest, build a small pile, precariously balanced around some carefully collected kindling, miraculously make sparks, like some kind of magic wizardry, blow smoky kindling to red embering life, listen to the crackle and pop of the wood drying and charring, trapped water and sap within it hiss, slowly warming you face, your hands, then your body, then roaring at you, like an inferno demon, heating your bones, feeding your soul, like the god of fire that you are… ummm … yeah, so streaming is the thermostat and records are the fire.”
Got Mijonju, perfectly.
Ginger Root – Mahjong Room
Label: Acrophase Records – APGR001
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Repress
Country: US
Released: May 18, 2022
Genre: Electronic, Jazz, Funk / Soul
Style: Funk, Soul
https://www.discogs.com/release/23295017-Ginger-Root-Mahjong-Room
Ginger Root – City Slicker
Label: Acrophase Records – none
Format: Cassette, EP, Limited Edition
Country: US
Released: Sep 28, 2021
Genre: Jazz, Funk / Soul, Pop
Style: Indie Pop, City Pop
https://www.discogs.com/release/20565979-Ginger-Root-City-Slicker
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Oh!!! Last photo by the enigmatic DJ bemsha who captured the capture! Thanks, bemsha and sorry for the lag there! Appreciate the shot!!