Ryosuke Kiyasu “Dig Up Roots” cassette (Notice)

“Dig Up Roots” is a document of a live performance at Tokyo Arts and Space on July 1, 2022. Ryosuke Kiyasu plays snare drum and table, presenting an extreme and cathartic relationship with physical surfaces and their characteristic tolerances, as exploited with wood, hands, and body. Notably the distinctive acoustics of the space can be felt deeply throughout the performance, not to mention the overblown recording. The space’s container is audible, fluctuating, and seemingly alive; indeed a second player in the performance. Kiyasu has an established background as a free jazz and grindcore drummer over the past couple decades: in Keiji Haino’s long-running Fushitsusha project, and Kiyasu’s own Sete Star Sept and Kiyasu Orchestra, among others. It is notable, after so many projects, to witness Kiyasu focusing so strongly on the snare drum, a pinnacle of rhythm and needless to say one of the more abrasive components of the drum-kit, using it to convey pure energy, unbridled physical interaction, and texture at its most intense form.