In a generation of musicians that came of age in postwar Japan, Kazuki Tomokawa stands as a pioneer of radical individualism, with a sound marked by shocking intimacy and blistering honesty. In his third album, A String of Paper Cranes Clenched between My Teeth, released by Harvest Records in 1977, Tomokawa creeps "ever more inward, " as Kiichi Takahara writes in the record's original introductory text-embracing an attitude pervasive amongst musicians of the time who interrogated the prosaic and the profound alike, eschewing politics and society in favor of an "attitude of total self-containment."Tomokawa recorded the album over the course of a month-from August 24 to September 25, 1977-at Tokyo's famed Onkio Haus studio in the bustling Ginza district. The arrangements, accordingly, are amped up: paired with the Black Panther Orchestra, Tomokawa's "screaming philosopher" vocals find their match with the orchestra's electric guitar, bass, piano, tuba, and ground-thumping drums played by the Brain Police's Toshi Ishizuka-who appears on Tomokawa's first three records and remains his collaborator to this day."This is Kazuki Tomokawa in the flesh, " concludes Takahara. A String of Paper Cranes Clenched between My Teeth is, in Tomokawa's uncanny way, able to cut through facade and artifice in pursuit of truth. "You call that life?" he heckles, exhausted by the melodrama and nihilism of youth counterculture, "try saying you're alive!"
Release date:
May 20, 2022
Label:
Install our app to receive notifications when new upcoming releases are added.

Recommended equipment and accessories
-
Audioengine A2 Plus
Precision-engineered 2.75-inch woofers and a 0.75-inch silk dome tweeter, featuring built-in DAC and Bluetooth connectivity for seamless integration.
-
HumminGuru: Ultrasonic Vinyl Record Cleaner
Advanced ultrasonic technology with customizable cleaning cycles and a large tank capacity to thoroughly remove dust, dirt, and contaminants
-
Vinyl Care - Top Picks
A selection of accesories to keep your turntable equipment & vinyl records in the best shape
-
Technics SL-1500C Turntable
Features a direct-drive motor, a high-precision tonearm, and a premium MM cartridge, delivering exceptional sound quality
-
Turntables - Top Picks
A selection of reliable record players you can buy today, for every budget
Featured Upcoming Vinyl
-
Ben Webster King Of The Tenors
Wax Time
October 24, 2025 -
Antibalas Hourglass
Daptone Records
October 31, 2025 -
Madonna Veronica Electronica (Clear)
Warner Records
October 10, 2025 -
Five Finger Death Punch Best of - Volume 2 [2xLP]
Better Noise Music
October 24, 2025 -
Brainwasher 39 Lightyears from Heaven
Productions Mothland Inc.
October 24, 2025 -
Casey Dienel My Heart Is An Outlaw (Sea Glass) [2xLP]
Jealous Butcher Records
October 17, 2025 -
Softcult When A Flower Doesn't Grow
Easy Life Records Ltd
January 30, 2026 -
The Antlers Blight (Pink)
Transgressive
October 10, 2025 -
Bone Church Deliverance (Lavender Marble)
Ripple Music
October 24, 2025 -
Knucks Fine African Man
Warner Bros UK
November 7, 2025 -
Emily a Sprague Cloud Time (Cloudy White)
Rvng Int'l
October 10, 2025 -
Rome Streetz Trainspotting
Jerome Allen p/k/a "Rome Streetz"
October 13, 2025 -
The Paper Kites If You Go There, I Hope You Find It (Rust)
Nettwerk Records
January 23, 2026 -
Balu Brigada Portal
Warner Bros UK
October 10, 2025