Posted by: Derek

Damn, it’s been pretty cold in Tokyo this February. Had a couple of days last week with real snow, even.
Because it’s Tokyo, it doesn’t really pile up, but it sure looks cool in the air.

My reseller’s office that I work out of here is in Aoyama (next to Shibuya), on the 11th floor, so I got a great view of the flowing white crystals all day long. Even though Japanese offices usually work long hours, I made sure to stay sane as the picture above shows ^_^.

Another thing that makes me sane is good progressive trance, and we’ve got some epic progressive cuts this month that straddle the line between house and trance but keep it super atmospheric. Got some fresh Japanese prog in there with a totally weird cut from Akugawa-sensei, and some Bay Area love with local favorite SNR.

And with that, have at you with some fresh cuts —

Derek Ryan - Sake Flight 10 - Aoyama (right-click and save-as to download)

Tracklist after the break!

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Posted by: Derek

Aww shiyat. This had to happen sooner or later — we come to Shibuya - the prime jewel of the young generation Tokyo experience for many. From the absolute crazyness of the infamous “scramble” street crossing, to the insane 9 floors of candyrave driven shopping at 109, to the booming beats down in Dogenzaka clubs like Womb, this place is alive.

So for this month’s Sake Flight - a tasting of the whomp - got a selection of stompy, stabby, trance picks culminating in Gareth Emery’s recent hit Tokyo. Let it roll!

Derek Ryan - Sake Flight 8 - Shibuya (right click and save-as to download)

Tracklist will be added tomorrow when I wake my sorry ass up!

Posted by: Derek

Contrary to what the usual suits and commutes image brings to mind for Japan, there’s a thriving club culture in the land of the rising tempo.

King of this has got to be Ageha - the largest club in Japan - out in the boonies of Tokyo in a place called Shin-Kiba (in fact, it has it’s own bus to get there).

Ageha is four rooms of madness - the pristine white house room, the dingy warehouse room, a Distrikt-esque pool area, and the massive main room. Huge, and the sound is solid everywhere, the crowd is ready to go, and the drinks are stiff.
Everything is top notch, and full of impact.

In hommage to that great space, this month’s flight features bold, driving, mainroom flavors that tend towards the techy side of trance, with some progressive hints as well. One of the the cuts is a great blogsphere remake of a timeless classic, and two of tunes are from a collaborative project of mine, Aureal, so keep an ear out.

Let’s go:

Derek Ryan - Sake Flight 8 - Ageha
(right click and save-as to download)

Tracklist after the jump:

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Posted by: Derek

Right along the 246 highway that connects half of western Tokyo together, there’s a little area called Mishuku. It’s a super cute residential neighborhood that’s at once quiet and easily liveable, and also retains some spunk with some killer restaurants and bars.

Though in Mishuku, almost none of the bars are ground level - you either go upstairs, even for music venues, or down into the depths under the street — which feels more natural for vampires like us.

So in tribute to the place I’ve been living for most of my recent sojourns to Japan - here’s some prog flow that’s both comfortably rockin, but got some tech bite and edginess around the sides.

Derek Ryan - Sake Flight 7 - Mishuku (right click and save-as to download)

Tracklist after the break!

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Posted by: Derek

I just came back from Okinawa, a striking island in south of Japan with an amalgam of Japanese and Polynesian culture. It’s totally like the Hawai’i of Japan, complete with it’s own local language (though Japanese works too), customs, lush tropical environment, and miles and miles of brilliant crystalline oceanfront.

Not only that, but I got to experience it with just a touch of typhoon on the horizon - alot of rain while we were there, which to some might ruin the island experience, but to me it ended up being all the more mysterious and magical.

But for sure, howling winds and torrential rain don’t call for the calm side of the spectrum alone, so this month the fresh tunes I have to present here range from sunny to stormy, but all with solid drive behind them. Strangely for me, my latest single release starts us off on the sunny side - I’m usually more moody, but Azure is definitely uplifting…

So break out both your umbrella AND your swimsuit, and come take a swim…

Derek Ryan - Sake Flight 6 - Ginoza (right-click and save as to download)

tracklist after the jump!
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