2006年末に設立された東京のレコード・レーベル。
the nation’s premier label for hushed music – Pitchfork
Flau releases are sonically quite diverse, from acoustic folk to dream pop and complex drum experiments. And though eclectic, never before has a label’s oeuvre come together to so closely sound the way a cherry blossom looks – The FADER
one of the biggest names in the world of really small sounds…the perfect soundtrack to a Sunday evening – Timeout Tokyo
consistently impressive – XLR8R
Flau has associated itself with a signature sound…association with Flau suggests a superior level of pop craftsmanship…What’s remarkable about Fukuzono’s project, which launched at the end of 2006, is that he’s achieved quality control without uniformity – exclaim!
Flau has shown that sometimes silence beats flashiness – METROPOLIS Magazine
flau seem to have a magic touch; everything they put out..has a celestial, positively glowing aura about it that has us longing for more..sonically the label is incredibly diverse, but what its releases share in common are a playful curiosity, an unmatchable quality and a genre-bending commitment to evoking time and space within their sounds – DUMMY
Flau label casts its net across a worldwide community of artists with a particular affection for fragile arrangements and microscopic songwriting…A reliable resource for all the finest, quirkiest exploratory electronic pop music – Boomkat
it combines genuine emotion with a sense of playfulness – Fluid Radio
everyone’s favourite Japanese label and, of course, we make no exception – Going Solo
constantly surprising, consistently stunning – Dummy
un monde de l’infiniment fragile et doux – Ondefixe
one of our favourite labels – Textura
Flau are one of those unassuming labels, which since 2007 have been quietly making their way in the world releasing a diverse range of high quality albums…their roster of international artists blend field recordings, acoustic instruments, microsounds, and voice, in a sound that has become truly synonymous with the label – Furthernoise
worth finding – Foxy Digitalis
grow, pushing boundaries and releasing gems – Drifting, Almost Falling
An inner experience and pure fascination to little things concept and microscopic sounds. FLAU is the latest Label Of The Moment – Otsechka
the Tokyo label’s dreamy and cinematic aesthetic seems tailor-made for two favourite hobbies: idleness and letting the imagination run wild – Solar Flares
This label collects very particular artists from all over the world all under one roof that eclectically holds them together. Each artist is so unique, that you would like to read a whole book about them – PonyDanceClyde
2008-09 London, Cafe OTO
2009-09 Melbourne, Toff In Town
2010-08 Berlin, Altes Finanzamt
2012-05 Malaysia, Black Box Map
2012-05 Macau, LMA
2012-05 China Tour Beijing-Shanghai-Hangzhou
2012-06 Tokyo, Fujimigaoka Church & VACANT
2012-06 Kyoto, Metro
2013-04 London, Cafe OTO
2013-04 Berlin, Antje Øklesund
2013-12 Tokyo, VACANT
2016-03 Tokyo, VACANT
SEE FULL LIST
©FLAU
CAT No. FLAU25
Release Date: Japan - April 4th / Europe & USA - June 25th 2012
Format: CD/Digital
アメリカ・オレゴン州ポートランドより、Loch Lomondのメンバーとしても活躍した女性アーティストLaurel Simmons、Peter BroderickとのコラボレーションやLOWとの共演で知られるスペイン人シンガーソングライターRauelssonことRaul Pastor Medall、そしてNicolas MarshallによるMayMayのデビューアルバム。
ミックスをSHE & HIMやM・ウォードで知られる敏腕エンジニアAdam Seltzer、ゲスト・アーティストには盟友Heather Woods Broderick、 Matt Berger（Musee Mecanique）らが参加。全編弾き語りだったデビューEPから、大胆に鳴らされるオルガンとピアノ、躍動感あるギター・サウンド、男女コーラスの暖 かいハーモニーと、曲によって様々にその表情を変えるなど、アレンジ面で飛躍的な変貌を遂げています。デビューEPに参加していたHeather Woods Broderickがニューヨークへと移住、バンドを離れたことにより開花したLaurel Simmonsの素晴らしいソングライティングは、時に優しく、時に切なく胸をしめつけるように、私たちの心を揺さぶるでしょう。
普遍的なピュアネスと美しさを讃える全９曲。マスタリングにNils Frahm。
mastering: Nils Frahm
mixing: Adam Seltzer
artwork: Tomoyo Kawase
design: AOKI,hayato
MayMay is Laurel Simmons. Hailing from Portland, Oregon, Simmonsʼ debut solo album, “And So I Place You In the Setting Sun” is a gorgeous, quietly powerful mediation on the acceptance of transition.
Simmons is no stranger to creating pastoral, evocative music, having exercised her considerable vocal and instrumental skills as a member of beloved Portland chamber-folk darlings Loch Lomond, as well as collaborations with a variety of other well-regarded acts, including international touring with peers such as Alela Diane and Rauelsson.
MayMay began during Simmonsʼ first winters in the Pacific Northwest leaving her homesick for the deserts of her native Arizona and the closeness of generations of family she left behind. MayMay is named in homage to her Arizona roots, in particular her grandmother Barbara Mae May.
“And So I Place You in the Setting Sun” is a remarkable record, willing to experiment with the tension between ambiance and rhythmic texture, while nostalgia and eloquent melodies arrange themselves into dynamics that are compelling yet wanting. The instrumentation blooms and fades like seasons through artful arranging and listeners come away with the notion of how triumphant the heart can be.
The collision of Simmonsʼ somber, ethereal vocals with lyrics permeated by images of sunlight and evocative themes of the process of letting go results in a record that truly sticks with the listener.
For Simmons, music is a both a vehicle and a prayer, a way of portraying earnestness that compels the moving forward.
the shimmering, hypnotic sonic palette of classic Cocteau Twins, the droning, narcoleptic pop sensibility of Beach House, and the hazy, sunset-drenched psychedelia of Mazzy Star – Dave Depper
01 Setting Sun 02 The Fall
03 Stories We Lived by
04 If It Remains Light
05 Lines to Water
06 In the Fields
07 Ringing Home
08 Undertow
09 Winter Air
critcs of Liz Harris’ last album might find an itch scratched by And So I Place You In The Setting Sun – it’s a spiritual successor to Dragging a Dead Deer Up a Hill 7/10 – Drowned In Sound
Laurel Simmons’ music may have been previously worth a listen for fans of the indie folk style she played in, this album offers something that a far larger audience will find worthwhile – The 405
Simmons channels Vashti Bunyan…This is utterly gorgeous, both in the instrumentation, the layering of the sounds, and in the way it grows. Damned fine work…reminds me a lot of Red House Painters – Evil Sponge
a graceful meditation that complements her multi-layered vocal and piano playing with beautiful washes of ambient guitar textures – Textura
CAT No. FLAU25
Release Date: Japan - April 4th / Europe & USA - June 25th 2012
Format: CD/Digital
01 Setting Sun 02 The Fall
03 Stories We Lived by
04 If It Remains Light
05 Lines to Water
06 In the Fields
07 Ringing Home
08 Undertow
09 Winter Air
アメリカ・オレゴン州ポートランドより、Loch Lomondのメンバーとしても活躍した女性アーティストLaurel Simmons、Peter BroderickとのコラボレーションやLOWとの共演で知られるスペイン人シンガーソングライターRauelssonことRaul Pastor Medall、そしてNicolas MarshallによるMayMayのデビューアルバム。
ミックスをSHE & HIMやM・ウォードで知られる敏腕エンジニアAdam Seltzer、ゲスト・アーティストには盟友Heather Woods Broderick、 Matt Berger（Musee Mecanique）らが参加。全編弾き語りだったデビューEPから、大胆に鳴らされるオルガンとピアノ、躍動感あるギター・サウンド、男女コーラスの暖 かいハーモニーと、曲によって様々にその表情を変えるなど、アレンジ面で飛躍的な変貌を遂げています。デビューEPに参加していたHeather Woods Broderickがニューヨークへと移住、バンドを離れたことにより開花したLaurel Simmonsの素晴らしいソングライティングは、時に優しく、時に切なく胸をしめつけるように、私たちの心を揺さぶるでしょう。
普遍的なピュアネスと美しさを讃える全９曲。マスタリングにNils Frahm。
mastering: Nils Frahm
mixing: Adam Seltzer
artwork: Tomoyo Kawase
design: AOKI,hayato
MayMay is Laurel Simmons. Hailing from Portland, Oregon, Simmonsʼ debut solo album, “And So I Place You In the Setting Sun” is a gorgeous, quietly powerful mediation on the acceptance of transition.
Simmons is no stranger to creating pastoral, evocative music, having exercised her considerable vocal and instrumental skills as a member of beloved Portland chamber-folk darlings Loch Lomond, as well as collaborations with a variety of other well-regarded acts, including international touring with peers such as Alela Diane and Rauelsson.
MayMay began during Simmonsʼ first winters in the Pacific Northwest leaving her homesick for the deserts of her native Arizona and the closeness of generations of family she left behind. MayMay is named in homage to her Arizona roots, in particular her grandmother Barbara Mae May.
“And So I Place You in the Setting Sun” is a remarkable record, willing to experiment with the tension between ambiance and rhythmic texture, while nostalgia and eloquent melodies arrange themselves into dynamics that are compelling yet wanting. The instrumentation blooms and fades like seasons through artful arranging and listeners come away with the notion of how triumphant the heart can be.
The collision of Simmonsʼ somber, ethereal vocals with lyrics permeated by images of sunlight and evocative themes of the process of letting go results in a record that truly sticks with the listener.
For Simmons, music is a both a vehicle and a prayer, a way of portraying earnestness that compels the moving forward.
the shimmering, hypnotic sonic palette of classic Cocteau Twins, the droning, narcoleptic pop sensibility of Beach House, and the hazy, sunset-drenched psychedelia of Mazzy Star – Dave Depper
