ODG027 : Robert Edwin / Telewaves ( Messy Waves and Teleport Albums & Bonuses )

Covert art by Robert Edwin

ODG027 : Robert Edwin / Telewaves ( Messy Waves and Teleport Albums & Bonuses ) :

"The first time I encountered Robert via My Space, I remember starting to jump on my chair and go crazy for the next three minutes! Then I relaxed and started to listen carefully to his amazing music and discovered more than just a few beats. Every time I felt a bit blue, I played his energetic music which gave me the punch I needed to enjoy the rest of the day.
One could relate to his music as Godzilla meeting a punk band playing Yellow Magic Orchestra music at full speed, thought on his second album, Robert started to enjoy playing more lazy beats and chill out music.
The O.V. N. I. bonus track on cd1 is still part of his first crazy beats, while the 4 bonus tracks on cd2 were written specially for this compilation and are a reflection of his late mood.
Tetsuya Owagaya aka Robert Edwin (a combination of the names of his two beloved tortoises) is now more into drawings and creating various objects.
I thought it was time to rediscover this fabulous artist and friend!" - Alinovsky, August 2014.

Original covert art for OCD008 : Messy Waves :

Original covert art for ODG006 : Teleport :

"Robert Edwin was born in Shizuoka, Japan at the end of 1973, and has lived in that area for most of his adult life. His first introduction to music came at the age of 5, when he was encouraged by his parents to take up piano lessons. Although a skilled pupil, the piano was not where his musical interests would ultimately lay. He played until the age of 9, and then took a hiatus from this particular instrument. However the exposure and training that he received during this time grew inside his mind until the age of 17, when he bought his first electric guitar. Inspired by the artists seen on MTV rather than the music that was being enjoyed locally, Robert began to develop the keen and unique musical vision that was soon to be his. When one hears a Robert Edwin song, the first thing that comes to mind is the individuality that is present in the music. It is not the same old repetitive rehashing of old ideas that is so often heard these days. It is the creative work of someone who truly understands what music should be all about, and it is obvious that the music is coming from the soul of the musician, not just the hands or head. Although not a member of a band, Robert has undertaken many musical projects with several musicians throughout the world, and has an incredible ability to adapt his sound and ideas, to seamlessly blend his vision with those of others. Truly a one of a kind individual, who follows his musical inspiration wherever it leads, Robert Edwin is the kind of gifted artist that understands what music is supposed to be about. True feeling from the heart, translated into soul moving sounds. Robert achieves this and much more with his art." - written by 444.

Album Review for Messy Waves:

"Confusing" and "frantic" are not generally adjectives that figure prominently in a positive review, but they're attributes that work well to describe the really pretty engaging music of Japanese producer, composer, and multi-instrumentalist Robert Edwin. This is his first full-length release, and you can tell it's the work of a singles artist: stylistically it's all over the map, the common feature that binds the tracks together being a sort of all-purpose sonic adventurousness that leads him equally willingly into house, punk, hip-hop, prog rock, and avant pop territories. Not everything is brilliant, but the high points are seriously impressive: the claustrophobic "From Moomin Valley," which sounds like a collaboration between John Zorn and Birdsongs of the Mesozoic; the startlingly tuneful and fun "My World"; the hip-hoppy "One" and "Tisei"; the frenetic "Shake on It." The less successful moments vary in quality from slightly tedious ("Out of Body Experience") to rather wanky and self-indulgent (the unforgivably proggy "Spot On"), but even when he fails he generally does so in ways that are genuinely interesting to hear.

Les amateurs de télescopages musicaux notoires devraient apprécier ce Messy
Waves où perlent gouttes de sueur trance/dub ("Pink disc chick"), électronica
foutraque ("Love is peace"), pop expérimentale ("My world"), hip-hop ("One"),
néo-jazz rock ("Myspace addiction", "Shake on it"), et pas mal d’ovnis plus ou
moins chantés/parlés en arrière-fond, comme ce "Hatsukura ni hastsukura",
détournement probable d’un hymne pop/métal nippon. Auteur de ce forfait, le
japonais Robert Edwin parvient à distiller sa musique à partir d’un bric-à-brac de
sons et d’influences, et aussi d’un certain sens des arrangements, souvent assez
soigné (le monsieur serait-il un fan qui s’ignore du Yellow Magic Orchestra et de
Cornelius). Inutile de dire que ça part dans tous les sens, à tel point que s’il
décidait de mettre un peu de breakcore dans son panier, on verrait bien les sbires
de labels comme Daly City se lancer sur ses trousses.

Other covers that were considered for Telewaves (all drawings by Robert) :