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Yo Zushi

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Yo Zushi
Birth nameYo Zushi
OriginLondon, England
GenresFreak folk
Alternative rock
Country
OccupationSinger-songwriter
Instrument(s)Guitar
vocals
Years active2004 – present
LabelsPointy Records, Eidola Records
Websitewww.yozushi.net

Yo Zushi is a British-Japanese singer-songwriter, who rose to prominence in the UK freak folk scene with two albums released on London's Pointy Records.[1] He attended University College School in Hampstead and is also a sub-editor for the New Statesman magazine.[2]

Career

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In 2004 Zushi was the winner (in the music category) of the Re:Creation Prize,[3] run by Topshop and style magazine Dazed & Confused. This was followed by a short period in a folk rock band, Great Days of Sail, with gig support slots in the company of nu-folk icons Joanna Newsom,[4] The Magic Numbers, Willy Mason,[5] Micah P. Hinson and anti-folk founder Lach. The band dissolved after one self-titled EP.

In 2005 Zushi was signed to Pointy Records to release Songs From a Dazzling Drift.[6] A collection of country-infused pop songs drawn from rough home recordings, it was quickly picked up by the British music press as a minor classic. Q magazine gave it a four-star review (including it in the "Q Recommends" category), and enthused that "this could be the start of something major".[7] Dazed & Confused called it a "masterclass in storytelling".[7] An intermittent series of live appearances followed, supporting the likes of Scritti Politti and Patrick Wolf, as well as performing on the main town hall stage at the Oxford Folk Festival[8] with Bellowhead and Rachel Unthank and the Winterset.

After publishing a short story in Dazed & Confused and completing a Modern Culture MA at University College, London,[9] Yo Zushi released his second album, Notes for Holy Larceny[10] in 2007. It was produced by Greg Box and Daniel Lea of By the Fireside and features alt-classical singer-songwriter Ana Silvera on piano, as well as Sean King from A sleeper's union/ Eidola records, Dan and James McKean, Ross Palmer, Antonio Papaleo and Russell Parton amongst others (full band list on record sleeve). The album has been favorably compared with the music of Hank Williams, Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash and Tom Waits .[11] In March 2009, Zushi will release Jangadeiros, a collection of home demos and songs recorded at studio sessions on the Italian label Best Kept Secret, which releases albums on audio cassette only. He is currently working on Video Days, the follow-up to Notes for "Holy Larceny".

In January 2015, Eidola Records released the third album of Yo Zushi : It Never Entered My Mind, with nine new songs.

References

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  1. ^ "Pointy Records website". Archived from the original on 21 June 2008. Retrieved 12 April 2008.
  2. ^ "New Statesman writers page". Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  3. ^ Somaiya, Ravi (2 March 2004). "Daily Telegraph article, "Off the Campus and Into the Limelight", 03/20/2004". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 12 April 2008.
  4. ^ "Sounds XP music review website". Retrieved 12 April 2008.
  5. ^ "About Last Night listings archive". Retrieved 12 April 2008.
  6. ^ "Pointy Records album page". Retrieved 12 April 2008.
  7. ^ a b "Melody Cat European music promotions website". Retrieved 12 April 2008.
  8. ^ "Oxford Folk Festival artist page". Archived from the original on 11 August 2007. Retrieved 12 April 2008.
  9. ^ "Pi Magazine interview on UCL website". Retrieved 12 April 2008.
  10. ^ "Pointy Records album page". Retrieved 12 April 2008.
  11. ^ "Stylus Magazine album review". Retrieved 12 April 2008.
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