Call And Response Records

N'toko: "Ex Shanti / Future Shanti"
Slovenian rapper N'toko produced this album drawing from influences of 80s hip hop, electro and EBM, as well as being partly influenced by his experiences in Japan. Features the track Fashion Crisis, in collaboration with Kim from Japanese hip hop duo Uhnellys.
Hyacca: "Hanazono"
Ultra-tight follow-up to Sashitai, which takes the sound of its predecessor, cranks up the speed and intensity, and zaps it with post-punk electricity.
V/A: "Post Flag"
Post Flag is a compilation album that takes UK post-punk band Wire's debut album, Pink Flag, and gathers 21 underground bands from all across Japan to cover the whole album track by track. Includes songs by Mir and Hyacca, of course, as well as underground luminaries such as Panicsmile, Yolz in the Sky, Totsuzen Danball, Fluid, Ishibashi Eiko and more.



Mir: "This Tiny World"
Tokyo-based new wave/post-punk trio whose melodic yet darkly twisted pop sound recalls bands such as Joy Division, Young Marble Giants, Neu! and Stereolab.



Hyacca: "Sashitai"
Eclectic and eccentric post-punk band from punk rock city Fukuoka, drawing on a wide variety of influences and bringing it all together seamlessly with a rush of energy and immediacy.
Label history:
The www.clearandrefreshing.jp web site was started in 2003 covering live music in the Tokyo area as well as album and single reviews. This proved boring so a year later we moved onto putting on small, largely genre-free live events that no one came to because they were small and largely genre-free. As a result of this we made lots of friends, met a stackload of great bands and their associated alcoholic hangers-on, and a fabulous time was had by all.
In 2005 Clear And Refreshing gave birth to Call And Response records, whose first compilation of Tokyo DIY music is out now. 2006 saw a string of live dates and a short UK tour as well as a radical emptying of C.A.R.'s wallet. In 2007 we released a remastered version of Fukuoka band Hyacca's excellent debut album "Sashitai" as well as Tokyo band MIR's fantastic "This Tiny World" and in 2008 put out "Post Flag", a compilation of Japanese underground artists covering UK post-punk band Wire's debut album "Pink Flag" in its entirity.
Call And Response has continued building connections between the Kyushu and Tokyo music scenes, and in 2010 launched its first annual Kyushu Pop Festival at Shinjuku Motion.
In addition to supporting Kyushu musicians, C.A.R. has also branched out tentatively into working with overseas artists, releasing the album Ex Shanti / Future Shanti by Slovenian hip hop/electro/EBM artist N'toko and helping to book a small Japan tour by Bristol punk/new wave band The Stingrays.
C.A.R.'s CDs are available at CD shops throughout Japan.