group A: An electro beast of it’s own

“Nomadic noise pop due Group A blend performance art and DIY post-punk in defiance of economic constraints” – The Wire

 

Japanese avant-garde synth wave duo group A was formed in 2012 by Tommi Tokyo (synthesizers, vocals, percussion) and Sayaka Botanic (violin, cassette tapes). Projected by what Sayaka claims to be an expression of anger, their early shows came as a shock to most spectators: intensely emotional poetry readings and nude live-paintings meeting non-stop waves of noise.

 

 

Since then the duo have grown into a beast of their own, as exemplified in their recent release with Mannequin Records late last year. While their mixture of synth heavy minimal wave, avant noise, striking visuals and performance art continues to grow- particularly in their resonance of the times and the experimental scene- there still carries the very breath of early industrial pioneers such as Throbbing Gristle or Cabaret Voltaire. Sharing bills with artists such as Acid Mother Temple, Merzbow, Nisennenmondai, Phew and Melt Banana, the duo coolly whip up electrical storms with their clanking beats and  swooping violin and vocals. Their play on aesthetic through costume is similarly a truly unique part of the duo’s identity as enigmatic, one-of-a-kind performers, with their live shows being nothing if not visual: tag-team action painting, wraparound projections and mixed media experimental stagewear ranging from knobbly white bodystockings to shredded-newspaper suits to barely dressed at all.

 

 

Their approach to djing is similar to how they make music, creating and mixing completely different sounds which juxtapose and play to Tommi and Sayaka’s individual, contrasting tastes. Group A are, above all else, creators of uniqie palette’s of sound, combining industrial/minimal synth/rhythmic noise with contemporary classical music to soundtracks from 60-80’s films.

Their influential experimental DJ-set at Atonal Berlin ’16 and mixtape for Brvtalist can all be found on Soundcloud

Watch their Boiler Room Berlin live set below, and catch them in June @ #SSFest2018.

 

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