KENSO "KENSO (III)" (1985) Self-liner notes by Yoshihiro Shimizu

In the summer of 1982, after finishing the production of "KENSO II (SECOND)" (released in December), and performing at the school festivals of Kanagawa Dental University and Tokyo College of Music, I completely ran out of energy and couldn't write any more songs. I had zero songs left. So what should I do...? I tried reading books on classical composition, but there were so many things I didn't understand through self-study. I started learning on my own by ear-copying songs by my favorite composers, Ravel and Debussy (which was reckless since it wasn't rock music) and relying on some piano scores I borrowed from Yamamoto-kun. It was during this time that I created a song that would later become "Taidou," which I initially called "How about some prog rock?"

Then, yet another fortunate encounter occurred. At the end of 1982, a friend introduced me to Toshihiko Sahashi, who was already working as a backing band member for singers while aiming to enter Tokyo University of the Arts. In March 1983, he successfully passed the entrance exam for the composition department at the university and joined KENSO. Sahashi, now a renowned composer, was truly remarkable from the start, proving that "sandalwood is fragrant even from its sapling stage." During our first rehearsal, I was deeply moved by his graceful, singing synth playing; it was as if musical notes were overflowing from his very being. I felt intimidated by the fact that he and Yamamoto spoke about composition using technical jargon, but I honestly asked, "What does that mean?" and learned so much from them.

One of the defining characteristics of early KENSO was the flute, and it had been decided that Shiro Yajima, who played the flute, would leave the band after the April 1983 live performance to focus on his dental practice. About a month later, at a live performance at Shinjuku Loft, the twin-keyboard system that continues to this day began (initially with Sahashi and Makinouchi).

Just like with "KENSO II," I recorded "Fetal Movement," "Freedom of the Spirit," and Yamamoto's composition "JIGSAW" (later I arbitrarily changed the title to "Turn To Solution," sorry Yamamoto) using a Fostex 8-track recorder.

Around that time, Yamamoto-kun bought a Fostex B16, a 16-track recorder that had just been released, on a 60-month installment plan. There was no need to compete with him to this extent, but I wanted one so badly that I sold my Fostex A8, which I had treasured so much, to a junior colleague and bought a B16 on installments myself. This B16 would support my home recording up until the production of "Yume no Oka" (Dream Hill). At some point, I became able to operate the various switches on the B16 with my toes (good kids should not try this at home).

The band was in top form from spring to summer 1983 thanks to Sahashi's addition, and it seemed like they would continue to gain momentum. However, Sahashi became very busy, so we had to find a new keyboardist. A friend played me a demo tape of Pinocchio, a progressive keyboard trio from Machida, and I was captivated by the exhilarating keyboard playing and the fresh harmonies. That college student keyboardist was none other than Kenichi Oguchi, six years younger than me, who would go through many years of ups and downs with me in KENSO.

The contrasting playing styles of keyboardists Makinouchi and Oguchi became a new defining characteristic of KENSO, and this inspired the creation of songs like "Holy Dream" and "Power of the Glory."

But seriously, like "brand-oriented," what an unoriginal name "Power Of The Glory" is. I can almost hear someone saying, "People who don't know it won't know it, so why bother with the self-deprecating humor?" But I'll say it anyway. When I was making "Power Of The Glory," I called it "The King's Song." At the time, I was a huge fan of GENTLE GIANT, and I was particularly devoted to their album 'POWER AND THE GLORY'. If you don't know it, please search for the cover art of 'POWER AND THE GLORY' somewhere... "So, it was 'The King's Song,' and then I changed it to 'Power Of The Glory' because that was just too unoriginal. I guess that's where I was really amateurish.

We were amateurs; yes, this song won some kind of performance award at a tape contest hosted by a certain music publisher, but at that time there was no talk of debuting with King Records. We were very popular in the Japanese progressive rock scene, and in the spring of 1984 we were supposed to perform a two-day live show at the legendary Silver Elephant. However, Makinouchi-kun was hospitalized with a serious illness, so we urgently asked Sahashi-kun to perform, and we only did one day of the show. After that, Makinouchi-kun's condition did not improve, and we ended up with a twin keyboard setup of Koguchi and Sahashi. Then, a director at King Records took an interest in a demo tape we had left with an acquaintance, and we were finally able to release an LP with an obi strip from the major record company we had always dreamed of. That made us so happy!

"Nostalgia" is a song inspired by Tarkovsky's film of the same name, and I was fortunate to have the daughter of a senior student in my research lab, who was an oboist, add her own touch. This was also recorded in the light music club room, and the microphone setup was done with my amateur skills; I wish I could have recorded it more beautifully.

For "Far East Celebration," we asked flutist Ms. Yajima to play the flute for us.

And then!! I timidly asked Hiroyuki Nanba, who was someone I looked up to at the time, and he kindly came all the way to Yamamoto-kun's home studio in Sagamihara and played the keyboard solo for "Turn To Solution"!!!
He would say things like, "Hmm, this part is a little lacking in chord progression, so I'll add some," or "This is the first time I've played while watching the laundry hanging out next door."
That's such a waste. Thank you very much, Mr. Nanba.

Also, my biggest regret with this album is that I titled it "KENSO" (often written as "KENSO (III)" for convenience). It has the same title as my self-produced debut album, which is incredibly confusing. I was so happy to be able to release it through King Records that I probably didn't think about it that much.

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■KENSO 'KENSO III'
https://lnk.to/KENSO3

■Playlist #2: "Listen to KENSO (Beginner's Edition)"
https://lnk.to/KENSO_Playlist2

■ Profile
Yoshihisa Shimizu (Guitar)
Kenichi Oguchi (Keyboards)
Kenichi Mitsuda (Keyboards)
Shunji Saegusa (Bass)
Keisuke Komori (Drums)

In 1974, KENSO was formed around leader Yoshihiro Shimizu. The band name comes from "Kenso," an abbreviation for Kanagawa Prefectural Sagamihara High School, where Shimizu attended. In 1980, they released their self-produced 1st album, "KENSO," and in 1985, they made their major debut with their 3rd album, "KENSO (III)," on King Records' NEXUS label. Since then, they have continued to be active for a long time, despite changes in members. Based on rock, their music incorporates elements from various genres such as classical, jazz, and folk music, and their advanced performance techniques have garnered them a large following both domestically and internationally. They are one of Japan's leading progressive rock bands, with experience performing at overseas rock festivals.