Mahōgakkō
Hakushi Hasegawa absolutely killed it on this project. I only discovered him a couple of months ago, but I’ve quickly come to admire his chaotic yet beautiful style. Mahōgakkō is a half-hour of pure dizziness mixed with serene beauty. It's like stepping into the Garden of Eden right before Eve took that forbidden fruit.The instrumentation on this album is mind-blowing. Whether it was performed live or created with software that probably crashed a dozen times, it’s a masterpiece. The title "Mahōgakkō" translates to "Magic School," which perfectly fits the music. You can feel the magic in every track.From the booming drums and serene strings on "Boy’s Texture" to the cacophonous orchestra on "KYŌFUNOHOSHI" that shames any Jungle beat, to the Bubblegum Bass of "Embami" reminiscent of SOPHIE’s work, this album is a journey through a fantastical, ever-changing world. It’s the perfect mix of chaos and intention. Hasegawa himself said, “The balance is probably the only thing in my work that is intentional and very important to me.” He uses a personal scale he calls the “Explanatory Ratio” to guide his work, balancing explainable and unexplainable sounds. The result is an album that’s stupefying, bewildering, and larger than life. It’s a cacophony of chaos and a masterclass in existence. While it can be overwhelming and aimless at times, it never loses its authenticity or the sheer shock factor throughout the entire tracklist.
HAKUSHI HASEGAWA - MAHōGAKKō
RATING - 8.7/10
FAVORITE TRACKS - Gone, Boy’s Texture
GENRE - Dance, Electronic, Symphonic