The new album "Ysla" by Yumi Ito has become a true tidal current of personal stories, impressive improvisations, and the unique voice of the Swiss-Polish-Japanese singer, composer, and improviser. Musically, the work moves between art-pop, jazz, and neoclassical; thematically, it deals with loneliness & separation, the world ending, and rebirth. In deep self-reflection, Itohas developed her vocal improvisation into a kind of "universal" language that can be understood anywhere. Besides that, for the first time, she recorded all piano parts herself, complemented by Kuba Dworak on double bass and Iago Fernández on drums. In addition, there are illustrious guests like Chris Hyson (synths; Jordan Rakei, The Magic Lantern, Snowpoet) and Szymon Mika (g), with whom Yumi Ito also plays in a duo. Mixing & mastering of the seven original compositions was done by sound engineer Daniel Dettwiler at Studio Idee und Klang, using the same mixing console that Queen and Supertramp already used. For all these reasons, "Ysla" (enja records, 2023) isn’t simply Yumi Ito’s fifth album under her own name but marks a new peak in her opus.

A journey through the endless expanses of the sea to a magnificent island: this image appears in the mind’s eye when "Ysla" is spinning on the record player. The new album by Yumi Ito has become a true tidal current of personal stories, impressive improvisations, and the unique voice of the Swiss-Polish-Japanese singer, composer, and improviser.

“In recent years, I’ve worked on new music in Iceland, Galicia (Cies), and Greece (Milos), which – like my father's country of origin, Japan - are all islands. Traveling there has generated distance and time to get to know myself better.” — Yumi Ito

"Ysla", from the Old Portuguese for "island", deals with the themes of loneliness & separation, the world ending, and rebirth, linked with metaphors from nature, psychology, and sociology, as well as current contemporary history. The seven original compositions are closely connected to Yumi Ito's personhood and tell of her path of reflection and self-discovery. In this process, Ito has also developed her vocal improvisation into a "universal" language that can be understood anywhere: She uses it in a highly conscious, virtuoso, and incredibly powerful way, improvising with apparent effortlessness across genres, keys, and rhythms of all kinds – like a Zen master in harmony with her surroundings.

"The times on the islands and during the pandemic have made me reflect intensely. One realization has been that when I improvise and scat, I can connect with people across nationalities and borders in my own wordless language – much like traveling – and thus be at home anywhere." — Yumi Ito

Moreover, Ito recorded all the piano parts herself for the first time, and impressively so: when the often complex piano patterns ring out and the musician sings over them in a completely detached way, a world is conjured up in no time at all. She is complemented by Kuba Dworak on double bass and Iago Fernández on drums, both of whom already formed the rhythm section of the Yumi Ito Orchestra. Effortlessly, this trio maneuvers through a veritable genre ocean of ambient sounds, mystical grooves, and soulful parts between art-pop, jazz, and neoclassical. Among those on board: illustrious guests like Chris Hyson (synths; Jordan Rakei, The Magic Lantern, Snowpoet) and Szymon Mika (g), with whom Yumi Ito also plays in a duo. Mix & mastering was done by sound engineer Daniel Dettwiler at Studio Idee und Klang, using the same mixing console that Queen and Supertramp already used. For all these reasons, "Ysla" (enja records, 2023) isn’t simply Yumi Ito’s fifth album under her own name but marks a new peak in her opus. Profound and immensely fresh – like an island: proud, stoic, and strong amidst the powerful waves of the ocean.

Line – Up:

Yumi Ito — vocals, piano (1, 2, 3, 4, 7), Rhodes (1), composition, lyrics, production, art direction
Kuba Dworak — doublebass
Iago Fernández — drums
Chris Hyson — synths, post-production
Xan Campos — Rhodes 2 / keys (3)
Szymon Mika — acoustic guitars (5)
Rui Stähelin — theorbo (2)
Kyrill Fasla Prolat — cello (4)
Kirk Starkey — cello (1)
Jo Flüeler — pre-production synths (1), recording engineer Rhodes (1)
Ambrosius Huber — cello (1, 2, 6, 7)

Album-Info: 

Daniel Dettwiler — 1st recording engineer (5, 6), recording engineer for all vocals (except 2)
Sam Barnett — Recording engineer for the piano, double bass and drums of all tracks (except 5, 6), recording engineer for the cello (4), vocals, and theorbo (2); theorbo post-production (2), editing all songs (except 5, 6)
Patrik Zosso — Recording engineer for the cello (1, 2, 6, 7)
Johannes Jäck — Editing all tracks, 2nd engineer (5, 6), 2nd engineer for all vocals (except 2)
Jaka Arh — Additional programming/processing (3), assistant to the mixing engineer
Mixing, mastering and programming: Daniel Dettwiler at Idee und Klang Studio, Himmelried, Switzerland
Recorded at Jazzcampus Basel, February-July 2022
Rhodes 2 recorded at Xan’s home, Cangas, July 2022
Synth pre-productions at Sád Studios Basel (1, 3)
Synths, post-production by Chris Hyson, London, July 2022

Vinyl mastering — Magdalena Piotrkowska Hear Candy Mastering, Poland
Marta Sołtys — Management, executive production
Stoph Ruckli — Coaching, consulting
Maria Jarzyna — Visual art direction, photography, layout design

Supported by the Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia

© & (P) 2023 Werner Aldinger | enja records
Angler Str. 25 | 80339 Munich, Germany
yeb-7832 1 | LC 18386 | Made in EU