Total Accord & KEXP present:
Tomo Nakayama
(Celebrating ‘Ocean’)
"When music journalists say things like 'this artist is a fixture in Seattle music,' there’s probably no one right now who fits that title better than Nakayama." - KEXP
Seattle artist Tomo Nakayama’s fourth album Ocean will be released on November 7th on Porchlight Records/Den Tapes in the USA, and in Japan on Lemon House Inc. Following his breakthrough 2020 synthpop album "Melonday", “Ocean” is Tomo’s return to a graceful, lush, organic full-band sound, backed by pianist Yuuki Matthews (The Shins), bassist Abbey Blackwell (Alvvays), and drummer Christopher Icasiano (Fleet Foxes) and featuring guest turns by Jesy Fortino (Tiny Vipers) and Debbie Miller. It is his most personal and complete musical statement to date, a self-produced ten song reflection on grief, healing, and the meaning of creating art and maintaining humanity in a tumultuous world. “Ocean” travels across sonic worlds of dream pop, orchestral acoustic folk, jazzyl psychedelia and indie rock, all tied together by a wide open melodic and lyrical heart. "Ocean" is a deeply collaborative album awash in images of the sea, serving as metaphors for the vastness of love, human connection, and our capacity to clearly see and be one with the world.
Born in Japan and raised in Seattle, Tomo Nakayama has explored the lines between intimate indie folk, exuberant synth pop, and cinematic soundtracks for over two decades. Best known for placements in Netflix’s “House of Ninjas” and the Sundance Grand Jury nominated film “Touchy Feely”, Tomo’s music has been praised by NPR, KEXP, and the New York Times, and his hit single “Get to Know You” received over 2 million streams worldwide. He has toured across the world, sharing the stage with artists such as Cornelius, Built to Spill, Fruit Bats, Thao, and Stella Donnelly. A versatile multi-instrumentalist and composer, Tomo has also accompanied and collaborated with Dave Matthews, Jeremy Enigk (of Sunny Day Real Estate), Sera Cahoone, Jherek Bischoff, Jesse Sykes, Donnie Emerson (Dreamin’ Wild, Light in the Attic), and experimental dance company Malacarne.
Yea-Ming & the Rumours
Frontwoman Yea-Ming Chen (Ryli) has masterfully curated her self-proclaimed “pop record”, weaving melancholy narratives with catchy hooks in a sound that is more indie pop leaning than anything the Rumours have done before. The fuller-sounding production is heavily influenced by groups like Yo La Tengo, Camera Obscura and other early 90’s underground college radio favorites. “I Can’t Have It All” marks the band’s continued evolution past their early days as an outlet for Chen’s sparse and intimate songs.
Goh Nakamura
Goh Nakamura is a singer, songwriter, musician, composer and actor. A fortuitous 2007 feature on YouTube's front page brought his music videos over a million views and earned him a new fanbase from all over the world.
As a session musician, his guitar and vocal work has been featured in films directed by Ridley Scott such as A Good Year, American Gangster and Body of Lies. His track "Daylight Savings" also appears in the film Feast of Love. Nakamura made his acting debut in Dave Boyle's award-winning film, Surrogate Valentine, where he played a fictionalized version of himself. The film screened at a number of festivals including the SXSW Film Festival and Nakamura won a Special Jury Prize for Acting from the Dallas International Film Festival for his performance.
He also starred in the film's sequel, Daylight Savings which was named after his first album and which also premiered at a number of film festivals, including the 2012 SXSW Film Festival.For his work in both films, Nakamura was chosen as a “New American Filmmaker” by the Vilcek Foundation at the 2012 Hawaii International Film Festival. In the award winning independent film Life Inside Out (2014), Nakamura plays "Uncle" Sam, musician and host of an open mic night, alongside Maggie Baird and Finneas O’Connell directed by Jill D'Agnenica. Goh reprises his role as “Goh” in the third Surrogate Valentine movie “I WILL MAKE YOU MINE” directed and written by Lynn Chen.
As a film composer, Goh most recently scored the ESPN 30 for 30 Bruce Lee documentary “Be Water,” directed by Bao Ngyuen which premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival and is currently showing on ESPN. He was also commissioned by the Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival in 2017 to score the 1919 silent film, The Dragon Painter, starring groundbreaking Japanese actor, Sessuye Hayakawa. Goh was also commissioned by the Center for Home Movies and the National Registry to score two silent home movies, which debuted at the New York City MoMa in January 2020.
DOORS at 7:00PM | MUSIC at 8:00 PM
