SKU: 3524222912

Kazuki Tomokawa - Finally, His First Album

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Kazuki Tomokawa - Finally, His First AlbumAt the tender age of twenty five, while he was working part time at an Italian restaurant in Tokyo's Kamata district, Kazuki Tomokawa released his debut record, fittingly titled Finally, His First Album. While he had already penned hundreds of songs, including his first single "Try Saying You're Alive!," written on a long train ride past fields and rice paddies, it was this recording that introduced Japan to one of it's most unique musicians of the

At the tender age of twenty-five, while he was working part-time at an Italian restaurant in Tokyo's Kamata district, Kazuki Tomokawa released his debut record, fittingly titled Finally, His First Album. While he had already penned hundreds of songs, including his first single "Try Saying You're Alive!," written on a long train ride past fields and rice paddies, it was this recording that introduced Japan to one of it's most unique musicians of the postwar era. Each track, as record label exec Kiichi Takahara writes in the LP's liner notes (here translated for the first time), is not a song but a "flesh-and-blood human being," birthed by the singer-songwriter and the raw, guttural cries that would become a hallmark of his incomparable sound. 1970s Japan was a time and place marked by a profound desire for authenticity amidst the onset of television and media saturation. Tomokawa arrived on the scene as a musician with"the personality of a hydrogen bomb," to borrow a phrase from his frequent collaborator Toshi Ishizuka. In an unwieldy interview included here, members of the notorious leftist band Zun? Keisatsu (Brain Police) put it bluntly: here was a man surrounded by the "disingenuous," the "wishy-washy," and the "superficial," who was delivering "real life, unvarnished." These songs are lullabies for the lost, staring not into the void but-as the fourth track declares-from inside it. Finally, His First Album is the first of three Tomokawa records to be reissued by Blank Forms Editions in conjunction with the US release of Tomokawa's memoir, Try Saying You're Alive!, the first-ever English translation of his writing. This debut captures the self-assured trademarks that Tomokawa would hone over the course of decades. Multiple tracks are performed in his native Akita dialect, a distinct and highly regional vernacular of northern Japan seldom heard outside the prefecture-and even more rarely heard in music. Tomokawa's lyrics locate profound interiority in the rituals of everyday life, and are sung against sparse folk arrangements of tender, lilting chords-a prelude to the rock and electronic stylings to come in later years. A self-proclaimed "living corpse," Tomokawa wallows, whispers, shouts, and cries, yet still, through his existential doubt, asks to be heard.

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SKU: 3524222912

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Abigail Bond
Lexington, US
★★★★★ 5
Perfect box
Very sturdy and cute jewelry box!
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Natalia Arlashina
Port Orchard, US
★★★★★ 5
beautiful and high-quality jewelry box
Amazing jewelry box of good quality. color - exactly as in the photo (mine is olive). High-quality interior decoration. Everything as in the seller's photo. Highly recommend.
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Katie Roberts
Charlottesville, US
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Functional gift.
Used as an engraving project with our laser printer. Worked well, would make a great gift for bridesmaids etc.
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Kuv Lover
Omaha, US
★★★★★ 5
Beautiful, Sturdy, Excellent Customer Service!!
Size: 6 Tier, Color: White
Excellent quality item, and beyond outstanding customer service! This jewelry case is very thoughtfully configured, to accommodate various sizes and shapes of jewelry. I purchased this primarily to keep my fine gold chains entangled, and there are numerous velvet hooks, with pockets below to do this. The dividers are not removable, but because there six drawers with difference size choices, it was not an issue, tho some customers may have that question. The watch band bolsters, however, ARE removable. I chose the cream color case with tan/gold interior velvet lining. BUT, the lining, in my view, looks actually to be dusty rose/mauve in color. Not a screaming pink, a bit subtle, but it doesn't look tan as in the photo. Just FYI, in case the interior color is a big deal for you. But the exterior light cream is just as pictured, and is beautiful! Regarding the customer service for this company, I contacted them prior to and after purchase. They responded very quickly, and were clear and articulate in answering my questions / addressing my concerns Thank you!
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Mary C.
Grantham, US
★★★★★ 5
Holds lots of jewelry
Size: 6 Tier, Color: White
Wonderful jewelry box!! the drawer slide very easily, and I love all the compartments!!!
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Reviewed in the United States on May 10, 2026

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