Words and Photos by Andy Armstrong
May 2024
Inward and private, Cwondo feels withdrawn into his own little universe.
Yet, his hyperpop world is strangely magnetic, pulling you into its swirl of playfully glum masterpieces.
Last spring at Osaka’s indie sanctuary, Socore Factory, the Tokyo-based songwriter/producer/track maker treated the audience to a beautifully frenetic and emotionally dynamic set.
A startling but endearing shock to the system.
Cwondo’s a hustler.
Any night of the week you can find him crawling around the city, laying down his offerings to the electronic gods.
But this weekend, he left the capital behind and set out on a mini-tour, first stopping in Nagoya, and then Osaka, one of East Asia’s music epicenters.
To document his visit, we met up after soundcheck and circled the neighborhood to capture a set of heartfelt black-and-white film portraits.
With limited time and little control over the location, shoots like this can be daunting.
But also extremely freeing.
You’re forced into working with what you have, relying on senses and intuition.
A cheat code into the flow state.
Following instinct, we found an open entrance and popped up to the top floor of a high-rise apartment building to borrow the view.
It turned out to be a goldmine.
After making the most of the city skyline, we meandered to Amidaike Koen, a classic Japanese park just a block from the venue.
During our venture, I discovered that Cwondo operates out of his humble home studio, where he handles all aspects of song production, including engineering, tracking, and programming, entirely on his own.
It’s astounding, considering the scope of sounds, elements, textures, and emotionality featured in his tracks.
Before long, we had a couple of rolls of film in the can and parted ways to get prepped for showtime.
Like some of my other favorite Japanese artists, specifically Pikomaruko and Sakusen 53, the stage is a catalyst for Cwondo. A temple gate spurring a transformation into extraordinary new versions of himself.
Cwondo’s live performances are dizzying. Shifting from frantic to subdued at a moment’s notice, completely in sync with the music’s energy.
With a superb catalog of releases that includes full-length albums, EP’s, singles, covers, demos, remixes, and live sessions, Cwondo recently added another one to the list:
A new album of 21 whimsical demo tracks ranging from gently-textured soundscapes to twitchy anthems.
A leftfield ballet, pirouetting through fantastical and wistful collages of synths, guitars, and drum machines.
At the forefront of Japan’s flourishing indie-electronic wave, Cwondo is a gift to the country’s music culture.
Prolific and committed, he transcends.
