Hiroki Tanaka explores identity and cultural roots on “Isan” (album)

"Isan" is the new album from Hiroki Tanaka, which means "inheritance." Tanaka's project is intimate and expansive at once, with 11 tracks thoughtfully sequenced to create a unified listening experience of sound, memory, and identity.

The album, guided by lineage, belonging, and emotional reckoning- leading with "Ikoi" and capping it alongside in "Golden House." Each tune carries significance, ensuring the project comes off as more of a meditation. Thanks to its cast of collaborators from the Japanese diaspora, the album boasts a rich, resonant depth. These additions reinforce the album's overarching theme of shared cultural inheritance and shifting identity.

The lead single, "Shame," is charged by religious trauma and faith-based guilt, and it sounds like an old style of Japanese hymn skill called Imayo. This combination of history and modernity creates a beautiful ambiance that lingers. "Chosen" is a high energy anthem that aligns with 90s alt-rock style and "Golden House" is an orchestral piece of art that was arranged by Paul Wiancko. "Yamato" blends Taiko drums with a garage rock showcasing the experimental heart of the album.

"Isan" is slick and captivating, allowing each song enough time to breathe and fit into the album's arc. The result feels complete, polished, and even tailored for people who enjoy delving into music. Hiroki Tanaka focuses on ideas of identity and heritage, and the complications that entail. This is something fans of experimental, culturally thick, emotionally dense music will need to tune in to and come back to again.