Noahlewis' Mahlon Taits formed in late-nineties Tokyo around record-shop employee Hino Yojin, who recruited his bandmates from among the customers. Working with only acoustic instruments — accordion, violin, ukulele, flute, musical saw, steel guitar — they conjure the air of the 78rpm era without ever tipping into pastiche: nostalgic but avant-garde, hand-played and warm. 'Valley of No Return' is their cover of a Joe Meek composition, recorded straight to analog in one take. Released on the adventurous EM Records, it's a record for listeners who like their jazz dusty, intimate, and entirely out of step with its own decade.
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