#SlamRadio - 517 - Risa Taniguchi & Black Asteroid

Risa Taniguchi is arriving at the forefront of the dark techno wave that has washed over the underground in recent years. The Tokyo born - and based - artist has spent the last four years cultivating a lo-fi sound of distorted textures, fizzing synths and a quietly burning energy, which consumes all who hear it. Preferring to play sets which are "late night, for the weirdos", Risa has a knack for getting crowds in a nocturnal trance, before delivering shocks and surprises with a curious motif or unpredictable element. For those who like to cut loose in a dark environment, she is the perfect selector. In the studio as well as the club, Risa focuses on the drums, programming kicks that bring visceral and often aggressive thrills next to a uniquely addictive layer of well designed snares and hi hats. Her signature has become her own subtle and intriguing vocal samples, best heard on Slipped My Mind and This Guy. She adds layers of acid bass and an always raw, edgy aesthetic. Having experienced them first hand whilst living in London, in 2010, Risa also has an enduring love of underground UK bass sounds, which can be heard in many of her tracks. The multi-talented act is also formally trained and a skilled player of the piano, who continues to play daily. Since her first release back in 2018, Risa has attracted high profile interest from A-list players Amelie Lens, Dense & Pika, Pan Pot, Perc and Daniel Avery; has hit the Top 5 of the Beatport's Leftfield Techno Chart and played everywhere from De Marktkantine in Amsterdam to Watergate in Berlin, and of course all the most revered spaces all across Japan including Contact, Womb, and Vent. Despite the pandemic, the recent years have proven to be a high watermark for Risa as she has delivered a continuous flow of new music, primarily on Pan Pot’s Second State and on Dense & Pika’s Kneaded Pains. With both of these mighty techno duos giving Risa their support and platforms, it has enabled her to start taking her first major footsteps into Europe, picking up her first headline bookings there. In 2022, she teams up for the first time together with Black Asteroid, a former engineer for Prince, and the duo will deliver three gritty, hard-hitting techno tracks on Chris Liebing's CLR. BRYAN BLACK aka BLACK ASTEROID started his music career as a sound designer and keyboard tech for PRINCE at PAISLEY PARK STUDIOS in his hometown of Minneapolis. While working for Prince, black proceeded to create his own music- some of the most innovative techno records released on labels such as MUTE and KOMPAKT. These records caught the ear of MARTIN GORE from DEPECHE MODE. Soon after, Black was on tour with Depeche Mode with his band MOTOR, and recording songs with Martin Gore at his home studio in Santa Barbara and Berlin. Together Black and Gore wrote a top 40 single “Man Made Machine”. In 2011 the debut BLACK ASTEROID single, “Engine 1” introduced Black Asteroid to the world, and introduced an industrial rock sound into techno that quickly took off, propelling Black to play at clubs such as Berghain, Fabric London and major festivals. The focus was in favor of song structures and vocals in a techno template. 
 After a string of EPs, the debut album “Thrust” was released in 2017 with many cross over singles, featuring vocals from ZOLA JESUS, COLD CAVE and MICHELE LAMY. The fashion designer RICK OWENS picked up on what was happening, and used Black's music for his runway shows in Paris. The two quickly became friends and collaborators. 
Currently Black Asteroid is prepping a new album and several EPs, in addition to working in the fashion world, having just released a collection of sunglasses with Valley Eyewear, and music for Raf Simons and Rick Owens.