Coffee and music have a lot in common. They both drink, sometimes mindlessly and for other purposes, coffee for its caffeine content and music as background noise while their attention is elsewhere. However, when given adequate space, both open up, revealing their subtleties to the coordinated seeker. They both have the most experience in analogue.
The company’s up-to-date collaboration was created at the analog intersection of coffee and music Standard. The quarterly print magazine, which is a multiple nominee and four-time winner of the Sprudgie Awards for Best Coffee Book/Magazine, has teamed up with Japanese electronic duo Satoshi & Makoto for a up-to-date coffee and café-inspired EP.
It was standard suggesting publication on Instagramand it was officially announced yesterday, May 6. Mirage Cafe is the first album in six years Satoshi and Makotobut this is not the first time identical twins from Kanagawa have collaborated with Standart. Two years ago, they were published in issue 34, where they discussed “what a sonic expression of coffee might sound like.”
Recorded in Tokyo and produced in Porto, it “reflects an international dialogue between sound, place and everyday ritual” and is a mix of “ambient electronics and restrained rhythm [that] it unfolds like a day shaped by coffee rituals.” From the band’s website:
The title evokes an “imaginary café”, a conceptual space where contemplation, connection and inspiration intersect. This vision was further enriched thanks to the partnership with Standart magazine, combining the worlds of music and coffee culture into a narrative that is at once intimate and international. The result is an album that unfolds like a “snail-paced ritual” – heated, enveloping and meticulously detailed.
To coincide with the release, Standart is releasing a constrained vinyl edition. A total of 500 green vinyl copies will be made and will be available exclusively through Standard website for $30. However, if you don’t like records, you can exploit the digital versions of Mirage Cafe Bandcamp, SpotifyAND Apple Music.
For more information or to purchase the constrained edition Mirage Cafe green vinyl, visit Standart’s official website.
