Ayal Senior is a Canadian, Toronto-based alternative guitarist, improviser, and the head of his label Medusa Editions, with a great interest in the Japanese alternative scene.

Yutori (ゆとり) is a Japanese word, frame of mind and philosophy that refers to having peace of mind, emotional calmness, and feeling unhurried. Senior learned and explored this concept during the past few years’ summer visits to Japan, and continues to integrate this concept into his own internal dialogue, ability to listen, interpersonal communication, as well as his musical and non-musical collaboration. The cover of this album is by Japanese artist Kamisaka Sekka (1866-1942).

Senior says that this album is the third album of blues, songs, space rags, and drifting clouds that began with Az Yashir and Ora (Medusa Editions, 2022 and 2024). He enjoys the company of trusted friends and long-time collaborators with whom he has worked over the last two decades. His pieces rely on the stimulating tension between his own dream-like and peaceful, elusive, folk-like melodies, articulated by an acoustic 12-string guitar, contrasted by Kurt Newman’s effect-laden, urgent, enigmatic, and often dark pedal steel and electric guitar lines, in a way that both Senior and Newman correspond with Steve Tibbetts’ aesthetic, with echoes of Robert Fripp, cushioned by the sparse, delicate percussive sounds that bring to mind Tibbetts’ close collaborator, percussionist Marc Anderson.

Senior hopes that this trilogy «transports you in peace to wherever the music and spaces within take you». The twelve pieces clearly transport you to magical, inspired times when folk musicians searched for common musical ground with cosmic prog-rock bands. Think of King Crimson taking a pastoral walk in lush nature.

Eyal Hareuveni

Ayal Senior (12-string guitar), Kurt Newman (pedal steel, electric guitar), Andrew Furlong (bass), Blake Howard (drums, percussion), Jay Anderson (percussion), Amahl Arulanandam (cello), Michael Davidson (vibraphone)