“Sound & Vision”,
which succeeded “Euphony” that had been held for the last five years at Aoyama ZERO, is launched at NUMM, Tokyo. It's an evening that draws on Kaoru Inoue's long career as a DJ/creator and focuses more on personal depth and storytelling on a DJ long set.

Sound & Vision

Some DJ mixes were moved to the Mixcloud.
https://www.mixcloud.com/KaoruInoue/

MiXes

Bandcamp

Selected Works

Fourth episode of the monthly Angis Music Show for Universal Rhythms Radio with special guest from Tokyo, Kaoru Inoue aka Chari Chari (@kaoru324).

Samuele Pagliai(start - 56:22)
Kaoru Inoue(56:23 - end)

Universal Rhythms | Angis Music Show w/ Samuele Pagliai & Kaoru Inoue - June 4th, 2021

Chari Chari - In Exotic Haze [Vintage Drum Club Mix] (7:13)

Available in September on 12inch EP & digital on Bandcamp. distributed by @efd-tokyo
This is the “Tokyo-themed” 2nd EP in a series of remixes/reworks from Chari Chari’s new album “We hear the last decades dreaming” which was the first album in 18 years under the name of Chari Chari, a project by Kaoru Inoue who has been working as a DJ and producer for over 25 years.
Mamazu, who has been leading the unique Slow Techno / Psychedelic / Tribal genre in the domestic scene after a long career, is reworking “Fading Away” to the 100bpm Trance.
Chida, a true pioneer of the overseas underground scene, made “Tokyo 4:51” into 2 versions with real grooves. “In Exotic Haze”, one of the most popular track from the album,  is reworked by Kaoru Inoue himself.
-----
Kaoru Inoueによる自主レーベル ”Seeds And Ground” の復活作品となった、Chari Chari名義としては18年ぶりとなるアルバム “We hear the last decades dreaming” からのリミックス・シリーズ第2弾。
長いキャリアを経て国内独特のSlow Techno ~ Psychedelic ~ Tribal路線を推進し、海外からも注目を集めるMamazuによる、永遠に登り詰めるような“Fading Away”渾身のリミックス。そして海外アンダーグラウンド・シーンの真の開拓者と言えるヴェテランChidaによる、クラシックなHouse ~ Electroマナーかつ本場のソリッドな地下グルーヴが伝わってくるような“Tokyo 4:51”リミックス X 2ヴァージョン。そしてアルバムの人気トラックのひとつである“In Exotic Haze”をKaoru Inoue本人がリワーク。

B1 Tokyo 4.51 [Chida Remix]

A2 Fading Away [Mamazu Remix]

A1 In Exotic Haze [Vintage Drum Club Mix]

Available in September on 12inch EP & digital on Bandcamp. distributed by @efd-tokyo
This is the last EP in a series of remixes/reworks from Chari Chari’s new album “We hear the last decades dreaming” which was the first album in 18 years under the name of Chari Chari, a project by Kaoru Inoue who has been working as a DJ and producer for over 25 years.
The EP includes a deep remix by Bartosz Kruczyński, also known as Earth Trax, who has released two excellent ambient/new age albums on the Germany’s Growing Bin, and a remix from Knopha, a new generation artist & DJ from Chinese underground who has been getting a lot of attention. It also features a rework by Yoshiharu Takeda, whose self-produced album “Aspiration” has been quietly gaining attention, and a DJ-friendly 100bpm jam by Kaoru Inoue himself.
-----
Kaoru Inoueによる自主レーベル ”Seeds And Ground” の復活作品となった、Chari Chari名義としては18年ぶりとなるアルバム “We hear the last decades dreaming” からのリミックス・シリーズ最後となる、そして2組の海外勢を含む第3弾。
Earth Trax名義でのレイヴィーなブレイクビーツ・トラックが話題を呼ぶポーランドの俊英＝Bartosz Kruczyński（本名名義でもドイツのGrowing Binより秀逸なアンビエント/ニュー・エイジ・アルバム2枚をリリースしている）によるディープなリミックスや、日本でも水面下で大きな反響を得ており、2枚のアナログEPが即完売となっていた中国の新世代アーティスト/DJ＝Knophaによるリミックスなど、それぞれのスキルが遺憾無く発揮されたトラックを始め、自主制作アルバム「Aspiration」が静かな話題を呼び、Disk Unionからのヴァイナル化を果たしたYoshiharu Takedaによる陽光煌めくようなリワーク、そしてKaoru Inoue本人によるDJユースフルな100bpm jamなど、充実のEP作品。

A1 Uluwatu Monkey Dance [Bartosz Kruczyński Remix]

Kaoru Inoue is one of our first and most loyal supporters. But most of all he's a fantastic dj and producer. He runs the always fresh Seeds and Ground label and produces under the moniker Chari Chari. We are very happy to have him on board. His selection spans an arc from heavy percussions to soundcapes and back.
More about Kaoru -  https://soundcloud.com/kaoru324

LOODcast 45 ~ Kaoru Inoue

Chari Chari - Suburban Ethnology Vol.1
Groovement Organic Series https://soundcloud.com/groovement - GOS007EP
12inch vinyl EP (no digital)

A1. Meandering River
A2. Pesta Malam
B1. Onda de Meatal pt1
B2. Onda de Metal pt2
B3. Onda de Metal pt3

Chari Chari follows his sold out album on Groovement Organic Series with a new EP inspired by folk traditions.
“Suburban Ethnology vol. 1” explores his love for ancient sounds, rituals and the power of healing music.
5 tracks crafted in Tokyo that potentially suggest a beautiful soundtrack to real and imaginary worlds.

Suburban Ethnology vol.1

Chari Chari - Suburban Ethnology Vol.1 (Excerpt)

It's a great pleasure to welcome Japanese electronic music stronghold Kaoru Inoue (@kaoru324), also known as Chari Chari and founder of the Seeds And Ground label, to the mix series. Interview (excerpt) down below.

www.musicfrommemory.com

MFM: Welcome on board of the series Kaoru. You're from Japan and are living in Tokyo. Do you find Tokyo, and Japan as whole, a positive place to be at as an artist?

KI: Tokyo is a fascinating city, full of crazy stimuli and exciting noise, but I don’t need it anymore as the years go by, especially after the pandemic. So now I feel like an outsider loving Tokyo and living a quiet life in its suburbs. I think it’s a positive place for artists in the sense that it’s still rich in nature and food, and the population is decreasing, despite having experienced the high economic growth and the high information society, but what we learned again after the pandemic is that government protection policies are fragile. 

MFM: Your musical output as a producer is quite large and rather versatile, from acoustic guitar sessions to more new age like soundscapes to broken beat and deep house. Where does this versatility come from? 

KI: I think it's because I've been deeply committed to music since my teens. From YMO to post-punk, ethnic, rare groove to deep house, I was already looking for and listening to music like a researcher from a young age. So I started DJing naturally as a way to mix and share my records, and my outputs could be a fusion of them. However, so to speak, I’ve been most influenced by the contextuality of House music, and when looking at everything from a bird’s eye view, I can say that my main interest is, in a word, in “Minimalism”.

MFM: Your music -regardless which moniker you use- sounds extremely organic, very earthly but also mystical and sacred. As if it was recorded far deep in nature amongst some indigenous tribe's ritual. Where does this signature sound come from, what are its origins?

KI: My early tunes were strongly influenced by the atmosphere of Bali & Java in Indonesia, where I used to visit in my twenties, and I think it still remains somewhere in me. I also have a cultural anthropological interest in folk or tribal music from all over the world, and I even am influenced by ecological ideas. (In recent years, I’ve been more into traditional & contemporary music from my own country than ever before.) I think that’s why it is.

MFM: Hence your own label's name Seeds And Ground too probably? 

KI: Indeed, and it’s a metaphor for sex and creation.

MFM: How about the instruments? There's guitar, lots and lots of percussion, marimba, field recordings, plenty chords too... Are you a trained musician and do you record all these parts yourself (with the real instruments)? 

KI: I had learnt to play piano as a child and taught myself to play guitar from the age of 13. However, after encountering DJ culture in my early twenties, I quit a band and didn’t play an instrument for a while. So I know a little more about harmony, chords and so on than the average DJ. I’ve also started to play the guitar again a little bit in a few projects since I started producing electronic music, but only in a very specific way. I’ve also recorded with many different musicians so far.

MFM: So, what can you tell about the mix you've made? Did you record it with a certain vibe or theme or purpose in mind?

KI: It’s a rethinking of “New Age”ish or “Obscure”ish music, past and present. Some Japanese music from the 80s and 90s has also been included with respect to Eiji & Norio who compiled “Heisei No Oto”. And two of my recent tracks as Chari Chari are also included.

MFM: By the way, by the look of your shirt you're a Jodorowsky fan? :)

KI: I look up to Jodorowsky as my mentor, especially after reading his autobiography. I got this shirt as a return from the Endless Poetry crowdfunding campaign.

MFM Mix 034: Kaoru Inoue

New release on Jan.2014
Limited vinyl split EP by Kaoru Inoue & Esoteric Movement

Esoteric Movement - Hidden Fire

This mix was sold as a Mix CD entitled "In Your Lucid Dreams".
An experimental mix of melting boundaries from ethnic to new age, deep tech&house and krautrock, was inspired by Alejandro Jodorowsky's autobiography.
Label: BPM Therapy - BTCDP001

In Your Lucid Dreams (Excerpt) - Mixed by Kaoru Inoue

This mix was sold as a Mix CD entitled "水声 (Suisei = Voice of Water): Field Recordings From Japonesian Shelf".
A narrative mix using only Japanese stuff such as traditional, electronic, new age or tribal music.
Label: BPM Therapy - BTCDP002

水声 (Excerpt) - Mixed by Kaoru Inoue

Dedicated to the Island -soundwalk & music for SAUNTER magazine-
Written & Produced by Kaoru Inoue

Kaoru Inoue’s new work, is based on a field recordings at the World Heritage listed island of Yakushima, was released on 23 Sep 2023 as a CD supplement to a travel magazine called "SAUNTER magazine" (https://saunter.thebase.in) - Yakushima special issue.
It was eventually re-released as high-quality vinyl from Deep Ground Records Japan on 20 April - Record Store Day 2024. (https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/16573)

井上薫の新作は、屋久島ベースの出版社＝キルティ・ブックスが発行する「SAUNTER magazine」(https://saunter.thebase.in) 9/23発売の第6号、特集「屋久島の現在」CD付き限定版としてリリース。自身4回目の屋久島で敢行したフィールド・レコーディングを元に制作された、珠玉のOrganic Electronic Music。誌面には屋久島滞在時の取材記事も掲載。
またこの作品は2024年4月20日のRecord Store Dayにアナログ盤LPとしてDeep Ground Recordsより再リリースされた。(https://recordstoreday.jp/item/dgr-002/)

Dedicated to the Island (Excerpt)

This newly started program "Euphony Mix" broadcasting our taste of music with invited guest to Euphony @ 0 Zero, Tokyo.
We cast "naka" for our 2nd guest mix, who played at Euphony in June 2023.
Please enjoy our musical journey.

Euphony Mix Series

Euphony Mix 002 : naka

The 3rd episode of "Euphony Mix" is live mix by Chee Shimizu performed on Aug 2023 at Aoyama Zero.
Please enjoy our musical journey!

Euphony Mix 003 : Chee Shimizu

"乱舞 (Ranbu = Stormy Dance)" is a mixed CD as Disk Union exclusive, out on Dec. 2023.
A narrative dance mix using only Japanese stuff from 1974 to 2003.

乱舞 (Excerpt) - Mixed by Kaoru Inoue

Live DJ mix at DOMMUNE - a live streaming station in Tokyo / this show was broadcast from Nerima Art Museum - for a special program celebrating the release of the concept album "Dedicated to the Island" by Kaoru Inoue.
https://www.dommune.com/streamings/2023/100901/

屋久島ベースの旅雑誌「Saunter Magazine」のために作られた、屋久島をテーマにしたオリジナル・アルバム「Dedicated to the Island」発売を記念してDOMMUNEにてストリーミング配信（練馬区立美術館より）された番組でのDJミックス。

Track ID
01. Kaoru Inoue - Nagareru
02. Kaoru Inoue - Tobitatsu
03. Kaoru Inoue - Mushikiki
04. Kaoru Inoue - The Basement Duet
05. CV & JAV - Stone Circle
06. Final Drop - Mimyo
07. Final Drop - Space Time Polyrhythm
08. Final Drop - Unsui-Kyo
09. Final Drop - A Thousand Years Old Three Dub
10. Kaoru Inoue - Hoshifuru
11. Kaoru Inoue - Tengaku ~ Kodama
12. Chari Chari - Of Mystic Dreams (Unreleased Drum Track)
13. Ryuichi Sakamoto - The 'Dreaming'
14. Petre Inspirescu - Lumiere
15. Patryk Zakrocki - Martian Landscapes
16. Petre Inspirescu - delir 1
17. D.K. - Echo Chamber
18. Steve Reich - Eight Lines (Howie B Remix)
19. Evergreen Club Contemporary Gamelan - Palace III

Live mix at Dommune 09.Oct.2023

The 4th episode of "Euphony Mix" is live mix by Awane performed on Oct. 2023 "Euphony plays Jazz" at Aoyama Zero.
Please enjoy our musical journey!

Euphony Mix 004 : Awane

Recorded live in June 2024 at Aoyama Zero.
The whole 5 hours of our last party in Aoyama Zero with Mayu Amano (@mayu-amano)
Please enjoy our musical journey!

Euphony Mix 005 : Kaoru Inoue, shunhor & Mayu Amano

Kaoru Inoue "Rhythms of Dedication"

November 3 2024 on sale.
Deep Ground Records: DGR-003
Vinyl / Digital

Side A
1. Nagareru SidiRum Remix　5:26
2. Nagareru Anatomy　3:47
3. La Isla Secreta　4:13

Side B
1. Karyobinga　5:28
2. Hoshifuru Drums　5:28
3. Cityscape 4:20 am Harajuku　2:01

Transformed from the album “Dedicated to the Island”

New EP "Rhythms of Dedication" will be released on 3rd November - Japan's "Record Day," which marks its 10th anniversary this year - from Deep Ground Records.
It contains self-reworks on selected tracks from the previous LP "Dedicated to the Island", which was released worldwide at RECORD STORE DAY 2024 in April. The EP also includes a remix by a very talented Argentine artist SidiRum, as well as previously unreleased tracks, six tracks in all.

Record Store Day 2024 でのリリースで海外からも大きな反響を得たLP「Dedicated to the Island」の続編と言える、Kaoru Inoue の全6曲入りNew EP「Rhythms of Dedication」が完成。
南米アルゼンチン出身でSlow House ~ Tribalシーンにおいて群を抜く才能の持ち主であるアーティスト＝SidiRum のリミックスを筆頭に、前LPからの楽曲をセルフ・リワーク、さらに初ヴァイナル化トラック、未発表トラックを収録、国内のレコードの祭典「レコードの日 2024」にリリースされる。
アンビエント、環境音楽などの要素が濃厚だった前LPからの抜粋楽曲に、タイトル通りリズム要素が刻印されていった、有機的でレフトフィールドなダンス・トラック集に仕上がっており、国内屈指の実績と高い技術力を誇る東洋化成でのプレスで前作同様そのクオリティにも期待が高まる。

Rhythms of Dedication (Excerpt)

Live DJ mix extracted from the first half of the session on 21 Dec. 2024.

Sound & Vision 21.Dec.2024 - extract from the 1st half

Live DJ mix extracted from the second half of the session on 16 Nov. 2024.

Sound & Vision 16.Nov.2024 - extract from the 2nd half

Live DJ mix extracted from 5 hour DJ set "Sound & Vision" at Numm Tokyo on 15 March 2025.

Sound & Vision 15.March.2025 - excerpt

Extract from one day's set - taken from "Sound & Vision" @ Numm, Tokyo.
A birthday cerebration for my friends and a meditation dance for anti-war. Drop a^^d not bomb.

-Track ID-
01. Hedesch (Black Merlin Dub) - Andrei Rusu
02. 3tempo3 - PuNto
03. Division - Polygonia
04. Decoro - Anthony Linell & Adiel
05. Catura - DJ Sodeyama
06. Learning To Fly - Mathew Jonson
07. Coorabell - Floating Points
08. Gleam From Distant Gate - Imugem Orihasam
09. Turn Up - Fred P
10. Groove La Chord - Aril Brikha
11. Language - Stephen Brown
12. Rumble (Fred P's Journey Interpretation) - Return To Forever
13. Ground Rhythm (The Backwoods Remix) - Kaoru Inoue

Sound & Vision - <A dance meditation>

#46
- Autumn envelops -
by Kaoru Inoue @kaoru324

In mid-September in 2025, a new facility opened in Tokyo, and I was commissioned to create the background music for several common areas on one of its floors. It was the largest music production project I’ve taken on so far. One of the spaces is equipped with an immersive audio system, where multi-track sound files were installed to work with a custom acoustic design and a multi-channel speaker setup.
I dedicated roughly the first half of 2025 to this project. Although the process had its challenges, it became an invaluable experience—offering me a rare opportunity to reconsider, in my own way, how environmental and ambient music can function in contemporary and public spaces. This mix is built around tracks I referenced during the production period, along with other pieces I explored in the process.

先日9月中旬にオープンした都内某施設の一部フロアの共用部分数カ所で流れるBGMを制作した。音楽制作の仕事でここまで大型のものを受けたのは初めてで、さらにそのうちの1カ所はいわゆるイマーシブ・オーディオのシステムが入っており、独自の音響設計に従って配置されたマルチ・チャンネル・スピーカーに対応するようマルチ・トラックの音源がインストールされている。
2025年、今年前半の約半年をこの制作に捧げたわけだが、困難な行程も得難い体験となり、また環境音楽やアンビエント・ミュージックについて現代的・公共空間的に（自分なりに）再考する又と無い機会となった。今回のミックスはこの制作期間に参照した楽曲と、それに伴い掘っていた曲達を軸に構成した。

- Track list -
01. Ruth Happel - Echo Pond
02. Gunther Pohl & Clifford Lantaff - Jolivet: Alla Rustica
03. Bernard Fort - Kenya: Masai mara, de nuit au mois d'août
04. Francesco Messina - Untitled
05. Peter Mumme - Eucalypt
06. David Bowie - Moss Garden
07. Harold Budd & Hector Zazou - And Then She Stepped Aside
08. Mette Henriette - Drifting
09. Jakob Bro - Mar del plata
10. Salamanda - Melting Hazard
11. Pauline Anna Strom - Small Reptiles on the Forest Floor
12. Kaoru Inoue - Mizukumi [Minotaur Inst. Edition]
13. 向後隆 - 水礼拝
14. Josiah Steinbrick - Full Bloom
15. Michael Torke - Bloom 1, Night
16. Uakti - Xentitemento Mu Puli (My Little Bird In Foreign Lands)
17. Lou Harrison - Fugue For Percussion
18. Ryo - Thai Stalk
19. Asa Tone & Ariel Karma - 28°35'S 153°22'E
20. Macie Stewart - What Fills You Up Won't Leave an Empty Cup
21. Terry Plumeri - Water Garden
22. Solange - Things I Imagined

- Selector -
Kaoru Inoue @kaoru324

Kaoru Inoue is a DJ and musician. After gaining experience as a guitarist in a band, he immersed himself in DJ culture following the rise of Acid Jazz in 1989. In 1994, he released his first track under the name Chari Chari. Since then, he has released and remixed music under his own name and various aliases on labels both in Japan and abroad.

As a DJ, he has performed at venues ranging from small clubs to large outdoor rave parties and beyond. In recent years, his DJ style—seamlessly connecting diverse sounds such as dance music, jazz, ambient, Balearic, and experimental—has earned widespread acclaim for its unique sense of aesthetics.


井上薫・DJ／音楽家。ギタリストとしてのバンド経験を経て89年Acid Jazzの洗礼と共にDJカルチャーに没入。94年にChari Chari名義で初の楽曲をリリース。以降、本名やその他様々な名義での楽曲リリース、リミックスを国内外のレーベルで手がけ、大小問わずクラブ、屋外レイヴ・パーティー、またその他様々な場でDJとして活動を続けてきた。近年はダンス・ミュージックに限らずジャズ、アンビエント、バレアリック、エクスペリメンタルなど様々な音楽を独自の審美眼で繋いでいくDJスタイルが好評を博している。
http://soundcloud.com/kaoru324
https://seedsandground.bandcamp.com
http://www.seedsandground.com

- Artwork -
www.instagram.com/loid0001/

#46 - Autumn envelops - by Kaoru Inoue

Live Mix @ Friday Lounge, Cafe Apres-Midi Shibuya on 27th May 2016. with no House & Techno even Disco. using "Compact Disco Soundsystem" DJ Mixer.

Live Mix at Friday Lounge, Cafe Apres-Midi Shibuya

Ground Rhythm

Ecomixes

Arto Lindsay - Ondina (Remixed by Kaoru Inoue)

寝ても醒めても

Flex Life - 夢を慕いて (Dub & Adds by Kaoru Inoue)

The 1st time releasing on digital. Rare-find dub version from Chari Chari's tracks made in around the year 2000.

1.Night Stream
2.Kesarian
3.In Dope Rhythms
4.Calling Spirit

Folk Remedy Anthem #2

Chari Chari - Folk Remedy Anthem #02 (Excerpt)

The latest EP from Kaoru Inoue contains unreleased special remix & versions.

1.Force - Vahagn Remix
2.Satan's Majestic Dance
3.Izanai
4.Meteor Stream

Of Mythic Future

Of Mythic Future (Excerpt)

Chari Chari - Esfera De Água (7:05)

Chari Chari - Tokyo 4:51 (2:14)

Sunset over Yaeyama

https://linktr.ee/kaoruinoue
DJ/Composer/Musician based in Tokyo
also known as "Chari Chari"
running a label "Seeds And Ground"

Kaoru Inoue

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