Ho Taru Koi

Made this track for February Album Writing Month. Super different from what I normally do, but just played around with some samples and loops until I got something I liked and then made up some harmonies on top.

Tokyo Rant (FAWM Demo)

This was just a jam with a Monotribe and a Casio beat and then I added some stuff to it, and wrote some lyrics. Demo for February Album Writing Month.

Mixed by Santa Dharma.

Brain Off Heart On (FAWM Demo)

Wrote this for FAWM 2025(February Album Writing Month). The lyrics to this song were inspired by some supernatural experiences I've had. Sometimes I feel signs that people I love are still around. 
The guitar is a bit repetitive but I just wanted something to put the lyrics to. I might work on this a bit more after FAWM.

Signs

Yamaha No.60 
Debut recording after restoration.

Yamaha No.60 Recording

All songs written by Kate Sikora

Produced, Engineered, & Mixed by David Naughton in Honkugenuma, Japan

Drums, bass, piano, and trumpet recorded at Nanahari


Kate Sikora: vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar on "Satosan," piano on “Boy with a Bird Leg”

David Naughton: bass, electric guitar, nylon guitar, ukulele, vibraphone, percussion, glockenspiel

Minmin: organ

Takeshi Horikoshi: bass, backing vocals on “Satosan”

Yoshinari Kishida: drums, tambourine

Yukiko Hamada: trumpet

Nick Duffy: plucked OmniChord on “Cocoon,” accordian on “Boy with a Bird Leg”

Satoru Ono: Gretsch guitar on “Cocoon”
Maki Naughton: hand claps on "Satosan"

Cover art by Kate Sikora circa 1997
Design assistance: Bill Shouldis

Cocoon

Apple Music https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/stop-single/1404932628
Bandcamp https://paulcookchronicles.bandcamp.com/album/stop-single
Spotify https://open.spotify.com/album/5iYRLM06BKH8T3XxyEwZ69

Lyrics:

You were playing with me from the start 
And messing with my foolish heart
You ran away with all my friends
I'll never see your face again

Why don't you stop
Treating me like muck
Can't you learn to love, love, love, love, love

You never did return my  calls
I'm betting that your phone was on
If I'm never gonna get the part
Stop messing with my foolish heart 

It serves me right baby 
Living with hope
And you can not save me
So I'll do it on my own ...

-------
Performed by Paul Cook
Mixed by David Naughton
Artwork by Ian Bangs www.bangsian.com

Stop - Single

Stop

Order at: https://neonfingerrecords.bandcamp.com/album/i-m-a-vocoder

A3. Written, produced and mixed by Liquid Pegasus.
Bass by Sven Atterton.
Vocals and Vocoder by Chris Nelson.
Mastered by Alek Stark at Fundamental Audio.
Art by Yecco.
Neon Finger 2018.

Liquid Pegasus - Synchronyze (I´m a Vocoder) - NF09

Rough mix of a new song for February Album Writing Month. PT-30 + Omnichord

Egoless Ego (FAWM Demo)

Cast Away

THANK YOU: 
Christmas Hummingbird is the culmination of a six year journey that began on a grey Sunday afternoon in a share-house bedroom in Tokyo with a second hand guitar. The Watanabes would like to thank all of the talented people who have guided us along the way: our producer David Naughton for sharing his musical gifts with us; Guy Perryman for spotting the festive potential in Hummingbird and inspiring this project; Nicholas Buc for his wonderful string section; Matt Hogan for his creative contributions to the choir arrangement; Kimi, Kaiya and Kan Naughton for their beautiful backing vocals; our lovely cousin, Marina Elphick, for providing the perfect Hummingbird illustration and our resident artist, Hitomi Tsuchiya for complimenting it with the logo and title. In addition, we'd like to recognise the love and support of our family; Mum, Dad, Jiye, Chun, Kieran, Kylie, Aina and Lifei. This song is for you.

INSPIRATION:
In 2003, Selwyn Walsh gave his parents a warm embrace at Heathrow airport and headed across the seas for adventure and excitement in the land of the rising sun. A year later, he beckoned his younger brother, Duncan, with the hope of forming a band together. Duncan eagerly followed his brothers call, and The Watanabes have been strumming their stuff in Japan ever since, as their family watched from afar. After over a decade in Japan, the two brothers wrote Hummingbird, a song inspired by the conflicting emotions that are created when you find yourself enjoying life in a new country that is so very, very far away from home. In 2017, The Watanabes released Hummingbird as part of their Spoiled and Nostalgic EP and the record quickly reached the attentive ears of InterFm DJ, Guy Perryman. As a fellow, long-time foreign resident in Japan with roots in rural England, Guy understood how it felt to be so far away from loved ones and formed an emotional connection with the song. Sensing a festive flavour to the lyrics, Guy played Hummingbird on his Christmas Day morning radio show and ideas began to brew. Soon after, he contacted The Watanabes to ask whether they could consider altering the lyrics, and re-releasing the song as a Christmas song, with bells, a choir and strings. With the help of such talented collaborators as David Naughton (production), Nicholas Buc (strings) and Matt Hogan (choir), Guy's Christmas vision has come true. At a time when coronavirus is keeping so many apart from their loved ones, we hope that Christmas Hummingbird will provide a little comfort and joy this winter.

Christmas Hummingbird

Kate Sikora is a singer-songwriter from New Jersey, USA who has been active in the Tokyo music scene since 2005. Her first album, “Grace in Rotation” was released independently in 2005 and re-released on the Japanese label, Contrarede. She participated in the compilation, “Kill your T.V. 09” curated by Kentaro Nakao (Number Girl). In 2010, Kate released her first collaborative album, “Homes” with her other project, a girls’ pop duo called The Loyal We. In 2012, Kate teamed up with Glaswegian producer and engineer, David Naughton (worked on Teenage Fan Club and Belle and Sebastian), to record her 2nd album under her name. “Just Enough Space” which was released on andrecords in Japan. Notable performances were at the FUJI ROCK FESTIVAL ’09 on the “Rookie A Go Go” stage, a 2010 tour with members of Deerhoof, and opening for Liz Phair at Maxwell’s in Hoboken, NJ in 2011. Her sound is often compared to Belle and Sebastian, Feist, Suzanne Vega, etc and is characterized by a sound which ranges from warm and acoustic with sweet vocals to upbeat and rockier tunes with a strong lyrical focus. Members of her band, on her 2nd and 3rd full length albums, are: Minmin (Henry Tennis), Reiko (Kela & The Synthesizers), and Naruke Shingo (ti-ti.uu). Recording for Kate Sikora’s 3rd album, “The Days We Hold On To,” began in 2015 and will be released for the first time in 2018.

Signs

Kate Sikora

Related tracks