CAIA:The Magic Dragon

By GRAHAM REID

(Herald rating: * * * *)

Produced by Groove Armada's Andy Cato, this debut album by the precociously talented Maiku Takahashi deserves to find great favour in chill-out rooms, fashionable suburban lounges, with fans of Groove Armada's Vertigo, and everywhere else with those who enjoy a late-night mood.

For decades Japanese musicians - think Stomu Yamashta's more melodious solo stuff, Ryuichi Sakamoto and even the swelling chintzy-synths of Kitaro - have had a mainline to effortless melodic ambience and Takahashi intuitively combines that history with subtle break beats, a trip-hop sensibility and warm washes of synths.

There's sometimes a solid pulse behind proceedings, but the foregrounds deliver attractive and slightly downbeat breezes that are elevating and always interesting.

Very seductive and one of the most impressive debuts in the smile-inducing, thoughtful downbeat genre since Lemon Jelly. Go.

Label: Guidance/Flavour