From the anachronistic contrast inherent in the name to the elaborately designed gatefold cover, it is clear on first glance that Akira Sakata's latest release, "Fisherman.com," offers something out of the ordinary. A quick perusal of the credits confirms the suspicion. The legendary Bill Laswell -- a pioneer of modern funk -- both produced the album and played bass.
Laswell has been at the center of more than a few musical revolutions: He worked with Herbie Hancock to produce the 1980s classic "Future Shock" and, more recently, in collaboration with several Funkadelic alumni to yield "Funkronomicon" in 1995. Indeed, Laswell has worked with an amazing range of performers, from Ginger Baker and Brian Eno to Afrika Bambaataa and Motorhead, to cite only a few.
Sakata himself is something of a legend in Japan's free-jazz world, having headed a number of bands since his debut in 1969 with the group Saibo-bunretsu. A vocalist and alto-sax player, as well as a writer and actor, Sakata has over 20 albums to his credit, including two -- "Noise of Trouble" (1986) and "Mooko" (1988) -- recorded with Laswell.