Minami Deutsch is a Krautrock band from Tokyo.
These self-described “repetition freaks” cite psychedelic rock and minimal techno as guideposts, but—as evidenced by a band name that is Japanese for “South Germany”—they’re really obsessed with krautrock.
Formed by Kyotaro Miula in 2014, they got their start playing live music on the busy streets of Tokyo. This lead to their participation in Krautrock Night, a party hosted by Tokyo Psych Fest, and later a tour of Taiwan. In September, 2015, they released their first record through the English cult label Cardinal Fuzz Records.
At the same time, Minami Deutsch also released their album on cassette/digital-download through Kikagaku Moyo’s label Guruguru Brain. This release received a lot of positive attention from review sites around the world such as Echoes and Dust and Psychedelic Baby Magazine, along with many blogs and Japanese based music websites as well.
In July 2016, they released 7inch EP “Tunnel / New Pastoral Life”. The EP was released as Donut Hole at first and was also reissued with Small Hole version. It was nominated in “The 20 best 7″s of 2016” on The Vinyl Factory. In September 2016, Minami Deutsch did their first European Tour and played at Liverpool International Festival of Psychedelia.
In February 2017, their first album was released as CD from German psych label Suratron Records, which is run by Electric Moon. In the summer of the year, they did 40 shows tour in Europe and played at Desertfest Belgium, one of the most important fests in stoner rock scene.
In 20th of April 2018, they released their 2nd album “With Dim Light”.
The album was premiered by an American music media, Aquarium Drunkard, and Pitchfork reviewed it as “Krautrock, psychedelia, and a DJ’s flair for track sequencing come together on an album that proves this Tokyo trio is more than just a revival act.”
In May 2018, the split 7″ with kuro was released from God Unknown Records in UK, and they played at famous Roadburn Festival for 2 days. In one of the shows there, they shared the stage with Damo Suzuki, a former vocalist of legendary Krautrock band, CAN.
Fortune Goodies, Minami Deutsch’s long-awaited 3rd studio album was released in 2022. While not all the songs on the record function as straightforward Krautrock this time around, they still manage to capture the spirit and heart of the genre. After relocating from Tokyo to Berlin, Miula’s musical vocabulary has greatly expanded, thus resulting in this ultimate Japanese take on cosmic music in 2022.
