[Description]

New York, Alabama, Los Angeles, Nashville, Tokyo... Mitton Usui's 1st album, produced while traveling 5 cities with home recording equipment, has been re-released with a remaster by Makoto Kubota!

Singer Traveler Songwriter is a unique home-recorded work that was recorded while visiting the homes of experienced musicians in Japan and the United States with his backpack filled with the love songs he had written in his early 20s and home recording equipment. This work which was released only at live venues and sold out has been remastered by Makoto Kubota, the "alchemist of sound," and has been reissued with bonus tracks not included in the original version and a new look.
Mitten Usui's musical travels from the West Coast to the East Coast to the South!

A multi-talented singer-songwriter and designer with a mysterious stage name. Mitten Usui spent his late teens studying music in America as a guitarist. After dropping out of Berklee College of Music, he moved to LA as a jam band member. He experienced James Taylor's live performance and realized his true identity as an SSW. After returning to Japan, he spent several years in Tokyo doing various vocal work, graphic design, and learning New Orleans piano from Dr. John's instructional videos and then returned to the United States with his accumulated songs and recording equipment. While changing his location from time to time, he completed the album by negotiating directly with famous musicians. The result is Singer Song Traveler. I would like to share this rare spark of talent and individuality with everyone in this dangerously vibrant country.
 (Makoto Kubota)

Urban rhythm and his voice has a pleasant warmth. I'm intrigued by the young man who made Makoto Kubota say "I found a great talent.'' 
(Takashi Matsumoto)

Miton Usui is a traveling singer-songwriter. This title is his memorable first adventure which until recently was known as Singer Traveler Songwriter. The most remarkable thing is that the work is a completely independent production in which domestic and foreign artists such as Hiroyuki Namba, Buo Yagi, Keizo Endo, and Larry Goldings, Will Lee, John Tropay, David Hood, Dean Brown play with him. He packed his recording equipment into his backpack and traveled to his respective cities, such as New York, Los Angeles, and Muscle Shoals, and recorded at home using a truly unique recording method. The ultimate way of home recording that made a rock listener's dream come true was followed in his second album, Midnight Rumble, released in 2014, in which Jim Keltner and Greg Reese participated. The method of home recording he developed is essential for his work.

Singer Traveler Songwriter which was completed after going through twists and turns persuaded listeners one after another. Approximately three and a half years have passed since its release, this debut work, which has been sold by hand, was sold out at the 2014 Christmas live show and now decided to be released to the world as a new and renewed version, Singer Song Traveler. The person who supported the renew was Makoto Kubota, an alchemist of sound. Mitten Usui's music made someone with a deep knowledge of US roots music say "Isn't he a big-name musician who makes American-style pop music? This is worth to listen by more people all over the world.'' He felt it was his mission to reintroduce this extraordinary work to the world, so he undertook the remastering.

The album, which had the concept of "the best album from his early 20s'', features his signature heartwarming melodies in a wide variety of songs. You could feel his pop sense from this catchy album. If you listen to the second-line song "Let's break up and hang out", he tried the rootsy sound, and you can't help but love the interplay between David Hood's bass and Larry Goldings' Hammond. If you listen to the summer pop song "Enoshima Koi Monogatari'', you could feel some urban texuture, and then you will realize the collection is quite diverse. A notable point of this album is the bonus track "Early Symptoms of Love" in which Scott Boyer and John Tropay sing smoothly on guitar. Why did he shelve such a cool rock'n'roll tune until now?

In it there are many impressive and wonderful sounds played by top-class musicians who even crying children stop to cry and listen, however, this debut work was the result of a struggle to find my style. In order to obtain the best songs, the dreaming singer/song traveler will continue to travel far and wide.
(text by Hiro Kuwabara)