Ain Soph

Ain Soph have always been one of the most highly regarded progressive rock bands from Japan. With album titles like "Hat & Field" and "Ride On A Camel," it's easy to see where their roots lie.

The band started in 1970 with the beginning of the progressive rock scene in Japan. The lineup was Yozox Yamamoto on guitars, Kikuo Fujikawa on keyboards, Masahiro Torigaki on bass, and Hiroshi Natori on drums. Calling themselves Tenchi Sozo (which means "the creation"), they played Canterbury-styled progressive rock and jazz-fusion. They recorded a demo over various live dates in the mid 1970s (later released as "Ride On A Camel"), but an official release was elusive.

In 1980, Fujikawa left the band and was replaced by Masey Hattori on keyboards. The band changed their name to Ain Soph (Without End) and finally released their first album, "A Story Of Mysterious Forest," which has since come to be considered a classic of the Japanese progressive scene.

Hattori left Ain Soph soon after to form the band 99.99. Unfortunately that brought things to a stop and for a number of years it seemed that Ain Soph were no more.

Then around 1986 Fujikawa rejoined Yozox and Torigaki along with drummer Taiqui . With renewed energy they recorded and released their second record, "Hat & Field," which was more solidly in the Canterbury style than their first.