A singer/songwriter, producer, arranger, and multi-instrumentalist whose main instrument is the violin, K Ishibashi’s solo project, Kishi Bashi, is recognized for its playful, highly melodic, often romantic songs.
His distinctly kaleidoscopic sound frequently incorporates looping technology, with repeated segments sped up to varying degrees to otherworldly effect. He debuted the project in 2012 with 151A. His more slickly produced third album, Sonderlust (2016), included increased electronic elements, while Omoiyari (2019) and its companion EP, Emigrant (2021), and related soundtrack album, Music from the Song Film: Omoiyari (2023), relied on a more organic, orchestral folk palette.
Born Kaoru Ishibashi in Seattle, Washington, in 1975, he spent his formative years in Norfolk, Virginia. After studying film scoring at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, he collaborated on albums with acts including Vitamin String Quartet and, in 2003, co-founded the Brooklyn-based indie rock outfit Jupiter One with fellow songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Zac Colwell. The band went on to release a pair of EPs and two full-length albums: 2007’s Jupiter One and 2009’s Sunshower. In 2009, Jupiter One toured in support of Regina Spektor, with members including Ishibashi also playing in her backing band. Back in the studio, he played strings on Of Montreal’s 2010 album False Priest, the first of many such collaborations with Kevin Barnes’ project.
In 2011, Ishibashi embarked on a solo career, adopting the pseudonym Kishi Bashi. He began opening shows for indie artists including Sondre Lerche, Alexi Murdoch, and Of Montreal, and released the single “Bright Whites,” which was licensed for a major tech-company ad campaign. His full-length solo debut under the moniker 151A (a pun in Japanese for the expression “ichi-go ichi-e,” sometimes translated as “one chance in a lifetime”), arrived in April 2012 on the then-startup Joyful Noise label. The album did well by small-indie standards, receiving raves from NPR Music and landing on the Billboard independent albums chart.