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Hiro Kawahara (Heretic) — Be Here Now
(Belle Antique BELLE 264354, 2026, CD)

by Henry Schneider, Published 2026-07-31

Be Here Now Cover art

Hiro Kawahara, better known as Heretic, has enjoyed a long and remarkably distinctive musical career dating back to the early 80s. Over the decades he has performed in bands, as a solo artist, and in collaborations with Peter Frohmader and Steve Baltes. His signature sound blends electronic soundscapes, dark ambience, and experimental structures, drawing inspiration from artists such as Richard Pinhas, Heldon, Manuel Göttsching, and Frohmader himself. Long before ambient electronics became commonplace, Kawahara was exploring uncharted territory, establishing himself as one of Japan's earliest practitioners of progressive electronic music outside the New Age tradition. Due to age and declining health, Be Here Now serves both as his first studio album since 1997 and his final musical statement. Having sold his instruments and retired from music, Kawahara closes a creative chapter spanning more than four decades. I first met Hiro in Tokyo during a business trip in 2003. While there, I also met Nigel Harris (Zircon & The Burning Brains), who had recently relocated from Leicester, England to Japan, and it was Nigel who introduced us. Kawahara and I remained in contact over the years, so learning of his health struggles was particularly saddening. The music he shared with me consisted of the three tracks that make up Be Here Now along with the bonus track “Do Heretick 2026 Remix.” The album's centerpiece is the 21‑minute title track, the only substantial new composition here. It features Yozox of Ain Soph on guitar, Mina Urasawa reading from one of her essays in Japanese, and Kawahara himself on guitar, keyboards, and electronics. The piece concludes with Ain Soph's "Moody Swing," creating a moving connection between friends and collaborators who have shared musical paths for decades. More than simply another electronic composition, "Be Here Now" feels like a farewell voyage — a luminous cosmic journey drifting toward the farthest reaches of the galaxy.

The remaining tracks revisit and rework material from the 80s and 90s, but Be Here Now never feels like a conventional retrospective. Instead, it functions as a reflection on a lifetime of creativity, recasting earlier ideas through the perspective of an artist looking back on his work with affection, gratitude, and hard-earned wisdom. Throughout, listeners are immersed in the qualities that have always defined Kawahara's music: dark ambient atmospheres, experimental textures, and abstract electronic structures that occasionally evoke the spirit of early Tangerine Dream while remaining unmistakably his own. For longtime followers, Be Here Now is both a celebration and a farewell — a happy-sad conclusion to a singular career. For newcomers, it offers an excellent introduction to one of Japan's most overlooked electronic pioneers. More than an archival exercise or career summary, this album stands as a deeply personal act of closure, and a rewarding journey for anyone drawn to intelligent, adventurous progressive electronic music.

Filed under: New releases, 2026 releases

Related artist(s): Heretic / Hiro Kawahara

More info
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwDXjhXUtf0

 

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