Mouse on the Keys

Mouse on the Keys

Mouse on the Keys is a Japanese instrumental group formed in 2006. The group is centred on piano, keyboards and drums, and its music brings together jazz fusion, math rock and post-rock with elements of funk, electronic music, rock, hardcore, heavy metal and both early and contemporary classical music. It is based in Tokyo and remains active.

Style and performance

The group is known for a sound built around minimal piano phrases and forceful drumming. Its live performances combine music with visual material, including images of Tokyo, geometric symbols, three-dimensional objects and abstract visuals. This emphasis on audio and visual presentation is part of the group’s approach to the live experience.

Members

Mouse on the Keys includes 川﨑昭, Jun Nemoto, 新留大介 and 白枝匠充. Earlier line-up information identifies Akira Kawasaki and Atsushi Kiyota as former members of the Japanese underground band 9dw, with Daisuke Niitome as the drummer and composer who joins them in the trio’s core line-up. Jun Nemoto is also listed as a saxophonist, and Daisuke Sasaki appears as a trumpet player in additional live or recording credits.

Recordings and releases

The group releases music on Machupicchu Industrias in Japan and on denovali records in Europe. Its releases include sezession, An Anxious Object and machinic phylum. It also appears on various compilation and collaboration releases, including Kill your T.V. '09, JAPADAPTA/DJ BAKU, More SQ, and a digital charity release titled mouse on the keys × aku「Live session 2011/3/28」.

Collaborators and visual work

Credits associated with the group include film directors and manipulators Kiyoshi Takanashi and Kento Takahashi of I was a Ballerina co.,ltd, and PV directors Michinori Saigo and MINORxU. These credits reflect the group’s long-standing interest in visual presentation alongside performance.

Context

The group is described as representing the restlessness of Tokyo in its live appearances, while also projecting a sound that mixes urgency and precision from multiple genres. Its combination of two pianos, two keyboards and drums gives it a distinctive place in the Japanese indie scene.