The Sleepy Strange (originally released: Kindercore, 2001) contains seven lengthy jams that were fully improvised with no rehearsals. Japancakes is Athens, Georgia's incomparable instrumental Pop/Americana quintet. This time the cello of Heather McIntosh and the keyboards of Todd Kelly join the pedal steel in directing the hypnotic, droning and symphonic sound. Imagine if Ravi Shankar was from Bakersfield and played pedal steel... Japancakes is an instrumental project formed in 1997 in Athens (Georgia) by Eric Berg, a big fan of Indian sitar player Ravi Shankar. Legend has it that, originally, Berg assembled this ensemble to play a Steve Reich-ian minimalistic composition made of only a single chord for one hour. The Sleepy Strange (Originally released: Kindercore, 2001) contains seven lengthy jams that were fully improvised with no rehearsals. Eight tracks. Darla Records. 2008.