Manzoku: The Ghostly Bento

From: Ghostly
Date: 29/06/10


Another beautiful release from Ghostly. One thing that strikes me about these kind of releases and their appearance in recent years is that they're as bloggable as they are collectable. The focus on these limited editions may assist with the coverage of the more basic versions and, potentially, luxurious products like this could be a loss leader to aid the marketing of a label's music. Particularly should it lead to the purchasing of downloads where there is barely any cost in terms of manufacture and distribution.

"For Ghostly International’s hundredth release (GI-100), we wanted to commemorate the occasion with something more than music, something bigger, more permanent—a humble monument to our first decade’s work and a gift to our loyal fans. With that in mind, we give you Manzoku: The Ghostly Bento.

The Ghostly Bento was inspired by Japan and its tradition of quality, service, and design—values that Ghostly has always cherished. “Manzoku” is a Japanese word that roughly translates to “satisfaction.” Thus, the Bento is an intimate celebration of satisfaction in multiple forms—tactile, visual, aural—packaged in a handcrafted wooden box, stained and etched with a stunning image by LA artist Dosa Kim.

The Ghostly Bento is extremely limited in quantity (only 50 boxes were made) and handmade by a team of artists, designers, and craftspeople working closely with Ghostly International. Typical Japanese bento boxes pair disparate flavors within one container, and The Ghostly Bento is no different: nestled in the box’s three compartments, one finds a squid-adorned edition of Horizon Line / Ghostly By Night, our era-defining double-disc compilation; a micro-fibre Ghostly tie, featuring Dosa’s design screen-printed by Cyberoptix; and a pair of wooden Ghostly chopsticks.

The result of creative collaboration, meticulous detailing, and old-fashioned hard work, Manzoku: The Ghostly Bento is a ceremonial token of satisfaction—both ours and yours."