November is the rainy season in Taipei. When the northeast monsoon arrives, the rain is never heavy, but it goes on for days: on the awnings over the arcades, on the plastic covers of scooter seats, and at night, before sleep, dripping on the air-conditioner units outside. In a few days it will be Lidong, the start of winter.

In the sound of the rain, winter draws near; the first piece begins with a man who recorded the rain in the streets.

— Yu

After recovering from throat cancer, Ryuichi Sakamoto walked the streets of New York, Tokyo and Paris recording the rain on his phone.

It came out in 2017 as async. Most people find pleasure in being in sync, he said; what he wanted was music whose parts do not line up.