I'm not that big on myths and folklore and so the Japanese lit that I know is
more philosophical (with their own stories) instead, but the two suites were
written by, first, the guitarist and, the second, by a soundtrack composer and
they are approaching these legendary stories musically in a darker than usual
manner. Kinda like taking the German
Brothers Grimm stories and emphasizing
their dark aspects more than is usually done. Clearly, the last suite is inspired
by the
Kurozuka legend (its title) and the first suite dips into other aspects of
Japanese myths (the
Kappa in the first part, "the swamp of the ghosts",
trips into the silent night, sad songs, etc.), but other than those, you may have
to ask a Japanese friend for more detail. Again, it is nowhere near smooth jazz.