Without Instructions: Yellow Magic Orchestra
Typically, I intend to write about artists featured on an episode of The Enclosed Instruction Book the day after that show. This will be the first of many.
The Yellow Magic Orchestra, active for just five years from 1978 to 1983 (with brief reunions in 1993 and 2007) is often considered one of the greatest influences in the history of New Wave music, being one of the first technopop bands (as well as one of the most famous bands in Japanese history). They were among the first bands not just to craft their own synthesizer sound, but bring it on the road; even if it meant hauling along a huge bank of modular synthesizers (this was in the days before samplers). It was composed of members (from left to right):
-Yukihiro Takahashi, the drummer and vocalist. Originally of the Sadistic Mika Band, his simple, yet frantic drumming style (quite possibly influenced by Ringo Starr, being a massive Beatles fan) lends a vital contribution to the synthesized polyrhythms that build the YMO sound; however, his most audible role was as the band's lead vocalist, as. As a result, he was one of the first drummers to use a headset microphone instead of deal with boom mic hanging down and interfering with his drumming. He had a tendency to cover old 60s pop tunes he grew up with, particularly those by his heroes the Beatles. YMO did a somewhat famous version of Day Tripper, and in concerts they touched on All You Need Is Love and I've Got A Feeling (although, oddly, only John Lennon's "Everybody Had A Hard Year" lyrics). Although there is debate over if he was actually a decent singer or not, there is no argument that he was vital to the YMO sound and lent some level of restraint and popular music savvy (as well as a love of French that surfaced in La Femme Chinoise, Ballet, Kimi Ni Mune Kyun, and a few other songs).
-Haruomi "Harry" Hosono, the bassist. He can be considered the founder of the group; his musical career stretches back to the early 70s as a member of the Japanese rock band Happy End. He gained some attention for insisting that the lyrics be performed in Japanese; a first, since at the time rock music was played in English only. He went on to be an influential tropical exotica performer, lending his understanding of world music to the Afro-Cuban undertones of YMO's music. He founded the band as an experiment with session musicians Takahashi and Sakamoto, who he had worked with before; the first album was so successful that the band stuck together, becoming a national phenomenon.
-Ryuichi Sakamoto, on keyboards; a legendary musician, responsible for producing and creating countless albums from technopop to classical. Known outside YMO for creating the themes to The Last Emperor and Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence among many other successful instrumental efforts. He brought an important knowledge of western classical music to the band, along with his synthesizer genius.
Other important collaborators, although not part of the core three:
-Chris Mosdell, responsible for lyrics from 1978 to 1980 (and some contributions to Takahashi solo albums). He was an English poet who moved to Japan, responsible for some amazingly depressing lyrics set over energetic technopop music (see Nice Age, Solid State Survivor) years before They Might Be Giants did the same thing.
-Hideki Matsutake, computer programmer from the beginning, who also worked on numerous members' solo albums. He is generally seen as the man behind the synthesizer sound; while the main three composed, he made it sound like it did. At every YMO show from the beginning to the 1981 Winter Tour, he could be seen with a huge bank of modular synthesizers; these were the days before samplers, and he got to make these sounds himself. (Often his gear was covered in tacky christmas lights to make it look less intrusive, before finally being hidden behind a wall in 1981.) He was involved on all the "classic" albums, and his departure before Naughty Boys and Service made a definite impact on the sound. Many, with good reason, call him the fourth member of YMO. He also worked with his own band, Logic System, contemporary technopop pioneers.
To call them influential would be an understatement. YMO changed popular music forever, especially on video game music composing (hints of Earthbound and Sonic The Hedgehog can be heard in their music) and the everyday use of synthesizers. Their cultural impact gave a face to Japan's economic prosperity in the 1970s and 1980s, with such instrumental works as Technopolis (used extensively by Fuji) and Rydeen. People even have YMO haircuts today. If anything, I would call them the Beatles of their time.