Haruomi Hosono

I'd highly recommend Hosono's Monad Box, a collection of three of his instrumental and ambient records from the early 80s. My favourite of the discs included is Coincidental Music, which is short pieces made for advertising and promotional films. Sort of electronic Satie. Rather more delicate and strange than Sakamoto's work of the period.

Hosono's best solo song album is S-F-X, a Fairlight-heavy opus from 1984. There's a clip of one track here. And here are some pictures of Hosono, who's now a bit fatter, plays in Sketch Show, and runs the Daisyworld label.

Unfortunately, getting any of this in the US is near impossible. the only other thing i've managed to track down (through dusty groove) was this bizarre early 80's record that he was apparently only partially involved with, which was a strange "top of the pops" sort of medley of about 15 60's-70's pop/disco standards and a few mediocre jazz-fusion originals.

'More delicate and strange' than early 80's Sakamoto is quite a teaser. Sakamoto's B-2 Unit and Esperanto are already fairly strange (if not delicate) records, but those were the odd ones out.

I agree with Momus--Miharu Koshi is one of the greatest, most underrated Japanese artists of the '80s. She evolved from an insiginifant pop idol in the late '70s to a completely original synth-pop artist. Since the late '80s she's become a bit too idiosyncratic for my tastes ('Chanson Solaire' from '95 is probably her best from that era), but her albums are still beautifuI and I have the highest respect for her. She's due for a new album soon. I think 'Boy Soprano' from '85 is her best album--a perfect combination of her early synth-pop work and later chanson stuff. Unfortunately, her stuff is very hard to find, even in Japan. Her albums pop up on ebay, but they're always quite expensive. 'Boy Soprano' is probably the easiest to find.

One of my favorite Hosono-related bands is Chakra. They put out only three albums in the early '80s, and Hosono produced their second. They're all utterly essential exotic pop albums. Makoto Yano (Akiko Yano's first husband) produced their first album. The singer, Mishio Ogawa, put out four solo albums too, and they're also essential (especially her s/t). The last three were just reissued a few weeks ago actually, and I had never heard them beforehand. So I'm excited about those...they're very good.

Now that I'm talking about Japanese synth-pop, I'll make a few more recommendations. I recently discovered Taeko Onuki (or Ohnuki) and am completely in love. She started in the mid '70s, making more fusion-oriented pop albums, and then she teamed up with Ryuichi Sakamoto in the late '70s and started churning out one amazing pop album after the next. 'Adventure' (1981) is probably my favorite, but I have a lot that I've yet to hear!

Moon Riders are another of my favorites. They've been around since the '70s as well and, in my opinion, reached their peak in the early '80s with 'Mania Maniera' and 'Tokyo wa...'. They've spanned a lot of different style, but never put out a bad album.

Perhaps my favorite is Masami Tsuchiya's 'Rice Music' album (1982) and his follwing Ippu-Do album 'Night Mirage' (1983). Members of the band Japan assist on those two albums, as well as the fretless great Percy Jones. Bowie-esque vocals, experimental, angular guitar work (plus Bill Nelson doing his e-bow thing), completely out of control bass playing, steel drums, layers of synths, etc. Basically it's a hilariously awesome rhythm section with great songs too. I couldn't recommend these two albums more. It's too bad that 'Night Mirage' was never released on CD and 'Rice Music' is impossible to find on CD.....

Oh, and P-Model is another synth-pop great.

http://park10.wakwak.com/~techno/

http://www.artcontext.com/music/artskool/jem

That second one appears to be currently down for some reason....

I love Wha-ha-ha

Also, apparently Mishio was in Killing Time, so I need to check her out.

Yes, I've been looking for Killing Time for a long time. Please let me know if you get a hold of their stuff.

http://www.sonymusicshop.jp/smdr/sms/img/goods/L/KICS-1139.jpg

Patrick; Dleone's correct about the ReR connection, I grew up as a Recommended Records fanboy, buying anything they'd put out... Though I didn't finally hear Wha-Ha-Ha until researching backwards from the first Haniwa All-Stars record, which blew my mind in the early 90's. My interest in Senba's early Haniwa records & Wha-Ha-Ha is precisely because they're so eccentric & hard to figure out. I don't imagine they're particularly representative of early 80's JPop.

the yesasia site is listing this album in hosono searches, the title is killing me... have you heard it?

http://www.cdjapan.co.jp/detailview.html?KEY=FHCF-2344

The easiest way for me to get this stuff to you is through Soulseek. My name on their is Magazine, so message me if you use that program. The only other way I can think of is YSI, which will take a little while (though it's not too much trouble really).

B'angelo has some requests too. Whatever you guys request, I'll get it to you some time this weekend (or now if you have slsk).

Cochin Moon, way closer to mid-70's Cluster than I would have ever expected (though I do prefer Cluster). A surprise, even given Dominque's Tangerine Dream reference -- definitely in the 70's trance/synth records pantheon.

Bon Voyage & Tropical Dandy much more tin-pan-alley than electronic, but Paraiso is off-kilter, lays the way out for the first YMO. Omni Sight Seeing, thumbs up if you like late YMO. I like Hosono's solo mainstream pop records much more than Sakamoto's, no contest.

Miharu Koshi's Boy Soprano, wow.

And the Mishio Ogawa & Chakra stuff is eye-opening after a lifetime of Haniwa fandom. Chakra's much more straightforward / less quirky, but I'm very happy just to be able to place Haniwa in context with, well, _anything_.

Boy Soprano, the Mishio Ogawa debut, & Cochin Moon are the three I ordered online after hearing the mp3's.

Am I correct that this has Sakamoto on it?

I dunno though... even though his pop is weirder than Sakamoto's, Sakamoto's pure experimental albums (B-2 Unit & Esperanto) are 1000% more bizarre and advanced than Hosono's, those albums are timeless.

http://us.yesasia.com/en/PrdDept.aspx/pid-1004088657/code-j/section-videos/

(this should probably go on the noise board's wha-ha-ha thread but too late)

Kiyohiko Senba and his Haniwa All Stars

BTW, what exactly did Andy Partridge do on B-2 Unit?

I dunno Matthew, you heard Esperanto?

You mean that electric guitar in the right-channel that's barely audible and sounds as if it's unplugged? If so, that's...odd.

I dunno Matthew, you heard Esperanto?

Most of it — I just re-listened again this morning (have about 6 tracks downloaded). Assuming they aren't remixes, I'd say it's good but no B-2 Unit — lots mallet-y textures and ambience. But if you think I'm missing something, maybe I should re-download to verify that I'm listening to the right tracks.

ha, I first heard it with "members of the Vas Deferens Organization" too. My member was Eric

news you can use: japanese CDs are too damned expensive

I am beginning to miss the days when people were relatively certain they were talking about the same record. A few days ago at a dinner party someone put on something interesting, and when I asked what it was he said it was the new Boards of Canada. He didn't believe me when I told him that it wasn't, he just brought over to his iPod to show me the tags.

I put on Omni Sight Seeing last night, that is definitely my favorite Hosono pop album, every song...

And I first read that as "tripping on acid with members of Van Der Graaf Generator.

I am beginning to miss the days when people were relatively certain they were talking about the same record.

No kidding — but I think Dom's "news you can use" is the culprit in this instance. And actually, that's one of the 2 tracks I don't have. Still, p2p's are great for finding rarities...

Is there a good Hosono comp, btw?

I had both Matt and Eric in the room, with running commentary and interpretive facial expressions. THAT is a proper introduction to Cochin Moon, let me tell you.

Props to the interviewer -- good questions.

Reservedly glad to see those final statements. He hasn't brought this up at all in his Japanese media appearances. The theme in those lately has been how much he hates mixing, since every mixing decision murders every other possibility that might have been, and he hates treating music and ideas that way. The other main theme is, "If I make new music now, I'll have an international audience for the first time in my life -- that's a lot of pressure!"

None of which means he *isn't* working on new stuff, granted. And this Discogs snippet is the most specific he's gotten in years. So here's hoping...!

Also, this London show sounds like it will be epic. The Madmen?!

Oh hey, the show is on the 19th?! Can't wait to hear back from the ILMors who are going.

lol at the "Mudmen" story

I have a spare ticket to the London show tonight if anyone's looking?

Hello, I’d be interested in buying it if that’s still available?

Sold!

Let's all wear our Haruomi Hosono ILX thread badges.

I could make this easy for you lot to find me and wear my Buck-Tick shirt

(This being the one place in London where there are likely to be 20 middle-aged Japanese women all wearing B-T shirts)

p.s. I am not a Japanese woman, please do not bother random Japanese women in B-T shirts on my behalf

holy shit that country fried version of "Sportsmen" ruled

So happy on you three's behalf. What else did our beautiful old man play!!

Power trio Acid rock version of Firecracker led by grandson Yuta on fuzz bass, featuring grandad doing Mick Jagger dancing across the stage coming back from his smoke break!!!

(It’s totally underrated how *funny* Hosono Senior is)

I think bamboohouses can give you a better idea of the set list but he really was kicking back and having fun with the kids

The backing band were 2 women from a group called kukuku (I think this one? https://haruomihosono.bandcamp.com/track/choo-choo-gatagoto-2 ) who played keyboards, marimba, vibraphone and percussion and sung very sweet harmonies along with Hosono. Then Yuta on bass and two of his bandmates on guitar and drums. And Hosono on vocals, acoustic guitar, hat tricks and wisecracks!

Hosono kept exclaiming over his age (78!) and the fact that he was 50 years older than the rest of his band but from their own sets it was clear how influenced they were by him - as bamboohouses said, it was like Hosono being in conversation with the younger musicians he had inspired. (Yuta’s singer told a charming story about hanging out at Hosono’s studio when they were school kids)

Thanks Ether! Drinking all this in =)

Such a brilliant night - wonderful to meet and hang out with Etherwave, and an absolutely phenomenal show. I was kind of expecting something similar to the Barbican show in 2018, which was 90% 50s/boogie-woogie covers, but this was almost entirely Hosono originals delivered in loose, slightly psyche-y arrangements with a young band who were clearly having a blast. Absolute heaven.

Started trying to piece together a setlist, but someone has already done there work here:
https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/haruomi-hosono/2025/southbank-centre-london-england-6359ba9f.html

I can't believe we got Pleocene, my favourite HH track and a contender for one of my favourite songs full stop.

He closed with a cover of Vampire Weekend's 2021, which of course samples that Muji tape (and gave it some new Japanese lyrics in the second verse).

I did love the Barbican show a few years back (the band was phenomenally tight and of course there was the impromptu YMO reunion at the end) and the boogie-woogie era does make sense to me in the context of his life, but there was undeniably a bit of a disjunct between an international audience starting to find and love his own work at a point when he was fully committed to covers. (In the No Smoking documentary that follows that tour he's a bit baffled by suddenly having an audience outside of Japan.) Last night was something else; it felt like a guy who's processed this late career renaissance but having fun with his own legacy on his own terms. This man's work means so much to me. I'm so happy I got to see it.

That's beautiful, Bamboo -- I'm genuinely moved thinking about it all happening (thinking about HH in any deeper capacity usually does that to me, though -- he's someone who helps redeem the world-as-I-perceive-it just by being around... but reports like this heighten the feeling)

And wow, no kidding, that setlist...

Daniel, your turn! Elaborate please!

god damn @ that setlist. how did that encore go over?

The gen z girls sat next to me were near breakdown for it but I couldn't tell if it was "omg Hosono is covering my favourite song!" or "wtf Hosono is ruining this by playing this cornball cover". Probably option 1 tbh, they didn't seem like the kind of snide snob I was at their age.

will post more tomorrow

Likewise, bamboohouses! Thanks again for the ticket. It was really fantastic, as a new fan exploring this world, to have such an amazing experience in the company of someone with so much knowledge.

Wanted to share these, which warmed my icy heart:

Caught up with Hosono-san after a beautifully diverse concert at the Royal Festival Hall~always chilled and at 78 takes a cigarette break mid show😅~and Bill Nelson on the couch~20 years have passed since we performed together at the Harold Budd show !! 🫣 pic.twitter.com/5exAUh9WTB

— Steve Jansen (@istevejansen) July 19, 2025

Hosono & Yuka Mizuhara will host a "pop-up" DJ set in Hackney tomorrow to celebrate 50yrs of "Tropical Dandy"~Hosono's grandson (Yuta) put in a great bass performance for both acts last night 🙌all musicianship superb https://t.co/XtfvSa2fRN pic.twitter.com/xfaRmTDmCY

— Steve Jansen (@istevejansen) July 20, 2025

Did anyone go to the 'pop-up DJ set' in Hackney?

Nom but certainly would have if I knew it existed!

So yeah, this was great. Pretty poor organisation from the Southbank tho - was advertised as starting at 19:00 and lasting an hour and a half, so was p baffled when the opening act played for 45 min and Hosono ended up taking the stage at 20:30. Old man complaint I know, but if I'd known I'd at least have eaten before.

The young band certainly added some dynamism to proceedings. One of the Kukuku women kept doing this asking for applause gesture that reminded me of Hulk Hogan's listening stance, very fun. And the guitarist had a badass 50's suit and tie outfit.

Hosono indeed convinced as much by his stage charisma as anything else. Reference to Ministry of Silly Walks was the sole ok boomer moment but did anyone catch the UK names he said he was a fan of, to seeming crickets from the audience?

It was amusing and very telling of the audience that in the opening set, featuring Hosono's grandson's band, one of the members talked about rehearsing at Hosono's studio and there was this wave of shocked reverence from the crowd at the very concept.

I thought that moment (the singer of CHO CO PA CO CHO CO QUIN QUIN talking about hanging out at Hosono's studio) was very sweet TBH.

At the time, I was rather perplexed by the length of their set. I would have loved them had they stuck to the customary 30 minute support slot. But it did get to feel a bit like they overstayed their welcome. But later, I came to feel that was a misunderstanding on my part as to what Hosono was actually trying to do with the show.

That the set was partly 'showcase Hosono's greatest hits to this new generation of western fans'. But it was also very much 'introduce western fans to contemporary Japanese artists' in the way that he's been doing for decades of his career. That he was using his position as venerable elder statesman to shine a light on the newer artists in his circle (and his grandson's circle) rather than hog the spotlight to himself.

Very Hosono thing to do TBH!

I'm reading all these messages with this unstoppable grin on my face.

Jansen + Nelson + Hosono reunion, hell yes...

It is interesting that basically the most laid-back artist ever *does* command pure reverence in so many of us

Just noticed Ether's post, which must've come in while I was typing mine. That's fantastic.

Japanese fans get the best merchandise! My friend in Japan shared this with me when I told her I had been to the gig: Hosono-san Plushie!

シェアしてもいいよ！😊
ロンドン公演の時に売ればよかったのにね！
私の息子はあと本とトートバッグとキーホルダーも買ってきました！ https://t.co/JcIOL99VC2 pic.twitter.com/7djHe6NLwq

— toyo (@o8WFV0QSYaj26X6) July 25, 2025

Her son got it at a retrospective exhibit on Hosono's work in Tokyo. The only merch I saw in London was vinyl, tote bags and T-shirts.

I was scouring the internet for another Hosono show and accidentally stumbled upon this recording of the recent show:

https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1NHgvzHEq9/

The quality isn't amazing, but it's something to tide over those of us who couldn't make it while hoping for a more official release.

Thanks Dang! Glad my adopted compatriots came through. Gonna listen today.

We bought an electric piano last week, and the sellers threw in a pair of headphones. It's been a few years since I had anything this high-end. First thing I throw on after realizing how good they were is, of course, a Hosono playlist:

Retort (Vu Ja De edition)
La Pliocena Marbordo
アルビレオ ～ 星の観測所 / Arubireo - Hoshi no Kansokushuo (from Disc 2 of Nokto, now on streaming/YT/etc)
Good Morning, Mr. Echo
日本の人 / Nihon no hito
ほしをつぐもの -メインテーマ / Hoshi wo tsugu mono - Main Theme
Parallelisme
風をあつめて / Kaze wo atsumete
Lotus Love

I'm melting here.

haha nice. What headphones?? i never used to give a shit about stuff like that. it is nice.

Not very fancy, now that I check -- EVO HD681, budget headphones, but you convert 35 pounds into RMB and bam, unaffordable (especially when one prioritizes an electric piano...) Still, combined with my old Dragonfly, and after years of just passably-good earphones, getting to hear actual *separation* between the instruments is thrilling. Hosono's 21st century acoustic guitar parts are beautifully recorded!

This AUD that Dang linked is such a treat!

The band is magic -- quiet and drifty -- and the vocals charmingly rough, often falling out of key. An adventurous, only-lightly-practiced set! I've gotten chills a handful of times already and I'm only halfway through

That's a fantastic 75 minutes of music alright. Lots of great mistakes. Atmosphere so profoundly thick it's like a songwriter's version of the '85 Monad experiment, or a folk extrapolation of Omni Sight Seeing.

I really didn't want the *recording* to end, hard to imagine how much the actual living audience's hearts hurt!

Harmonizing along with the Flying Saucer 1947 version of Sports Men is one of the supreme joys in life.

Also, Flying Saucer 1947 is perfect! It's proven to be my Hosono album of the summer.

Mercuric Dance and Paradise View are beautiful beyond telling.

Monad is the gift that keeps on giving!

many xp
Nice I've wanted to try a Superlux. I'm gonna check your playlist

Yeah…they should really reissue those Monad albums. 4 years ago they were in the works but they got pulled for some unknown reason!

Maffew, I can't create a Spotify playlist, but I can pass this your way (expires in three days -- they're getting cocky!).

I've been enjoying N.D.E. a whole lot.

frogbs, of course it isn't your fault that nobody else listens to Hosono's '90s, but as fate would have it, you *are* one of the only people on the English Internet to have written about N.D.E. (and honestly, even the Japanese net is quiet about this period of his output; Hosono's efforts to bury himself back in the underground post-Omni were clearly not in vain), and I know you're just being honest, but my impression is ... you've been underselling this album in a major way!

I picked up the reissue recently because I figured you were right and I know I wrote about it at a time when I thought Technodon kinda sucked. but just cranking it up and not thinking of other YMO stuff I suddenly started to like it a lot. so I figure if I do the same for NDE I'll come around that one too. i'll let you know in an hour :)

No doubt it'll happen sooner or later. It's a wild record. Granted, I don't have the "ambient house" (Hosono's term) background that you do, so I don't deny there could be other contemporary musicians doing the same thing better by certain metrics -- but taken on its own, it's an addictive and absorbing record. I feel like I'm barely finding my own way inside it.

You know what else is great -- Good Sport! I've been getting into that one lately. Beautiful stuff, very Monad. It has me wondering whether 1995 was an intentional celebration of the ten-year-anniversary of Hosono's 1985, or whether it's just by accident that he released five new albums that calendar year (NDE, Love Peace & Trance, Naga, Good Sport, and Love Letters in the Forest).

Re: the elusive, cassette-only Love Letters in the Forest, a helpful Discogs comment points to this video with excerpts of Hosono's soundtrack (to an installation, ala Endless Talking) and arguably even more importantly, ponytail footage!

https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1JE411f79Y/

Honestly though, the music in that video is fantastic. I don't know of anyone else who makes undeniably ambient music yet fills it with so many catchy melodies. You can take the dandy out of the tropics but

yeah it def sounds much better played loud with your head cleared a bit. I think my skepticism of it starts with Navigations, specifically that bass line, it just seems so un-Hosono that it takes me out of the record. but its not exactly a Hosono record it's a Hosono and Laswell record, that's very much a Laswell thing. it makes more sense now. I also think now it gets better as it goes, Strange Attractor in particular was pretty head expanding

less going on than in a lot of the ambient house I like but I get it now cluttering this record would ruin its vibe, its like the 90s house version of Popol Vuh

Pacific sounds so good at the end of a long workday.

The more I play N.D.E., the more melodic and Monad-y it sounds. Definitely starting to see forests. It still reminds me of YMO's Mass, but it's Mass in the woods.

And the sheer beauty of the way this thing sounds...!

Emphasis on *sounds*, as in, the way the instruments echo and resound...

some pretty emotional comments from Hosono:

Among the things that are about to be lost, there is irreplaceable. The 11th episode of the series in which musician Haruomi Hosono will talk about "what he wants to leave behind" and "what he wants to convey" that he is interested in. From each word, you can see the values and way of life.

The spirit that never goes away.

The last day we met.

A lot of things have happened since 2023. Yukihiro, Makoto Ayukawa, Toru Okada, and the professor. Everyone was in a row, so I couldn't keep up with my feelings. I wonder if this is how I feel when my friends die in battle, I can't even say goodbye to each one of them calmly.

Yukihiro's impression is still the same as it was in 2019, and it has stopped for the next four years. When I performed live in Los Angeles, Yukihiro came to see me, and Yukihiro came to the DJ party that was called that. It was Yukihiro's birthday. So let's have a birthday party. The impression of being cheerful at that time remains strong. Why did this happen in the next 4 years?

The last time I met him was in 2021, when he reissued Sketch Show's album, "Daisy Holiday!" When I was asked to come as a guest. It looked painful, but I didn't expect him to die. After that, I couldn't see him for a while, and I heard the news of his death this year. I feel like I couldn't sincerely celebrate Yukihiro's 50th anniversary concert held last year because he wasn't there. The birthday party in 2019 was a real celebration.

I haven't been able to see Sakamoto-kun for a long time. I wanted to do a live show just the two of us again like I did before, but unfortunately it didn't come true.

Finally, the Barbican Hall in London in 2018. So when I did a solo live, Sakamoto-kun and Yukihiro miraculously gathered and played "Absolute Ego Dance" together in the encore. At first, Sakamoto-kun said that he couldn't come because he had something else to do. But in the end, he took the time and came to the venue during the encore, so I invited him to the stage as it was.

In fact, the last time I did YMO was recorded in "Yellow Magic Show 2" in 2019, but I think it was the last time the three of us gathered at the Barbican. It's a little strange to think about why it was London instead of Japan.

About YMO.

It's been more than 40 years since YMO. When we formed, I had just turned 30, and the two of them were in their 20s. Looking at the photos at that time, everyone is really young. Actually, it was supposed to pass away in order of age, but the order was a little wrong.

I've told you before that when I first spoke to Yukihiro, he flew to me with his eyes shining. My eyes, or rather, my aura was shining. I think Yukihiro was destined to pull YMO.

After that, I talked to Sakamoto-kun, but what I remember well is that the three of us gathered at a yakitori restaurant near Shirokanedai and flirted with the reluctant Sakamoto-kun. I guess he was skeptical. I was an arranger at that time, and I would have planned to do it independently, and it was my first time in a band. He told me honestly that I was worried. However, Yukihiro and the staff around him asked me to persuade him with the nuance of flapping his wings to the world. Maybe that's why I got a little motivated.

As for YMO, I remember the time it started the most. After persuading Sakamoto-kun, we became closer and the three of us often met. It was a fun time. I ate rice, and Sakamoto-kun was called to the recording in charge of the arrangement, and played the bass. The direction of the arrangement is Sakamoto-kun, there are many fusion ones, and it was fun to play something like that.

So even when I started YMO, there was still a lot of fusion. I was very fascinated by the staff in New York and studio musicians like that. The first song recorded by YMO was "Fire Cracker". But when I entered the Alpha Records studio and recorded it with live music, it was a bit too fusion-like and it was not interesting. So I was able to confirm that I could do it on the computer. However, the first album is still strongly influenced by New York musicians. For example, Sakamoto-kun's "East Wind" has an oriental theme, but I think it is deeply influenced by that.

I wonder if the influence of craftwork is strong that YMO's style was decided. The three of us listened to craft work, plunged into Russian constructivism from their artwork, and bought books and studied. But the more you study, the more you can't compete with their steel-like concept with German history in the background. Then we used to talk a lot about what to do.

The exchange with London began around the second album "Solid State Survivor", and the influence of New Wave came in. I listened to a lot of sound sources sent by Toshi Yajima in London, and Yukihiro and I were in end. At that time, Sakamoto-kun might have kept a little distance. Both Yukihiro and I are deep-rooted pop people, so there may have been a sense of distance from Sakamoto-kun, who is based on classical and contemporary music.

It will be a beautiful memory after decades, but after that it was hard. It's like I couldn't afford it. All three of them like music. I like recording. I didn't expect it to be so popular just because I started with a single mind to make music. Each has its own biorhythm. In the long run, the mind and body change on a yearly basis. So, for example, when Sakamoto-kun's biorhythm was declining, he had to make his fifth album "BGM". But well, if it's a band, it's like that when you do it.

When it comes to memories with Yukihiro when I was at YMO, I was helped when I appeared on a live program of the song. At that time, I was neurotic, and I was hyperventilating when I was nervous or felt a certain color. The color is bright green, white, and the color of the old metropolitan bus. Also, the fact that I was stuck in the studio and often drank a strong sour coffee that smelled like boiled soybeans may have been a trigger. Because I always developed it when I left after the recording. I think Yukihiro knew about that too.

Yukihiro held my hand and led me, who was hyperventilating just before the song program, and my whole body was numb and unable to move. His communication is so unique that there is a saying "I'm lucky". Talking without looking into people's eyes, or not saying hello (laughs). That's why everyone who met for the first time was confused. You were amused by that and said, "You're Yukihiro." But Yukihiro gently supported me during the song program. He is a very kind person. I remember it well.

A very honest person.

When I was with Yukihiro, I often boasted about my own illness. In such a case, Yukihiro's boasting of illness hurts the most. I also had painful experiences such as cutting the appendix without anesthesia, but Yukihiro was good at talking about painful surgeries. We all listened to it and said, "Wow! No, No, No! Ouch, ouch! That. Whether Sakamoto-kun was there or not... I don't remember listening to it together.

Sakamoto-kun is scared. When we were together in New York, we talked about what kind of horror movies we were afraid of. Then he said "Nightmare of Elm Street" with a serious face. Eh! What about that? I thought, but when I asked why I was scared, he said, "I'm scared that it was still a dream when I woke up." In fact, there is a place that is like a child inside.

The most impressive memory with Sakamoto-kun is that time or when I listened to "Riot in Lagos". It was a song included in Sakamoto-kun's second solo album "B-2 Unit", and it was a great result anyway. That's why I told him that he couldn't recover after listening to that song. Then, "Eh, is that so?" Make a very happy face like that. Shigesato Itoi also said that Sakamoto-kun was a very honest person.

There were times when he was skey during YMO, but perhaps Sakamoto-kun was looking at his great father (note: Kazukame Sakamoto, the editor who sent Yukio Mishima and others to the world) and me as a double copy of his father. That's why I feel like a rebellious son.

Yukihiro and I can be said to be friends. But Sakamoto-kun had a different relationship from his friends. Rather, I think it was closer to parents and children and siblings. There may have been a rivalry. The more you feel like that, the more you will react. Maybe that's why he was happy when I praised "Riot in Lagos".

When Sakamoto-kun and Yukihiro celebrated their 60th birthday, they went to my favorite Western restaurant and ate hamburger steak together. Then, Sakamoto-kun in end, in ess, "It's delicious." That's where something like a hamburger party started (laughs).

The three of them were fans of each other.

After his death, I was really surprised to know that Sakamoto-kun liked "HOSONO HOUSE". I think it was probably the music that was the furthest from me. I think he had a longing for simple and simple music because he grew up in different fields. But that's mutual. Yukihiro told me that he had always been my fan when I celebrated my 50th anniversary of my music career, but the three of us were like that to each other.

The mourning for the two of them will continue for the rest of their lives. But I'm a musician, so I have a lot of things left. If you listen to music, there is spirit there. Touching it is like meeting a living person. When you play music, you can clearly see that. Of course, literature and whatever, there will be such things, but music is special. Because it sounds like a sound. The spirit there will never go away. I think so.

Well, as an event in an era where many things happened, I can't forget the events of the past three years. I'm sure it's not irrelevant that they've become weak, and it should be on me too. During this time, I had the opportunity to talk to Kunihiko Murai, and among the people of this generation, there is a tyoman to exchange at the time of parting. That is, "Let's do our best and live a long life." Both Mickey Curtis and Shoro Kawazoe talked about that the other day. When you're in your late 70s, I don't think you have much future. But it can't be helped if you think too much. I think I have no choice but to keep doing music.

Where is that from?

All of his interviews recently have the feel of going over his long career and putting his affairs in order. It's bittersweet.

I wonder if the influence of craftwork is strong that YMO's style was decided. The three of us listened to craft work, plunged into Russian constructivism from their artwork, and bought books and studied. But the more you study, the more you can't compete with their steel-like concept with German history in the background.

^^^ I don't know where it's from, but it's clearly via Google Translate because a human translator wouldn't make this mistake. :D

Frogbs, do you have the original Japanese? It's a lovely interview but machine translation's habit of peppering random pronouns from Japanese ambiguity makes it hard to read in places.

I don't know either! I saw it on the SteveHoffman forums.