Fukakai Beats

The translation for “fukakai” is incomprehensible..

Japan is full of explosive moments so carefully bundled they must be held by invincible seams. There is a burning desire to absorb and reflect, and for this reason the Japanese Hip-Hop/beats scene is and obviously has been a huge influence for many years. This post isn't concentrating on that however, it's looking at the more obscure elements in play for the last few decades.

It might be hard to understand why Fuzz, Funk, Folk, New Wave, No Wave, Techno-Pop, Disco, and Anime Songs from Japan between the 1960’s and 2010 could work on one mix, but it reflects the disparate and sometimes colliding cultures of music that have always existed there. This first mix is courtesy of the fantastic VTech (curated by Hashim B) and it picks up on these throughout.

Alternatively, Click here to stream in the player below (or right click to download).

1. Takehisa Kosugi / Mano Dharma ‘74 / Catch Wave
2. Kefia P Feat. Hatsune Miku / intro ~memories~ / Hatsune Miku Best ‘07-’09 MEMORIES
3. Speed, Glue & Shinki / Red Doll / Speed, Glue & Shinki
4. Sachiko Kanenobu / Aoi Sakana / Misora
5. Speed, Glue & Shinki / Don’t Say No / Speed, Glue & Shinki
6. The Helpful Soul / Aldin’s Theme / A Thousand & One Nights OST (45)
7. Excerpt from “Funeral Parade of Roses” (film)
8. Les Rallizes Dénudés / Kioku Wa Tooi / Le 12 Mars 1977 à Tachikawa
9. Haruomi Hosono / Funiculi Funicura / Philharmony
10. Flower Travellin’ Band / Hiroshima / Make Up
11. Kenjiro Hirose / Onna Bancho Taiman Shoubu M-5 / Sugimoto Miki vs Ike Reiko Onna Bancho Nagaremono Futengurashi
12. Excerpt from “Shinjuku Mad” (film)
13. Food Brain / M-8 / Shinjuku Mad OST
14. J.A. Caesar / Haha Koishiya Sangosho / Kokkyo Junreika
15. Phew / Signal / Phew
16. Audio Sports / Voo Voo / Era of Glittering Gas
17. Akira Ishikawa & His Count Buffalos / Heated Point / Get Up!
18. Hiromi Iwasaki / Good Night / Fantasy
19. Yumi Arai / Anata Dake No Mono / Misslim
20. Taeko Onuki / Kusuri Wo Takusan / Sunshower
21. S.L.A.C.K. / I’m Home / WHALABOUT
22. Ichiro Araki / Onna Bancho Kankain Dassou M-7 / Hotwax Trax 04 Teppoudama No Bigaku: Nakajima Sadao No Sekai
23. Buddha Brand / Ningen Hatsudensho (Classic Mix) / Yameru Mugen No Insto No Sekai
24. Haruomi Hosono / CHATTANOOGA CHOO CHOO / TROPICAL DANDY
25. Yellow Magic Orchestra / Seoul Music / Technodelic
26. riow arai+anna yamada / Ie / R+NAAAA
27. Excerpt from “Tenshi No Koukotsu(Ecstasy Of Angels)” (film)
28. Yasuo Higuchi / Photograph / Hotwax Trax Maruhi Shikijyo Mesu Shijyo – Nikkatsu Roman Porno No Sekai
29. Akira Ishikawa & His Count Buffalos / Pigmy / Uganda
30. P-MODEL / KAMEARI POP / IN A MODEL ROOM
31. Haruomi Hosono / Platonic / Philharmony
32. Yellow Magic Orchestra / Neue Tanz / Technodelic
33. Zuno Keisatsu / Hyena / Kamengeki No Hero Wo Kokuso Shiro
34. Audio Sports / Eat & Buy & Eat / Era of Glittering Gas
35. Ryuichi Sakamoto / E-3A / B-2 Unit
36. OOIOO / HONKI PONKI / ARMONICO HEWA
37. Senba Kiyohiko To Haniwa All Stars / Cha Nomi Tomodachi Suresure / Haniwa
38. Excerpt from “Tetsuo” (film)
39. Ishiwatari Junji & Sunahara Yoshinori + Yakushimaru Etsuko / Kamisama No Iu Tori (Version Z80) / Kamisama No Iu Tori
40. Yellow Magic Orchestra / Computer Games/ Yellow Magic Orchestra
41. Doseijin Mikael (?ARM) / Mika No Kuni No Genso Wakusei – Dot No Kanata E / Toho Tsuki Tourou Safe!
42. Haruki Matsuo / Ivy(Last Mix)-08 / Haruki Matsuo_12?
43. Nihon Henshu Ongaku Kyokai / Tonkaka Nadeko / Dame Mikusu
44. Junko Yagami / Imagination / Communication
45. Haruomi Hosono / Body Snatchers / S-F-X
46. imoutoid / PART3 / ADEPRESSIVE CANNOT GOTO THE CEREMONY
47. miko / Kanbu De Tomatte Sugu Tokeru – Kyoki No Udongein / Toho Tsuki Tourou Safe!
48. Hiromi Iwasaki / Papillon / Fantasy
49. Hatsumi Shibata / Singer Lady / My Luxury Night
50. Spectrum / First Wave / Spectrum
51. Yuming / Youkoso Kagayaku Jikan E / Pearl Pierce
52. Excerpt from “Downtown 81? (film)
53. Plastics / Delicious/ Welcome Back Plastics
54. Totsuzen Danball / Sentaku To Hairetsu / Can I?
55. Phew / Closed / Phew
56. Excerpt From “Face Of Another”
57. Maher Shalal Hash Baz / Remember My Labour Of Love / Blues du Jour
58. Rie Yokohama / Umitsubame / Tenshi No Koukotsu OST

This second little batter of psychedelia here concentrates more on the somewhat forgotten emergence of the early Japanese rock sound and why its best moments were those that sounded the strangest.

In 1962 the Ventures toured Japan and lit the fuse for a surf music boom that soon spawned a wave of lightning fast guitars and tumbling blasts on tight drums. These new surf bands formed the Eleki sound that was topped by cats such as guitarist Takeshi “Terry” Terauchi & drummer Jackey Yoshikawa. Their sounds were blistering, heavy and filled with supersonic string strums. Some of the most sparkling moments of this genre come when the composers shot the fusion tube and incorporated traditional Japanese folk melodies and instruments like the Koto Harp or Shakuhachi Flute with their guitar amp overdrive.

The Eleki scene choked on sea foam in 1966 when the Beatles, fresh from their invasion of America, came to blow Japanese minds. Their famous Budokan Concert caused a societal stir from the bottom up. The instrumental focus of Eleki couldn’t cut it anymore. Bands knew they needed to sing out to be seen in the scene. The only question was in which tongue? Would it be cool enough to wail in Japanese or was English the key to the kids hearts and wallets? Opinions differed and bands sometimes alternated languages on the same album or song. The name rock and roll itself with all it’s r’s and l’s proved difficult to float off Japanese tongues so the genre Group Sounds or G.S. was coined for the Japanese movement. The name was their own but the image and sound was based tightly on the British and American mold. The most popular G.S. bands were hugely popular at home. Many even hit the silver screen and made their own rock films in the mold of “A Hard Days Night.” As high as they rose their fame never stretched beyond the Sea of Japan.

While the Beatles spawned the relatively innocent vibes of the Group Sounds scene the later echoes of Hendrix, the Velvet Underground and Blue Cheer twisted things into darker directions. These psychedelic torch bearers helped launch the Japanese New Rock movement which stepped forward over melted barriers. The Japanese musicians like their Western counterparts were focused on fuzzing up heads with experimentation. The blinds were tossed wide open and all elements became fair game. New Rock merged explosive guitar distortion with sampled radio voices, eastern melodies, odd time signatures and moody jazz chords without a second thought. This often heavy, lusty sound perfectly slid into the Pink Films that were swelling in tandem. These sexploitation flicks were cranked out on the gritty, grainy cheap but were often able to achieve high impact through psych stylings. Though many of the films were made merely to satiate sexual desires the bands whose sounds accompanied them often soared to loftier signals.

Massive props to Frosty for this blast.

Alternatively, Click here to stream in the player below (or right click to download).

1. Takeshi Terauchi & Blue Jeans / Karajishi Botan / Ereki Ippon Enka De Shobu!
2. Reiko Ike / Futen Gurashi Part. 1 / Onna Bancho Blues Mesubachi No Chosen
3. Jackey Yoshikawa and his Blue Comets / Blue Fountain / Original Hits Vol. II
4. Kazuko Sawamura and Peter Pan / My Boy / Noraneko Rock Nikkatsu New Action No Sekai
5. Takeshi Terauchi and the Bunnys / Symphony No. 5 / Let’s Go Classics
6. Jacks / Omae Ni Muchuu Sa / Haragashi Onna
7. Takeshi Terauchi & Blue Jeans / Tsugaru Jongara Bushi / Let’s Go Eleki Bushi!
8. Jackey Yoshikawa and his Blue Comets / Linda / Original Hits Vol. II
9. Hajime Kaburagi / Sex Hunter (BGM) / Noraneko Rock Nikkatsu New Action No Sekai
10. Hajime Kaburagi / Onna Bancho Blues Mesubachi No Chosen M-8 / Onna Bancho Blues Mesubachi No Chosen
11. The Mops / Goiken Muyo / Noraneko Rock Nikkatsu New Action No Sekai
12. Hajime Kaburagi / Yasagure Anegoden Sokatsu Lynch M-6B / Onna Bancho Blues Mesubachi No Chosen
13. Kyu Sakamoto / Kanashiki Rokujyussai / Seishunka Nenkan Best 30 (‘60)
14. Salty Sugar / Hashire Kotaro / Seishunka Nenkan Haiban Best 200
15. Hiroki Tamaki / Boso Shudan ‘71 Bgm / Noraneko Rock Nikkatsu New Action No Sekai
16. Takeshi Terauchi & Blue Jeans / Moso Bangaichi / Ereki Ippon Enka De Shobu!
17. Jacks / M-10 / Haragashi Onna
18. Takeshi Terauchi and the Bunnys / Kisobushi / Let’s Go Eleki Bushi!
19. Sharp Five Go Go / Kaze Ga Naiteru / Japanese Pops Golden Hits
20. Kenjiro Hirose / Onna Bancho Taiman Shobu M-3 / Onna Bancho Blues Mesubachi No Chosen
21. Hajime Kaburagi / Sex Hunter Ps-C / Noraneko Rock Nikkatsu New Action No Sekai
22. Ken Yamauchi / Ken No Rock / Tokyo A GoGo
23. The Darts / Kemeko No Uta / 7?
24. Folk Crusaders (Kazuhiko Kato – the Folk Parody Gang) – I Only Live Twice / 7?
25. Food Brain / M-7 / Shinjuku Mad OST
26. Takeshi Terauchi & “Blue Jeans” / Edo Komoriuta / Let’s Go Eleki Bushi!