Yellow Magic [1981] Technodelic (remastered)

FLAC+CUE ripped from 2005/2007 remastered reissue of YMO's 1981 Technodelic. No artwork available alas.


Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO) is an influential Japanese electropop band formed in 1978, and renowned as a major influence in popular music and for pioneering the electropop music genre. The principal members are Haruomi Hosono (bass), Yukihiro Takahashi (drums and vocals) and Ryuichi Sakamoto (keyboards).



YMO - Technodelic Label: Epic
Catalog#: 513450 2
Format: CD, Album, Reissue, Remastered
Country: Europe
Released: 2004 / 2007
Genre: Electronic
Style: Experimental
Credits: Engineer [Assistant] - Yoshifumi Iio
Instruments - Haruomi Hosono , Ryuichi Sakamoto , Yukihiro Takahashi
Lyrics By - Haruomi Hosono (tracks: 7, , Peter Barakan (tracks: 1, 3, 4, 7, , Ryuichi Sakamoto (tracks: 4) , YMO* (tracks: 2, 6) , Yukihiro Takahashi (tracks: 1, 3)
Lyrics By [Lyrics Anclicised By] - Peter Barakan
Mastered By - Hiroshi Yuasa
Mixed By, Engineer, Mastered By [Remastering], Edited By - Mitsuo Koike
Music By - Haruomi Hosono (tracks: 7, , Ryuichi Sakamoto (tracks: 4, 5, 9, 10) , YMO* (tracks: 2, 6) , Yukihiro Takahashi (tracks: 1, 3 to 5,
Other [Technical Assistance] - Hideki Matsutake
Producer - H Hosono*
Producer, Mixed By, Arranged By - YMO*
Notes: Catalogue number on rear is EPC 513450 2.
UPC: 5099751345022.
Made in Austria.
Imprinted SACEM BIEM.


Technodelic is the fourth studio album by Yellow Magic Orchestra. The album is notable for its heavy use of samplers which were not commonly used until the mid to late 80's, resulting in a more minimalist and experimental sound compared to their previous work.

Most of the sampling was made with an LMD-649 - a hand-made sampler developed by Toshiba-EMI engineer Kenji Murata, and a much cheaper alternative to the Linn LM-1 drum machine and Fairlight CMI sampling synthesizer available at the time. Notable samples used include Indonesian kecak chanting (Neue Tanz), gamelan and short looped vocals ("paa", "fuku", "chiki") for percussion in Seoul Music, and the final two tracks feature factory noises. The album also features use of speech through a two-way radio, a prepared piano, Prophet-5 synthesizers and a TR-808 drum machine. In another departure from previous albums, Haruomi Hosono has a more prominent role playing the bass guitar as opposed to playing bass lines on synthesizers (this trend appears again on the album Service).

As with many of YMO's releases, song titles are printed in both Japanese and English. For "Seoul Music", the kanji "京城" are used, referring to Gyeongseong (경성; known as Keijou in Japan), the name of Seoul when Korea was under Japanese rule. "灯" simply translates to "Light". "Neue Tanz" is German for "New Dance", while "Taisō" is Japanese for "gymnastics" or "calesthenics".

Track listing

1. "Pure Jam" (ジャム; "Jam") Yukihiro Takahashi/Peter Barakan 4:30
2. "Neue Tanz" (新舞踊; "Shin buyou") Yellow Magic Orchestra 4:58
3. "Stairs" (階段; "Kaidan") Takahashi/Barakan 4:14
4. "Seoul Music" (京城音楽; "Keijou ongaku") Ryuichi Sakamoto/Takahashi/Barakan 4:46
5. "Light in Darkness" (灯; "Tomoshibi") Takahashi/Sakamoto 3:40
6. "Taiso" (体操; "Taisō") Yellow Magic Orchestra 4:21
7. "Gradated Grey" (灰色の段階; "Grey no dankai") Haruomi Hosono/Barakan 5:33
8. "Key" (手掛かり; "Tegakari") Hosono/Takahashi/Barakan 4:32
9. "Prologue" (前奏; "Zensou") Sakamoto 2:31
10. "Epilogue" (後奏; "Kousou") Sakamoto 4:21


Personnel
Ryuichi Sakamoto: keyboards, vocals
Yukihiro Takahashi: drums, vocals
Haruomi Hosono: Bass, keyboards, vocals
Peter Barakan: Lyrics (also radio voice in Pure Jam)
Hideki Matsutake: Technical assistance



Thanks for seeding !