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{{Refimprove|date=February 2011}}
{{Infobox musical artist <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Musicians -->
{{Infobox musical artist <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Musicians -->
| Name = Yellow Magic Orchestra
| Name = Yellow Magic Orchestra
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| Instrument =
| Instrument =
| Voice_type =
| Voice_type =
| Genre = [[Electronic music|Electronic]] ([[Computer music|computer]], [[Electro music|electro]], [[electropop]], [[techno]]), [[exotica]], [[Experimental music|experimental]], [[J-pop]], [[Hip hop music|hip hop]], [[House music|house]], [[New Wave music|New Wave]], [[synthpop]], [[Electronic rock|synth rock]]
| Genre = [[Electronic music]]<br />[[Electropop]]<br />[[Synthpop]]
| Occupation =
| Occupation =
| Years_active = 1978–1983, 1993, 2007–present
| Years_active = 1978–1983, 1992-1993,<br>2007–present
| Label = [[Alfa Records|Alfa Records (Japan)]]<br />[[A&M Records]]<br />[[Toshiba-EMI]]<br />[[Restless Records]]<br />[[Sony Music Entertainment Japan|Sony Music House (Japan)]]<br />[[Avex Trax|commmons (Japan)]]
| Label = [[Alfa Records|Alfa Records (Japan)]]<br />[[A&M Records]]<br />[[Toshiba-EMI]]<br />[[Restless Records]]<br />[[Sony Music Entertainment Japan|Sony Music House (Japan)]]<br />[[Avex Trax|Commmons (Japan)]]
| Associated_acts =
| Associated_acts =
| URL =
| URL =
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| Notable_instruments =
| Notable_instruments =
}}
}}
'''Yellow Magic Orchestra''' '''(YMO)''' is a [[Japan]]ese [[electronic music]] band formed in 1978, consisting of principal members [[Haruomi Hosono]] (bass), [[Yukihiro Takahashi]] (drums and lead vocals) and [[Ryuichi Sakamoto]] (keyboards and vocals).<ref name="allmusic_ymo">{{cite web|url={{Allmusic|class=artist|id=p5886|pure_url=yes}}|title=Yellow Magic Orchestra profile|publisher=[[Allmusic]]|accessdate=2009-06-03}}</ref> They are known for their seminal influence on electronic music, and as pioneers of various [[List of electronic music genres|electronic genres]] such as [[Electropop|electropop/technopop]],<ref name="allmusic_ymo"/><ref name="guardian_ymo"/> [[synthpop]],<ref name="scaruffi">{{citation|title=A history of rock music 1951-2000|author=Piero Scaruffi|publisher=[[iUniverse]]|year=2003|isbn=0595295657|page=234|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=04KtwVkHNv0C&pg=PA234|accessdate=2011-05-26}}</ref> [[computer music]],<ref name="sarasota"/><ref name="billboard_1979">{{citation|title=Artists and producers strive for inroads overseas|work=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]|date=26 May 1979|volume=91|issue=20|issn=0006-2510|page=61|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=_iQEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PT61|accessdate=2011-05-29}}</ref> [[electro music]],<ref name="wire_1996"/> [[techno]],<ref name="bogdanov_1996">{{cite book|last=Bogdanov|first=Vladimir|title=All music guide to electronica: the definitive guide to electronic music|year=2001|publisher=[[Hal Leonard Corporation|Backbeat Books]]|isbn=0879306289|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=GJNXLSBlL7IC&pg=PT582|edition=4th|accessdate=26 May 2011|page=582}}</ref> [[cyberpunk]] music,<ref>{{cite web|last=Lester|first=Paul|title=Yellow Magic Orchestra|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2008/jun/20/culture.electronicmusic|work=[[The Guardian]]|accessdate=26 May 2011|date=20 June 2008}}</ref> [[ambient house]] [[House music|music]],<ref name="allmusic_ymo"/> and [[electronica]].<ref name="guardian_ymo"/> Their work has had a significant lasting impact across many different music genres, ranging from [[Hip hop music|hip hop]],<ref name="guardian_ymo"/> [[Electronic dance music|electronic dance]],<ref name="fidelity_1993"/> [[acid house]],<ref name="UGO">{{cite web|title=Ryuichi Sakamoto|publisher=[[UGO Networks]]|url=http://www.ugo.com/channels/music/features/bandsondemand/artist.aspx?artist=ryuichisakamoto&cat=electronica&full=Ryuichi%20Sakamoto|accessdate=2011-05-27}}</ref> and [[Rave music|rave]], to [[ambient music]],<ref name="billboard_1996">{{citation|title=Q&A With Ryuichi Sakamoto: Pop Pioneer And Producer And Award-Winning Soundtrack Composer|work=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]|date=31 August 1996|volume=108|issue=35|issn=0006-2510|page=72|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=vwcEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA72|accessdate=2011-05-29}}</ref> mainstream [[Pop music|pop]],<ref name="scaruffi"/><ref name="billboard_1996"/> [[electronic rock]], and general [[melodic music]].<ref name="scaruffi"/>
'''Yellow Magic Orchestra''' '''(YMO)''' is a Japanese [[electropop]] band formed in 1978 which is known for pioneering the electropop music genre and as a seminal influence on electronic music.<ref>{{cite web|url={{Allmusic|class=artist|id=p5886|pure_url=yes}}|title=Yellow Magic Orchestra profile|publisher=Allmusic|accessdate=2009-06-03}}</ref> The principal members are [[Haruomi Hosono]] (bass), [[Yukihiro Takahashi]] (drums and vocals) and [[Ryuichi Sakamoto]] (keyboards).


==Biography==
==History==
{{Refimprove-section|date=February 2011}}
===Formation and early years===
The band was conceived as a one-off studio project by Hosono, the other two members being recruited session musicians—the idea was to produce an album fusing orientalist [[exotica]] (cf. their cover version of [[Martin Denny]]'s ''Firecracker'') with modern electronics. However, the first album (with its cutting-edge production) was very popular, and the studio project grew into a fully fledged touring band and career for its three members.


===Early years and formation (1976-1978)===
Sakamoto first worked with Hosono as a member of his live band in 1976, while Takahashi recruited Sakamoto to produce his debut solo recording in 1977 following the split of the [[Sadistic Mika Band]]. Hosono invited both to work on his exotica flavoured album "Paraiso", followed by electronic material for the anthology collection "Pacific". Following the release of the debut "Yellow Magic Orchestra" a live date at the Roppongi Pit Inn was seen by executives of A&M Records of the USA who were in the process of setting up a partnership deal with Alfa Records. This led to the YMO being offered an international deal, at which point (early 1979) the three members decided the group would be given priority over their solo careers.
{{see also|Haruomi Hosono|Ryuichi Sakamoto|Yukihiro Takahashi|Sadistic Mika Band|Yellow Magic Orchestra (album)}}


Sakamoto first worked with Hosono as a member of his live band in 1976, while Takahashi recruited Sakamoto to produce his debut solo recording in 1977 following the split of the [[Sadistic Mika Band]]. Hosono invited both to work on his exotica flavoured album "Paraiso", followed by electronic material for the anthology collection "Pacific". The three then collaborated to form the Yellow Magic Orchestra.
===Success and breakup===
An advertising deal with [[Fujifilm|Fuji Cassette]] and the group sparked a boom in the popularity of electronic pop music (called "Technopop" in Japan) that had an impact similar to that of [[The Beatles]] and [[Merseybeat]] in 1960s Britain.{{Citation needed|date=September 2009}} A testament to the influence of YMO on fashion is how many middle-aged Japanese businessmen still have the "Techno cut" haircut, modeled after the group.{{Citation needed|date=December 2010}} Successful solo act [[Akiko Yano]] (later married to Sakamoto) joined the band for its live performances in the late 1970s and early 1980s, but did not participate in the studio recordings. On the other hand, the YMO trio contributed to her own albums and became part of her live band, during these same years.


{{Listen
Making abundant use of new [[synthesizer]]s, [[Sampler (musical instrument)|samplers]], [[music sequencer|sequencers]] and digital recording technology as it became available, as well as utilizing [[cyberpunk]]-ish lyrics sung mostly in English, they extended their popularity and influence beyond Japan. Generally the band are highly regarded as pioneers of electronic music, and continue to be remixed and sampled by modern artists.
|pos=left
|filename=YMO - Computer Game.ogg
|title="Computer Game"
|description=A sample of "Computer Game" from 1978 album ''[[Yellow Magic Orchestra (album)|Yellow Magic Orchestra]]''. This track was later combined with the "Firecracker" song into a hit single called "Computer Game". The track [[Sampling (music)|samples]] [[Arcade game|arcade]] [[Video game music|game sounds]] from ''[[Space Invaders]]'' and ''[[Circus (video game)|Circus]]''.
|format=[[Ogg]]
}}


The band was conceived as a one-off studio project by Hosono, the other two members being recruited session musicians—the idea was to produce an album fusing orientalist [[exotica]] with modern electronics, as a [[subversion]] of [[Orientalism]] and [[exoticization]], while exploring similar themes such as [[Asian people|Asianness]]. The album would eventually be called ''Yellow Magic Orchestra'', as a satire of Japan's obsession with [[black magic]] at the time.<ref name="guardian_ymo"/> It was also the first album to utilize [[computer]] technology (along with [[synthesizer]]s) to create a new sound that was not possible until then.<ref name="billboard_1979"/>
''[[Solid State Survivor]]'', released in 1979, was YMO's pinnacle recording in Japan, winning the 1980 Best Album Award in the [[Japan Record Awards]]. It featured English lyrics by [[Chris Mosdell]], whose [[sci-fi]] themes often depicted a human condition alienated by dystopic futures, much like the emerging [[cyberpunk]] movement in fiction at that time. The album's major single and YMO's biggest international hit, "Behind the Mask", with lyrics penned by [[Chris Mosdell]], was later revised by [[Michael Jackson]], who added new lyrics.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.metafilter.com/82928/Behind-the-Mask-Michael-Jacksons-rarest-recording |title=Behind the Mask - Michael Jackson's rarest recording? |publisher=MetaFilter |date= |accessdate=2011-03-27}}</ref> Jackson's version has been released on his first posthumous album, "Michael". Michael Jackson's version was covered by [[Ryuichi Sakamoto]] himself on his 1986 solo release "Media Bahn Live" (it was also covered by [[Greg Phillinganes]] and [[Eric Clapton]]).


Prior to the group's formation, an early example of a similar "electro-exotica" fusion was ''Cochin Moon'', produced by Hosono alongside future YMO members Sakamoto and [[Hideki Matsutake]]. Released in 1978, the album was an experimental [[Fusion (music)|fusion]] between electronic music and [[Music of India|Indian music]] (reminiscent of [[Ravi Shankar]] and [[Filmi|Bollywood music]]), including an early "synth [[raga]]" song "Hum Ghar Sajan".<ref name="pitchfork">{{cite web|author=Dominique Leone|date=July 19, 2005|title=Hosono & Yokoo: Cochin Moon|publisher=[[Pitchfork Media]]|url=http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/4016-cochin-moon/|accessdate=2011-05-26}}</ref> The same year, Sakamoto released his own solo album, ''The Thousand Knives of Ryuichi Sakamoto'', experimenting with a similar fusion between electronic music and traditional [[Music of Japan|Japanese music]].
The band had stopped working as a group in 1984, after the release of their motion picture "Propaganda", the three members returning to their solo careers. The group were careful to avoid saying they had "split up", preferring to use the Japanese phrase meaning {{Nihongo|"spreading out"|散開|sankai}}, and in fact the trio continued to play on each other's recordings and made guest appearances at live shows. Takahashi, in particular, would play YMO material in his concerts and as "lead singer" was arguably best placed to do so. To dodge lawsuits and "spread out" creatively they released the next one-off reunion album, [[Technodon]], and credited it to 'NOT YMO' (YMO crossed out with a calligraphy X) or <strike>YMO</strike> in 1993. Instead of traditional vocals, about half of which features field audio recordings and samples of authors and scientists reading their work.


{{Listen
===Post breakup===
|filename=YMO - Firecracker.ogg
The early 2000s saw Hosono & Takahashi reunited in a project called [[Sketch Show (band)|Sketch Show]]. On a number of occasions Ryuichi Sakamoto has joined in on Sketch Show performances and recording sessions. He later proposed they rename the group Human Audio Sponge when he participates. Barcelona performance at Sonar festival and Wild Sketch Show DVDs chronicle these reunions, and include a tongue-in-cheek Japanese text only history of the group that spans to 2036.
|pos=right
|title="Firecracker"
|description=A sample of "Firecracker" from 1978 album ''[[Yellow Magic Orchestra (album)|Yellow Magic Orchestra]]''. This song was later combined with the "Computer Game" track into a hit single called "Computer Game". It was later sampled by artists such as [[Afrika Bambaata]] and [[Jennifer Lopez]].
|format=[[Ogg]]
}}


The band's 1978 debut album ''[[Yellow Magic Orchestra (album)|Yellow Magic Orchestra]]'', with its cutting-edge production, was very popular, and the studio project grew into a fully fledged touring band and career for its three members. Following the release of the debut ''Yellow Magic Orchestra'', a live date at the Roppongi Pit Inn was seen by executives of A&M Records of the USA who were in the process of setting up a partnership deal with Alfa Records. This led to the YMO being offered an international deal, at which point (early 1979) the three members decided the group would be given priority over their solo careers. The most popular international hit from the album was "Firecracker", which would be released as a single the following year and again as "Computer Game", which became a success in the United States and Europe.
The band have reunited in 2007 for an advertising campaign for [[Kirin Brewery Company|Kirin]] Lager which lampooned their longevity and charted No.1 on various Japanese digital download charts (including [[iTunes Store]] chart) with the song "Rydeen 79/07", released on Sakamoto's new label [[Avex Trax|commmons]].


===National and international success (1978-1983)===
Recently performing live as Human Audio Sponge; Hosono, Sakamoto and Takahashi did a live performance together as Yellow Magic Orchestra for the [[Live Earth]], [[Live Earth concert, Kyoto|Kyoto]] event on July 7, 2007, which raised money and awareness of a "climate in crisis."
{{see also|Yellow Magic Orchestra (album)|Solid State Survivor|Public Pressure|X∞Multiplies|BGM (album)|Technodelic|Naughty Boys}}


Following an advertising deal with [[Fujifilm|Fuji Cassette]], the group sparked a boom in the popularity of electronic pop music, called "Technopop" in Japan,<ref name="sarasota">{{cite journal|title=Computer rock music gaining fans|journal=[[Sarasota Journal]]|date=August 18, 1980|url=http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=7s4mAAAAIBAJ&sjid=h44EAAAAIBAJ&pg=4481,2128223|accessdate=2011-05-25|page=8}}</ref><ref name="guardian_ymo">{{cite web|last=Lewis|first=John|title=Back to the future: Yellow Magic Orchestra helped usher in electronica - and they may just have invented hip-hop, too|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2008/jul/04/electronicmusic.filmandmusic11|work=[[The Guardian]]|accessdate=25 May 2011|date=4 July 2008}}</ref> where they had an impact similar to that of [[The Beatles]] and [[Merseybeat]] in 1960s Britain.<ref name="guardian_ymo"/> For some time, YMO was the most popular band in Japan.<ref name="guardian_ymo"/> A testament to the influence of YMO on fashion is how many middle-aged Japanese businessmen still have the "Techno cut" haircut, modeled after the group.{{Citation needed|date=December 2010}} Successful solo act [[Akiko Yano]] (later married to Sakamoto) joined the band for its live performances in the late 1970s and early 1980s, but did not participate in the studio recordings. On the other hand, the YMO trio contributed to her own albums and became part of her live band, during these same years.
In August 2007, the band once again reformed, taking the name HASYMO or HAS/YMO, combining the names of Human Audio Sponge and Yellow Magic Orchestra. Their first single under this name, "Rescue", was written for the film [[Appleseed EX Machina]]. They released a new two song single titled "The City of Light/Tokyo Town Pages" on August 6, 2008.


Making abundant use of new [[synthesizer]]s, [[Sampler (musical instrument)|samplers]], [[music sequencer|sequencers]], [[drum machine]]s, [[computer]]s and digital recording technology as it became available, as well as utilizing [[cyberpunk]]-ish lyrics sung mostly in English, they extended their popularity and influence beyond Japan.<ref name="allmusic_ymo"/><ref name="sarasota"/><ref name="clashmusic">{{cite web|title=Senor Coconut|author=Paul Sullivan|work=clashmusic.com|date=01/09/2007|url=http://www.clashmusic.com/feature/senor-coconut|accessdate=2011-05-29}}</ref> While their contemporaries in [[Düsseldorf]] and [[Detroit]] were using synthesizer technology to create bleak [[dystopia]]n music, YMO set themselves apart by using synthesizer technology to create "joyous and liberating" music, which was "a Japanese thing" according to Sakamoto.<ref name="guardian_ymo"/>
HASYMO played two live concerts in Europe in the summer of 2008, one at the [[Royal Festival Hall]], London on 15 June, as part of the [[Meltdown (festival)|Meltdown]] festival of music curated by [[Massive Attack]] and another in [[Gijon]], [[Spain]] on the 19th. Although the primary YMO members (Yukihiro Takahashi, Haruomi Hosono, and Ryuichi Sakamoto) are effectively known as HASYMO and played both these concerts, these concerts were billed simply as "YMO" but featured only 4 YMO songs in each concert while the rest of the concert featured Sketch Show, HASYMO music and member's solo works.


{{Listen
A cover of "Kimi ni Munekyun" was used as the ending theme song for the 2009 anime ''[[Maria Holic]]'', sung by [[Asami Sanada]], [[Marina Inoue]], and [[Yū Kobayashi]], the voice actresses of the main characters.
|filename=YMO - Behind the Mask.ogg
|pos=left
|title="Behind the Mask"
|description=A sample of "[[Behind the Mask (song)|Behind the Mask]]" from the 1979 album ''[[Solid State Survivor]]''. The song was originally produced in 1978 for a [[Seiko]] commercial. [[Cover song|Cover versions]] were later performed by artists such as [[Michael Jackson]] and [[Eric Clapton]].
|format=[[Ogg]]
}}


''[[Solid State Survivor]]'', released in 1979, was YMO's pinnacle recording in Japan, winning the 1980 Best Album Award in the [[Japan Record Awards]]. It featured English lyrics by [[Chris Mosdell]], whose [[sci-fi]] themes often depicted a human condition alienated by dystopic futures, much like the emerging [[cyberpunk]] movement in fiction at that time. The album's major single, and one of the band's biggest international hits, was "[[Behind the Mask (song)|Behind the Mask]]", which YMO had first produced in 1978 for a [[Seiko]] [[Quartz clock|quartz]] [[wristwatch]] commercial,<ref name="discogs_ucymo">{{cite web|title=Yellow Magic Orchestra: UC YMO|publisher=[[Discogs]]|url=http://www.discogs.com/Yellow-Magic-Orchestra-UC-YMO/release/1282322|accessdate=2011-05-29}}</ref> and then for ''Solid State Survivor'' with lyrics penned by [[Chris Mosdell]]. The song was later revised by [[Michael Jackson]], who added new lyrics in the early 1980s.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.metafilter.com/82928/Behind-the-Mask-Michael-Jacksons-rarest-recording |title=Behind the Mask - Michael Jackson's rarest recording? |publisher=MetaFilter |date= |accessdate=2011-03-27}}</ref> Jackson's version was never released until his first posthumous album, ''[[Michael (album)|Michael]]'', though his additional lyrics were included in later cover versions of the song by [[Greg Phillinganes]], [[Eric Clapton]], and [[Ryuichi Sakamoto]] himself in his 1986 solo release ''Media Bahn Live''.
In August 2009, the band played the World Happiness festival in Japan, featuring many Japanese artists. The band closed the night, and confirmed that "Yellow Magic Orchestra" is their official name, dropping the HASYMO title. They opened with a cover of "[[Hello, Goodbye]]" and performed old YMO songs along with their newer songs.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.world-happiness.com/ |title=WORLD HAPINESS 2011 |publisher=World-happiness.com |date= |accessdate=2011-03-27}}</ref>


{{Listen
In May 2010, [[Keane (band)|Keane]] released a new EP entitled [[Night Train (EP)]] which includes a cover of "You've Got to Help Yourself", featuring MC [[Tigarah]].
|pos=right
|filename=Riot in Lagos.ogg
|title="Riot in Lagos"
|description=A sample of the 1980 song "Riot in Lagos" by YMO member [[Ryuichi Sakamoto]]. This song is considered an early example of [[electro music]].
|format=[[Ogg]]
}}


Their second album ''Solid State Survivor'' went on to sell over 2 million records worldwide.<ref>{{cite book|title=Encyclopedia of Rock|year=1987|publisher=Macdonald Orbis|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=tgcKAQAAMAAJ|edition=2|accessdate=25 May 2011|page=476}}</ref> By 1980, YMO had become the most popular group in Japan, where they were performing to sold out crowds. Their first live album ''[[Public Pressure]]'' set a record in Japan, topping the charts and selling 250,000 copies within two weeks, while their next studio album ''[[X∞Multiplies]]'' had 200,000 pre-orders before release. They also had success abroad, performing to sold-out crowds during tours in the United States and Europe.<ref name="sarasota"/> The single "Computer Game" had sold 400,000 copies in the United States, where they were credited for having "ushered in the age of the computer [[programmer]] as [[rock star]],"<ref name="sarasota"/> and reached #17 in the UK Charts. The group also performed "Firecracker" and "[[X∞Multiplies|Tighten Up]]" live on the ''[[Soul Train]]'' television show. At around the same time, the 1980 song "Riot in Lagos" by YMO member Sakamoto pioneered the beats and sounds of [[electro music]].<ref name="wire_1996">{{citation|title=A-Z Of Electro|work=[[The Wire (magazine)|The Wire]]|issue=145|month=March|year=1996|author=David Toop|url=http://www.thewire.co.uk/articles/210/|accessdate=2011-05-29}}</ref><ref name="broughton_2007">{{cite book|last=Broughton|first=Frank|title=La historia del DJ / The DJ's Story, Volume 2|year=2007|publisher=Ediciones Robinbook|isbn=8496222799|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=1GMxP6mpRdgC&pg=PA121|accessdate=25 May 2011|page=121}}</ref> The band was particularly popular with the emerging [[hip hop]] community, which appreciated the group's electronic sounds, and in [[the Bronx]] where "Firecracker" was a success and sampled in the famous ''Death Mix'' by [[Afrika Bambaataa]].<ref name="buckley_2003">{{cite book|last=Buckley|first=Peter|title=The rough guide to rock|year=2003|publisher=[[Rough Guides]]|isbn=1843531054|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=7ctjc6UWCm4C&pg=PT908|accessdate=25 May 2011|page=901}}</ref><ref name="wire_1996"/>
In August 2010, YMO once again closed their World Happiness festival. They added classic songs from their back catalog into their set list. They also covered "[[Hello, Goodbye]]" and "[[Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)]]".<ref>[http://world-happiness.com/2010/07/yellow-magic-orchestracrystal-kay.html ]{{dead link|date=March 2011}}</ref>


===Breakup and brief reunion (1984-1993)===
In January 2011, [[KCRW]] announced for their World Festival concert series that Yellow Magic Orchestra will perform at the [[Hollywood Bowl]] on June 26, 2011.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hollywoodbowl.com/tickets/performance-detail.cfm?id=4529 |title=Big in Japan: Yellow Magic Orchestra & Cibo Matto &#124; Hollywood Bowl Presented by LA Phil |publisher=Hollywoodbowl.com |date= |accessdate=2011-03-27}}</ref>
{{see also|Service (album)|After Service|Faker Holic|Technodon}}


The band had stopped working as a group by 1984, after the release of their motion picture ''Propaganda'', the three members returning to their solo careers. The group were careful to avoid saying they had "split up", preferring to use the Japanese phrase meaning {{Nihongo|"spreading out"|散開|sankai}}, and in fact the trio continued to play on each other's recordings and made guest appearances at live shows. Takahashi, in particular, would play YMO material in his concerts and as "lead singer" was arguably best placed to do so. Meanwhile, Sakamoto would later gain international success for his work as a solo artist, actor, and [[film composer]],<ref name="billboard_1996"/> winning [[Grammy Award|Grammy]], [[Academy Award|Oscar]] and [[Golden Globe Award|Golden Globe]] awards.<ref>{{citation|title=RYUICHI SAKAMOTO GOES AVANT-CLASSICAL|work=[[Boston Globe]]|author=Jim Sullivan|date=February 8, 1998|page=8|url=http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/boston/access/26130789.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Feb+08%2C+1998&author=Jim+Sullivan%2C+Globe+Staff&pub=Boston+Globe&desc=RYUICHI+SAKAMOTO+GOES+AVANT-CLASSICAL|accessdate=2011-05-27}}</ref>
It was announced in February that YMO will perform at the Fuji Rock festival in July and the World Happiness festival 2011 on 7th August.

The trio would eventually release a one-off reunion album, ''[[Technodon]]'', and credited it to 'NOT YMO' (YMO crossed out with a calligraphy X) or <strike>YMO</strike> in 1993. Instead of traditional vocals, about half of it features field audio recordings and samples of authors and scientists reading their work. During their brief reunion in the early 1990s, they continued to experiment with new styles of electronic music, playing an instrumental role in the [[techno]] and [[acid house]] movements of the era.<ref name="UGO"/>

===Post-breakup and reformation (1994-present)===
{{see also|Sketch Show (band)|LONDONYMO - Yellow Magic Orchestra Live in London 15/6 08}}

The early 2000s saw Hosono & Takahashi reunited in a project called [[Sketch Show (band)|Sketch Show]]. On a number of occasions Ryuichi Sakamoto has joined in on Sketch Show performances and recording sessions. He later proposed they rename the group Human Audio Sponge when he participates. Barcelona performance at Sonar festival and Wild Sketch Show DVDs chronicle these reunions, and include a tongue-in-cheek Japanese text only history of the group that spans to 2036.

The band have reunited in 2007 for an advertising campaign for [[Kirin Brewery Company|Kirin]] Lager which lampooned their longevity and charted No.1 on various Japanese digital download charts (including [[iTunes Store]] chart) with the song "Rydeen 79/07", released on Sakamoto's new label [[Avex Trax|commmons]]. Recently performing live as Human Audio Sponge; Hosono, Sakamoto and Takahashi did a live performance together as Yellow Magic Orchestra for the [[Live Earth]], [[Live Earth concert, Kyoto|Kyoto]] event on July 7, 2007, which raised money and awareness of a "climate in crisis."

In August 2007, the band once again reformed, taking the name HASYMO or HAS/YMO, combining the names of Human Audio Sponge and Yellow Magic Orchestra. Their first single under this name, "Rescue", was written for the film [[Appleseed EX Machina]]. They released a new two song single titled "The City of Light/Tokyo Town Pages" on August 6, 2008. HASYMO played two live concerts in Europe in the summer of 2008, one at the [[Royal Festival Hall]], London on 15 June, as part of the [[Meltdown (festival)|Meltdown]] festival of music curated by [[Massive Attack]] and another in [[Gijon]], [[Spain]] on the 19th. Although the primary YMO members (Yukihiro Takahashi, Haruomi Hosono, and Ryuichi Sakamoto) are effectively known as HASYMO and played both these concerts, these concerts were billed simply as "YMO" but featured only 4 YMO songs in each concert while the rest of the concert featured Sketch Show, HASYMO music and member's solo works.

In August 2009, the band played the World Happiness festival in Japan, featuring many Japanese artists. The band closed the night, and confirmed that "Yellow Magic Orchestra" is their official name, dropping the HASYMO title. They opened with a cover of "[[Hello, Goodbye]]" and performed old YMO songs along with their newer songs.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.world-happiness.com/ |title=WORLD HAPINESS 2011 |publisher=World-happiness.com |date= |accessdate=2011-03-27}}</ref> In May 2010, [[Keane (band)|Keane]] released a new EP entitled [[Night Train (EP)]] which includes a cover of "You've Got to Help Yourself", featuring MC [[Tigarah]].

In August 2010, YMO once again closed their World Happiness festival. They added classic songs from their back catalog into their set list. They also covered "[[Hello, Goodbye]]" and "[[Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)]]".<ref>[http://world-happiness.com/2010/07/yellow-magic-orchestracrystal-kay.html ]{{dead link|date=March 2011}}</ref> In January 2011, [[KCRW]] announced for their World Festival concert series that Yellow Magic Orchestra will perform at the [[Hollywood Bowl]] on June 26, 2011.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hollywoodbowl.com/tickets/performance-detail.cfm?id=4529 |title=Big in Japan: Yellow Magic Orchestra & Cibo Matto &#124; Hollywood Bowl Presented by LA Phil |publisher=Hollywoodbowl.com |date= |accessdate=2011-03-27}}</ref> It was announced in February that YMO will perform at the Fuji Rock festival in July and the World Happiness festival 2011 on 7th August.

==Legacy==
YMO have been described as "the most adventurous and influential [[Electronic dance music|electro-techno-dance]] technicians the world has produced" and that without them, "today's music would still sound like yesterday's music."<ref name="fidelity_1993">{{citation|title=Yellow Magic Orchestra: Hi Tech/No Crime|journal=High fidelity news and record review|volume 38|issue=1-6|publisher=Link House Publications|year=1993|page=93|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=-zg9AQAAIAAJ|accessdate=2011-05-29}}</ref> They have also been described as the most influential innovators of electronic music alongside their contemporaries [[Kraftwerk]].<ref name="allmusic_ymo"/> YMO were pioneers in their use of [[synthesizer]]s, [[Sampler (musical instrument)|samplers]], [[music sequencer|sequencers]], [[drum machine]]s, [[computer]]s, and [[Digital audio|digital recording]] technology,<ref name="allmusic_ymo"/><ref name="sarasota"/><ref name="clashmusic"/> in a time when these technologies were still seen as novelties.<ref name="clashmusic"/> For example, YMO were pioneers of [[computer music]], as the first band to utilize computer technology (together with synthesizers) for music production as early as their debut album in 1978, to create a new sound that was not possible until then.<ref name="billboard_1979"/> They were also the first band to utilize the [[Roland TR-808]], one of the first and most popular programmable drum machines, as soon as it was released in 1980.<ref name="cbc_808">{{cite web|title=Slaves to the rhythm: Kanye West is the latest to pay tribute to a classic drum machine|date=November 28, 2008|author=Jason Anderson|publisher=[[CBC News]]|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/music/story/2008/11/27/f-history-of-the-808.html|accessdate=2011-05-29}}</ref><ref name="hess_2007">{{citation|title=Icons of hip hop: an encyclopedia of the movement, music, and culture, Volume 1|author=Mickey Hess|publisher=[[ABC-CLIO]]|year=2007|isbn=0313339031|page=75|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=LldOLnIQ66cC&pg=PA69|accessdate=2011-05-29}}</ref> In addition to its programmability, the TR-808 also featured five unique percussion sounds: “the [[Hum (sound)|hum]] [[Bass drum|kick]], the ticky [[Snare drum|snare]], the tishy [[hi-hat]]s (open and closed) and the spacey [[Cowbell (instrument)|cowbell]].”<ref name="cbc_808"/> YMO fully utilized and demonstrated the TR-808 in their music, paving the way for its mainstream popularity several years later,<ref name="cbc_808"/><ref name="hess_2007"/> after which it would be used for more hit records than any other drum machine<ref>{{citation|title=A Beginner's Guide to Digital Video|author=Peter Wells|publisher=AVA Books|year=2004|isbn=2884790373|page=18|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=stvOCfhc_igC&pg=PA18|accessdate=2011-05-20}}</ref> and continue to be widely used through to the present day.<ref name="cbc_808"/> Generally, the band are highly regarded as pioneers of electronic music, and continue to be remixed and sampled by modern artists.<ref name="allmusic_ymo"/>

While their contemporaries in [[Düsseldorf]], and later [[Detroit]], were using synthesizer technology to create bleak [[dystopia]]n music, YMO introduced a more "joyous and liberating" approach to electronic music.<ref name="guardian_ymo"/> In contrast to Kraftwerk's "robot pop"<ref>{{allmusic|id=p4706|label=Kraftwerk}}</ref> which was more [[Minimalism|minimalistic]] and statuesque, YMO's template for electronic pop was less minimalistic and made more varying use of synthesizer lines, often producing "fun-loving and breezy" music.<ref>{{cite book|last=Bogdanov|first=Vladimir|title=All music guide to electronica: the definitive guide to electronic music|year=2001|publisher=[[Hal Leonard Corporation|Backbeat Books]]|isbn=0879306289|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=GJNXLSBlL7IC&pg=PT516|edition=4th|accessdate=26 May 2011|page=516}}</ref> The band also expanded the scope of electronic music by drawing from a wider range of influences,<ref name="sicko_brewster">{{citation|title=Techno Rebels|author=Dan Sicko & Bill Brewster|edition=2nd|publisher=[[Wayne State University Press]]|year=2010|isbn=0814334385|pages=27-8|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=h6TNjUt-QrkC&pg=PA27|accessdate=2011-05-28}}</ref> including Japanese electronic music (such as [[Isao Tomita]]), European electronic music (such as Kraftwerk),<ref name="loubet_couroux">{{cite journal|title=Laptop Performers, Compact Disc Designers, and No-Beat Techno Artists in Japan: Music from Nowhere|journal=[[Computer Music Journal]]|date=Winter 2000|volume=24|issue=4|pages=19-32|url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/3681552|accessdate=28 May 2011|author=Emmanuelle Loubet & Marc Couroux|publisher=[[MIT Press]]}}</ref> [[exotica]] (such as [[Martin Denny]]),<ref name="sicko_brewster"/> traditional [[Music of Japan|Japanese music]], [[Music of India|Indian music]] (such as [[Ravi Shankar]] and [[Filmi|Bollywood music]]),<ref name="pitchfork"/> [[disco]],<ref name="allmusic_ymo"/> [[Video game music|video game sound]] [[Sampling (music)|samples]] (such as ''[[Space Invaders]]''),<ref name="guardian_ymo"/><ref name="wire_2002">{{citation|title=The Wire, Issues 221-226|work=[[The Wire (magazine)|The Wire]]|year=2002|page=44|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=qyFMAAAAYAAJ|accessdate=2011-05-25}}</ref> American [[Rapping|rap]],<ref name="allmusic_bgm"/> Western pop and rock (such as The Beatles), and [[List of Caribbean music genres|Caribbean]] ska.<ref name="sicko_brewster"/> YMO are thus regarded as pioneers of [[synthpop]],<ref name="scaruffi"/> having influenced later synthpop acts such as [[Ultravox]], [[John Foxx]], [[Gary Numan]], and [[Duran Duran]], as well as [[Todd Rundgren]] and Eric Clapton.<ref name="guardian_ymo"/> The emergence of synthpop, which YMO was a pioneer of, is considered to be "perhaps the single most significant event in [[melodic music]] since [[Beat music|Mersey-beat]]" and its influence can still be seen in contemporary [[Rock music|rock]] and [[pop music]].<ref name="scaruffi"/>

The 1978 song "[[Behind the Mask (song)|Behind the Mask]]" was an international hit [[Cover song|covered]] by various later artists, including [[Michael Jackson]], who added new lyrics, and [[Eric Clapton]].<ref>{{cite web|title=It's not Bad, but not good either! A track-by-track review of the 'new' Michael Jackson album|work=[[Daily Mail]]|author=Adrian Thrills|date=9 December 2010|url=http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/reviews/article-1337281/Its-Bad-good-A-track-track-review-new-Michael-Jackson-album.html|accessdate=2011-05-30}}</ref> The 1979 ''[[Solid State Survivor]]'' album included several early computerized [[Electronic rock|synth rock]] songs,<ref name="sarasota"/><ref name="boston_1998">{{citation|title=RYUICHI SAKAMOTO GOES AVANT-CLASSICAL|work=[[Boston Globe]]|author=Jim Sullivan|date=February 8, 1998|page=8|url=http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/boston/access/26130789.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Feb+08%2C+1998&author=Jim+Sullivan%2C+Globe+Staff&pub=Boston+Globe&desc=RYUICHI+SAKAMOTO+GOES+AVANT-CLASSICAL|accessdate=2011-05-27}}</ref> including a mechanized [[Cover song|cover version]] of "[[Day Tripper]]" by [[The Beatles]].<ref name="boston_1998"/> The 1980 song "[[x∞Multiplies|Multiplies]]" was an early experiment in electronic [[ska]].<ref name="sicko_brewster"/> The beats and sounds of [[electro music]] were pioneered by "Riot in Lagos" in 1980.<ref name="wire_1996"/><ref name="broughton_2007">{{cite book|last=Broughton|first=Frank|title=La historia del DJ / The DJ's Story, Volume 2|year=2007|publisher=Ediciones Robinbook|isbn=8496222799|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=1GMxP6mpRdgC&pg=PA121|accessdate=25 May 2011|page=121}}</ref> "Rap Phenomena" from ''[[BGM (album)|BGM]]'' (1981) was an early attempt at [[Electro hop|electronic rap]].<ref name="allmusic_bgm">{{allmusic|class=album|id=r53034|accessdate=2011-05-29}}</ref> The band was particularly popular with the emerging [[hip hop]] community, which appreciated the group's new electronic sounds, and in [[the Bronx]] where "[[Yellow Magic Orchestra (album)|Firecracker]]" was a success and sampled in the famous ''Death Mix'' by [[Afrika Bambaataa]],<ref name="buckley_2003"/><ref name="wire_1996"/> a hip hop pioneer who credited YMO as an inspiration and once remarked that YMO invented [[hip hop music]] (in a half-joking manner).<ref name="guardian_ymo"/> Afrika Bambaataa's influential song "[[Planet Rock (song)|Planet Rock]]" was partly inspired by YMO.<ref name="perkins_1996">{{citation|title=Droppin' science: critical essays on rap music and hip hop culture|author=William Eric Perkins|publisher=[[Temple University Press]]|year=1996|isbn=1566393620|page=12|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=zGC_ZNOrKDwC&pg=PA12|accessdate=2011-05-26}}</ref><ref name="cmj_1999">{{citation|title=Father Afrika Bombaataa|work=[[CMJ New Music Monthly]]|date=December 1999|issue=76|issn=1074-6978|page=72|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=bCoEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA72|accessdate=2011-05-26}}</ref> "Riot in Lagos" was cited by [[Kurtis Mantronik]] as a major influence on his early electro hip hop group [[Mantronix]].<ref>{{citation|title=Kurtis Mantronik Interview|work=Hip Hop Storage|date=July 2002|url=http://www.cheebadesign.com/legends/articleX.html|accessdate=2011-05-25}}</ref> "Firecracker" was sampled in a number of other later songs, including [[2 Live Crew]]'s "Mega-Mixx II" (1988),<ref name="whosampled">{{cite web|title=Yellow Magic Orchestra|work=whosampled.com|url=http://www.whosampled.com/sampled/Yellow%20Magic%20Orchestra/|accessdate=2011-05-28}}</ref> [[Jennifer Lopez]]'s worldwide hit "[[I'm Real (Jennifer Lopez song)|I'm Real]]" (2001), and the original unreleased version of [[Mariah Carey]]'s "[[Loverboy (Mariah Carey song)|Loverboy]]" (2001).<ref>{{cite web|title=Mariah 'Ripped Off' Twice on Same Record|url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,49437,00.html|publisher=[[Fox News Channel|Fox News]]|date=April 4, 2002|accessdate=2011-05-28}}</ref>

 "[[Yellow Magic Orchestra (album)|Computer Game]]" was also sampled in [[Warp (record label)|Warp]]'s "[[WarpVision|Testone]]" (1990).<ref>{{citation|title=Techno Rebels|author=Dan Sicko & Bill Brewster|edition=2nd|publisher=[[Wayne State University Press]]|year=2010|isbn=0814334385|page=76|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=h6TNjUt-QrkC&pg=PA76|accessdate=2011-05-28}}</ref>

YMO also had an impact on [[techno]] music,<ref name="bogdanov_1996"/> including its pioneers [[Juan Atkins]], [[Kevin Saunderson]] and [[Derrick May]].<ref>[[Simon Reynolds|Reynolds, Simon]], ''Energy Flash: a Journey Through Rave Music and Dance Culture'', p. 15, Pan Macmillan, 1998 (ISBN 978-0330350563)</ref> By the 1990s, YMO were frequently cited as pioneers of [[ambient house]] [[House music|music]], resulting in the release of the tribute remix album ''Yellow Magic Orchestra: Hi-Tech/No Crime'' in 1993 by leading ambient house musicians at the time such as [[The Orb]].<ref>{{Allmusic |class=artist |id=p5886 |label=Yellow Magic Orchestra |accessdate=2011-05-25 }}</ref> The music YMO produced during their comeback in the early 1990s also played an instrumental role in the techno and [[acid house]] movements towards the end of the 20th century.<ref name="UGO"/> The band's use of [[oriental musical scale]]s and [[Arcade game|arcade]] [[video game]] bleeps has continued to be an influence on 21st-century [[electronica]] acts such as [[Dizzee Rascal]] and [[Kieran Hebden]].<ref name="guardian_ymo"/> In 2006, [[Uwe Schmidt|Senor Coconut]] paid tribute to the band with his ''[[Yellow Fever!]]'' album.<ref name="clashmusic"/>

The band has also been very influential in its homeland Japan, where they had become more popular than [[The Beatles]] during the late 1970s and 1980s.<ref name="guardian_ymo"/> The band popularized electronic and computer music across the country, inspiring many future [[J-pop]] musicians,<ref name="loubet_couroux"/> as well as [[Music in Japanese animation|anime music]] and [[List of video game musicians|video game composers]]. Various cover versions of "[[Naughty Boys|Kimi ni Mune Kyun]]" (1983) have been produced, by artists such as [[The Human League]] ("[[YMO Versus The Human League]]" in 1993)<Ref>{{cite web|title=Yellow Magic Orchestra Versus Human League, The – YMO Versus The Human League|publisher=[[Discogs]]|url=http://www.discogs.com/release/504204|accessdate=2011-05-28}}</ref> and [[Asako Toki]] (in 2006).<ref name="whosampled"/> In 2009, a cover of "Kimi ni Mune Kyun" was used as the ending theme song for the [[anime]] series ''[[Maria Holic]]'', sung by [[Asami Sanada]], [[Marina Inoue]], and [[Yū Kobayashi]], the [[Seiyū|voice actresses]] of the main characters.


==Discography==
==Discography==
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===Original singles===
===Original singles===
*"Firecracker" (1979, US)
*"[[Yellow Magic Orchestra (album)|Firecracker]]" (1979, US)
*"Yellow Magic" (Tong Poo) (1979, UK)
*"[[Yellow Magic Orchestra (album)|Yellow Magic]]" (Tong Poo) (1979, UK)
*"Technopolis" (1979, Japan)
*"[[Solid State Survivor|Technopolis]]" (1979, Japan)
*"La Femme Chinoise" (1979, UK) (Lyrics: [[Chris Mosdell]])
*"[[Yellow Magic Orchestra (album)|La Femme Chinoise]]" (1979, UK) (Lyrics: [[Chris Mosdell]])
*"Computer Game" (1980, UK, Italy, Spain, US) - [[UK Singles Chart|UK]] #17<ref name="British Hit Singles & Albums">{{cite book
*"[[Yellow Magic Orchestra (album)|Computer Game]]" (1980, UK, Italy, Spain, US) - [[UK Singles Chart|UK]] #17,<ref name="British Hit Singles & Albums">{{cite book| first= David| last= Roberts| year= 2006| title= British Hit Singles & Albums| edition= 19th| publisher= Guinness World Records Limited | location= London| isbn= 1-904994-10-5| page= 614}}</ref> [[Billboard Hot 100|US]] #60<ref>{{cite web|title=Yellow Magic Orchestra: Billboard Singles|publisher=[[Allmusic]]|url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/yellow-magic-orchestra-p5886/charts-awards/billboard-singles|accessdate=2011-05-25}}</ref>
*"Riot in Lagos" (1980, Japan, US, UK)
| first= David
*"[[Solid State Survivor|Rydeen]]" (1980, Japan 1982, UK)
| last= Roberts
*"[[Behind the Mask (song)|Behind the Mask]]" (1980, UK, US, Italy) (Lyrics: [[Chris Mosdell]])
| year= 2006
*"[[x∞Multiplies|Nice Age]]" (1980, UK, the Netherlands) (Lyrics: [[Chris Mosdell]])
| title= British Hit Singles & Albums
*"[[Tighten Up (Archie Bell & the Drells song)|Tighten Up]]" (Japanese Gentlemen Stand Up Please) (their version of the ''[[Archie Bell & the Drells]]'' hit; 1980, US, Japan; 1981, UK)
| edition= 19th
*"[[BGM (album)|Cue]]" (1981, Japan)
| publisher= Guinness World Records Limited
*"[[BGM (album)|Mass]]" (1981, Japan)
| location= London
*"[[Technodelic|Taiso]]" (1982, Australia, Japan)
| isbn= 1-904994-10-5
*"[[Technodelic|Pure Jam]]" (1982, Spain)
| page= 614}}</ref>
*"Rydeen" (1980, Japan 1982, UK)
*"[[Naughty Boys|Kimi ni Munekyun]]" (1983, Japan)
*"Behind the Mask" (1980, UK, US, Italy) (Lyrics: [[Chris Mosdell]])
*"Nice Age" (1980, UK, the Netherlands) (Lyrics: [[Chris Mosdell]])
*"Tighten Up" (Japanese Gentlemen Stand Up Please) (their version of the ''[[Archie Bell & the Drells]]'' hit; 1980, US, Japan; 1981, UK)
*"Cue" (1981, Japan)
*"Mass" (1981, Japan)
*"Taiso" (1982, Australia, Japan)
*"Pure Jam" (1982, Spain)
*"Kimi ni Munekyun" (1983, Japan)
*"Kageki na Shukujo" (1983, Japan)
*"Kageki na Shukujo" (1983, Japan)
*"Ishin Denshin (You've Got To Help Yourself)" (1983, Japan)
*"Ishin Denshin (You've Got To Help Yourself)" (1983, Japan)
Line 155: Line 196:


==See also==
==See also==
*[[Sketch Show (band)|Sketch Show]] (Takahashi + Hosono)
*[[Sketch Show (band)|Sketch Show]] (Takahashi & Hosono)
*[[Sadistic Mika Band]] (Takahashi & Mosdell)
*[[Haruomi Hosono]]
*[[Ryuichi Sakamoto]]
*[[Yukihiro Takahashi]]
*[[Hideki Matsutake]]
*[[Chris Mosdell]]
*[[Chris Mosdell]]
*[[Akiko Yano]]
*[[Isao Tomita]]


==References==
==References==
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[[Category:Japanese dance musicians]]
[[Category:Japanese dance musicians]]
[[Category:Dance musical groups]]
[[Category:Dance musical groups]]
[[Category:Electro musicians]]
[[Category:Musical groups established in 1978]]
[[Category:Musical groups established in 1978]]
[[Category:Sony Music Japan artists]]
[[Category:Musical groups reestablished in 2007]]
[[Category:Musical groups reestablished in 2007]]
[[Category:Sony Music Japan artists]]


[[ca:Yellow Magic Orchestra]]
[[ca:Yellow Magic Orchestra]]

Revision as of 22:21, 30 May 2011

Yellow Magic Orchestra

Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO) is a Japanese electronic music band formed in 1978, consisting of principal members Haruomi Hosono (bass), Yukihiro Takahashi (drums and lead vocals) and Ryuichi Sakamoto (keyboards and vocals).[1] They are known for their seminal influence on electronic music, and as pioneers of various electronic genres such as electropop/technopop,[1][2] synthpop,[3] computer music,[4][5] electro music,[6] techno,[7] cyberpunk music,[8] ambient house music,[1] and electronica.[2] Their work has had a significant lasting impact across many different music genres, ranging from hip hop,[2] electronic dance,[9] acid house,[10] and rave, to ambient music,[11] mainstream pop,[3][11] electronic rock, and general melodic music.[3]

History

Early years and formation (1976-1978)

See also: Haruomi Hosono, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Yukihiro Takahashi, Sadistic Mika Band, and Yellow Magic Orchestra (album)

Sakamoto first worked with Hosono as a member of his live band in 1976, while Takahashi recruited Sakamoto to produce his debut solo recording in 1977 following the split of the Sadistic Mika Band. Hosono invited both to work on his exotica flavoured album "Paraiso", followed by electronic material for the anthology collection "Pacific". The three then collaborated to form the Yellow Magic Orchestra.

The band was conceived as a one-off studio project by Hosono, the other two members being recruited session musicians—the idea was to produce an album fusing orientalist exotica with modern electronics, as a subversion of Orientalism and exoticization, while exploring similar themes such as Asianness. The album would eventually be called Yellow Magic Orchestra, as a satire of Japan's obsession with black magic at the time.[2] It was also the first album to utilize computer technology (along with synthesizers) to create a new sound that was not possible until then.[5]

Prior to the group's formation, an early example of a similar "electro-exotica" fusion was Cochin Moon, produced by Hosono alongside future YMO members Sakamoto and Hideki Matsutake. Released in 1978, the album was an experimental fusion between electronic music and Indian music (reminiscent of Ravi Shankar and Bollywood music), including an early "synth raga" song "Hum Ghar Sajan".[12] The same year, Sakamoto released his own solo album, The Thousand Knives of Ryuichi Sakamoto, experimenting with a similar fusion between electronic music and traditional Japanese music.

"Firecracker"
A sample of "Firecracker" from 1978 album Yellow Magic Orchestra. This song was later combined with the "Computer Game" track into a hit single called "Computer Game". It was later sampled by artists such as Afrika Bambaata and Jennifer Lopez.
Problems playing this file? See media help.

The band's 1978 debut album Yellow Magic Orchestra, with its cutting-edge production, was very popular, and the studio project grew into a fully fledged touring band and career for its three members. Following the release of the debut Yellow Magic Orchestra, a live date at the Roppongi Pit Inn was seen by executives of A&M Records of the USA who were in the process of setting up a partnership deal with Alfa Records. This led to the YMO being offered an international deal, at which point (early 1979) the three members decided the group would be given priority over their solo careers. The most popular international hit from the album was "Firecracker", which would be released as a single the following year and again as "Computer Game", which became a success in the United States and Europe.

National and international success (1978-1983)

See also: Yellow Magic Orchestra (album), Solid State Survivor, Public Pressure, X∞Multiplies, BGM (album), Technodelic, and Naughty Boys

Following an advertising deal with Fuji Cassette, the group sparked a boom in the popularity of electronic pop music, called "Technopop" in Japan,[4][2] where they had an impact similar to that of The Beatles and Merseybeat in 1960s Britain.[2] For some time, YMO was the most popular band in Japan.[2] A testament to the influence of YMO on fashion is how many middle-aged Japanese businessmen still have the "Techno cut" haircut, modeled after the group.[citation needed] Successful solo act Akiko Yano (later married to Sakamoto) joined the band for its live performances in the late 1970s and early 1980s, but did not participate in the studio recordings. On the other hand, the YMO trio contributed to her own albums and became part of her live band, during these same years.

Making abundant use of new synthesizers, samplers, sequencers, drum machines, computers and digital recording technology as it became available, as well as utilizing cyberpunk-ish lyrics sung mostly in English, they extended their popularity and influence beyond Japan.[1][4][13] While their contemporaries in Düsseldorf and Detroit were using synthesizer technology to create bleak dystopian music, YMO set themselves apart by using synthesizer technology to create "joyous and liberating" music, which was "a Japanese thing" according to Sakamoto.[2]

Solid State Survivor, released in 1979, was YMO's pinnacle recording in Japan, winning the 1980 Best Album Award in the Japan Record Awards. It featured English lyrics by Chris Mosdell, whose sci-fi themes often depicted a human condition alienated by dystopic futures, much like the emerging cyberpunk movement in fiction at that time. The album's major single, and one of the band's biggest international hits, was "Behind the Mask", which YMO had first produced in 1978 for a Seiko quartz wristwatch commercial,[14] and then for Solid State Survivor with lyrics penned by Chris Mosdell. The song was later revised by Michael Jackson, who added new lyrics in the early 1980s.[15] Jackson's version was never released until his first posthumous album, Michael, though his additional lyrics were included in later cover versions of the song by Greg Phillinganes, Eric Clapton, and Ryuichi Sakamoto himself in his 1986 solo release Media Bahn Live.

Their second album Solid State Survivor went on to sell over 2 million records worldwide.[16] By 1980, YMO had become the most popular group in Japan, where they were performing to sold out crowds. Their first live album Public Pressure set a record in Japan, topping the charts and selling 250,000 copies within two weeks, while their next studio album X∞Multiplies had 200,000 pre-orders before release. They also had success abroad, performing to sold-out crowds during tours in the United States and Europe.[4] The single "Computer Game" had sold 400,000 copies in the United States, where they were credited for having "ushered in the age of the computer programmer as rock star,"[4] and reached #17 in the UK Charts. The group also performed "Firecracker" and "Tighten Up" live on the Soul Train television show. At around the same time, the 1980 song "Riot in Lagos" by YMO member Sakamoto pioneered the beats and sounds of electro music.[6][17] The band was particularly popular with the emerging hip hop community, which appreciated the group's electronic sounds, and in the Bronx where "Firecracker" was a success and sampled in the famous Death Mix by Afrika Bambaataa.[18][6]

Breakup and brief reunion (1984-1993)

See also: Service (album), After Service, Faker Holic, and Technodon

The band had stopped working as a group by 1984, after the release of their motion picture Propaganda, the three members returning to their solo careers. The group were careful to avoid saying they had "split up", preferring to use the Japanese phrase meaning "spreading out" (散開, sankai), and in fact the trio continued to play on each other's recordings and made guest appearances at live shows. Takahashi, in particular, would play YMO material in his concerts and as "lead singer" was arguably best placed to do so. Meanwhile, Sakamoto would later gain international success for his work as a solo artist, actor, and film composer,[11] winning Grammy, Oscar and Golden Globe awards.[19]

The trio would eventually release a one-off reunion album, Technodon, and credited it to 'NOT YMO' (YMO crossed out with a calligraphy X) or YMO in 1993. Instead of traditional vocals, about half of it features field audio recordings and samples of authors and scientists reading their work. During their brief reunion in the early 1990s, they continued to experiment with new styles of electronic music, playing an instrumental role in the techno and acid house movements of the era.[10]

Post-breakup and reformation (1994-present)

See also: Sketch Show (band) and LONDONYMO - Yellow Magic Orchestra Live in London 15/6 08

The early 2000s saw Hosono & Takahashi reunited in a project called Sketch Show. On a number of occasions Ryuichi Sakamoto has joined in on Sketch Show performances and recording sessions. He later proposed they rename the group Human Audio Sponge when he participates. Barcelona performance at Sonar festival and Wild Sketch Show DVDs chronicle these reunions, and include a tongue-in-cheek Japanese text only history of the group that spans to 2036.

The band have reunited in 2007 for an advertising campaign for Kirin Lager which lampooned their longevity and charted No.1 on various Japanese digital download charts (including iTunes Store chart) with the song "Rydeen 79/07", released on Sakamoto's new label commmons. Recently performing live as Human Audio Sponge; Hosono, Sakamoto and Takahashi did a live performance together as Yellow Magic Orchestra for the Live Earth, Kyoto event on July 7, 2007, which raised money and awareness of a "climate in crisis."

In August 2007, the band once again reformed, taking the name HASYMO or HAS/YMO, combining the names of Human Audio Sponge and Yellow Magic Orchestra. Their first single under this name, "Rescue", was written for the film Appleseed EX Machina. They released a new two song single titled "The City of Light/Tokyo Town Pages" on August 6, 2008. HASYMO played two live concerts in Europe in the summer of 2008, one at the Royal Festival Hall, London on 15 June, as part of the Meltdown festival of music curated by Massive Attack and another in Gijon, Spain on the 19th. Although the primary YMO members (Yukihiro Takahashi, Haruomi Hosono, and Ryuichi Sakamoto) are effectively known as HASYMO and played both these concerts, these concerts were billed simply as "YMO" but featured only 4 YMO songs in each concert while the rest of the concert featured Sketch Show, HASYMO music and member's solo works.

In August 2009, the band played the World Happiness festival in Japan, featuring many Japanese artists. The band closed the night, and confirmed that "Yellow Magic Orchestra" is their official name, dropping the HASYMO title. They opened with a cover of "Hello, Goodbye" and performed old YMO songs along with their newer songs.[20] In May 2010, Keane released a new EP entitled Night Train (EP) which includes a cover of "You've Got to Help Yourself", featuring MC Tigarah.

In August 2010, YMO once again closed their World Happiness festival. They added classic songs from their back catalog into their set list. They also covered "Hello, Goodbye" and "Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)".[21] In January 2011, KCRW announced for their World Festival concert series that Yellow Magic Orchestra will perform at the Hollywood Bowl on June 26, 2011.[22] It was announced in February that YMO will perform at the Fuji Rock festival in July and the World Happiness festival 2011 on 7th August.

Legacy

YMO have been described as "the most adventurous and influential electro-techno-dance technicians the world has produced" and that without them, "today's music would still sound like yesterday's music."[9] They have also been described as the most influential innovators of electronic music alongside their contemporaries Kraftwerk.[1] YMO were pioneers in their use of synthesizers, samplers, sequencers, drum machines, computers, and digital recording technology,[1][4][13] in a time when these technologies were still seen as novelties.[13] For example, YMO were pioneers of computer music, as the first band to utilize computer technology (together with synthesizers) for music production as early as their debut album in 1978, to create a new sound that was not possible until then.[5] They were also the first band to utilize the Roland TR-808, one of the first and most popular programmable drum machines, as soon as it was released in 1980.[23][24] In addition to its programmability, the TR-808 also featured five unique percussion sounds: “the hum kick, the ticky snare, the tishy hi-hats (open and closed) and the spacey cowbell.”[23] YMO fully utilized and demonstrated the TR-808 in their music, paving the way for its mainstream popularity several years later,[23][24] after which it would be used for more hit records than any other drum machine[25] and continue to be widely used through to the present day.[23] Generally, the band are highly regarded as pioneers of electronic music, and continue to be remixed and sampled by modern artists.[1]

While their contemporaries in Düsseldorf, and later Detroit, were using synthesizer technology to create bleak dystopian music, YMO introduced a more "joyous and liberating" approach to electronic music.[2] In contrast to Kraftwerk's "robot pop"[26] which was more minimalistic and statuesque, YMO's template for electronic pop was less minimalistic and made more varying use of synthesizer lines, often producing "fun-loving and breezy" music.[27] The band also expanded the scope of electronic music by drawing from a wider range of influences,[28] including Japanese electronic music (such as Isao Tomita), European electronic music (such as Kraftwerk),[29] exotica (such as Martin Denny),[28] traditional Japanese music, Indian music (such as Ravi Shankar and Bollywood music),[12] disco,[1] video game sound samples (such as Space Invaders),[2][30] American rap,[31] Western pop and rock (such as The Beatles), and Caribbean ska.[28] YMO are thus regarded as pioneers of synthpop,[3] having influenced later synthpop acts such as Ultravox, John Foxx, Gary Numan, and Duran Duran, as well as Todd Rundgren and Eric Clapton.[2] The emergence of synthpop, which YMO was a pioneer of, is considered to be "perhaps the single most significant event in melodic music since Mersey-beat" and its influence can still be seen in contemporary rock and pop music.[3]

The 1978 song "Behind the Mask" was an international hit covered by various later artists, including Michael Jackson, who added new lyrics, and Eric Clapton.[32] The 1979 Solid State Survivor album included several early computerized synth rock songs,[4][33] including a mechanized cover version of "Day Tripper" by The Beatles.[33] The 1980 song "Multiplies" was an early experiment in electronic ska.[28] The beats and sounds of electro music were pioneered by "Riot in Lagos" in 1980.[6][17] "Rap Phenomena" from BGM (1981) was an early attempt at electronic rap.[31] The band was particularly popular with the emerging hip hop community, which appreciated the group's new electronic sounds, and in the Bronx where "Firecracker" was a success and sampled in the famous Death Mix by Afrika Bambaataa,[18][6] a hip hop pioneer who credited YMO as an inspiration and once remarked that YMO invented hip hop music (in a half-joking manner).[2] Afrika Bambaataa's influential song "Planet Rock" was partly inspired by YMO.[34][35] "Riot in Lagos" was cited by Kurtis Mantronik as a major influence on his early electro hip hop group Mantronix.[36] "Firecracker" was sampled in a number of other later songs, including 2 Live Crew's "Mega-Mixx II" (1988),[37] Jennifer Lopez's worldwide hit "I'm Real" (2001), and the original unreleased version of Mariah Carey's "Loverboy" (2001).[38]

 "Computer Game" was also sampled in Warp's "Testone" (1990).[39]

YMO also had an impact on techno music,[7] including its pioneers Juan Atkins, Kevin Saunderson and Derrick May.[40] By the 1990s, YMO were frequently cited as pioneers of ambient house music, resulting in the release of the tribute remix album Yellow Magic Orchestra: Hi-Tech/No Crime in 1993 by leading ambient house musicians at the time such as The Orb.[41] The music YMO produced during their comeback in the early 1990s also played an instrumental role in the techno and acid house movements towards the end of the 20th century.[10] The band's use of oriental musical scales and arcade video game bleeps has continued to be an influence on 21st-century electronica acts such as Dizzee Rascal and Kieran Hebden.[2] In 2006, Senor Coconut paid tribute to the band with his Yellow Fever! album.[13]

The band has also been very influential in its homeland Japan, where they had become more popular than The Beatles during the late 1970s and 1980s.[2] The band popularized electronic and computer music across the country, inspiring many future J-pop musicians,[29] as well as anime music and video game composers. Various cover versions of "Kimi ni Mune Kyun" (1983) have been produced, by artists such as The Human League ("YMO Versus The Human League" in 1993)[42] and Asako Toki (in 2006).[37] In 2009, a cover of "Kimi ni Mune Kyun" was used as the ending theme song for the anime series Maria Holic, sung by Asami Sanada, Marina Inoue, and Yū Kobayashi, the voice actresses of the main characters.

Discography

Yellow Magic Orchestra discography
Studio albums9
Live albums13
Compilation albums6
Singles23

Studio albums and variations

Live albums

Compilation albums

Remix albums

  • 1992 Hi-tech/No Crime (Yellow Magic Orchestra Reconstructed) (UK compilation of remixes by British artists)
  • 2000 YMO Remixes Technopolis 2000-00 (Japanese compilation of remixes by Japanese artists)

Original singles

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h "Yellow Magic Orchestra profile". Allmusic. Retrieved 2009-06-03.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Lewis, John (4 July 2008). "Back to the future: Yellow Magic Orchestra helped usher in electronica - and they may just have invented hip-hop, too". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 May 2011.
  3. ^ a b c d e Piero Scaruffi (2003), A history of rock music 1951-2000, iUniverse, p. 234, ISBN 0595295657, retrieved 2011-05-26
  4. ^ a b c d e f g "Computer rock music gaining fans". Sarasota Journal: 8. August 18, 1980. Retrieved 2011-05-25.
  5. ^ a b c "Artists and producers strive for inroads overseas", Billboard, vol. 91, no. 20, p. 61, 26 May 1979, ISSN 0006-2510, retrieved 2011-05-29
  6. ^ a b c d e David Toop (1996), "A-Z Of Electro", The Wire, no. 145, retrieved 2011-05-29 {{citation}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  7. ^ a b Bogdanov, Vladimir (2001). All music guide to electronica: the definitive guide to electronic music (4th ed.). Backbeat Books. p. 582. ISBN 0879306289. Retrieved 26 May 2011.
  8. ^ Lester, Paul (20 June 2008). "Yellow Magic Orchestra". The Guardian. Retrieved 26 May 2011.
  9. ^ a b "Yellow Magic Orchestra: Hi Tech/No Crime", High fidelity news and record review (1–6), Link House Publications: 93, 1993, retrieved 2011-05-29 {{citation}}: Text "volume 38" ignored (help)
  10. ^ a b c "Ryuichi Sakamoto". UGO Networks. Retrieved 2011-05-27.
  11. ^ a b c "Q&A With Ryuichi Sakamoto: Pop Pioneer And Producer And Award-Winning Soundtrack Composer", Billboard, vol. 108, no. 35, p. 72, 31 August 1996, ISSN 0006-2510, retrieved 2011-05-29
  12. ^ a b Dominique Leone (July 19, 2005). "Hosono & Yokoo: Cochin Moon". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 2011-05-26.
  13. ^ a b c d Paul Sullivan (01/09/2007). "Senor Coconut". clashmusic.com. Retrieved 2011-05-29. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  14. ^ "Yellow Magic Orchestra: UC YMO". Discogs. Retrieved 2011-05-29.
  15. ^ "Behind the Mask - Michael Jackson's rarest recording?". MetaFilter. Retrieved 2011-03-27.
  16. ^ Encyclopedia of Rock (2 ed.). Macdonald Orbis. 1987. p. 476. Retrieved 25 May 2011.
  17. ^ a b Broughton, Frank (2007). La historia del DJ / The DJ's Story, Volume 2. Ediciones Robinbook. p. 121. ISBN 8496222799. Retrieved 25 May 2011.
  18. ^ a b Buckley, Peter (2003). The rough guide to rock. Rough Guides. p. 901. ISBN 1843531054. Retrieved 25 May 2011.
  19. ^ Jim Sullivan (February 8, 1998), "RYUICHI SAKAMOTO GOES AVANT-CLASSICAL", Boston Globe, p. 8, retrieved 2011-05-27
  20. ^ "WORLD HAPINESS 2011". World-happiness.com. Retrieved 2011-03-27.
  21. ^ [1][dead link]
  22. ^ "Big in Japan: Yellow Magic Orchestra & Cibo Matto | Hollywood Bowl Presented by LA Phil". Hollywoodbowl.com. Retrieved 2011-03-27.
  23. ^ a b c d Jason Anderson (November 28, 2008). "Slaves to the rhythm: Kanye West is the latest to pay tribute to a classic drum machine". CBC News. Retrieved 2011-05-29.
  24. ^ a b Mickey Hess (2007), Icons of hip hop: an encyclopedia of the movement, music, and culture, Volume 1, ABC-CLIO, p. 75, ISBN 0313339031, retrieved 2011-05-29
  25. ^ Peter Wells (2004), A Beginner's Guide to Digital Video, AVA Books, p. 18, ISBN 2884790373, retrieved 2011-05-20
  26. ^ Kraftwerk at AllMusic
  27. ^ Bogdanov, Vladimir (2001). All music guide to electronica: the definitive guide to electronic music (4th ed.). Backbeat Books. p. 516. ISBN 0879306289. Retrieved 26 May 2011.
  28. ^ a b c d Dan Sicko & Bill Brewster (2010), Techno Rebels (2nd ed.), Wayne State University Press, pp. 27–8, ISBN 0814334385, retrieved 2011-05-28
  29. ^ a b Emmanuelle Loubet & Marc Couroux (Winter 2000). "Laptop Performers, Compact Disc Designers, and No-Beat Techno Artists in Japan: Music from Nowhere". Computer Music Journal. 24 (4). MIT Press: 19–32. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  30. ^ "The Wire, Issues 221-226", The Wire, p. 44, 2002, retrieved 2011-05-25
  31. ^ a b Yellow Magic Orchestra at AllMusic. Retrieved 2011-05-29.
  32. ^ Adrian Thrills (9 December 2010). "It's not Bad, but not good either! A track-by-track review of the 'new' Michael Jackson album". Daily Mail. Retrieved 2011-05-30.
  33. ^ a b Jim Sullivan (February 8, 1998), "RYUICHI SAKAMOTO GOES AVANT-CLASSICAL", Boston Globe, p. 8, retrieved 2011-05-27
  34. ^ William Eric Perkins (1996), Droppin' science: critical essays on rap music and hip hop culture, Temple University Press, p. 12, ISBN 1566393620, retrieved 2011-05-26
  35. ^ "Father Afrika Bombaataa", CMJ New Music Monthly, no. 76, p. 72, December 1999, ISSN 1074-6978, retrieved 2011-05-26
  36. ^ "Kurtis Mantronik Interview", Hip Hop Storage, July 2002, retrieved 2011-05-25
  37. ^ a b "Yellow Magic Orchestra". whosampled.com. Retrieved 2011-05-28.
  38. ^ "Mariah 'Ripped Off' Twice on Same Record". Fox News. April 4, 2002. Retrieved 2011-05-28.
  39. ^ Dan Sicko & Bill Brewster (2010), Techno Rebels (2nd ed.), Wayne State University Press, p. 76, ISBN 0814334385, retrieved 2011-05-28
  40. ^ Reynolds, Simon, Energy Flash: a Journey Through Rave Music and Dance Culture, p. 15, Pan Macmillan, 1998 (ISBN 978-0330350563)
  41. ^ Yellow Magic Orchestra at AllMusic. Retrieved 2011-05-25.
  42. ^ "Yellow Magic Orchestra Versus Human League, The – YMO Versus The Human League". Discogs. Retrieved 2011-05-28.
  43. ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 614. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  44. ^ "Yellow Magic Orchestra: Billboard Singles". Allmusic. Retrieved 2011-05-25.
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