S/D : Yellow Magic Orchestra

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i haven't heard BGM, but SSS and their self-titled record are both aces IMO... i could listen to "simoon" on repeat all day.

― rajeev (rajeev), Wednesday, 17 January 2007 04:00 (seventeen years ago) link

I don't think there is such a thing as a bad YMO album, really, but that's just my opinion. BGM has my favorite YMO song ("Ballet") and another YMO song I adore ("U.T.") on it. And Solid State Survivor is one of my favorite albums of theirs (another one being their s/t debut). I am continually surprised by "La Femme Chinoise" because it's a tender, humane, and sweet non-technoey song. The only times I think YMO err are when they seek to do covers (NOT a fan at all of "Tighten Up" OR "Daytripper"), but those are so minor comparative to their overall output.

― Phoenix Dancing (krushsister), Wednesday, 17 January 2007 05:09 (seventeen years ago) link

Well, I think if you like the early records up through Technodelic there's no guarantee you're going to feel the same way about Service and Naughty Boys. I actually appreciated both a bit more after having heard the first few records...

― Naive Teen Idol (Naive Teen Idol), Wednesday, 17 January 2007 15:45 (seventeen years ago) link

i forget where exactly (this american life maybe?) but i heard an old tiki/hawaiian/polynesian lounge type tune as bumper music on NPR and it was basically "Behind the Mask" straight up. only, you know, not synthy. I had no idea it was a cover, and my copy of SSS is a download so i've got no liner notes. Any idea what this original was?

― geoff (gcannon), Wednesday, 17 January 2007 16:02 (seventeen years ago) link

YMO are the kind of band where you kind of need to know some background about the recommendee's tastes before recommending something, because there's about five different possible starting points, all just as good depending - Ongaku? Nice Age? Daytripper? Tighten Up? Rydeen? Taiso? Light In Darkness?

Album wise I would seek out Technodelic and SSS first, then Multiplies, then Naughty Boys, then BGM, then the rest.

Or you could just pick up the new Ultimate Collection (for $50) which has I think every song discussed so far on this thread!

― TOMB07 (TOMBOT), Wednesday, 17 January 2007 16:04 (seventeen years ago) link

oh that's tempting. i've got the first two and that's it and they're both very dear to my heart.

― geoff (gcannon), Wednesday, 17 January 2007 16:08 (seventeen years ago) link

do you also own Perrey & Kingsley's box set thingamabob? I got that for xmas against the wife's wishes and it's totally awesome. That has nothing to do with this thread, though.

― TOMB07 (TOMBOT), Wednesday, 17 January 2007 16:17 (seventeen years ago) link

no! i'll keep an eye out. i'm usually pretty broke so "box set" means "yeah right" mostly

― geoff (gcannon), Wednesday, 17 January 2007 16:21 (seventeen years ago) link

$25

― TOMB07 (TOMBOT), Wednesday, 17 January 2007 16:31 (seventeen years ago) link

hot!

― geoff (gcannon), Wednesday, 17 January 2007 16:34 (seventeen years ago) link

"Behind The Mask" was a YMO original. The only cover on that album was "Daytripper". So maybe the old Polynesian song only approximated the sound on that song.

Honestly, I'm not intimately aware of the band's input beyond the '80s so I really do need to investigate that further, but what I have heard (which is a body of work that is impressive in size) has been very, very good overall. The Ultimate Collection does intrigue me, though -- another thing to save up for! (It won't take me more than a month to do so, really, but it's still "saving up".)

― Phoenix Dancing (krushsister), Wednesday, 17 January 2007 18:09 (seventeen years ago) link

that "behind the mask" cover is probably from senor coconut's YMO tribute album 'yellow fever,' which the YMO members actually contributed to. highly recommended!

― rajeev (rajeev), Wednesday, 17 January 2007 18:18 (seventeen years ago) link

no, believe me, it was the same tune, the same chugging chord progression, the same ah-ah-ah melody. maybe it was uncredited! or just given a new name, like all those jamaican version of US r&b tunes.

OR, this being public radio, it could have been some 90s neo-tiki-lounge act doing a retro-ist cover of it...

XPOST that must be it! thx!

― geoff (gcannon), Wednesday, 17 January 2007 18:21 (seventeen years ago) link

dang I didn't even know there was a coconut YMO. whoo!

― TOMB07 (TOMBOT), Wednesday, 17 January 2007 19:22 (seventeen years ago) link

two months pass...

I don't get how I never posted on this thread before.

"This MUST be the UGLIEST piece of BREAD I've ever EATENNN..."

― Ned Raggett, Friday, 13 April 2007 02:56 (seventeen years ago) link

Oh right I had posted on the other thread. For a sec I thought I had gone crazy.

― Ned Raggett, Friday, 13 April 2007 03:05 (seventeen years ago) link

three months pass...

Solid State Survivor, Live '79
Technopolis
>>>best music video ever? = Rydeen

When I finally got over my YMO obsession, my girlfriend got doubly obsessed, and drew me back into it.

YMO FOREVER

― Z S, Saturday, 14 July 2007 03:03 (sixteen years ago) link

nine months pass...

Hey, has there been no discussion about YMO appearing at the Massive Attack curated Meltdown Festival in June?

I am completely overwhelmed with excitement about this..!

― MaresNest, Monday, 28 April 2008 08:51 (fifteen years ago) link

I finally managed to break through the Meltdown ticketing defences and actually buy tickets for this, excited but with a hint of trepidation - will it be all 90's? Ambient? Guitar solos? Ya never know when a band reforms.

― Matt #2, Monday, 28 April 2008 09:27 (fifteen years ago) link

four years pass...

Watching an episode of WKRP in Cincinnati and there was a poster of the first YMO album up in the DJ booth.

― timellison, Monday, 24 December 2012 02:34 (eleven years ago) link

in heaven, YMO plays every night with pfunk and Steve reich

― Todd Terragh - "It's the Harps" (m bison), Monday, 24 December 2012 02:41 (eleven years ago) link

http://neojaponisme.com/2008/11/21/multiplies-skit-translation/

― MaresNest, Wednesday, 26 December 2012 17:18 (eleven years ago) link

three years pass...

"kagekina shukujyo" might be my favorite of their later period pop singles. insanely catchy and bittersweet.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdqe2hxtbHc

― lute bro (brimstead), Thursday, 28 January 2016 09:53 (eight years ago) link

one year passes...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2ZLjrySQQA

found a vinyl copy of the Yellow Magic Orchestra album. i really love it! it is very classic sounding. some of the synths have this nice brass sound to them or something, maybe sort of reminiscent of an old 78 or pre war pop. kind of similar to Kraftwerk in that way. but definitely doing their own thing. my favorite bit is the end of side 2, the noisey electronic Bridge Over Troubled Music on into Mad Pierrot. this whole album rules. i also have the Martin Denny original of Firecracker. YMO really makes it sound like it was made for this band.

― AdamVania (Adam Bruneau), Wednesday, 12 July 2017 21:38 (six years ago) link

three years pass...

so I just found out that the original Japanese version of the debut has a totally different mix than every version since? I knew about "Acrobat" but damn, it's like a different album. Hosono's bass is so much thicker.

― frogbs, Thursday, 21 January 2021 02:54 (three years ago) link

three years pass...

oh Alex you're spoiling us now...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9l79HgXvxP8

― Bernard Quidbins (NickB), Thursday, 21 March 2024 19:36 (four weeks ago) link

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