two different recordings of one of my favourite hosono songs (again featuring lyrics by shigesato itoi). probably alone here but i genuinely think this is one of the strongest straight-forward pop songs he ever wrote ...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xIVpYm0p3UAhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4jnqiesaa44
― missingNO, Sunday, 17 October 2021 15:13 (two years ago) link
Xp Yeah Hosono wrote for chart pop acts more extensively than both RS and YT.
― Kim Kimberly, Sunday, 17 October 2021 15:21 (two years ago) link
I love sakamoto’s 80s work he did for tv commercials and stuff
― brimstead, Sunday, 17 October 2021 16:18 (two years ago) link
I'm only really just catching on over the past few years, with the Light In The Attic (and others) compilations and reissues and all that, so really appreciating this discussion.
Did Hosono do a lot of production where he wasn't a (credited) writer? I was going through a bunch of Pizzicato 5 a while ago and finding I didn't enjoy it nearly as much as way back... except I was loving the very first single, "The Audrey Hepburn Complex". I look it up and whatdoyouknow, produced by Hosono! This guy eh.
― maf you one two (maffew12), Sunday, 17 October 2021 17:46 (two years ago) link
He's produced plenty without a writing credit -- much of Miharu Koshi's stuff for example.
― visiting, Sunday, 17 October 2021 18:49 (two years ago) link
surprised that hosono's mercuric dance and coincidental music haven't gotten a mention yet. those are big time personal favorites. "windy land" in particular. so beautiful.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RlXX-Bhzhrg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVIsjpcn2ew
― (⊙_⊙?) (original bgm), Sunday, 17 October 2021 19:48 (two years ago) link
re: takahashi i just mean he appeared to be the one pushing ymo the strongest in that direction. the others certainly had strong pop instincts too, but it wasn't as much of a focus for them, especially with ymo
― ufo, Sunday, 17 October 2021 22:41 (two years ago) link
I've probably posted this observation on the YT thread but his concurrent solo albums are always quite similar to what YMO was doing at the time. Murdered by the Music is like a companion piece to Xoo Multiplies, Neuromantic is sonically similar to BGM, Exitentialism has Technodelic-esque rhythms and experimentation, What, Me Worry? is more sophisticated pop like Service. So I've always figured he was the one most responsible for what their albums actually sounded like
― frogbs, Monday, 18 October 2021 01:37 (two years ago) link
in case the two auto-generated vids i posted above are blocked outside of japan, here they are again. song is "hashire usagi" ("run rabbit") recorded by yuko kanai and miharu koshi respectively
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yq-PMH_Zjxwhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o75lWNaRkik
― missingNO, Monday, 18 October 2021 03:37 (two years ago) link
i was unaware of the yuko kanai version... it's great.
― visiting, Monday, 18 October 2021 03:43 (two years ago) link
still think sandii's "zoot kook" is hosono's most impressive outside production job. so advanced with that sinuous, proto-acid synth sequence ... such a ridiculously lush chorus to boot
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmScAoPrg_I
― missingNO, Monday, 18 October 2021 03:47 (two years ago) link
love the amorphous synth clouds that levitate the final chorus ... so glorious. he's listed in the credits so i'm guessing this part was played by sakamoto on the prophet 5 as it has that dense, detuned ensemble chorus quality he was fond of at the time
― missingNO, Monday, 18 October 2021 04:19 (two years ago) link
Has anyone heard the unreleased album he produced for Dynasty singer Linda Carriere in 1977? I just found out this exists, and it's kind of blowing my mind. Songs by Hosono, Tatsuro Yamashita, Minako Yoshida, Akiko Yano, and Hiroshi Sato. I can only find three full songs from it on YouTube and nothing on Soulseek, so if anyone has a rip of this let me know.
The songs I've heard sound a lot like the city pop of that period (e.g. Yamashita's SPACY and Go Ahead), though the marimba on "Laid Back Mad Or Mellow" nods to Hosono's exotica stuff. Apparently it wasn't released because the record execs thought the vocals were weak, and it looks like a demo copy was sold once on Discogs for $2,000. It's true the vocals aren't the greatest I've heard, but the production is sick.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YuMSAfGPdbM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JsqMAHX29e8
― J. Sam, Monday, 18 October 2021 16:11 (two years ago) link
if you're interested in HH's work writing and producing other artists, this massive boxset compiles a ton of it:
https://www.discogs.com/release/11508013-Haruomi-Hosono-%E7%B4%B0%E9%87%8E%E6%99%B4%E8%87%A3%E3%81%AE%E6%AD%8C%E8%AC%A1%E6%9B%B220%E4%B8%96%E7%B4%80%E3%83%9C%E3%83%83%E3%82%AF%E3%82%B9-%E7%B4%B0%E9%87%8E%E6%99%B4%E8%87%A3%E6%8F%90%E4%BE%9B%E6%A5%BD%E6%9B%B2%E9%9B%86-20th-Century
it's not comprehensive - there are some Jun Togawa tracks he wrote that don't appear here, and god knows what else. it is a near-endless source of treasure though. several of these tracks I've encountered in the wild and thought "it's gotta be him", idk what it is exactly but both his melodic and rhythmic sense are very recognizable to me
― frogbs, Monday, 18 October 2021 17:32 (two years ago) link
god knows what else
Includes 144 page book with additional info including a list of all(most?) songs written by Haruomi Hosono prior to 2009.
― Kim Kimberly, Monday, 18 October 2021 17:40 (two years ago) link
I’m surprised no sandii albums have been reissued recently afaik
― brimstead, Monday, 18 October 2021 18:55 (two years ago) link
co-signing "Zoot Kook", hard to believe that predates Computer World even
afaik the "lost" YMO track "Indo" also surfaces on that Sandii album, can't remember what it is though
feels like an album that ought to be re-evaluated soon
― frogbs, Monday, 18 October 2021 19:08 (two years ago) link
Zoot Kook is song of the day, pass the word
― typo hell 13: crypto in insidious, though (Karl Malone), Monday, 18 October 2021 20:50 (two years ago) link
i can't get to the rest of the album because i keep listening to Zoot Kook, the song of the day, on repeat
― typo hell 13: crypto in insidious, though (Karl Malone), Monday, 18 October 2021 20:52 (two years ago) link
hah, I've had the same experience
found this idol knock off of it recently, it's pretty blatant
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ecqegd3wW-o
― (⊙_⊙?) (original bgm), Monday, 18 October 2021 23:07 (two years ago) link
spinning Medicine Comp tonight, such an incredible and chill record. its music for the sensory deprivation tank. it sounds quite unique as this New Age/Enigma stuff is the one electronica movement that's never really had a resurgence - it's always been so terminally uncool - so when someone does it well, it almost feels like unexplored territory. that said the more you listen the more you hear Hosono's fingerprints, in fact it was probably the most natural direction for him to go in at that time
― frogbs, Tuesday, 19 October 2021 03:11 (two years ago) link
that one took off for me recently, beautiful stuff
― brimstead, Tuesday, 19 October 2021 03:57 (two years ago) link
i can't get to the rest of the album because i keep listening to Zoot Kook, the song of the day, on repeat― typo hell 13: crypto in insidious, though (Karl Malone), Tuesday, 19 October 2021 05:52 (eight hours ago) bookmarkflaglink
― typo hell 13: crypto in insidious, though (Karl Malone), Tuesday, 19 October 2021 05:52 (eight hours ago) bookmarkflaglink
honestly the rest of the album is just ... ok. it has a nice version of yukihiro takahashi's "drip dry eyes"! idk i feel like many of the ymo affiliated albums usually have one or two really stand out tracks and then a lot of filler, likely an unavoidable consequence of being so prolific at the time. like masami tsuchiya's rice music for example, it has sakamoto's incredible "kafka" but the rest of the album is disappointing given the calibre of the supporting musicians (night mirage by ippu-do [tsuchiya's main project] fares a bit better in this regard)
frogbs, supposedly the tracks "shantith" and "oinori" are versions/interpolations of "indo"
― missingNO, Tuesday, 19 October 2021 05:39 (two years ago) link
underrated masterpiece of early-80s outside ymo productions: mari iijima's rosé, produced by sakamoto in 1983. it's pure, unadulterated, exuberant city pop / boogie (of the kind that's not necessarily to every ymo fan's taste) but the chord sequences and arrangements are so good
― missingNO, Tuesday, 19 October 2021 05:58 (two years ago) link
Yeah Rosé is a good album.
― Kim Kimberly, Tuesday, 19 October 2021 06:25 (two years ago) link
back to hosono, i love this live tv footage from 1983 of him performing w/ seiko matsuda, briefly demonstrating his linn drum, mc-8 and prophet 5 setup
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lumt37Fz0ok
― missingNO, Tuesday, 19 October 2021 06:35 (two years ago) link
I don't think Medicine Comp is his best album, but it's the one I come back to most often I think. It just "fits" into so many listening situations.
I'm currently fascinated by his late-90s/early-00s "electronica" period - where he moved to laptop production and basically sounded as contemporary as any other glitch producers. Obviously there's the Sketch Show albums, but there's a whole string of collabs/compilations I don't really know anything about. I adore his super glitched-out Coldcut remix, shame that one isn't more widely available.
― bamboohouses, Tuesday, 19 October 2021 08:53 (two years ago) link
yea everything gets pretty messy after Medicine Comp. I remember there was one called Good Sport which was like a 90's version of Coincidental Music. should really revisit that one since I recall it being quite good. it was a soundtrack he did to some sporting event.
both Sketch Show albums are wonderful but I really like Loophole. its got such a vivid "staring at the stars on a warm day" sort of feeling to it. I actually think Takahashi is more responsible for the sound & songwriting but Harry's trademarks are totally there.
one more thing - I decided to try to track down some of the Kankyo Ongaku artists and found this (quite good!) LP for very cheap. lo and behold, look who's credited as producer.
https://www.discogs.com/release/1251889-Interior-Interior
― frogbs, Thursday, 21 October 2021 03:01 (two years ago) link
yeah that interior album is definitely worth a listen, originally released on hosono and takahashi's yen records imprint in 1982. i especially love the first track "technobose"
inoyama land's danzindan-pojidon is another good hosono produced instrumental/ambient album from that period (also published on yen records)
― missingNO, Thursday, 21 October 2021 04:27 (two years ago) link
also testpattern's après-midi, another hosono produced yen record's release from the same period, is wonderful, a bit more straight-up techno-pop but certainly with some hosono-esque ambient elements
as an aside, i never checked until now but resellers are really having a laugh with some of the prices of this stuff on discogs huh
― missingNO, Thursday, 21 October 2021 04:37 (two years ago) link
(ugh please disregard the errant apostrophe in yen records above)
― missingNO, Thursday, 21 October 2021 05:36 (two years ago) link
Those two Yen box sets (Yen Box 1&2) are pretty essential as a way to plot a path through the YMO Extended Universe, they take in both the Kankyu Ongaku stuff through the more pop and new wavey albums. I really like the Interior album. The Windham Hill reissue (which has a slightly different track list) was quite cheap, at least up until recently.
― bamboohouses, Thursday, 21 October 2021 07:05 (two years ago) link
My Swing Slow arrived today. It took 3 days to get from Tokyo to Glasgow (5700 miles). Recently mail has been taking longer than that to get from Ediburgh to Glasgow (50 miles).
Anyway, that is by the by.
No obi on the Swing Slow but packaging, sleeve quality and vinyl pressing are exemplary. I've seen a few grumblings over the fact that it has been remixed but i'm enjoying it just as much in this (subtle new) mix as the original.
― stirmonster, Thursday, 30 December 2021 22:00 (two years ago) link
Edinburgh!
lol @ this Twitter thread. guess the "4th member" of YMO is not Matsutake but rather the dude who handed Hosono a tainted joint
How A Single Bad Drug Trip Led to Japanese Technopop 🧵In the early 1970s, bassist Haruomi Hosono of the band Happy End was jamming with his friends at a Tokyo studio, when someone passed around a joint. Hosono thought it would be very cool to take a double-sized hit. pic.twitter.com/sFXTEsulCI— W. David Marx (@wdavidmarx) February 9, 2022
― frogbs, Thursday, 10 February 2022 13:49 (two years ago) link
I wish Marxy would write a book about them, then another about the era in general, he's more than capable.
― Maresn3st, Thursday, 10 February 2022 14:07 (two years ago) link
Wtf, I love this kid
Harry Styles saying “Haruomi Hosono” on the Today Show pic.twitter.com/EV7tQIOJ4p— Light In The Attic (@lightintheattic) May 19, 2022
― frogbs, Thursday, 19 May 2022 22:47 (one year ago) link
after getting to know the original a bit better I've started to realize that Hochono House is a hell of an accomplishment
the original has this indescribable vibe - there's something extraordinarily chill and comforting about it. you feel like you were in the room where it was recorded. it's become a cult classic for that reason. a lotta people write things about it like "I don't know why this album is special but it just is". I think it actually fits in that confusing thread I made about debut albums last week.
anyway, the new version changes up pretty much everything - it's all re-recorded and most of the songs are done in a very different way - but somehow that vibe is still there. so it winds up being the rare remix album that works basically the same as the original. idk if I've ever heard anyone quite pull that off before.
― frogbs, Wednesday, 22 June 2022 03:46 (one year ago) link
good post. hochono house is really something special. it deepened my love for hosono house and is of a piece with it, but is totally it's own special thing
― karl...arlk...rlka...lkar..., Wednesday, 22 June 2022 04:05 (one year ago) link
yeh good post frogbs
― nxd, Wednesday, 22 June 2022 15:55 (one year ago) link
ha! Hochono House in reverse order of Hosono House, starting with a new version of the final track from Hosono and working its way back to the opener? that's great. :) it also creates ideal conditions to listen to Hosono House and Hochono house on repeat - it'll take you all the way to the final track, make you feel psychedelic and then bring you back to the beginning again
― Bruce Stingbean (Karl Malone), Wednesday, 22 June 2022 16:01 (one year ago) link
it hits you with that "Yellow Mario" right away
― frogbs, Wednesday, 22 June 2022 17:12 (one year ago) link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZhDXBXw0mQ
― MaresNest, Monday, 11 July 2022 09:23 (one year ago) link
I’ve never spent much time with Hosono House before. Man, Choo Choo Gatagoto sounds like a dead ringer for Van Dyke Parks’ cover of Toussaint’s Ocapella from Discover America – from the groove to the languid vocal to (almost) the melody. Wild.
― Naive Teen Idol, Monday, 14 November 2022 12:47 (one year ago) link
(And I know they worked together on the relatively contemporaneous Happy End, it still just doesn’t 100% register until I hear this)
― Naive Teen Idol, Monday, 14 November 2022 12:59 (one year ago) link
not familiar with much else but Hosono House rules
― corrs unplugged, Monday, 14 November 2022 14:43 (one year ago) link
It does. And honestly, it's weird that it wasn't produced by VDP because, well, it sounds exactly like the Japanese version of him. And the Happy End album doesn't really?
― Naive Teen Idol, Monday, 14 November 2022 15:17 (one year ago) link
he did do an interview about this:
TODD BURNSWith Happy End, you ended up recording an album in America. Can you talk about that experience? Was that the first time you had been to America?HARUOMI HOSONORight. It was 1973, or perhaps 1972. I don’t exactly recall when. In LA, California, there is a famous studio called Sunset Sound where we recorded Happy End’s third album. I don’t know how we got there. Someone arranged it for us, I guess. Suddenly Van Dyke Parks visited the studio. He’s a great musician. He was with Lowell George, the guitarist from group Little Feat. They came in, and we got caught up in their pace. That was a really new experience for us. For example, their recording method was very western. It was very layered, let’s say. We learned that method. Before that our style was flat, like Japanese picture scrolls. We hadn’t thought about depth. We learned that from Parks.TODD BURNSVan Dyke Parks, you’ve spoken about his impact on you and in meeting him. It seems like he is quite a character.HARUOMI HOSONOHe was really a crazy man. He was high when we first met. I wanted to stay away from him. I didn’t like him. He first gave a speech in the middle of the studio, like a monologue. It was about the Japanese emperor. We were so puzzled – who is this guy? That was about when we first met. I met him again when he was sober. He was nice. We are still friends. I like him a lot.
With Happy End, you ended up recording an album in America. Can you talk about that experience? Was that the first time you had been to America?
HARUOMI HOSONO
Right. It was 1973, or perhaps 1972. I don’t exactly recall when. In LA, California, there is a famous studio called Sunset Sound where we recorded Happy End’s third album. I don’t know how we got there. Someone arranged it for us, I guess. Suddenly Van Dyke Parks visited the studio. He’s a great musician. He was with Lowell George, the guitarist from group Little Feat. They came in, and we got caught up in their pace. That was a really new experience for us. For example, their recording method was very western. It was very layered, let’s say. We learned that method. Before that our style was flat, like Japanese picture scrolls. We hadn’t thought about depth. We learned that from Parks.
TODD BURNS
Van Dyke Parks, you’ve spoken about his impact on you and in meeting him. It seems like he is quite a character.
He was really a crazy man. He was high when we first met. I wanted to stay away from him. I didn’t like him. He first gave a speech in the middle of the studio, like a monologue. It was about the Japanese emperor. We were so puzzled – who is this guy? That was about when we first met. I met him again when he was sober. He was nice. We are still friends. I like him a lot.
― frogbs, Monday, 14 November 2022 15:38 (one year ago) link
finally got the Swing Slow reissue. it's an excellent album and I love that it too seems to have been given a new life by the YouTube algorithm. it's kind of the ultimate Hosono album. it's folky, it's electronic, it's gorgeous, it's kind of minimal, it's vintage yet cutting edge, it has weird unexpected dance breakdowns, and it's steeped largely in (and covers songs from) a genre that the vast majority of his audience wasn't around for. and it's really confounding, so many little "why did you do it this way" moments. and it has an ambient interlude that's so pretty it hurts.
― frogbs, Thursday, 19 January 2023 03:50 (one year ago) link
bonus tracks are great too! check this out, maybe the creepiest thing I've ever heard him do. no way this is from '96, right?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BmF6WASwPcw
also includes another, much slower cover of "Caravan", which sounds less electronic but still as mechanical. also something unsettling about that one...
― frogbs, Thursday, 19 January 2023 04:21 (one year ago) link