Credits

I would like to give credit where credit is due. Videos are from YouTube and other sources such as NicoNico while Oricon rankings and other information are translated from the Japanese Wikipedia unless noted.

Tuesday, June 17, 2025

Shinobu Narita -- Ceramic Love

 

Just out of my usual sense of whimsy that pops up, I explored a bit on whether I could find another new technopop band of the 1980s in Japan outside of the usual suspects: Yellow Magic Orchestra and any of the Techno Gosanke(テクノ御三家). I have discovered a few but when I took a look at one of the streaming services, I did manage to find a fresh one.

Good heavens! This fellow was quite the handsome Japanese David Sylvian or member of Duran Duran, wasn't he?

Let me introduce you to musician and singer-songwriter Shinobu Narita(成田忍). He's actually had an indirect presence on "Kayo Kyoku Plus" because he was a part of the music project 99.99 for which I've provided a few articles including one for their "Amazin' & Amusin'" song from 1982. As I mentioned in that one, their self-titled album was split into two types of music with one type covering fusion while the other type was all about progressive rock and technopop. "Amazin' & Amusin'" was from the fusion stable so I can imagine that Narita was on the other type.

Anyways, Narita joined up with another member from 99.99, violinist Tadahiko Yokogawa(横川理彦), to form the electro group 4-D in October 1982 which mostly did the live house circuit in the Kansai region. Narita also produced his own songs on sonosheets/flexidiscs for free distribution and according to "Lostwave's Finest Wiki", one of those tunes was the 1984 "Ceramic Love", a slightly dreamscape-y song thanks to the introspective arrangement and echo-laden vocals by the man himself. The J-Wiki article for Narita states that "Ceramic Love" came out in 1987 but I'm assuming that is the CD version.

1 comment:

  1. Looks like you have found the 'depeche mode' of Japan! I am going to have to check out more of Shinobu Narita's works.

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