Yellow Magic Orchestra

Yellow Magic Orchestra is a hugely influential early Techno band that has been called the Japanese equivalent of Kraftwerk, while their influence inside their home country has been likened to The Beatles. They helped pioneer synthpop, modern J-pop, techno, and house music. The band was one of the first to use Sampling.

Core members Haruomi Hosono, Yukihiro Takahashi, and Ryuichi Sakamoto had worked together off and on throughout the 1970s, and each had worked with early electronic instruments. However, it was Sakamoto's introduction to Kraftwerk, as well as a desire to make music that didn't ape Western musicians, that pushed them to create their own band. Initially in 1977, the three produced an Exotica-style album called "Yellow Magic Orchestra" performed by forming under the name "Harry Hosono and the Yellow Magic Band," parodying a fascination with fad for black magic in Japan at the time. It was intended to be a studio album parodying Western stereotypes of Asia while also exploring Asianness and the use of synthesizers.

Intended mostly as a joke, the album was a surprise hit, prompting the band to go on tour. One of these live performances was seen by an American A&M Records executive, and by the end of 1978 they had an international record deal, prompting the three to shift from solo careers to full support of YMO.

Over the next few years, YMO was the most popular band in Japan, and was regularly charting in America and Europe, with sold-out tours in all three areas. For 1979's Solid State Survivor, the band brought in Chris Mosdell to write English lyrics. Both it and the follow-up, X∞Multiplies, were on the Oricon charts at the same time for seven weeks, a record that still stands. The band's music became a major influence on early Techno and Hip Hop pioneers, with the song "Riot in Lagos" is seen as one of the first to have a "techno" beat. After sampling "Firecracker" for his song "Death Mix," Afrika Bambaataa jokingling claimed YMO "invented Hip Hop."

After making the music-based movie "Propaganda," the band "spread out" in 1984: Although they shifted back to solo careers, the members would frequently perform with each other. They briefly reunited to record Technodon by "Not YMO" in the early 90s, and occasionally performed live as "Human Audio Sponge." They officially reunited in 2007 as "HASYMO," first for a Kirin beer commercial and single "Technopolis 77/07," and then live at the Live Earth, Kyoto event on July 7, 2007. The band officially reverted to the name "YMO" in 2009.

With the passing of Takahashi in January 2023 and Sakamoto in March 2023, it's highly unlikely there will ever be another YMO. (See "The Band Minus the Face" below for why.)


 * The Band Minus the Face: Averted. Although the members frequently played YMO songs at their own concerts, they only advertised as YMO if all three core members were present.
 * Black Sheep Hit: The first album was intended to be a one shot project to parody Exotica.
 * Covered Up: An odd case - Most Westerners think "Behind the Mask" was written by Michael Jackson to be performed by Eric Clapton, with MJ's version only coming out as a posthumous release. In reality, he was going to release the cover with some additional lyrics. These lyrics were used by other performers including Clapton and even Ryuichi Sakamoto in their own performances, giving Jackson part of the writing credit.
 * Japan Takes Over the World: Their first US tour was advertised as "See Japanese people play all those synthesizers they're building."
 * And yet any synth anorak worth his salt can tell that the bulk of the synths they used back then was made in the US.
 * Keep Circulating the Tapes: Literally. Although their back catalog has been remastered, Propaganda was only released on VHS.
 * Long Runners: YMO performed between 1978–1984, 1992–1993, 2002–2004, and 2007–2012, and staged occasional reunions until the deaths of Yukihiro Takahashi and Ryuichi Sakamoto in 2023 (January and March, respectively).
 * Lyrical Dissonance: Taiso
 * Ode to Intoxication: Radio Junk
 * Periphery Demographic: Popularity with the "urban" market in the early 1980s got the band onto Soul Train.
 * Revival by Commercialization: A new acoustic version of "Rydeen" was recorded in 2007 for a beer commercial, which quickly topped the Oricon charts.
 * Self-Deprecation: Virtually every television performance, especially "Propaganda."
 * Synth Pop : Trope Codifier. There is some debate by music critics whether they or Kraftwerk is the Trope Maker.
 * Those Wacky Nazis: "Propaganda" is heavy on fascist imagery, including red armbands.
 * Unplugged Version: Rydeen 79/07
 * Word Salad Lyrics: Averted, thanks to English lyrics written by Chris Mosdell.