Imitation – Original
Complete Album Download

Sometimes buying an album strictly because the cover pays off, as was the case with this one, Original, the hilariously-named debut album from Japanese synth act Imitation, which came out in 1980.

Imitation’s name is quite a misnomer, as they’re one of the most original and striking Japanese synthpop acts that I’ve come across. While most of the 80s pop scene in Japan was content to release polished radio-friendly AOR with a synth overlay, Imitation seemed to be way more out-there. To me, they’re akin to The Plastics, another avant-garde experimental synthpop group from the same time, as both groups seem to draw heavily from Talking Heads and Public Image Ltd., thanks to their willingness to mix synthpop with other genres and styles like funk and reggae. Imitation actually remind me the most of Polyrock, due to their tendency to use simple, repetitive rhythms akin to Philip Glass (who produced Polyrock’s records). However, since no one in any country bought Polyrock’s records, I can only guess that this must be a coincidence.

In addition to their musical style, another thing that Imitation has in common with Polyrock is that nobody bought their records either. At least, that’s what I’m assuming since I never come across them used and have never heard them mentioned in articles discussing 80s Japanese synthpop (including the ones I’ve written). It looks like they had some famous fans though, or perhaps the right connections. Their first record includes lyrics written by Chris Mosdell, who was the regular English songwriter for YMO and was produced by Kazuhiko Katoh, another longtime YMO associate. Their second LP, Muscle and Heat, includes a contribution from Sandii of Sandii and the Sunsets, while Hideki Matsutake, AKA Logic System, AKA the dude who programmed all of YMO’s sequencers drops in on their third and final album, Happy Hunting.

I haven’t been able to come across those records yet, as they’re even rare than this one. So all I’m sharing tonight is my copy of Original. It’s a vinyl rip, but I think it sounds pretty damn good. And since CDs of this sucker go for over $100 I doubt that I’ll be buying one those anytime soon. I hope that I can dig up their other two albums someday, along with the singer Cheebo’s sole solo album, as I really want to dive in more into their out-there sound.

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 28th, 2019 at 6:23 pm and is filed under Imitation. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.