Ippu-Do -

Ippu-Do was a Japanese New Wave/synthpop trio that released four albums and a live disc between 1980 and 1984 on Epic/Sony. Guitarist/singer Masami Tsuchiya played beforehand with Lily, Junko Ohashi, and Kaleidoscope. He and keyboardist Akira Mitake followed Ippu-Do with solo careers.

Members: Masami Tsuchiya (vocals, guitar), 見岳章 [Akira Mitake] (keyboards), Shoji Fujii (drums, 1979-81)

Background

Ippu-Do formed in 1979 when guitarist/singer Masami Tsuchiya, keyboardist Akira Mitake, drummer Shoji Fujii, and bassist Kengo Hirata assembled as a backing band for Sho Yamamoto, a singer billed as the Japanese Mick Jagger.

Tsuchiya backed singer Lily in the Bye Bye Session Band, then joined Junko Ohashi & Minoya Central Station. His work behind guitarist Shigeru Suzuki brought him into contact with Mitake, Fujii, and Hirata.

Ippu-Do first worked as Yamamoto’s backing band on his 1978/79 Epic/Sony albums Romantic Violence and Russian Roulette. On August 21, 1979, they debuted with the Epic single “Motto Real ni” (b/w “Dis-Communication”).

A. “もっとリアルに” (2:55)
B. “Dis-Communication” (4:10)

Hirata left after the single, and the trio of Tsuchiya, Mitake, and Fujii became the public Ippu-Do lineup.

Normal

Ippu-Do released the debut album, Normal, on March 21, 1980 on Epic/Sony, which billed them on this release with four p’s instead of two.

Normal features twelve Tsuchiya originals, including the instrumentals “Adventure” and “Escape,” all performed by the core trio with bassist Hirofumi Akao.

“Panic in the City” snaps from a thudding entry into wiry guitar chops, electronic pings, and a rounded singing line. “Break-Out Generation” darts through quick meter shifts, machine-bright accents, and festival-call chants. “Electric Doll” ticks on auto-arpeggio figures and offbeat chops before its sung return surges into a rough shout.

“I Love You” leans on root-note cutting while the lyric fixes the singer before the television. “Chinese Reggae” threads a Sino-Japanese synth line through offbeat skank, vocoder speech, and a oriental-styled electronic break.

A1. “Adventure” (2:27)
A2. “Break-Out Generation” (2:32)
A3. “Moonlight Love Call” (3:14)
A4. “TV Scene” (1:01)
A5. “Electric Doll” (4:55)
A6. “Panic in the City” (3:06)

B1. “I Love You” (4:05)
B2. “Do You Know?” (2:59)
B3. “Chinese Reggae” (2:44)
B4. “Escape” (2:10)
B5. “Don’t Worry Baby” (4:16)
B6. “Morning Fantasy” (3:15)

Sessions occurred in December 1979 at Sunrise Studio in Tokyo, where Tsuchiya produced Normal with engineer Ryuichi Suzuki and executive engineer Yutaka Matsumoto, a Sunrise/CBS/Sony soundman with contemporary credits behind Makoto Kubota & The Sunset Gang and Moonriders.

Normal appeared in a sleeve with art direction by Masahiko Dekune and photography by Masayoshi Sukita, whose larger rock-photography portfolio already included David Bowie and Yellow Magic Orchestra.

Epic/Sony issued “Break-Out Generation” on February 25, 1980 (b/w “Chinese Reggae”).

Sony Music Direct included Normal in the 2006 box Magic Vox: Ippu-Do Era 1979–1984. CS Record issued Normal +5 on October 30, 2013 as a Blu-spec CD2 paper-sleeve title with five bonus tracks, including their earlier single “Motto Real ni.”

Real

Ippu-Do released their second album, Real, on September 21, 1980 on Epic/Sony.

Real features another full set of Tsuchiya songs performed by the trio with Akao, recorded between Berlin and Tokyo. Mitake co-arranged “Broken Dummies,” “Mysterious Night,” “Neu!,” and “Helpless Soldier.”

“German Road” locks into a bright major-key motor pattern with rhythm-box chatter, dry slashes, and lateral noise bursts. “Broken Dummies” jabs through simple cutting, anxious keyboard figures, dense vocoder treatment, and a mid-song turn toward offbeat skank. “Mysterious Night” crawls under delayed singing, offbeat accents, and a violin interlude twined with a spare guitar lead.

A1. “German Road” (6:02)
A2. “Broken Dummies” (2:46)
A3. “Lonely Pilot” (3:16)
A4. “In Side / Out Side” (2:34)
A5. “Mysterious Night ~ Out Side / In Side” (5:03)

B1. “Heidelburg Symphony” (3:13)
B2. “Funk #9 (A Present for Disco People)” (3:03)
B3. “Neu! (Changing the History)” (6:14)
B4. “Helpless Soldier” (6:04)
B5. “Lunatic Guitar” (2:20)

Sessions occurred in July 1980 at Hansa Studio in Berlin and CBS/Sony Roppongi Studio in Tokyo, with mixing at CBS/Sony Shinanomachi Studio. Tsuchiya produced Real with Hansa engineer Tom Müller and CBS/Sony engineer Yoshihiro Suzuki. Müller’s Hansa role ties the album to his work on the Nina Hagen Band debut, while assistant engineer Harris Johns soon moved into Music Lab Berlin credits behind Ideal, Einstürzende Neubauten, Helloween, Kreator, Sodom, and Voivod.

Real appeared in a sleeve designed by Takuji Nomoto, with front-cover photography by Lois Greenfield after her Seventies dance-photojournalism work for The Village Voice. Jim Rakete photographed the back cover from the Berlin music-photography circuit that included Hagen, Nena, Spliff, and Interzone.

Epic/Sony issued “Mysterious Night” on September 21, 1980 (b/w “Heidelburg Symphony”).

Sony Music Direct included Real in Magic Vox in 2006. CS Record issued Real on October 30, 2013 as a Blu-spec CD2 paper-sleeve title.

Radio Fantasy

Ippu-Do released their third album, Radio Fantasy, on July 21, 1981 on Epic/Sony.

The album retains Tsuchiya, Mitake, and Fujii after Akao’s departure and expands the recording cast with percussion, horns, marimba, and backing voices. Tsuchiya wrote seven pieces outright and shared “Magic Vox” with Mitake. The remaining exceptions bring in Mitake compositions with Shigesato Itoi lyrics for “Listen to Me” and covers of The Zombies (“Time of the Season”) and the Lalo Schifrin theme from Mission: Impossible.

“Radio Cosmos” flickers as an instrumental collage, mixing tsuzumi strikes, slashing bass, and hard-edged electronic figures. “Morning Menu” drifts through wind-chime and bird sounds into a short piano miniature. “Time of the Season” sways from sitar-like buzz into effects-warped singing, synth air, and abrasive guitar tone.

“Radio Fantasy” skanks through radio-dial lyrics and spy-theme flashes. “Imitation Cha Cha” clicks through cha-cha patterns, cheap-machine ticks, and brittle electronic decoration. “Magic Vox” hovers on unstable electronic phrases and ends in a flat, unresolved glide.

A1. “Radio Cosmos” (2:14)
A2. “Time of the Season” (4:14) – Rod Argent
A3. “Radio Fantasy” (2:45)
A4. “Yomotolo-Waiya” (1:45)
A5. “China Step” (2:39)
A6. “Radio Japan” (2:45)
A7. “Imitation Cha Cha” (2:59)

B1. “Morning Menu” (1:47) – Mitake
B2. “Magic Vox” (4:46) – lyrics Tsuchiya; music Tsuchiya, Mitake
B3. “Mission Impossible Theme” (2:24) – Lalo Schifrin
B4. “Dubling Radio” (0:57) – Mitake
B5. “Listen to Me” (4:24) – lyrics Shigesato Itoi; music Mitake
B6. “I Need You” (4:04)

Sessions occurred at Sunrise Studio and CBS/Sony Roppongi Studio, with mixing at Sunrise Studio and Sound Inn. Tsuchiya produced Radio Fantasy with Normal engineer Matsumoto.

Radio Fantasy appeared in a sleeve with illustration by Shinro Ohtake, design by Takuji Nomoto, and photography by Sukita. Ohtake had begun the found-material Scrapbooks in 1977 and formed the experimental noise band JUKE/19 after his 1978 return from London; his first solo exhibition followed at Gallery Watari in Tokyo in 1982.

Epic/Sony issued “Radio Fantasy” on July 21, 1981 (b/w “Magic Vox”). “Time of the Season” followed on April 1, 1982 (b/w “I Need You”). “I Need You” reappeared on December 10, 1982 (b/w “Imitation Cha Cha”).

Seiji Ide directed the promotional film Cosmic Cycle, which used “Morning Menu,” “Time of the Season,” “Magic Vox,” and “Radio Japan.” Epic/CBS U.K. issued “Time of the Season” in December 1981, and BBC television gave the film repeated exposure during the group’s overseas promotion.

Sony Music Direct included Radio Fantasy in Magic Vox in 2006. CS Record issued Radio Fantasy +4 on October 30, 2013 as a Blu-spec CD2 paper-sleeve title with four bonus tracks.

1982 Singles and Concurrent Work

Epic/Sony issued “Sumire September Love” on July 21, 1982 (b/w “Lunatic Shadows”). Machiko Ryu wrote lyrics for the Tsuchiya-arranged exclusive. Kanebo Cosmetics used the song in a television advertisement with Brooke Shields, and the single reached No. 2 on the Oricon chart.

Epic/Sony issued Tsuchiya’s first solo album, Rice Music, on June 21, 1982. Tsuchiya recorded the album at AIR Studios in London and CBS/Sony Roppongi Studio in Tokyo. The cast includes Ryuichi Sakamoto, Kiyohiko Senba, Hideki Matsutake, and English musicians Bill Nelson, Percy Jones (ex-Brand X bassist), and two members of the London quartet Japan: bassist Mick Karn and percussionist Steve Jansen. Nelson plays Flying E-Bow guitar on “Rice Music” and “Tao-Tao.”

In September 1982, Epic/Sony issued Lunatic Menu, an Ippu-Do compilation aimed at the Western market. The comp reached No. 3 on the Oricon album chart during the “Sumire September Love” run. On December 10, “I Need You” appeared as a new single along with Some-Times, a compilation geared for Japanese fans.

The group Japan began its final Sons of Pioneers tour on October 1, 1982, with Tsuchiya on guitar and additional keyboards. Virgin issued the Japan live album Oil on Canvas in 1983 from the group’s final tour recordings.

Night Mirage

Ippu-Do released their fourth studio album, Night Mirage, on July 21, 1983 on Epic/Sony.

Tsuchiya and Mitake continued the group as a duo, with Fujii absent from the lineup. They utilize Steve Jansen, Percy Jones, ex-Japan keyboardist Richard Barbieri, and percussionists Kiyohiko Senba and Yann Tomita (steelpan).

“Plants’ Music” glides through acoustic guitar figures, plant-like electronic detail, and Percy Jones’s fretless line. “African Nights” chants over a ceremonial dance pattern with dry electronic accents. “Rain in My Heart” ripples around steel pan, soft singing, and glassy studio shimmer. “Water Flower” drifts as a short instrumental miniature.

“Dream of the Gypsies” coils Middle Eastern figures into a tightened machine pattern. “Sail On” pivots through ethno-dance motion and bright Emulator detail. “Moon Mirage” widens with Richard Barbieri’s synthesizer solo. “Crystal Leaves” settles into a quiet instrumental close.

A1. “Plant’s Music” (6:07)
A2. “African Nights” (4:51) – lyrics Takashi Nakahata
A3. “Rain in My Heart” (4:34) – lyrics Tsuchiya, Steve Jansen
A4. “Water Flower” (1:42)
A5. “Lonely Sea Lion” (4:43)

B1. “Sorrow” (1:30)
B2. “Dream of the Gypsies” (3:09)
B3. “Sail On” (5:47)
B4. “Moon Mirage” (5:08)
B5. “Crystal Leaves” (4:14) – Mitake

Sessions began on March 1, 1983 at CBS/Sony Shinanomachi Studio, then continued at CBS/Sony Roppongi Studio and AIR Studios in London. Tsuchiya produced Night Mirage during the transcontinental studio sequence. Toshiro Ito mixed the album after engineering credits split between Ito and Akira Fukada, shortly after Ito co-engineered Tsuchiya’s Rice Music with Yoshihiro Suzuki.

Hideki Matsutake handled the Plants System work after his Yellow Magic Orchestra programming credits and the early Logic System albums Logic and Venus.

Night Mirage appeared in a sleeve art-directed by Tsuguya Inoue through Beans, with design work by You Ueda and photography by Sukita. Founded in 1978, Beans soon became a key Japanese music-graphics office through adjacent work for Ryuichi Sakamoto and YMO.

Epic/Sony issued “African Nights” on April 21, 1983 (b/w “Rain in My Heart”). “Dream of the Gypsies” followed on September 21, 1983. The album reached No. 61 on the Oricon album chart. “Moonlight Magic” appeared on April 1, 1984 (b/w “Lonely Sea Lion,” recorded live during the File Tour 1983).

Sony Music Direct included Night Mirage in Magic Vox in 2006. CS Record issued Night Mirage +7 on October 30, 2013 as a Blu-spec CD2 paper-sleeve title with seven bonus tracks.

Live and Zen

Ippu-Do released the live album Live and Zen on July 21, 1984 on Epic/Sony.

The album documents the File Tour 1983 at Nakano Sun Plaza on June 6 and June 7, 1983. The set draws mainly from Night Mirage, with selections from Tsuchiya’s Rice Music and Mitake’s Out of Reach. The original LP also carried Tsuchiya’s twelve-inch single “Starlight Shower (Special Re-Mix).” Two exclusive numbers, “Secret Party” and “Night in the Park,” feature lyrics by one Giles Duke.

“Listen to Me” darts through a Latin-tinged tumbao pattern while Percy Jones inserts three-finger triplets between the main accents. “Time of the Season” swerves from its familiar source into a glassy stage treatment. “Magic Vox” rattles through synthetic phrases and fretless turns. “African Nights” chants with a harder live edge. “Rice Music” glides through ceremonial phrasing and spare electronic detail. “Night in the Park” closes the set with wiry motion and a taut stage finish.

A1. “Kaimaku” (1:09)
A2. “Listen to Me” (4:27)
A3. “Time of the Season” (3:48)
A4. “Magic Vox” (4:35)
A5. “Makuai” (0:27)
A6. “Secret Party” (3:40)
A7. “Violation” (3:20) – Mitake

B1. “African Nights” (4:52)
B2. “Rice Music” (5:07)
B3. “Sumire September Love” (3:46)
B4. “Night in the Park” (5:49)

Included twelve-inch:
A1. “Starlight Shower (Special Re-Mix)” (4:53) – lyrics Etsuko Kisugi; music Tsuchiya
B1. “Aqua Nostalgy” (8:07)

Live and Zen documents the File Tour 1983 concerts at Nakano Sun Plaza on June 6 and June 7, 1983. Tsuchiya produced the album with Toshiro Ito engineering the live recording and mix.

Nobuaki Takahashi designed the Live and Zen sleeve, with front-cover photography by Herbie Yamaguchi after 1973–83 work in London with punk-era and New Romantic musicians.

Sony Music Direct included Live and Zen in Magic Vox in 2006. The box added “Lonely Sea Lion (Live from File Tour 1983),” “B-Side Passion,” and a live version of “German Road” as bonus tracks.

Postlude

Tsuchiya returned to solo work with the 1985 Epic release Tokyo Ballet, followed by the 1986–89 albums Life in Mirrors, Horizon, and Time Passenger.

Sony issued Very Best: Sumire September Love in 1998 with group and Tsuchiya solo material. Sony Music Direct issued Magic Vox: Ippu-Do Era 1979–1984 on December 20, 2006 as a seven-CD and DVD box. The set compiled the four studio albums, Live and Zen, Tsuchiya’s Rice Music, Mitake’s Out of Reach, and archive video material. Sony issued Essence: The Best of Ippu-Do in 2010, then returned the four studio albums to standalone catalog status in 2013 through Blu-spec CD2 paper-sleeve editions.

Discography: