Plastics -

Plastics were a Japanese new wave band from Tokyo that released three albums 1980/81 on Invitation. Guitarist Hajime Tachibana became a prolific solo artist.

Members: Chica Sato (vocals), Toshio Nakanishi (guitar, vocals, percussion), Hajime Tachibana (guitar, vocals), 佐久間正英 [Masahide Sakuma] (keyboards, guitar, bass), Takemi Shima (rhythm box)

Background

Plastics formed in 1976 in Tokyo when singer Chica Sato and guitarists Toshio Nakanishi and Hajime Tachibana assembled a party band through the Harajuku circle around café Leon.

Nakanishi, born in Hiroo in 1956, worked as an illustrator at Peter Sato Studio and contributed a two-page monthly feature to Bikkuri House. Tachibana, born in Tokyo in 1951, traveled to London in 1973 and joined graphic-design collective Workshop MU!! in 1974. Sato, born in Nagano Prefecture in 1954, worked as a fashion stylist in Tokyo.

Plastics initially played 1950s material at fashion parties. In 1976, The group played songs by David Bowie, the Velvet Underground, and Roxy Music at Harajuku Cinema Club. Early manager Shigeichi Kuwahara arranged the first Plastics demo session circa 1977 with Tatsuro Yamashita. Yamashita produced the punk-oriented tape, which the group titled Tokyo Banzai. Tachibana bought a synthesizer and sequencer as the group moved toward electronic arrangements.

Plastics reorganized the lineup in 1978 around keyboardist Masahide Sakuma and rhythm-box operator Takemi Shima. Sakuma, born in Tokyo in 1952, had played bass in Yonin Bayashi since 1975 and came to Plastics expecting a producer role. Shima had established himself as a lyricist with the 1977 Mizue Takada single “Garasuzaka” and worked as art director for Downtown Boogie Woogie Band. Plastics assigned Shima a Roland CR-78 rhythm box in place of a drummer. The quintet made “Delicious” with the new electronic setup for a BIGI fashion show.

Plastics played Shibuya Yaneura in May 1979 with pre-debut material including “JAL Punk” and “Hate.” Tachibana gave a demo to an overseas model headed for London for delivery to Rough Trade. Rough Trade accepted the tape. Nakanishi met David Byrne on the Japanese Talking Heads tour, for which Plastics designed the program.

Plastics recorded the self-produced Welcome Plastics at Shalom Studio in September 1979 with recording engineers Haruo Okada and Tetsuo Sano. The group made its British record debut later that year with the Rough Trade single “Copy” b/w “Robot,” cataloged as RT 030 by Rough Trade. Plastics opened the B-52’s Seibu Theatre shows late in the year on the eve of the January 1980 Japanese album release on Invitation.

Discography: