“Time Machine” by Sadistic Mika Band (1974)
https://youtu.be/fdHd6WuP3kg?si
Taken as a whole, this is a great Japanese progressive rock album that’s belied by the catchiness of this track.
Rolling Stone Japan rated this album Number 9 on its list of the 100 Greatest Japanese Rock Albums of All Time.
Sadistic Mika Band (サディスティック・ミカ・バンド) – Black Ship (黒船) (1974, Japan)
Our next spotlight is on number 84 on The List, submitted by avi_miller. Black Ship (or Kurofune) is Sadistic Mika Band’s second LP, regarded as an influential album in Japanese rock history. The cover art plus the fact that this band’s name is a parody of “Plastic Ono Band” – “sadistic” a reference to how Mika used knives in the kitchen – tells you exactly what this album is going to sound like. It’s quirky, it’s breezy, it’s delightful. The band would break up after the following album but would go on to do more wonderful things (Yellow Magic Orchestra, anyone?), so this is a lovely rabbit hole to go down.
Want to read more? See the full spotlight on the Fediverse at @1001otheralbums.com or on the blog: https://1001otheralbums.com/2025/04/29/sadistic-mika-band-%e3%82%b5%e3%83%87%e3%82%a3%e3%82%b9%e3%83%86%e3%82%a3%e3%83%83%e3%82%af%e3%83%bb%e3%83%9f%e3%82%ab%e3%83%bb%e3%83%90%e3%83%b3%e3%83%89-black-ship-%e9%bb%92%e8%88%b9/
Want to skip straight to the music? Here's a Songlink: https://album.link/i/1696267545
Happy listening!
#SadisticMikaBand #YukihiroTakahashi #KazuhikoKatō #MasayoshiTakanaka #MikaKatō #ArtRock #FunkRock #GlamRock #ProgRock #PsychedelicRock #1970s #Japan #music #1001OtherAlbums
Sadistic Mika Band (サディスティック・ミカ・バンド) – Black Ship (黒船) (1974, Japan)
Our next spotlight is on number 84 on The List, submitted by avi_miller.
Black Ship (黒船, or Kurofune) is Sadistic Mika Band’s second LP, their line-up at the time consisting of married couple Mika (vocals) and Kazuhiko Katō (guitar and vocals) with Yukihiro Takahashi (drums), Masayoshi Takanaka (lead guitar), Ray Ohara (bass), and Yu Imai (keyboard). The album was produced by Chris Thomas, who at this point had already worked with the Beatles, Roxy Music, Pink Floyd, and Badfinger.
I feel like the cover art plus the fact that this band’s name is a parody of “Plastic Ono Band” – with “sadistic” a reference to how Mika used knives in the kitchen – tells you exactly what Black Ship is going to sound like. It’s quirky, it’s breezy, it’s delightful. And I’m not certain if Black Ship was intended as a statement or concept album, but the title at least seems symbolic, referring to the Perry Expedition or “Arrival of the Black Ships” in the 1850s that essentially forced Japan to open up to trade with the West and resulted in “Japonisme” or the influence of Japanese art/design on Western art. While Black Ship sold poorly when it was first released, it has since been regarded as an influential album in Japanese rock history. With the release of the band’s next album, Hot! Menu (1975), Sadistic Mika Band toured with Roxy Music, becoming the first Japanese rock band to tour the UK.
Upon release of Hot! Menu (another Thomas-produced album), the band broke up, essentially due to the end of the Katōs’ marriage. The band members would all continue to go on making music together, solo, or in other bands, and in various genres – including the jazz-rock/fusion focused The Sadistics, Kazuhiko’s solo ska and experimental work, and, of course, Takahashi’s synth-pop trio with Haruomi Hosono and Ryuichi Sakamoto, Yellow Magic Orchestra. In other words: rabbit hole time.
Happy listening.
#1970s #artRock #funkRock #glamRock #Japan #KazuhikoKatō #MasayoshiTakanaka #MikaKatō #progRock #psychedelicRock #SadisticMikaBand #YukihiroTakahashi
DAY 1
I enjoyed Masayoshi Takanaka's live performance tonight. Even at 70 years old, his guitar playing technique is as amazing as when he was young. He mentioned, "Lately, I've been seeing more foreign audience members." When he called out to the audience, one of the guests responded, "I came from Australia!"🦘🇦🇺
#MasayoshiTakanaka #JapaneseMusic #sadisticmikaband #ZeppNagoya
My favie find in 2022 was #SadisticMikaBand
This is the album version of Suki Suki Suki. (塀までひとっ飛び)
Sadistic Mika Band in UK TV show “OLD GLEY WHISTLE TEST“ (1975)
Time to noodle
Suki Suki Suki (塀までひとっ飛び)
Rest in peace, Yukihiro Takahashi(高橋幸宏). I'm sooo sad. I'll listen to YMO, Sadistic Mika Band and Sketch Show all day today.
#RIP #YukihiroTakahashi #YMO #SadisticMikaBand #SketchShow
Yukihiro Takahashi, of Yellow Magic Orchestra, Dead at 70
https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/yukihiro-takahashi-yellow-magic-orchestra-214329879.html
Don Curren 🇨🇦🇺🇦
innergroove
1001 Other Albums
1001 Other Albums
hotsuki
Ewen at Large
sunadori
Ned Raggett (has moved!)