HASYMO/Yellow Magic Orchestra

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HASYMO / Yellow Magic Orchestra

Haruomi Hosono along with Ryuichi Sakamoto and Yukihiro Takahashi are the founding members of Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO), the legendary group whose innovations included the integration of exotic sounds and techno elements in its so-called “computer music.” YMO have been the leading figures of electronic music in Japan since the late ‘70s, and have influenced countless techno/hiphop/pop/rock musicians throughout the world.

Haruomi Hosono has been one of the pioneers of the rock/pop music scene in Japan, influencing many artists and garnering considerable respect in the electronic music field. Ryuichi Sakamoto, the Oscar winning composer/musician, has gained an international reputation exploring innovative sound constructions to this day. Yukihiro Takahashi has been known not only as a producer of Japanese rock/pop music, but also for his activities as a fashion designer and writer.

In 1983, YMO announced they would sankai, or “fan-out,” and didn’t reunite until 1993 with performances that drew 100,000 people to stadium shows in Tokyo. During the period of 1993 - 2002 the group members continued to focus on their solo careers, until Hosono and Takahashi formed Sketch Show, and invited Sakamoto to contribute to tracks on their releases Audio Sponge and Loophole. Sakamoto joined Sketch Show at 2004’s Sonar Festival for a performance under the name Human Audio Sponge, a unit name inspired by the writings of UK-based writer, musician, and curator David Toop, which would be used whenever Sakamoto joined a Sketch Show performance.

Human Audio Sponge was a name that reflected the musical direction of the three members at the time, absorbing various musical elements and converting these ideas in their original way to create a totally new sound of music. Recently the group has performed under the name HASYMO. More than just a melding of their previous incarnations as Human Audio Sponge (HAS) and Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO), HASYMO have developed a new sound that transcends the two groups. The group contributed the new track Rescue, to the film Appleseed: Ex Machina.

The original members last performed as Yellow Magic Orchestra from Live Earth’s Kyoto stage on 7/7/07, a performance hailed by Rolling Stone as the worldwide festival’s best reunion performance.

Ren Takada (Pedal Steel), Christian Fennesz (Guitar/Electronics), Shoko Ise (visuals), and Tomohiko Gondo (HD Operation/Euphonium) will join Yellow Magic Orchestra for their Meltdown performance.