Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO) was an influential Japanese electronic music band, formed in 1978. They are renowned as a major influence in popular music, and for pioneering the
synth-pop genre. The principal members are
Haruomi Hosono (bass),
Yukihiro Takahashi (1952-2023, drums) and
Ryuichi Sakamoto (1952-2023, keyboards). The band was originally conceived as a one-off studio project by Hosono, the other two members being recruited session musicians - the idea was to produce an album fusing orientalist exotica (cf their cover version of
Martin Denny's Firecracker) with moder…
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