JAPAN レコード& CD

Review: South London formed band Japan first came together in 1974, led by David Sylvian on vocals, guitar and keyboards with Steve Jansen and Mick Karn also forming the core trio that went on to be joined by Richard Barbieri and Rob Dean. It was in 1982 that Japan headed to, well, Japan, to play the last leg of their tour having achieved plenty of chart success including nine Top 40 UK hits. The recordings here capture their last ever live shows from December of that year and they were broadcast across the country on radio. They have never been on vinyl before now as the entire show is presented in two essential volumes.

Review: English new wave band Japan put out a small handful of albums in the late 70s and early 80s and managed to make an indelible mark with them. Exorcising Ghosts is a 1984 compilation that now gets reissued as a half-speed record. It was assembled in cahoots with lead singer David Sylvian after the band disbanded and features three recordings from the early-era work on Hansa Records. But mostly it draws on music from their two studio albums on Virgin Records, namely Gentlemen Take Polaroids in 1980 and Tin Drum in 1981. The extended and slightly varied versions make this a real must for fans.