Random J Pop playlist: Produced by Nakata Yasutaka

Nakata Yasutaka has an amazing production discography overall. I just want to open with that, because I know I've shitted on the majority of what Yasutaka has helmed over the past couple of years, and blame him solely for the decline in Perfume's music. By the end of this post you'll probably wonder if I even like the dude. So I just wanted to open by saying I fully acknowledge how great his production discography is as a body of work and that I think he is an amazing producer, separate of what I think of his music now.

Those who have followed Yasutaka for quite some time will know that his sound has been a journey. And ever since 2016 Yasutaka has docked, pitched his tent and called EDM home. Yasutaka's music has always been electronic dance music, even if we decided to categorise it as pop because of the artists who were singing over the top of it. But what was once Nakata's own brand of EDM is now that same ol' EDM that we hear and have been hearing on the radio for the past decade.

I don't think Nakata realises the impact that he's had on many of the producers that his music now sounds like carbon copies of. Madeon. Zedd. PC music. Virtual Riot. If these guys say that they've not heard a Nakata production or that he's not influenced their sound, then they are lying pieces of shit. Electronic music producers know who this guy is. They study his shit. They pick it apart. They marvel at how he's able to intersect dance music, something gritty, something sweet, something kitsch, something a bit avant garde and run it through a process where we end up with this really accessible pop song that shouldn't work, but somehow does. This is what had me so fucked up when I started getting into Perfume and when I first heard Pamyu Pamyu's music. And it's why he is so admired as a producer. There's no doubt in my mind that he's a genius. Which is why I'm disappointed that his sound is in this funnel where it sounds so generic and void of character. Thank fuck for Pamyu Pamyu being around to still carry than beacon.

Knowing how amazing Yasutaka can be is why I shit on him so hard when he gives us nonsense like Future pop. Because I know he can do so much better. Perfume's last 2 albums were pretty awful. But I'm still fans of their music, based on the legacy of what they put out before and this is all because of Nakata. Ami Suzuki may as well be dead, but Supreme show will always be that album. Meg may not sell another record again, but Beam, Step and Maverick have timeless bops. And whilst Cosmic explorer and Future pop are messes, Game, Triangle, JPN and LEVEL3 delivered amazing songs.

I'm all for an artist exploring different sounds and styles. I just wish Nakata had a better handle on his and that his output was more consistent and exuberant in the qualities that made his music so good that artists were able to launch whole careers off of it. Especially when some of these artists still depend on him.

I hope 2019 will be the year where Nakata continues to explore. As I'd said before, Nakata's sound has been a journey and I hope that it continues to be. He's far too talented for these generic ass songs he's been giving us. So this playlist is to commemorate a mere snapshot of the journey so far. Unfortunately, Meg, Ami Suzuki, Tomohisa Yamashita, Crystal Kay and Capsule's back catalogues (amongst many others) aren't available. So many songs that some would deem YSTK classics are not on this playlist. But there's still enough here to appreciate his work. Even if 60% of the playlist is Perfume.

At time of posting, it is also Yasutaka Nakata's birthday. So I'd like to wish him a happy birthday!

🎧 Listen on Spotify: Produced by Nakata Yasutaka