Fantastic Plastic Machine is the stage name of , a
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
ese musician and DJ born in
Kyoto
Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the ci ...
, Japan. Tanaka was considered to be part of the
Shibuya-kei
is a microgenre of pop music or a general aesthetic that flourished in Japan in the mid-to late 1990s. The music genre is distinguished by a "cut-and-paste" approach that was inspired by the kitsch, fusion, and artifice from certain music style ...
movement.
History
In the late 1980s, Tanaka played as the bassist in a rock band called Margarine Strikes Back.
Then in the early 1990s, Tanaka became a regular
club
Club may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''Club'' (magazine)
* Club, a ''Yie Ar Kung-Fu'' character
* Clubs (suit), a suit of playing cards
* Club music
* "Club", by Kelsea Ballerini from the album ''kelsea''
Brands and enterprises
...
DJ in the
Kansai
The or the , lies in the southern-central region of Japan's main island Honshu, Honshū. The region includes the Prefectures of Japan, prefectures of Nara Prefecture, Nara, Wakayama Prefecture, Wakayama, Kyoto Prefecture, Kyoto, Osaka Prefectur ...
area, working as part of a DJ team known as Sound Impossible. While playing with Sound Impossible, his friend
Towa Tei
is a Japanese artist, record producer, and DJ. Born in Yokohama, Japan, Towa debuted as a member of Deee-Lite, from the US label Elektra Records in 1990 and shot to fame via their international hit single, "Groove Is In the Heart". He made his s ...
convinced Tanaka to return to recording music, and in 1997 Tanaka created his solo project Fantastic Plastic Machine
under the Readymade Records (a Columbia Music Entertainment sub-label) label in Japan.
His 1997
self-titled debut album was described by Stevie Huey as a "bright, bubbly pop confection that reconfigures classic pop and cocktail lounge idioms for the '90s dancefloor." His following album ''
Luxury
Luxury may refer to:
* Luxury goods, an economic good or service for which demand increases more than proportionally as income rises
*Luxury tax, tax on products not considered essential, such as expensive cars
**Luxury tax (sports), surcharge pu ...
'' (1998) "
xploresmore down-tempo territory and
oncentratesmore on creating texture with his mixes". These albums would go on to give him international recognition. The albums were distributed in the United States under the
Emperor Norton
Joshua Abraham Norton (February 4, 1818January 8, 1880), known as Emperor Norton, was a resident of San Francisco, California who, in 1859, proclaimed himself "Norton I., Emperor of the United States". In 1863, after Napoleon III invaded Mexi ...
label, and in Europe on the Bungalow label. In Japan, he is currently under the
Cutting Edge label.
Tanaka hosted a
pop culture
Pop or POP may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Music
* Pop music, a musical genre Artists
* POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade
* Pop!, a UK pop group
* Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band
Albums
* Pop (Gas al ...
show on national radio, and in 2004 he hosted another radio show called "Sound Concierge". He also once served as the
editor
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, photographic, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, orga ...
for the Japanese fashion
magazine
A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combinatio ...
''Brutus''.
Tanaka's song "Electric Lady Land" has been featured on the movie soundtrack of ''
The Girl Next Door''. He has also been featured on some of DJ
Stephane Pompougnac Stephane may refer to:
* Stéphane, a French given name
* Stephane (Ancient Greece), a vestment in ancient Greece
* Stephane (Paphlagonia)
Stephane ( grc, Στεφάνη) was a small port town on the coast of ancient Paphlagonia, according to Arri ...
's
Hôtel Costes
The Hôtel Costes is a luxury hotel in Paris, France. Located at 7 Rue de Castiglione, it is perhaps best known for its bar and courtyard café.
History
The hotel was commissioned by the Costes brothers, Jean-Louis and Gilbert, from the designe ...
CD series. His song "Bachelor Pad (f.p.m. edit)" was featured on the ''
Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me'' soundtrack. A short edit of his song "Beautiful Days" is featured on the Japanese
music game
A music video game, also commonly known as a music game, is a video game where the gameplay is meaningfully and often almost entirely oriented around the player's interactions with a musical score or individual songs. Music video games may take a ...
beatmania IIDX 6th Style
Beatmania IIDX 6th Style is the sixth game in the beatmania IIDX series of music video games released in arcades by Konami in 2001 and features 40 new songs. 6th Style introduced new features such as letter grades (ranging from F to AAA) and the n ...
. Also, "Theme of Luxury", "S'Il Vous Plait" and "
There Must Be an Angel
"There Must Be an Angel (Playing with My Heart)" is a song by the British musical duo Eurythmics, released as the second single from their fifth studio album, '' Be Yourself Tonight'' (1985). It features a harmonica solo by American musician ...
" (the last song features
Lorraine Bowen
Lorraine Bowen (born 31 October 1961 in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire) is an English singer, songwriter, comedian and musician.Gregory, Andy (2002) ''International Who's Who in Popular Music'', Europa, , p. 56 Bowen has released seven studio and ...
) are heard in the British sitcom ''
Spaced
''Spaced'' is a British television sitcom created, written by and starring Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson, and directed by Edgar Wright, about the (comedic and sometimes farcical and action-packed) misadventures of Daisy Steiner and Tim Bis ...
'' as well as on the accompanying
soundtrack CD. In 2003, his song "Different Colors" was featured in a Louis Vuitton commercial created by
superflat
Superflat is a postmodern art movement, founded by the artist Takashi Murakami, which is influenced by manga and anime. However, superflat doesn't have an explicit definition because Takashi Murakami does not want to limit the movement, but rather ...
artist
Takashi Murakami
is a Japanese contemporary artist. He works in fine arts media (such as painting and sculpture) as well as commercial (such as fashion, merchandise, and animation) and is known for blurring the line between high and low arts as well as co ae ...
. The commercial featured a panda that eats a girl and her cell phone; the three are then transported into an ethereal Louis Vuitton world. The commercial played in
Louis Vuitton
Louis Vuitton Malletier, commonly known as Louis Vuitton (, ), is a French high-end Luxury goods, luxury fashion house and company founded in 1854 by Louis Vuitton (designer), Louis Vuitton. The label's LV monogram appears on most of its produc ...
stores in Japan.
Tanaka is currently involved in
Ravex
Ravex (stylized as ravex; a portmanteau of rave and Avex Group, Avex) is a Japanese electronic music group, consisting of Shinichi Osawa, Fantastic Plastic Machine (musician), Tomoyuki Tanaka and record producer DJ Taku Takahashi. Established to ...
, a collaboration with fellow
Avex
is a Japanese entertainment conglomerate led by founder Max Matsuura and headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Founded in 1988, the company manages J-pop talents like Ayumi Hamasaki and internet sensation PikoTaro. It has also shifted into other busi ...
DJs
Shinichi Osawa
, also known by his stage name Mondo Grosso, is a Japanese musician, DJ, record producer and composer currently signed onto Avex Trax's Rhythm Zone label. Previously he was signed to Sony Music Japan's FEARLESS RECORDS division and released albu ...
and
Taku Takahashi
is a Japanese hip hop recording artist, DJ and record producer who debuted in 1997 as a record producer of the hip hop group M-Flo. The group rose to prominence in the early 2000s, with hit singles such as "How You Like Me Now?" and "Come Agai ...
established to mark 20 years of the label. Their debut album ''Trax'' was released on 8 April 2009, and follows the release of the singles ''I Rave U'' and ''Believe in Love - feat BoA''.
Discography
;Singles and EPs
* ''L'aventure Fantastique'' (1997)
* ''Summer Review EP'' (1998)
* ''TAKE ME TO THE DISCO'' (1999)
* ''Why Not?'' (2002)
;Albums
* ''
The Fantastic Plastic Machine
''The Fantastic Plastic Machine'' is a 1969 documentary film following a group of California surfers as they journey to an Australian surfing competition. The film is narrated by Jay North. It was directed by Eric and Lowell Blum and was filme ...
'' (1997)
* ''
Luxury
Luxury may refer to:
* Luxury goods, an economic good or service for which demand increases more than proportionally as income rises
*Luxury tax, tax on products not considered essential, such as expensive cars
**Luxury tax (sports), surcharge pu ...
'' (1998)
* ''
beautiful.'' (2001)
* ''
too'' (2003)
* ''
imaginations'' (2006)
* ''FPM'' (2009)
* ''QLASSIX'' (2011)
* ''Scale'' (2013)
;Compilations and remixes
* ''International Standard FPM Luxury Remixes
' (1999)
* ''International Standard FPM Luxury Remixes
' (1999)
* ''International Standard FPM Luxury Remixes
' (1999)
* ''Style #09/Dancing at the Disco at the End of the World'' (1999)
* ''Very Best of FPM in the Mix (mixed by Tatsuo Sunaga)'' (2000)
* ''
Contact
Contact may refer to:
Interaction Physical interaction
* Contact (geology), a common geological feature
* Contact lens or contact, a lens placed on the eye
* Contact sport, a sport in which players make contact with other players or objects
* ...
'' (2001)
* ''Les Plus'' (2001)
* ''Space Program'' (2001)
* ''Why Not?'' (2002)
* ''Zoo'' (2003)
* ''Sound Concierge #401 Do Not Disturb'' (2004)
* ''Sound Concierge #402 Four Kicks Adventure'' (2004)
* ''
M-Flo Inside
is a Japanese hip hop group consisting of record producer DJ Taku Takahashi, Verbal and Lisa.
Lisa left the group in 2002 to pursue a solo career and the remaining members then started the M-Flo Loves... project working different vocalists for ...
'' (2004) Track: "Spectacular"
* ''Sound Concierge #403 Air Conditioning'' (2004)
* ''Sound Concierge #404 Electric Carnival'' (2004)
* ''
Dimension Mix: A Tribute to Bruce Haack'' (2005) Track: "I'm Bruce"
* ''Sound Concierge #501 Blanket'' (2005)
* ''Sound Concierge #502 Tell Me for Your Delightful Moment'' (2005)
* ''Sound Concierge Annex Contemporary Love Songs'' (2005)
* ''FPMB: Fantastic Plastic Machine Best '' (2007)
* ''Sound Concierge #701 Super Romantic for your moments in love '' (2007)
* ''Sound Concierge #702 Electric Heaven for hyper discothèque '' (2007)
* ''Sound Concierge Japan "Japanese Lyric Dance"'' (2008)
* ''Sound Concierge x Numero TOKYO -Utopia-'' (2008)
* ''
Ravex
Ravex (stylized as ravex; a portmanteau of rave and Avex Group, Avex) is a Japanese electronic music group, consisting of Shinichi Osawa, Fantastic Plastic Machine (musician), Tomoyuki Tanaka and record producer DJ Taku Takahashi. Established to ...
Trax'' (2008)
* ''House☆Disney'' (2009)
* ''Versus. Japanese Rock vs. FPM'' (2010)
* ''Qlassix'' (2011) - Tanaka collaborated with clothing label
Uniqlo, providing music for a flash web clock that displays Uniqlo's fashion lines and a calendar, which displays
tilt-shifted videos from different locations in Japan.
Uniqlo Calendar
References
External links
Official site of Fantastic Plastic Machine
FPM on Emperor Norton Records
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fantastic Plastic Machine
1966 births
Japanese DJs
Japanese electronic musicians
Japanese male musicians
Living people
Musicians from Kyoto Prefecture
Remixers
Shibuya-kei musicians
Ravex members
Electronic dance music DJs