''Taboo'' is the fourth studio album by the Japanese

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band Buck-Tick. It was released on

cassette Cassette may refer to: Technology * Cassette tape (or ''musicassette'', ''audio cassette'', ''cassette tape'', or ''tape''), a worldwide standard for analog audio recording and playback ** Cassette single (or "Cassingle"), a music single in th ...

, CD and as a two-record vinyl set (one is a blank picture disc) on January 18, 1989 through

Victor Entertainment , also known as in Japan, is a subsidiary of JVCKenwood that produces and distributes music, movies and other entertainment products such as anime and television shows in Japan. It is known as JVC Entertainment in countries where Sony Music Ente ...

. ''Taboo'' was digitally remastered and re-released on September 19, 2002, with two bonus tracks. It was remastered and re-released again on September 5, 2007. "Angelic Conversation" was re-recorded as the b-side to the group's single "M・A・D" in 1991. "Just One More Kiss", "Iconoclasm" and "Taboo" were later re-recorded for the compilation album '' Koroshi no Shirabe: This Is Not Greatest Hits'' (1992). "Iconoclasm" was covered by J for the Buck-Tick tribute album, ''

Parade -Respective Tracks of Buck-Tick- ''Parade -Respective Tracks of Buck-Tick-'' is the first tribute album to Japanese rock band Buck-Tick, released on December 21, 2005. It collects cover versions of their songs by various artists. It reflected the influence Buck-Tick had on yo ...

'' (2005). ''Taboo'' peaked at number one on the

Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan and Western music. It started as, which was founded by Sōkō Koike in ...

charts, selling 298,620 copies in the first year.

Production

The band recorded the album in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

in the fall of 1988, the producer was

Owen Paul Owen Paul (born 1 May 1962) is a Scottish singer best known in the UK for his 1986 No. 3 hit single, " My Favourite Waste of Time", a cover version of a song that was originally written and recorded by American singer-songwriter Marshall Crenshaw ...

. They also had a gig at the Greyhound Club, which the members of

Der Zibet Der Zibet is a Japanese visual kei rock band formed in 1984, which made its debut in 1985. They went on an indefinite hiatus in 1996, but resumed activities in 2007. History Der Zibet was formed in 1984 by vocalist Issay and bassist Hal, wh ...

also attended. London made a lasting impression on Buck-Tick, especially

Sakurai Atsushi is a Japanese musician and singer-songwriter. He has been the vocalist of the rock band Buck-Tick since 1985, previously being their drummer from 1983. He released the solo album ''Ai no Wakusei'' in 2004 and was also a member of Schwein alongsi ...

, who felt that the local music scene was more accepting of darker, more serious music than the Japanese one. The album marks a turn in the band's career towards a darker style.

Track listing

Personnel

Atsushi Sakurai is a Japanese musician and singer-songwriter. He has been the vocalist of the rock band Buck-Tick since 1985, previously being their drummer from 1983. He released the solo album ''Ai no Wakusei'' in 2004 and was also a member of Schwein alongsi ...

- lead vocals *

Hisashi Imai is a Japanese musician and songwriter. He is known as lead guitarist of the rock band Buck-Tick since 1983. He has also performed in musical side-projects such as Schaft (1991–1994, 2015), Schwein (2001), and more recently Lucy (2004). Ca ...

lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featu ...

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are ...

Hidehiko Hoshino , nicknamed "Hide", is a Japanese musician and songwriter. He is known as the rhythm guitarist for the rock band Buck-Tick since 1983. Life and career Buck-Tick In 1985, when Hide and Yutaka Higuchi graduated from high school they moved to Toky ...

- rhythm guitar, acoustic guitar, backing vocals * Yutaka Higuchi - bass *

Toll Yagami , known exclusively by his stage name , is a Japanese musician, best known as the drummer of the rock band Buck-Tick since 1985. He is the older brother of Yutaka Higuchi, Buck-Tick's bassist. Life and career Toll Yagami dropped out of high s ...

- drums,

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Ex ...

Additional performers * Philip Hoeger - keyboards Production *

- producer * Buck-Tick - producers^{/sup>
* Will Gosling; Roland Herrington; Mark Dearnley; Junko Yamazaki; Shuuji Yamaguchi - engineers

Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the ...
, mixing
* Kenshi Kajiwara - assistant engineer
* Ken Sakaguchi - graphic design, cover art
* Kazuhiro Kitaoka - photography

Notes

^ ^* The only song that Buck-Tick produced is "Just One More Kiss".
^* Released as the b-side to the "Just One More Kiss" single. Originally released as its own single in 1986.

References

Buck-Tick albums
Victor Entertainment albums
1989 albums

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