(born , 13 February 1964) is a
Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
vocalist
Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or withou ...
and visual artist, best known as a member of
Boredoms and
Naked City. He has changed his stage name three times, from Yamatsuka Eye, to Yamantaka Eye, to Yamataka Eye, and sometimes calls himself eYe or EYヨ. He also
DJs under the name DJ 光光光 or "DJ pica pica pica" ("pica" means "bright" or "shiny"), and has used numerous other
pseudonym
A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...
s.
Music
Boredoms
Born in
Kobe, Eye is a founder of the influential
rock music
Rock music is a broad genre of popular music that originated as " rock and roll" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of different styles in the mid-1960s and later, particularly in the United States an ...
band,
Boredoms, whose first major label release came out in the early '90s. They were signed to Warner Bros. (
Chocolate Synthesizer era) by David Katznelson, then A&R VP of Warner Bros. The closest thing Boredoms have to a frontman, Eye offers a variety of vocal techniques: gurgles, screams, grunts and occasionally, relatively conventional
singing
Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or with ...
.
In the later days of Boredoms and in today's
V∞redoms he plays electronics and
open reel tapes.
Other
Yamantaka Eye is also a member of the bands
Hanatarash, UFO or Die, Puzzle Punks, Noise Ramones and
Destroy 2. He is notorious for his vast, confusing discography and countless guest appearances. In 1993, he recorded an EP with
Sonic Youth called ''
TV Shit'' for
Thurston Moore
Thurston Joseph Moore (born July 25, 1958) is an American musician best known as a member of Sonic Youth. He has also participated in many solo and group collaborations outside Sonic Youth, as well as running the Ecstatic Peace! record label. Mo ...
's label,
Ecstatic Peace. He also collaborated with Yamamoto Seiichi &
Yamazaki Maso
, better known by his stage name Masonna, is a Japanese noise musician. He was born on November 16, 1966, in Miyazu, Kyoto, Japan.
was started in 1987 in Osaka as Maso Yamazaki's noise project. The name is a combination of the Japanese wor ...
in the project "(Triple) Yama's" which was titled for their shared namesake. He released two albums
''Live!''an
with Japanese turntablist/improviser
Otomo Yoshihide
is a Japanese composer and multi-instrumentalist. He mainly plays guitar, turntables, and electronics.
He first came to international prominence in the 1990s as the leader of the experimental rock group Ground Zero, and has since worked i ...
, under the moniker "MC Hellshit & DJ Carhouse". He formed a music and art group called Puzzle Punks, with
Shinro Ohtake.
Other notable collaborations include his work with
Bill Laswell
William Otis Laswell (born February 12, 1955) is an American bass guitarist, record producer, and record label owner. He has been involved in thousands of recordings with many collaborators from all over the world. His music draws from funk, ...
's
Praxis
Praxis may refer to:
Philosophy and religion
* Praxis (process), the process by which a theory, lesson, or skill is enacted, practised, embodied, or realised
* Praxis model, a way of doing theology
* Praxis (Byzantine Rite), the practice of fai ...
and with
John Zorn's groups
Naked City and
Painkiller
An analgesic drug, also called simply an analgesic (American English), analgaesic (British English), pain reliever, or painkiller, is any member of the group of drugs used to achieve relief from pain (that is, analgesia or pain management). It i ...
. Eye and Zorn also recorded the album ''Zohar'' as the "Mystic Fugu Orchestra." This latter compilation, which both commemorates and satirizes
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
culture, also draws strength from Eye's earlier influence from the
Oomoto
''Chōseiden'' in Ayabe
, also known as , is a religion founded in 1892 by Deguchi Nao (1836–1918), often categorised as a new Japanese religion originated from Shinto. The spiritual leaders of the movement have always been women within t ...
religion in Japan, a sect claiming to possess visions of an emerging
world order. Several generations of Eye's family belonged to Oomoto, which was at times brutally suppressed by the
Japanese government. Yamantaka participated in the
Boredoms 77 Boadrum performance which occurred on July 7, 2007 at 7:07 PM at the
Empire-Fulton Ferry State Park
Brooklyn Bridge Park is an park on the Brooklyn side of the East River in New York City. Designed by landscape architecture firm Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, the park is located on a plot of land from Atlantic Avenue in the south, und ...
in
Brooklyn
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
,
New York, and the
88 Boadrum
''77 Boa Drum'' is a live album by Japanese experimental music group Boredoms, recorded on July 7, 2007, at the Empire–Fulton Ferry section of Brooklyn Bridge Park in Brooklyn, New York City, New York. It was released on two CDs, plus a 20-min ...
performance which occurred on August 8, 2008 at 8:08 PM at the
La Brea Tar Pits in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
,
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
.
Art
As well as his music, Eye is famous for his mixed-media style of art that utilises
airbrush
An airbrush is a small, Pneumatics, air-operated tool that Atomizer nozzle, atomizes and sprays various media, most often paint but also ink and dye, and Foundation (cosmetics), foundation. Spray painting developed from the airbrush and is c ...
,
marker pen
A marker pen, fine liner, marking pen, felt-tip pen, felt pen, flow marker, sign pen (in South Korea), vivid (in New Zealand), texta (in Australia), sketch pen (in South Asia) or koki (in South Africa), is a pen which has its own ink source ...
and
collage, amongst other materials. This work has adorned a number of records, including the majority of Boredoms releases and, perhaps more famously,
Beck's ''
Midnite Vultures
''Midnite Vultures'' is the seventh studio album by American musician Beck, released on November 23, 1999 by DGC Records. While similar to most of Beck's previous albums in its exploration of widely varying styles, it did not achieve the same blo ...
''. Similar to the Boredoms' musical direction, Eye started incorporating a much more psychedelic, calmer approach into his work, evident on the covers of many of the later Boredoms albums. Drawing as much from Japanese mythology as it does from his musical influence, such as early punk imagery, his work aims to complement the music as well as to provide another dimension to the sound. Eye also drew a comic strip in 1991, titled ''Frogleg Burning-X Comix Death''.
When discussing Eye's unique art style,
Stylus Magazine writer Mike Powell commented:
Eye has presented his work at
MoMA/PS1 in New York, in the ''Music is a Better Noise'', and the ''Volume: Bed of Sound'' exhibitions.
Discography
Audio Sports
* ''3-6-9'' (Bron Records) (EP) (1991)
* ''Eat+Buy+Eat'' (All Access) (EP/CD) (1992)
* ''Era of Glittering Gas'' (All Access) (CD) (1992)
Boredoms
* ''
Osorezan no Stooges Kyo
''Osorezan no Stooges Kyo'' is an album by Boredoms, released in 1988 on Selfish Records. The title translates to "The Stooges' Craze in Osorezan".
Critical reception
''Trouser Press
''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in ...
'' (1988)
* ''
Soul Discharge'' (1989)
* ''
Pop Tatari'' (1992)
* ''
Chocolate Synthesizer'' (1994)
* ''
Super æ'' (1998)
* ''
Vision Creation Newsun
''Vision Creation Newsun'' is an album by Japanese Rock music, rock band Boredoms released by Warner Music Group, WEA Japan. The standard one-disc edition was released in Japan December 10, 1999, and in the United States the following year by Bir ...
'' (1999)
* ''
Seadrum/House of Sun'' (2005)
Destroy 2
* ''
We Are Voice and Rhythm Only'' (1996)
DJ Chaos X
* ''Live Mixxx'' (2006)
DJ Pica Pica Pica
* ''Planetary Natural Love Gas Webbin' 199999'' (1999)
Hanatarashi
* ''Hanazumari'' (1984)
* ''Take Back Your Penis!!'' (1984)
* ''Live Axtion 84.4.20 & 1.29'' (1984)
* ''Noisexa'' (1984)
* ''Bombraining'' (1984)
* ''The Hit Parade 1'' (1984)
* ''The Hit Parade 2'' (1984)
* ''Hane Go Go'' (1984)
* ''Man Of Noise Noise Kyojin'' (1984)
* ''Live! 1984 3.24'' (1984)
* ''8448-412'' (1984)
* ''Live Action 84.1.29'' (1984)
* ''Live Act 16.Dec.1984 at Zabo Kyoto'' (1984)
* ''Merzbow & Hanatarashi'' (1985) (with
Merzbow
is a Japanese noise project started in 1979 by , best known for a style of harsh, confrontational noise. Since 1980, Akita has released over 400 recordings and has collaborated with various artists.
The name Merzbow comes from the German dada ...
)
* ''Worst Selektion'' (1985)
* ''Worst Selektion'' (1985)
* ''Hanatarashi 1'' (1985)
* ''Hanatarashi 2'' (1987)
Hanatarash
* ''3: William Bennet Has No Dick'' (1990)
* ''The Hanatarash and His Eye'' (1992)
* ''Live!! 1984 Dec. 16: Zabo-Kyoto'' (1993)
* ''Total Retardation'' (1995)
* ''4: Aids-a-delic'' (1995)
* ''5: We are 0:00'' (1996)
The Lift Boys
* ''Anarchy Village b/w Anarchy Way'' (2005)
* ''Lift Boyz'' (2005)
* ''Tide Y Edit'' (2012)
* ''Jukey Lift'' (2014)
MC Hellshit & DJ Carhouse
* ''Live!''
* ''Live!!''
Puzzle Punks
* ''Pipeline - 24 Smash Hits by 24 Puzzle Punk Bands'' (1996)
* ''Budub'' (1996)
* ''Puzzoo'' (2006)
Tribal Circus
* ''Tribal Circus'' (2000) (with
Hifana)
Yamataka Eye
* ''Re...Remix?'' (2008) (remix compilation)
* ''Sky Size Sea'' (2010)
Noise Ramones
* ''Rocket To DNA'' (1999)
with Battles
* ''
Gloss Drop
''Gloss Drop'' is the second studio album by American experimental rock band Battles, released on Warp Records in June 2011.
Most of the album is instrumental, but vocals are provided by various guests performers, including electronic musician G ...
'' (2011)
with John Zorn
* ''
Nani Nani'' (1995)
* ''
Zohar'' (as Mystic Fugu Orchestra) (1995)
* ''
Naninani II'' (2004)
* ''
50th Birthday Celebration Volume 10'' (2005)
with Naked City
* ''
Naked City'' (1989)
* ''
Torture Garden'' (1990)
* ''
Grand Guignol
''Le Théâtre du Grand-Guignol'' (: "The Theatre of the Great Puppet")—known as the Grand Guignol–was a theatre in the Pigalle district of Paris (7, cité Chaptal). From its opening in 1897 until its closing in 1962, it specialised in natura ...
'' (1992)
* ''
Heretic'' (1992)
* ''
Leng Tch'e
Leng Tch'e is a Belgian grindcore band. The band describes their style as "razorgrind", a combination of grindcore with death metal, stoner rock and metalcore. The band's name is an alternate romanisation of " língchí", a method of torture an ...
'' (1992)
* ''
Radio
Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmi ...
'' (1993)
with Praxis
* ''
Sacrifist'' (1994)
with Sonic Youth
* ''
TV Shit'' (1994)
with Ween
* ''
Z-Rock Hawaii'' (1997)
See also
*
Japanese art
*
Dadaism
Dada () or Dadaism was an art movement of the European avant-garde in the early 20th century, with early centres in Zürich, Switzerland, at the Cabaret Voltaire (Zurich), Cabaret Voltaire (in 1916). New York Dada began c. 1915, and after 192 ...
References
External links
Lambiek Comiclopedia biography.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eye, Yamantaka
Avant-garde singers
Japanese male rock singers
Japanese heavy metal singers
Noise rock musicians
1964 births
Living people
Musicians from Kobe
Naked City (band) members
Painkiller (band) members
Boredoms members
Japanese graphic designers
Japanese illustrators
Manga artists
Album-cover and concert-poster artists