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One Step Communicate - One Step Communicate (1994)

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One Step Communicate is a group consisting of Kenichi Nakagawa (vocals), Hiroyuki Yano (guitar), and Takeshi Kudo (bass). The group released two albums and disbanded. However, in around 2008 (?), Kenichi Nakagawa and Hiroyuki Yano formed a group called "First Fruits" with another musician known as You-Ju. The latest place I've seen Takeshi Kudo was in a bass guitar textbook and he was writing about Marcus Miller. Tracklisting 1 True Paradise 2 瞳に降る雨 3 アンブレラバースデイ 4 タンクトップのX'mas 5 小さな真夏を口移す(Daylight Mix) 6 海に浮かぶ宇宙 Review One Step Communicate is one of the two releases from the group. The other album they released came out in the same year and credits the same recording locations, so I think the two albums are actually one recording session split into two albums.  By the time this album came out, the trend of city pop and funk-based J-pop has already begun its decline. stuff that topped the chart at the time was synth-pop and rock. Artists such as Shizuka Kudo and Zard ...
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Maxwell - Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite

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Being a regular classic boogie/funk/AOR listener, I do not usually get in the range of 90s Neo Soul. However, when this album appeared on my Spotify feed, it instantly caught my ears. Tracklisting 1 The Urban Theme 2 Welcome 3 Sumthin' Sumthin' 4 Ascension (Don't Ever Wonder) 5 Dancewitme 6 ...Til The Cops Come Knockin' 7 Whenever Wherever Whatever 8 Lonely's The Only Company (I & II) 9 Reunion 10 Suitelady (The Proposal Jam) 11 The Suite Theme Review  "Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite" is Maxwell's first album. It was produced by saxophonist and composer Stuart Matthewman of Sade and Maxwell. A notable credit on the album is long-time Motown musician Leon Ware, who composed my favorite track "Sumthin' Sumthin'”. When I listen to the entire album, I just can't help but think about the depiction of the nightclub in Biggie's "Big Poppa" music video. In it, the nightclub is described as a hub where feet and body keep on ...
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Joey Mccoy - Summer Time Memories (1992)

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Joey Mccoy is a former Omega Tribe member. He joined in the band's later years and worked as a vocalist in the Japanese music scene until the early 1990s Tracklisting 1 Futari No Natsu Monogatari  2 Riverside Hotel  3 Silence Ga Ippai  4 Mizu No Naka No Answer  5 Saigo No Holy Night  6 Summer Suspicion  7 I Wanna Hold You  8 Kaze No Lonely Way  9 Alone Again  Review This album is just like those Tatsuro Yamashita cover albums, such as the releases by L.A. Unit and Nick Decaro's "Love Storm" album. It takes a nostalgic approach to covering popular songs initially sung by Kiyotaka Sugiyama. The difference is that the L.A. Unit and Nick Decaro albums sold very well when "Summer Time Memories" did not. 1992 is one of the last years Joey Mccoy would be seen in the Japanese music industry. After around the mid-1990s, he would move to Hawaii. Interestingly, Kiyotaka Sugiyama would also move to Hawaii eventually, a place depicted on Omega Tribe's alb...
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Platinum 900 - Concerto Für Jazz, Disco Und Bossa Nova (1998)

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Platinum 900 is a Japanese funk band from active in the late 1990s. It has released 3 albums and 1 EP that contains 1 song not included in any album. This is their 2nd release. Platinum 900 consists of Naoko Sakata on vocal, Kazuhiko Nishimura on guitar and bass guitar, and Hiroshi Iihoshi on keyboards. Tracklisting 1 今すぐ受話器を取って 2 アップル -Apple-  3 Mercedes Life  4 Platinum Airways (Live Version)  5 My Philosophy 6 ファンタスティック・ジャーニー   Review Ahh, the good old Platinum 900. They are just bringing us bangers after bangers. Producing even 1 good album is hard for some musicians when these guys gave us 3 in a row. However, this gem hidden deep in the 90s city pop scene has only been gaining attraction until last year, around the period of time when I uploaded their "Free (At Last)" album (now copyright struck). They certainly gained more attraction among city pop fans around the globe when Xerf Xpec uploaded the same album this year. Anyway, back to this album. As alway...
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Minoru Komorita (小森田実) - Squall (1989)

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Minoru Komorita is a Japanese singer, composer, and arranger. Before debuting with the "Squall" album as a solo singer-songwriter, he was in a band and released several EPs as "Minoru Komorita & ALPHA" throughout the 80s.  Tracklisting 1 夏だけの女神 2 Sweet My Girl 3 Daydream 4 ドキドキTalking 5 Twilight Dejavu 6 スコール 7 カジノ・カジノ 8 夜のパズル 9 シーズン  For the full album, please go to his "Golden Selection" album available here  on Spotify. In the original order, tracks 1, 2, 5, 20, 26,11,12, 27, and 16 are from this album. All Compose: Minoru Komorita All Arrange: Minoru Komorita, Seiichi Kyoda Review Released in 1989, "Squall" is Minoru Komorita's debut album as a singer. The cover art indicates that this is an album aimed to be reminiscent of Japanese city pop of the 80s, but Minoru Komorita took a different approach when making the songs.  Synth-funk masterpiece M1 is a groovy, synth-heavy boogie song. It is filled with grooving synth bass, roaring syn...
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Groove Study: Introduction To The Blog

Hey there! This is Island Fantasia. I have always wanted to write something about the music I love, so I created this blog to document the songs and albums I listen to. Welcome! Besides this blog, I also run a Youtube channel called "Island Fantasia" where I upload interesting songs and albums I bought. If you are interested, you can check it out here . I will mainly post Japanese music on this blog. However, I will sometimes post music from other countries as well, as long as it is good. I will also try to provide as much information about the items I post as possible.  If you have any questions or concerns, or just want to chat with me, you are welcome to get in touch at harryl0323@gmail.com. But please don't send requests for me to give you lossless rips of the albums I post. I do not always rip the albums I bought.  So that's it. I hope you enjoy going on this journey to enjoy music and study rare grooves with me. 
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