Pleasure Principled

Revealingly Articulate Idol Worship

On a whole, electronic music is simple and repetitive. Everything sounds the same as everything. Starting from the bottom of the sound spectrum, most electronic music is kick drum led in simple quadruple metre. Next comes the bassline and possibly the low synth. In the mids, we have the snare, mid-percussion (bongos and other percussion), and most of the dominant instruments, such as the vocals, and main melody. In the highs, we have the higher percussions (cymbals) and the high synth which tends to compliment the main melody. Now that we have all the ingredients, here’s the generic method for putting it all together:

Start with the kick. Gradually add mid-percussion. Use a bit of the main melody or vocals to tease the listeners. Throw in the bassline. Sit for 16 measures. Tease with a bit more of the main melody in another level or vocals. Fill in and breakdown. Use a pad or high-synth to keep interest. Gradually add bassline and mid-percussion. Build, build, build using any combination of snare, mid-percussion, and mid-synth. Climax. Combine everything for the chorus. Optionally, continue for another verse. Repeat chorus again. Add one more flavor in either high or low synth to the mid-synth main melody for the final chorus. End with crash cymbal or deconstruct by subtracting the main melody, then bassline, then percussion, then kick.

That’s a recipe for success if I’ve ever seen one. I know what to expect when it comes to electronic music. But since it’s so repetitive and predictable, why do I keep coming back to it? Call me easily amused and a sucker for a thumpy kick drum and catchy tunes. The simplest changes in instruments - like a quick EQ shift on the kick and snare, a slight change in a drum loop or bass line, modifications to the main melody - all of them change the song enough to keep me interested. It’s like using a different type of cheese for a dish: same idea, different flavor.

Diving a bit deeper into the staying power of electronic music, I find that the artists that stay with me invest a lot of emotion into their music, or at the very least bring out some strong emotions from me. I wouldn’t know anything about the artists personally but, from a hobbyist composer’s perspective, I try to put as much of myself or as much emotion I can into each piece I finish. As simplistic and predictable as it sounds to the average person, each song I end up liking tells me a story or makes me feel as immersed as I would in a good book, movie, or video game. In the on-going party that is electronic music, I’m here for the thump of the kick drum, but I stay for the emotional roller coaster each song has the potential for.

Now take popular music from Japan; on a whole, it’s pleasant, happy, and diverse. Take the ingredients from electronic music, stir in smoothly, and you have Japanese TechnoPop. It’s like mixing the energy of Happy Hardcore, minus all the emo and ecstasy, with the tempo and instruments of Electro and House, and then wrap it with rice and seaweed. Cut into slices. Serve immediately.

(For the remainder of this article, I’ll be refering to Japanese TechnoPop as just plain TechnoPop. I know it exists outside of Japan but I’m here to showcase the Japanese stylings of it. I would like to shout out to FreezePop, even though they’re synthpop, and Justice, even though they’re death disco; they’re all under the same umbrella of cool.)

By no means is the following a definitive guide to TechnoPop, but from my experience with the genre, most songs can be classified into one of these forms:

Electro/Technopop is the first of the forms because it was the first in existence. This is predominantly thanks to capsule’s Nakata Yasutaka in his FRUITS CLiPPER era which really skyrocketed his form of TechnoPop into the mainstream. It follows the basic elements of TechnoPop and only slightly deviates to add uniqueness. He has some examples of Electro/TechnoPop before FRUITS CLiPPER, namely Glider and Teleportation from the L.D.K. Lounge Designers Killer album, but for the most part, Nakata’s sound ranged from Bossa Nova and Lounge, to the French-flavoured CafePop, to the early makings of Happy TechnoPop.

Club TechnoPop showcases the partying side to TechnoPop and is identifiable by the minimal (if any) vocals and constant repetitive synth that’s there just for being music. I find it most useful for creating ambience. It’s like the Elevator Music of TechnoPop. By no means is that statement meant to take away from the musical integrity of Club tracks but without paying attention to it, it could slip by without any recognition. Examples of this are MEG - MAKE LOVE, capsule - REALiTy and Suzuki Ami - SUPER MUSIC MAKER. 

Epic TechnoPop is Club TechnoPop with a story that you can’t help but pay attention to and listen and love and get lost in. Overall, this is my favourite form of TechnoPop since it tends to play at my heartstrings. Examples include Suzuki Ami - FREE FREE, Aira Mitsuki - GALAXY BOY, and Perfume - edge. 

Hard TechnoPop is another form of Club TechnoPop like how Rock and Hard Rock are similar but different, kinda like what Big Beat is to the Breakbeat family of music. These are the percussion and low-synth led TechnoPop tracks with aggressive undertones. Examples of this are Aira Mitsuki - YELLOW SUPERCAR, capsule - FLASHBACK and MEG - MODEL.

Happy TechnoPop is recognized by its blatant use of quick high-synth hits or other high-synth melodies and cutesy vocals. It doesn’t always have to be cute on purpose but I’m sure that each Happy TechnoPop track was made to bring smiles to people’s faces. Examples of this are Perfume - Sweet Donuts and capsule - Tokyo Smiling. 

Pop TechnoPop is the last and questionable form similar to North America’s Pop genre; it really isn’t a genre but it kind of is. It picks and chooses from other TechnoPop forms and, at the same time, can be used to cover anything else that doesn’t fit in any other form, like the alternative rock genre of North America. The best example of Pop TechnoPop is Perfume’s Secret Secret because it takes from Club because of the memorable main melody, Epic from the timeless instrumental and vocal performance, and Happy because they’re Perfume.

The most obvious reason why TechnoPop sticks with me is because it marries two of my favourite genres: Electronic and Japanese (the Japanese music I listen to tends to be happy and uplifting or emotionally charged). You’ll notice that I don’t factor lyrics into why I like TechnoPop. I don’t have a strong enough grasp of the language to really factor it in. I take whatever I can understand through listening and enjoy the occasional translation if it pops up, but the fact that I don’t understand the language doesn’t bother me or take away from my enjoyment of the music. It’s kind of like a cherry on top: the ice cream below is the same regardless.

This is another reason why I enjoy Electronic and Japanese music as much as I do. Electronic music, for the most part, is mainly instrumental (Hence the genre “vocal trance” - you wouldn’t need the word vocal if it was expected; that would be redundant.) and doesn’t need need lyrics or vocals to be understood or enjoyed by the masses. On the other hand, we have Japanese music which I don’t understand due to the language barrier. Call me delusional but I think that I can feel what the lyrics are trying to convey through the instruments used and how it’s arranged. I read translations later to see if it fits and, more often than not, it does. So like Electronic music, I feel that enough of the Japanese music I listen to, and mainly TechnoPop, transcends language when done correctly. I believe that composers and artists are doing their job when a listener can enjoy a song to its fullest, regardless of any sort of musical theory knowledge or language barriers.

For myself, TechnoPop isn’t just dance music with a Japanese twist - it’s got everything I love about music and more. It captures the energy of electronic but is as diverse as Japanese music. I have such a strong connection with the music that lyrical content just serves as an enhancement to the tracks with vocals I already enjoy. As a fan of both electronic and Japanese music genres, I find it hard to keep myself from listening to it and every new track keeps me coming back. It would be sad if it ended up being just a fad for some, but my interest with it was never because of the masses enjoying it. I was a fan of it since before Polyrhythm, before it hit the mainstream. I was a fan of it before I knew of its existence. I will remain a fan of it until I die.