True Colours: Talented Japanese DJ/Producer Talks About His Special Relationship With Australia
It’s frustrating being a rockstar trapped in a DJ’s body, so it’s no wonder that even Japanese electronic maestro Yoji struggles to define what exactly he does sonically. Just think cutting-edge, mind-blowing tech-dance and out-of-this-world, spellbinding visual showcasing – and you should get the picture. Better yet, with Hard Kandy’s 11th birthday celebrations coming up this month, experience the sensory-overload firsthand when Yoji returns to the club that first made him famous on our shores seven years ago.
“Hard Kandy brought me to Melbourne in 2003,” he recalls. “It was the first time that I came to Australia. After that I flew in over there several times. I remember that I took my family over there as well and then stayed for a week. I spent some very precious time with my wife and son.
Especially at the [Melbourne] Zoo which was so lovely. And I saw the car which is a water tank somewhere too. It was really fantastic! Now I am so happy to play with Scott Alert at Hard Kandy, I know he has contributed to the development of the music culture in Australia for a long time. I really respect him.”
Likewise, from Europe to America and all the way to Australia, Yoji Mabuchi has established himself as not only the driving force behind the tech-dance genre, but also managed to cement himself as one of the most popular hard dance DJs on the planet. Considered an icon of the underground electronic scene in Europe in particular, in his native Japan he’s risen above the DJ status and turned himself into a brand which even includes fashion accessories like Yoji Biomehanika watches. Put simply – Mabuchi is nothing short of a phenomenon.
“I would say I started my music life in 1979,” he says. “I’ve written lots of styles of music, like progressive, new wave, punk, new beat, acid house, techno, ambient house, bleep house, hardcore techno, trance, nu-NRG, hard dance, and now I’m doing tech-dance. My music has always been evolving at every moment. I always try to find new excitement with my music. I released three artist albums, yes, but I have over 10 mix albums in Japan and one artist album from ID&T in Holland. I’ve also got two mix albums in Australia and some mix albums from various labels such as Ministry Of Sound, Tidy Trax and Goodgreef.”
But it was expanding his brand even further by setting up the Hellcat Recordings imprint that allowed Mabuchi to let his true “musical colours” shine after working for various global labels for over a decade. It was a defining moment for the DJ/producer that also changed Japan’s electronic scene by bringing to prominence some of its best underground artists that had been bubbling under the surface for years…
“I had released some tunes on various labels before I decided to set up Hellhouse Recordings,” Mabuchi explains. “It was great exposure but every label has its own ‘colour’… And I hate to tune into somebody else’s colour because I have a very strong colour of my own. Because I waned to be able to create music freely, I launched my own label. It was the best way for my true art to shine. At the moment, Remo-con is one of our producers and DJs, and he is definitely the best at the moment. I am going to try to develop their products as much as I can because I feel it is my own big mission.”
To coincide with his Australian visit this month, Mabuchi announces the release of his own single Surrender on Hellhouse, which he claims will be available for fans via the label’s online store… Wanna know what ‘tech-dance’ really is? Then check out this beast, Mabuchi recommends.
“I believe all the people can enjoy it. It just shouts out to everyone ‘just come out and party!’ I have evolved very naturally because I think it is the same necessity as the evolution of mankind. Tech-dance is a very cool new hybrid style which is a slick fusion of techno, hard dance and trance. I believe that my tunes get engraved in people’s minds, though they have not really been charted on Billboard. I am very happy because people enthusiastically welcome me anywhere. So far, the crowd on planet Earth has been absolutely the best! God only knows the highlights of my life so far because my life is still in progression.”
Nevertheless, Mabuchi has decided to tell the world about his amazing career in dance as it has unfolded thus far… Currently preparing to publish his autobiography, he claims his main mission in life is to inspire other up-and-coming DJs and producers with his own story and encourage them to reach for their dreams no matter how impossible they may first appear.
“I’m preparing to publish this book which writes about my life,” reveals Mabuchi. “I would mostly like to purvey the dreams of the younger generation. I have found many great young Japanese talents. I am convinced that they are the future.”
At the same time, Mabuchi has also recently celebrated a milestone for the very label that is fostering rising superstars with the 10 anniversary of Hellhouse Recordings compilation mix.
“Some of the most recent studio work I’ve done is releasing a big compilation album to celebrate 10 years of my label as well as other artists that appear on Hellhouse. I’ve also remixed some tracks so far this year but I have about three more to do, with Surrender coming out this month. At this moment, I have no plans to work with anyone.
I’ll be writing some more tough dance tracks and I have also started another new project named Biomehanika which is not a dance music project. I’ll let people know more details about it officially in the near future. I have been busy with shows as well. As always, it’s very exciting to play in various countries all around the world. So far this year I’ve played in the U.S., Canada, Russia, Poland, the U.K., Thailand, Malaysia, Holland… And sorry, I can’t remember where else! Ooops, I actually shouldn’t forget about Japan too! The rest of this year I’ll be playing in China and, of course, in your country, Australia.”
Ever since his down-under debut in 2003, Mabuchi has always been welcomed back with open arms too. Seven years since Hard Kandy first introduced him to Aussie hard dance fanatics, Mabuchi is now giving a little bit back to the club that played such a huge part in his success in Australia by putting on one of his mesmerising sets at Hard Kandy’s 11th birthday extravaganza.
“I guess for me the visual component on the stage is much more important and stronger than it is for other people,” says Mabuchi of what he’s got in store for the night. “I think my visual performance amplifies people’s emotions and keeps them interested in the music. For me, it’s just natural to do it. Just recently, I put on a black hat like a magician but the pigeon never actually appeared from there!…I just try to do my best as usual anyway. Maybe you could say that ‘the Samurai is still alive and you can witness it’!”
Yoji [JAP] is playing Hard Kandy’s 11th Birthday Celebrations at Billboard’s On Friday October 29. This events us themed Harajuku & Anime and after selling out the 1st & 2nd ticket allocations the third and final ticket allocation is now available.
