In a Model Room

In a Model Room
Studio album by P-Model
Released August 25, 1979
Recorded 1979
Sunrise Studio (Recording & Mixing)
Freedom Studio
Electro Sound
Tokyo
Genre
Length 33:28
Label Warner-Pioneer
Producer
  • Masahide Sakuma
  • P-Model
P-Model chronology

Air on the Wiring
(1978)		 In a Model Room
(1979)		 Landsale
(1980)
Singles from In a Model Room
  1. "Art Mania" c/w "Sunshine City"
    Released: July 25, 1979
  2. "Kameari Pop" c/w "Health Angel"
    Released: December 25, 1979

In a Model Room is the debut album of Japanese band P-Model. In 2007 Rolling Stone Japan ranked it at number 52 in its list of the 100 Greatest Japanese Rock Albums of All Time.[1]

Overview

Before P-MODEL was formed, most of its members were part of the Progressive Rock band Mandrake, who thought the genre was declining, thinking that it was turning too commercial and not speaking about sociopolitical issues, at around the same time, Punk Rock groups like Sex Pistols, 999 and Métal Urbain were getting prominence in the music landscape, inspired by these groups, Mandrake bandleader Susumu Hirasawa, fellow Mandrake bandmates Yasumi Tanaka & Sadatoshi Tainaka and Mandrake fan/close friend of the group Katsuhiko Alkiyama decided to end Mandrake and start anew as a punk rock group, although they were a punk band and their live performances were punkish, they were considered by the public in general as a Technopop band due to their use of Moog synthesizers, Vocoder and rhythm box; being called part of the 3 big Technopop groups, together with Hikashu and Plastics (whose keyboardist Masahide Sakuma produced this album, starting his career as a producer).

Most of the songs on this album were created by Mandrake late in the group's existence, which allowed for a quick debut release (7 months and 24 days after the band's formation) and a remaining Progressive Rock influence (although not as clear as in the Mandrake days). The songs on the album talk about the sociopolitical issues of Japan at the time, during the Japanese post-war economic miracle and were partially influenced by Nineteen Eighty-Four.

Hirasawa re-recorded the album (except for "Sophisticated") in the style of the P-Model live shows of 1979 as Virtual Live-1 [P-Model Live at Roppongi S-Ken Studio 1979]. The song "The Great Brain" was covered in the 2007 album Karate House by Polysics; the band has also performed "Art Mania" on live shows. Covers of "Art Mania" by Vocaloids are included in dedicated Vocaloid New Wave cover albums.

Track listing

No. TitleWriter(s) Length
1. "Art Mania (美術館で会った人だろ Bijutsukan de Atta Hito Daro, Surely I Met You at the Art Museum)[2]"  Susumu Hirasawa 3:09
2. "Health Angel (ヘルス・エンジェル Herusu Engeru)"  Yasumi Tanaka 2:32
3. "Roomrunner (ルームランナー Rūmurannā)"  Tanaka 2:32
4. "Sophisticated (ソフィスティケイテッド Sofisutikeiteddo)"  S. Hirasawa 4:26
5. "For Kids (子供たちどうも Kodomotachi Dōmo)"  S. Hirasawa (music)
Yūichi Hirasawa (lyrics)		 3:31
6. "Kameari Pop"  S. Hirasawa 3:56
7. "Sunshine City (サンシャイン・シティー Sanshain Shitī)"  Tanaka (music)
Y. Hirasawa (lyrics)		 2:03
8. "The Great Brain (偉大なる頭脳 Idainaru Zunō)"  S. Hirasawa 2:03
9. "White Cigarettes (ホワイト・シガレット Howaito Shigaretto)"  S. Hirasawa 3:15
10. "Pinky Trick (MOMO色トリック MOMO Iro Torikku)"  S. Hirasawa 3:18
11. "Art Blind (アート・ブラインド Āto Buraindo)"  S. Hirasawa 2:39

The group also planned to include 2 other songs on the album: The Hirasawa piece "Alien" (異邦人 Ihōjin), created as a Mandrake song, which was left off the album due to complications with releasing the clear pink vinyl edition and/or issues with getting a suitable arrangement (the song was recorded twice during the album's sessions and more than one arrangement was performed by the band live), it was later rerecorded, with new parts by Tanaka, for Landsale; and the Tanaka piece "White Shoes" (ホワイト・シューズ Howaito Shūzu), which was later used as BGM for the end credits of the Photon-1 video.

Personnel

P-Model - Production, Arrangements
Staff

Release history

Date Label(s) Format Catalog Notes
August 25, 1979 Warner-Pioneer LP K-10017W First limited print run was pressed on clear pink vinyl.[3] The center labels refer to the sides of the record as "Models".
CS LKF-5029
January 25, 1992 Warner Music Japan CD WPCL-603 Released (alongside Landsale and Potpourri) a month before the release of P-Model.
May 10, 2002
July 4, 2014		 Chaos Union, Teslakite CHTE-0005 Remastered by Hirasawa. Part of Disc 1 of the Ashu-on [Sound Subspecies] in the solar system box set, alongside Landsale. The demo and "White Shoes" are on Disc 13 (CHTE-0017).[4] Re-released with new packaging by Kiyoshi Inagaki.
October 20, 2003 Warner Music Japan, sky station, SS RECORDINGS SS-101 Packaged in a paper sleeve to replicate the original LP packaging. Includes new liner notes by music industry writer Dai Onojima.

References

  1. ↑ David Marx, W. "100 Greatest Japanese Rock Albums". Néojaponisme.
  2. ↑ "美術館で会った人だろ / Bijutsukan de Atta Hito Daro / Surely I Met You at the Art Museum". Hirasawa Lyrics.
  3. ↑ "IN A MODEL ROOM ピンク盤". 平沢博物苑 (in Japanese). Retrieved 11 November 2014.
  4. ↑ "DISC13". Ashu-on. Chaos Union.

External links