Mute Beat

When you think of Japanese music, reggae is not likely the first thing that pops into your head—at least I don't think it is. Given the large market share of J-pop, influenced heavily by American popular music, it can be easy to ignore other aspects of Japanese music, stemming from different cultural influences. Indeed, reggae music in Japan has gained quite a following, with a fairly active community of musicians. The story begins in the 1970s, during the heyday of Japanese rock music, when the Pioneers  were the first reggae band to tour in Japan. In 1979, the genre hit a tipping point, when Bob Marley toured Japan, inviting several native Japanese musicians to record with him. Throughout the 1980s, Japan would produce new reggae groups, and one of the first was Mute Beat.

As a genre, reggae began in the 1960s, originating from traditional Jamaican music, such as ska. Similar to the Japanese genre of enka, reggae was frequently used as vehicle for political messages. Rastafari, then disenfranchised as part of Jamaican counterculture, used reggae to express their views, which would slowly help them gain more mainstream acceptance. Parallels exist in Japanese society, as with controversies over the treatment of native Ainu or Ryukyuan people or Zainichi Koreans. Examples of later Japanese reggae musicians, such as  U-dou and Platy or Nanjaman, come from such backgrounds.

Before them, however, came Mute Beat, founded by trumpet player Kazufumi "Echo" Kodama (小玉和文) in 1981—incidentally, the year of Bob Marley's death. Kodama had an interest in music since he was a child, stemming from an eclectic combination of Christian hymns and marching band music, among other things. Of course, upon learning of reggae, he was immediately enamored, deeming it "the music of musics." He continued to perform with Mute Beat through the mid 90s, but has since gone on to a solo career, continuing to produce works in the genre.

Among the other members of Mute Beat is Gota Yashiki (屋敷 豪太), who would also find a great deal of success as a drummer and bass player performing with acid-jazz group Simply Red. He has also busied himself with appearing with other acts such as Sinéad O'Connor, Seal, and Bryan Adams. Some of Mute Beat's music has been made available on iTunes; however, albums such as IN DUB can be found elsewhere (as on YouTube). Mute Beat maintains an official website—though it is in Japanese.

読んで、ありがとう。