Shin Kawasaki / Flying Platforms
10th Annual Eclectic Album Nominee
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Record Label: n/a
www.shinkawasaki.com
Home Base: Los Angeles
Genre: SynthPop/Prog/Livetronica
Category Entered: Eclectic Album
Work Submitted: Shin Kawasaki
Label: Unsigned
URL:
http://shinkawasaki.com
http://twitter.com/shinkawasaki
http://facebook.com/shinkawasakiFB
http://FlyingPlatforms.com
Influences: Yellow Magic Orchestra, King Crimson, Miles Davis, Aphex Twin, Squarepusher, Radiohead, Prince, Queen to name a just a few
What’s the meaning of your band name? Flying Platforms make an appearance in the 1988 anime feature “AKIRA” which is one of my all-time favs. When I googled the word a few YouTube clips of late ’40~50s experiments done by US Army came up. That pretty much cemented it for me.
Describe your nominated work: It’s my first (real) solo effort in an attempt to showcase my songwriting and producing skills. (Flying Platforms is the name I’ve given to my performing outfit to play the material live) some of the tracks came from my commercial work that didn’t get picked up by Nike or Samsung or whatever, some came from my improvisational work, some were written when I was inspired. I had the privilege to know some of the best local musicians and artists in LA who are mostly unknown to the general public, and to feature their talents on some of these recordings.
Why did you choose to submit this work to The 10th IMA’s? My band Los Desnuods was lucky enough to be nominated 3 years ago in the Album/Jam category and I thought I’d give it a shot.
Did you use any unusual effects or instruments in this recording? Not really – maybe a theremin. Or a Fernandes Nomad Deluxe.
Were there any happy accidents while in the studio, or did everything go as planned? It certainly did not since it took about 2 years longer than I intended. I get involved in too many projects and with this being my personal one it kept getting pushed back. But if you wanna know how many drugs were consumed to produce this album, I’d have to say no. but I was on Charlie Sheen. I wouldn’t recommend it tho. Your head’s gonna explode and your children will weep over your corpse.
Did fans help you fund this project? Yes, both mentally and financially.
Who’s sitting in your audience? Music nerds, asian americans and some hipsters who came out to catch a set by MEN (the band).
What makes your fans unique? very diverse – some young, some old, some white, some yellow (not many black folks yet) some nerds, some douche, some hot, some not so much.
Are there any songs you wish you wrote? “The Night They Drove Ol’ Dixie Down” by The Band, “Umbrella” by Rihanna, and pretty much every song that Stevie Wonder wrote.
What artists are you listening to that would surprise your fans: Katy Perry
What is your dream show lineup? Battles, Deerhoof, reunited At the Drive-In and The Mothers circa “Roxy and Elsewhere”
What is your guilty pleasure on the road? The Joe Rogan Podcast
Any close calls or mishaps while on tour: I got too drunk before getting on the freeway and had to pull over twice to throw up on the side before arriving at the gig. NEVER DRINK AND DRIVE. SERIOUSLY.
Do you have any rituals before you go on stage? A shot of Jim Beam and a beer of your choice.
Should music be free? YEAH
How has digital affected your career? My career started with digital.
Are digital singles vs. full albums the future of music? I just think there will be a bigger divide between casual listeners and hardcore fans. You can download the full box set worth of songs just as easy as a single, but how much of those will you actually listen to, let alone carefully? We see more demand for vinyls and even cassettes for that reason; if you really wanna tune in to music, the convenience of digital is not always preferred.
Finish this sentence: The music industry is… resurrecting from the flaming pile of turd.