The Fantastic Plastic Machine (album)

The Fantastic Plastic Machine is the debut studio album by Japanese musician Fantastic Plastic Machine. It was released on October 10, 1997, by Readymade Records.^[2] The album was subsequently released in Germany on April 24, 1998, by Bungalow Records^[3] and in the United States on September 15, 1998, by Emperor Norton Records.^[4]

The Fantastic Plastic Machine
Studio album by Fantastic Plastic Machine
Released	October 10, 1997 (1997-10-10)
Genre	Shibuya-kei big beat electronica
Length	49:23
Label	Readymade
Producer	Tomoyuki Tanaka Takeo Sasada Yukihiro Fukitomi
Fantastic Plastic Machine chronology
The Fantastic Plastic Machine (1997) Summer Review EP (1998)
Singles from The Fantastic Plastic Machine
"L'Aventure fantastique" Released: August 30, 1997[1]

The album drew influence and inspiration from music styles—including baroque pop, bossa nova, beat, and europop, as well as dance music roots.^[5] The album cover art was illustrated by French-Armenian cartoonist and illustrator Edmond Kiraz.^[6]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[5]

Steve Huey of AllMusic described The Fantastic Plastic Machine as "a delightful, infectious album that's not only hooky as all get-out, but also rewards repeated listening", deeming it "one of the best albums to come out of the Japanese club-pop movement".^[5]

In 2007, Rolling Stone Japan placed The Fantastic Plastic Machine at number 67 on its list of the "100 Greatest Japanese Rock Albums of All Time".^[7] In 2011, the album was included in LA Weekly's "beginner's guide" to Shibuya-kei music.^[8] Tokyo Weekender writer Ed Cunningham later cited it as a "groundbreaking" Shibuya-kei release, noting: "Some post-Shibuya-kei artists would follow in the footsteps of the guitar-driven indie pop of Flipper's Guitar, but many more significant acts, in genres such as picopop and electropop, would expand upon the electronica initiated by [Fantastic Plastic Machine]."^[9]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Bon Voyage"	Tomoyuki Tanaka	0:42
2.	"L'Aventure fantastique"	Tanaka Takeo Sasada	3:03
3.	"Steppin' Out"	Joe Jackson	5:30
4.	"Bachelor Pad" (F.P.M. edit)	Tanaka Richard Cameron	4:47
5.	"Fantastic Plastic World"	Tanaka Laila France Mikado Koyanagi	5:51
6.	"Dear Mr. Salesman"	Tanaka Sasada Tetsushi Hiruma Toshiyuki Yasuda	4:14
7.	"Allen Ginsberg"	Tanaka Yasuaki Shimizu	3:58
8.	"First Class '77"	Tanaka Yoshinori Sunahara	6:44
9.	"Philter (In viaggio attraverso l'Australia)"	Piero Piccioni	5:19
10.	"Please, Stop!"	Tanaka Yukihiro Fukutomi	4:41
11.	"Pura saudade (Nova bossa nova)"	Tanaka Sasada Pat Cerqueira	4:34
Total length:			49:23

German CD edition

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Bon Voyage"	Tanaka	0:42
2.	"L'Aventure fantastique"	Tanaka Sasada	3:03
3.	"Steppin' Out"	Jackson	5:30
4.	"Bachelor Pad" (F.P.M. edit)	Tanaka Cameron	4:47
5.	"Fantastic Plastic World (Voice 'n' Baroque)"	Tanaka France Koyanagi	5:51
6.	"Dear Mr. Salesman"	Tanaka Sasada Hiruma Yasuda	4:14
7.	"Allen Ginsberg"	Tanaka Shimizu	3:58
8.	"First Class '77"	Tanaka Sunahara	6:44
9.	"Philter (In viaggio attraverso l'Australia)" (vocal version)	Piccioni	5:50
10.	"Please, Stop!"	Tanaka Fukutomi	4:41
11.	"Pura saudade (Nova bossa nova)"	Tanaka Sasada Cerqueira	4:34
12.	"L'Aventure fantastique (Recycled Soft Rock)"	Tanaka Sasada	4:49
13.	"Pura saudade (Nova bossa nova) (Laxmikant)"	Tanaka Sasada Cerqueira	6:32
Total length:			61:15

The German LP edition (total length: 45:25) follows the track order of the original Japanese edition, but substitutes "Fantastic Plastic World" with "Fantastic Plastic World (Voice 'n' Baroque)" and omits "Allen Ginsberg".

US edition

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Bon Voyage"	Tanaka	0:42
2.	"L'Aventure fantastique"	Tanaka Sasada	3:03
3.	"Dear Mr. Salesman"	Tanaka Sasada Hiruma Yasuda	4:14
4.	"Bachelor Pad" (F.P.M. edit)	Tanaka Cameron	4:47
5.	"Fantastic Plastic World (Voice 'n' Baroque)"	Tanaka France Koyanagi	5:51
6.	"Steppin' Out"	Jackson	5:30
7.	"Allen Ginsberg"	Tanaka Shimizu	3:58
8.	"First Class '77"	Tanaka Sunahara	6:44
9.	"Philter (In viaggio attraverso l'Australia)"	Piccioni	5:19
10.	"Please, Stop!"	Tanaka Fukutomi	4:41
11.	"Pura saudade (Nova bossa nova)"	Tanaka Sasada Cerqueira	4:34
12.	"Dear Mr. Salesman (Remix 4 Ya by DJ Me DJ You)"	Tanaka Sasada Hiruma Yasuda	3:45
13.	"Pura Saudade" (Optiganally mix)	Tanaka Sasada Cerqueira	5:02
Total length:			58:10

References

1. "L'aventure Fantastique | Fantastic Plastic Machine" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
2. "the Fantastic Plastic Machine | Fantastic Plastic Machine" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
3. "The Fantastic Plastic Machine". fpmnet.com. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
4. Hanks, Matt (October 1998). "Fantastic Plastic Machine: Fantastic Plastic Machine". CMJ New Music Monthly. No. 62. p. 48. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
5. Huey, Steve. "Fantastic Plastic Machine – Fantastic Plastic Machine". AllMusic. Retrieved March 5, 2018.
6. The Fantastic Plastic Machine (liner notes). Fantastic Plastic Machine. Emperor Norton Records. 1998. EMN 7008.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
7. Lindsay, Cam (November 14, 2007). "Finally! 'The 100 Greatest Japanese Rock Albums of All Time' Listed". Exclaim!. Retrieved June 22, 2019.
8. Ohanesian, Liz (April 13, 2011). "Japanese Indie Pop: The Beginner's Guide to Shibuya-Kei". LA Weekly. Retrieved May 4, 2018.
9. Cunningham, Ed (March 31, 2020). "A Complete Guide to Shibuya-kei: Tokyo's '90s Music Revival". Tokyo Weekender. Retrieved December 10, 2020.

External links

• The Fantastic Plastic Machine at Discogs (list of releases)