Seatbelts (band)

Seatbelts (シートベルツ, Shītoberutsu, also known as Seat Belts or SEATBELTS) is a Japanese band led by composer and instrumentalist Yoko Kanno.^[1][2][3] An international ensemble comprising both a stable lineup of musicians and various collaborators, the band was assembled by Kanno in 1998 to perform the soundtrack music for the Cowboy Bebop anime series. Their repertoire covered and blended many different genres, mainly jazz, but also a wide variety of rock, electronic, funk, blues, orchestral pop and other styles of genres.^[4]

SEATBELTS
SEATBELTS logo, as of 2020.
Background information
Origin	Tokyo, Japan
Genres	Jazz rock funk blues folk electronic world orchestral pop
Years active	1998–2004, 2020–present
Labels	Victor Entertainment, Captain Duckling Records
Website	starducks.me

Band history

The name of the band, according to the fictional description given in their first album Cowboy Bebop, derives from how the performers wear seatbelts to be safe while they play hardcore jam sessions.^[5]

The band performed the entire soundtrack of the anime series Cowboy Bebop and produced a total of seven albums (three new songs in Cowboy Bebop Tank! THE! BEST!) and one live DVD.^[6]

The band performed virtually in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 to participate in new projects. In collaboration with Funimation, Sunrise, and composer Mason Lieberman, the band rerecorded the ending theme of Cowboy Bebop, "The Real Folk Blues" to raise proceeds for COVID-19 relief.^[7]

In addition, the band began the Session Starducks project on a newly founded YouTube channel in April 2020. In collaboration with different musicians as well as with the original members of the band, the project recorded new interpretations of various compositions. These include songs from Cowboy Bebop, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex and Macross Frontier.^[8]

It was confirmed in April 2020 that Kanno would be returning to compose the upcoming live-action adaption of Cowboy Bebop for Netflix.^[9] It was later confirmed in November 2021 that the Seatbelts were to perform the music for the new adaptation.^[10][11]

Discography

See also: Music of Cowboy Bebop

Studio albums

• Cowboy Bebop (1998)
• Cowboy Bebop Vitaminless (1998)
• Cowboy Bebop No Disc (1998)
• Cowboy Bebop Blue (1999)
• Ask DNA (2001)
• Future Blues (2001)
• Cowboy Bebop (Soundtrack from the Netflix Series) (2021) ^[12]

Live albums

• Future Blues DVD (2001)

Remixes and compilation albums

• Cowboy Bebop Remixes: Music for Freelance (1999)
• Cowgirl Ed (2001)
• Cowboy Bebop Boxed Set (2002)
• Cowboy Bebop Tank! THE! BEST! (2004)
• Space Bio Charge (2009)

Singles

• "TANK! Virtual Session 2020" (2020)^[13]
• "'Real Folk Blues' For These Days" (2020)^[14]
• "Don't Bother None 2020" (2020)^[15]
• "Space Lion Virtual Session 2020" (2020)^[16]

As a featured artist

• "The Real Folk Blues" (2020) (with Mason Lieberman)^[7][17]

References

1. McCarthy, Helen (2009). 500 Essential Anime Movies: The Ultimate Guide. HarperCollins. p. 1979. ISBN 9780061474507.
2. "Seatbelts Reunite". Anime News Network. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
3. Xenophanes. "The Seatbelts – Cowboy Bebop". Sputnik. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
4. Watson, Elijah (May 15, 2015). "Yoko Kanno and The Seatbelts' 'Cowboy Bebop' Score Is Still the Coolest Anime Soundtrack Ever". Vice. Retrieved March 30, 2020.
5. "Cowboy Bebop (Album)". 1998.
6. "The SEATBELTS".
7. "This Charity Single Reimagines COWBOY BEBOP's Closing Theme". Nerdist. Retrieved 2020-06-03.
8. "Yoko Kanno's Session Starducks Project Takes on Cowboy Bebop OP from Home". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2020-06-03.
9. "Netflix's Live-Action Cowboy Bebop Show Plans Season 2, Teases Yoko Kanno's Music". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2020-06-03.
10. @NetflixGeeked (November 16, 2021). "There's no Cowboy Bebop without Yoko Kanno. Here's how the iconic composer approached creating new music for the upcoming Netflix series" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
11. "Netflix's Cowboy Bebop Has Heart, Style, And Some Rough Edges". The Verge. 15 November 2021.
12. Webster, Andrew (2021-11-15). "The soundtrack for Netflix's Cowboy Bebop hits streaming platforms on November 19th". The Verge. Retrieved 2021-11-19.
13. TANK! Virtual Session 2020. Retrieved 2020-06-03 – via Spotify.
14. "Real Folk Blues" For these days. 22 May 2020. Retrieved 2020-06-03 – via Spotify.
15. Don't bother none 2020. June 2020. Retrieved 2020-06-03 – via Spotify.
16. Space Lion Virtual session 2020. June 2020. Retrieved 2020-06-03 – via Spotify.
17. The Real Folk Blues. 8 May 2020. Retrieved 2020-06-03 – via Spotify.

External links

• Seatbelts discography at MusicBrainz