Artist

Casiopea

1976-2006, 2012-present·Tokyo

Casiopea took city pop's production values—melodic clarity, technical precision, a horror of sloppiness—and applied them to instrumental jazz fusion, building a body of work that would go on to shape Japanese video game music through the 1980s and 1990s. Their tight ensemble interplay reflected the same standards that governed city pop's vocal records, minus the vocals. That influence traveled further than most: the soundtracks to games like Final Fantasy and Chrono Trigger owe a clear debt to Casiopea's sound and to the city pop production ethic behind it.

At a glance

Active
1976–2006, 2012–present
From
Tokyo, Japan

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In the issues

  • Japanese City Pop
    An influence · 1973-1989

    Japanese City Pop is a genre from Tokyo, Japan, 1973–1989. Its principal artists include Tatsuro Yamashita, Mariya Takeuchi and Haruomi Hosono. This issue covers 10 essential albums and 15 dated events.