We have been spreading our message far and wide at Classic Album Sundays and we were delighted to launch monthly sessions at Fukuoka during 2016!
We recently caught up with Masuo Norhide to get the inside scoop on his musical life.
How would you describe your musical style?
I devoted myself to Rock in my teenage years, then in the early 90s my friend took me to the clubs and I started DJing playing House and Disco. In 1998 I started the Sunday afternoon party ‘Gallery’ with DJ Nori, Kenji, Alex from Tokyo. A few years later we hosted David Mancuso from the Loft in New York City. We borrowed Klipschorn loudspeakers, Mark Levinson electronics and Koetsu moving coil cartridges from Satoru Ogawa’s Precious Hall in Sapporo. I was shocked at how great it sounded.
Then I began to put together my own system which we used at the Gallery party and installed in my record store Lighthouse Records in Shibuya, Tokyo. It was at Lighthouse where I started Classic Album Sundays in Japan but I recently moved myself and my system to Fukuoka where I now host Classic Album Sundays.
Read More: A Musical Life – CAS Orkney’s Adrian Holmes
Which album has been on heaviest rotation this week?
All of Prince’s albums.
What was the last great gig or musical event or exhibition you went to, and what made it so special?
“Bakuon Eigasai” is a theatre with a huge sound system. I went to see (and hear) the movie ’Prince – Sign O the Times’. The quality was not excellent, but if was enough to get excited about.
Read More: A Musical Life – CAS Amsterdam’s Phil Horneman
What are your Top Five Albums?
The Beach Boys – Pet Sounds (1966)
Pink Floyd – The Dark Side of the Moon (1974)
Guns N Roses – Appetite for Destruction (1987)
Peter Gabriel – Us (1992)
Sade – Love Deluxe (1992)
Which radio shows, podcasts or live streams have caught your attention over the past week and why?
I don’t check so online broadcasts very often, but sometimes I do when my friends make appearances on programs like Dommune, Boiler Room and Beats in Space.
What are the best aspects of living in your city? Has it helped shape your musical tastes?
Fukuoka is located in the west side of Japan and is the fifth largest city with 1.5 million inhabitants. There are various musical cultures and we still have some second-hand record stores. People might be aware that there was a ‘No dancing law’ in Japan. Here in Fukuoka some clubs are still raided by the police and so we have to close the party at 1 am. But thankfully the law has been revised this year.
If you had to pick a classic album to sum up the kind of week you’ve had, what would it be and why?
Alfredo De La Fé – ‘My Favorite Things’ on the Loft Audiophile Library of Music as my thoughts go out to the passing of David Mancuso.
Read More: A Musical Life – A Musical Life: Zach Cowie of CAS Los Angeles
