Logic System is a project from Hideki Matsutake and collaborators. Matsutake-san started as an assistant to Isao Tomita in the 1970s and is best known as the sequencer programmer and modular synth operator for YMO. He wasn't a member of YMO, but worked on their early and middle period albums and toured with his huge modular synth rig. He also did sequencing work for numerous technopop albums for other artists particularily in the early 80s. Recently I've caught his "Switched on Synthesizer" column in Sound & Recording magazine. Logic System performed in a big concert event organized by Isao Tomita in '96. He's also guested on Towa Tei albums which received a U.S. release. I saw a number of authorized commercial MIDI files he released in 2000 of YMO's original songs, many of which he surely had a hand in arranging originally 20 years ago.

Hideki Matsutake LPs before Logic System

This is the best list I have.

Pop Memories On Moog III [1976] (Tokuma Onkou album, H. Matsutake as Synthesizer Programmer - f.y.i. Moog III is a model number of a large stock system they sold, I highly doubt its the 3rd album in a series like Pop Memories On Moog II which I'm sure does not exist :-)
The Beatles World On Moog III [1976] (Tokuma Onkou album, H. Matsutake as Synthesizer Programmer)
Gen sou kyoku Hoshi he no izanai (Teichiku / 78)
Pyramid Power Meditation (CBS Sony / 78) Space Fantasy  (For life / 79) Live Space Fantasy  (For life / 79)

Ryuzaki & Rock Succession

Moog Sound Now

1972 Techiku/Union lp: JSP-1039 cd: P-VINE (2000) PCD-1456

This is not a Hideki Matsutake album, but it is the first synth album he worked on as an assistant and probably one of the first Japanese pop related synth albums. Its rather tacky, down to the cover with exposed butt cheeks. Its all rock instrumentals with regular rock instruments, guitar, bass and drums with a Moog playing the leads. Its definitely good for a laugh. Large numbers of these kind of albums came out of the U.S. and Europe during the late 60s and early 70s, at least a couple from Japan, though as far as I know, far fewer and just in the early 70s, none I know of in the late 60s. I can't tell if the pieces are cover versions of Japanese pop songs or are originals for this album.

Hideki Matsutake

THE FANTASIA
The Invitation to the stars

1978 Teichiku lp: PP-1502, P-VINE cd (1999 reissue): PCD-1440

This is a CD of vintage easy listening classics having song titles to do with Stars and the Moon all played on synthesizers. "Starlight" (written by Hoagy Charmichael), "Fly Me to the Moon", etc.. It has some nice Tomita style effects though by 1978 Tomita was in matchless form and this album doesn't quite sound anywhere near as advanced synthesis-wise as even early Tomita efforts. The sound on the CD is a bit muffled too, not quite hi-fi. It doesn't sparkle at all. Still its quite charming and quite reccomended if into '70s Moog-Pop albums.

IIIC Magical Space Band

The Infinite Space Octave

1978 e.p. ,  2003 CD reissue Sony MHCL 297 coupled with Digital Moon (below)

This is a 4 track mini album that is more a demo of sonic illusions than typical music. I'd never heard of it before the 2003 coupling. It is definitely Matsutake. The cover has a 3 looped moebius strip and an illustrated infinite staircase known from M.C.Escher's prints. These are probably perfect visual analogies. These tracks in the 2-3 minute range contain effects like Shepard tones - perpetual rising or falling sounds that never end their rise or fall. I'm not sure I'd want to pick up this album especially with presumably Japanese only album notes but as coupled with Digital Moon there are no complaints except "Hey I that never ending rising tone doesn't sound much like a James Bond theme and then you wonder if Shirley Bassey or Carly Simon could ever sing that. I assume this was released in 1978 but the notes in the booklet are dated 1987 so there is some sort of typo somewhere.

Hideki Matsutake and K.I.Capsule

007 Digital Moon

1979 CBS sony   2003 reissue Sony MHCL 297

K.I. Capsule is Katsunori Ishida. He is the arranger while Matsutake programs sounds and sequences. This is a fun album of 10 covers of James Bond themes and songs through Moonraker (skipping Thunderball for what it's worth). I think there is always a leagal tiptoe around unsanctioned Bond albums. The "007" if it was part of the tiltle is now off the title leaving just "Digital Moon". There was never a problem with covering the themes, I think legal issues come in when it's being sold as James Bond merchandise.

The tracks are in a fun moog meets disco sound. There is some solo violin by Hiroki Tamaki and real? drums though some drums are programmed too. A few hints of Moroder though overall the feel is more like a synth cover album. Much more technically advanced sounding and well mastered than The Fanatsia (1978).

Hideki Matsutake, Chojuro Kondoj, Masashi Komatsubara

Edo

late 1970s? lp: Columbia WX 7016 cd: P-VINE (2000 reissue) PCD-1452

This is an instrumental album of 2 side long pieces presumably depicting old Japan (Tokyo was called Edo long ago). The album is an intersting interplay between Moog and traditional Japanese instruments- mainly Shamisen. A little like 70s Tangerine Dream in style but more original than close and not as sequencer heavy.

CONTRAST

EDO II

Purple Project

00.12.25 cd: PCD-5613

This album reunites the three musicians about 20 years after the first album. Modular Moog is still on the gear list as are shamisen solos though samplers and virtual analog synthesizers are now controlled by modern digital sequencers. This is nicely arranged melodic material, sometimes a bit fusion-y. 2 songs have lyrics. It strikes me as having a certain smoothness when I would have liked maybe a more eccentric musical journey.

Hideki Matsutake Sequential Works 2003 Bridge EGD-2 This is somehow a sort of pre-follow up to Patch Works. It came out after but consists of rare and unreleased works that are earlier in date. First are some sequenced Bach tests. I don't think Wendy Carlos has much to worry about ;-) Then comes a nostalgic cover version of "A Whiter Shade of Pale" and something I've not translated but it sounds like something they play at Baseball parks done on synths. Then another Bach variation followed by a big bunch of excellent synth funk pieces. After a bunch another Bach version are a trio of synth themes or fanfares, also excellently done (the Bach though is very sequencer-y sounding). Then some now dated funny sounding pieces demonstrating barking on pitch dogs singing in the rain to "Singing in the Rain" (it's raining not only dogs but cats too). He doesn't list a sampler so since I can't read the notes I assume maybe it was done before samplers and is vari-speed tapes spliced together. The album concludes with a different more advanced Bach piece.

Logic System

A key style factor that diffrentiates Logic System from the earlier Hideki Matsutake albums are the techno elements present here, but not in his earlier work.

Logic System

Logic

This is a must for YMO fans. It's the most YMO style of the Logic System albums. A classic piece of technopop. Co-producer Ryo Kawakami composed most of the tunes. Matsutake has producer's credit but credits the music to his sequencers. Sometime YMO guitarist Kenji Omura plays guitar. This album has quite a following in Europe (for a Japanese album). The Holland release I have is a double 12" set containing the album at 45RPM complete but in a different playing sequence. The CD went out of print a few years ago. This is a fairly common album. No CD I know of ever came out overseas, just vinyl.

1. Intro
2. Unit
3. Domino Dance
4. Convulsion of Nature
5. XY?
6. Talk Back
7. Clash (Chinjyu of Sun)
8. Person To Person

Logic

Domino Dance / Unit

brian adds:
This was the original UK 12" release from 1981.

The jacket is a very thin paper sleeve (this sleeve is more thin than any i have ever seen before and i own many imports) that is silver with graphics done in black.

The group title on the jacket is simply "logic" rather than "logic system" whereas on the label itself it is printed as "logic" as if by hand in bold with "system" printed in standard text print but much smaller and lighter print which basically appears inside the extended letter c of "logic".

I don't know if the groups name was changed or if it was just a mistake in the graphics.

The front of the jacket has artist and "DOMINO DANCE" with a traditional japanese drawing of a male head and shoulders covering about 1/6th of the sleeve in the lower left corner.

The back of the jacket is the same except for the title "UNIT" and the drawing is of a female and in the lower right corner and at the bottom is printed "From the album LOGIC SYSTEM EMC 3375"

Logic System

Venus

Some of the tunes are composed by U.S.West Coast musicians like Roger Powell, Boddicker, Grusin. Not as popular with fans as the first one. Has a sort of 80s L.A. synth sound. Very striking cover art. The CD went out of print a few years ago. This is a fairly common album.

1. Venus
2. Morpheus
3. I Love You
4. Plan
5. Take a Chance
6. Automatic Collect, Automatic Correct
7. Be Yourself
8. Prophet
9. Metamorphism
10. Equivalent

Domino Dance / Be Yourself

brian adds:
This is the BE YOURSELF single on which DOMINO DANCE was again released as the AA side in the UK.

The front of the jacket is completely different with a color drawing that covers the entire side with artist and title (BE YOURSELF) in the lower right corner with the title in vertical opposition to the artist.

The back of the jacket is the same as the front of the original except that it shows the group as "Logic SYSTEM" with "system" being where "DOMINO DANCE" is on the original and "DOMINO DANCE" appears in vertical opposition from the top in the upper right corner.

The jacket itself is much more conventional in weight for UK imports.
 

Domino Dance (Short Version)/ Be Yourself (Short Version)

a nice looking UK picture disk with art from Venus, but including Domino Dance from the earlier album.

Logic System

Orient Express

Has a cover version of YMO's Simoon.Also a cover of Classical Gas, compare it it the version by Synergy. In a Persian Market was a popular easy listening-exotica piece in the U.S. back in the 1950s. This album has a sort of Easy Listening as if done by Isao Tomita sound. Fun (and now trendy). While this was in print up until recently at least, it's pretty hard to find. The CD went out of print a few years ago. This is a fairly common album.

1. Overture
2. Orient Express
3. Simoon
4. Armistice
5. In a Persian Market
6. Karelia
7. Wagons-Lits
8. Sofia
9. Classical Gas
10. Georges Nagelmackers

Logic System

HISTORY OF LOGIC SYSTEM [1981-82]

(@) Toshiba/EMI, TOCT-25079

1.Intro
2.Domino Dance
3.Convulsion of Nature
4.Talk Back
5.Person To Person
6.Logic
7.Morpheus
8.Plan
9.Automatic Collect, Automatic Correct
10.Prophet
11.Equivalent
12.Overture
13.Orient Express
14.Simoon
15.Wagon-Lits
16.Sofia
17.Georges Nagelmackers
18.Ano subarashii ai o moo ichido [newly recorded track - previously unreleased]
19.Min-yo(ru)-hitsuji [newly recorded track - previously unreleased]

This covers the classic 1980s Logic System era with a reissued sizable chunk of each of the 3 albums plus some bonus tracks (Info from Jonas W)

Logic System Patch Works 2003 Bridge EGD-1 This newly released album contains works from the years of 1983 to 1990 in between Orient Express and To•Gen•Kyo. The tracks are quite identifiable as Logic System to those who've heard works before and after. (They are quite different from Synergy, but I'll mention them as perhaps some kind of touchpoint in sound) This struck me, not unexpectedly, as sounding like Akihabara Electric Circus not doing cover tracks. Quite listenable though the circumstances of these works not sounding tied into some sort of album concept and the use of then high tech digital synthesizers. These days those digital synths doesn't facinate as much as well played totally analog based synth sounds do. But those facinating old synths haven't dissappeared, they are heard throughout this album along with the digital sounds. Wonderful cover photo of an Emu modular synthesizer printed in blue on silver foil.

Logic System

To-Gen-Kyo

1991.10.21 Alfa cd: ALCA-214, Sony Music House MHCL-298 (2003 reissue)

The reissue has a 12th bonus track I've not heard.

On much larger scale than the other albums. Includes Chinese vocals and acoustic instruments. On the up side The Chinese stuff is fantastic. YMO's Rydeen has Chinese vocals and is sublime. Also La Femme Chinoise. Shin-Nihon-Kiko is a TV theme written by Tomita and only done orchestrally by him. On the down side there is some truly awful hip-hop. (One of which contains a beautifuly synthesized kitsch disco arrangement of In the Steppes of Central Asia by Alexander Borodin (Tomita style repetoire) but is mixed up with some sorry sounding rap in english. Synth spotters will love the photo of Matsutake in front of his keyboard collection including 2 huge modular synths (Moog IIIc and E-mu).

An attempt at the title translation to English is Shangri-La. The below English translations in parenthesis are unofficial

Jun Irie joins Logic system as album Co-Producer and writer of some tracks.

1. Rydeen (Kaze-to-Mizu-No-Shisou / Thoughts on the Wind and Water)
2. Asian Woman
3. So-gen-no-Tobira (The Gate to the Steppes)
4. Let's Take a Coffee
5. Shanghai-Tsuki-yo (Shanghai Night of the Moon)
6. Mythological Falls
7. One Note Samba
8. La Femme Chinoise
9. Gekka-Bijin (The Queen of the Moon)
10. Shin-Nihon-Kikou (New Travels in Japan)
11. Let's Take a Coffee (Extended version)

Kaze-to-Mizu-No-Shisou (Chinese Geopolitics)

Fu-sui plays still significant roles among Chinese when they obtain the house and start business. It influenced significantly on Seoul and Kyoto's town-planning.

Rydeen by YMO has a different concept. It reminds listeners of a Kurosawa Film, a horse runnning through the street. And translation would be / Thunder and Lighting

Rydeen (Kaze to mizu no shisoh)

(*)1991 cd3 ALDA-36

Shanghai-Tsuki-Yo (Shanghai Night of the Moon)

Logic System

Space Polyphony

• Manyo-Densetsu (Manyo Legend)
• Symmetry Dance
• Mongolian Rhapsody
• Shiroi-iro-Ha( wa)-Koibito-No-Iro (White is the lover's color)
• 3.33...
• Usu-Beni-Roman (Light rouge romance)
• Views & Visitors
• Voyager
• Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence
• Hana (Flower)

NK: This album has a superb modern sound to it. Out of print. Some songs are sung in Chinese.

Logic System band members here and for the Kando Express albums as Hideki Matsutake- Computer and synthesizer programming and Jun Irie - Keyboards

Manyo-Densetsu (Manyo Legend)

TS: Manyo refers to, I guess, the first original anthologies in Japanese "Manyo-shu" was composed in 4,500 pieces. The era of "Manyo" was from 672 to 794, when the capital was changed from time to time, until it was fixed at Kyoto, or the area coverd by Nara.

Logic System

KANDOH EXPRESS VOL 1 (soundtrack)

This and the following album are instrumentals often containing ethnic elements in a somewhat western style soundtrack structure. All tracks are solid instrumental themes, none of the sort of incidental music on some soundtracks. Out of print and kind of rare

(translation: Impression Express)

1. Kando Express Opening Theme "Shounen-to-Koyagi-no-Daibouken"Himalayas-Goe San-byaku-Nichi-Shio-no-Michi
2. Shonen-no-Yume
3. Chiisana-Yuubokumin (Touge-wo-koete)
4. Kaze-no-Gyoujya (Kamigami-no-Yama) [Winds of a pilgrim (the mountain ofGods)]
5. Shio-no-Michi [The Salt Road]
6. Karnali-ni-Sotte [Along the Karnali River]
7. Kokkyou-no-Ichiba-nite [At the border market]
8. Framnu(?) -Tani-no-Aki [Autumn in Framu(?) Valley]
9. Kokoro-Yomigaeru-India (Main theme) [India of Spiritual Revival]
10. Ganzes Seinaru-Mizu [Sacred Water: Ganges River]
11. Hana-no-Tani [Valley of Flowers]
12. Hahanaru-Daichi [Mother Earth]
13. Harukanaru-Michi [The Great Road "Asia Highway"]
14. Pompore(?) (Shiva-heno-Inori) [Prayers for Shiva]
15. Meisou [Meditation]

1. Kando Express Opening Theme
A boy's adventures to cross beyond the Himalayas with Gyaku: 300 days on the Salt Road.

Gyaku refers to a Tibetan cow, and indispensable to the life of Himalayas, cheese made from its milk is exchanged for the salt etc., The voyage of Tibetan minority to obtain the salt is called "The Salt Road" (just like " The Silk Road").

8. Framnu (?) -Tani-no-Aki / Autumn in Framu (?) Valley.
Framnu refers to a small village in Tibet near the boundaries with Nepal and India.

9. Midori-no-Rakuen ( Kokoro-Yomigaeru-India) Hen/ A paradise in green (India of spiritual revival) section

15. Pompore(?) (Shiva-heno-Inori) / Prayers for Shiva
Shiva is one of three major Gods of the Hindu , said to live in the Himalayas, who they symbolize

Logic System

MYSTERY OF LIFE

KANDOH EXPRESS VOL 2

1. Mystery of Life
2. Direction
3. Tomi-to-Eiga [Weath and Prosperity]
4. Shigiragi Rock
5. Kure Nai-no-Umi [Sea in Crimson]
6. Elephant Parade
7. Southern Island
8. Lines on the Snow
9. Kanashimi-no-Trap [Trap of Sorrow]
10. Mother Nature
11. Diamond Dust
12. kyo-Kkou (the Aurora) [The polar light]

TS: Shigiragi Rock situates the central of Sri Lanka and is the ruin with height of 159 meters and used to be a mecca of the Buddhist.

AKIHABARA electric CIRCUS

TV

1989? Toshiba/EMI--Eastworld CT32 5439

Akihabara Electric Circus is Takashi Matsumoto (producer), Jun Irie, and Hideki Matsutake, its all synth arrangements of 1960s U.S. TV series themes done in an upbeat late 80s (digital heavy) sound. Twilight Zone, I Love Lucy, Mission Impossible, about 24 all together. It has some cute Japanese female backing voices and singing too in the appropriate places. Fairly fun, the only down side is the late 80s digital heavy jazzy pop sound isn't modern at all anymore and isn't dated enough to be retro in a good way (or intentionally tongue-in-cheek like the Cine Techno albums of Takanami and later Takahashi which were released in the 90s but intentionally hark back to an earlier sound thats cute and campy). The not campy enough Batman theme was released as a single also. This album is out of print and probably rare.

Notice that this band is was active during the down years between the 1980s and 1990s Logic System albums and includes Jun Irie who later joined Logic System.

(*) other releases (all out of print):

Toy Music [1988]
Super Mario Bros. 3 [1988]
Air-Con?u?G?A?R?"?v [1989]
Toy Music 2 - Fire Emblem [1990]

Akihabara is the Tokyo district with the undoubtedly the world's biggest concentration of electronic shops. Electric Circus might refer to a late 1960s NYC multimedia ensemble known for their live performance pieces which included synths (and Morton Subotnick I think)

Beat Musik

Bapponteki Seiji Kaikaku

93.07.25 File Records cd: 20FR 009D

This has a "Stop the AIDS" theme to it. Matsutake does uptempo backing track similar to later Logic System without the ethnic material. There is motivational speaking in Japanese over every track by Jinsei Tsuji, who also plays a some guitar. It doesn't add up to something one can really listen to easily.

(*) other release: