SSG Interviews… Japayork

Japayork – an attractive male pop act. Not twinned with Barnsley (as far as we know)

Fact: You can never have enough blokes in pop music. Because for every brilliant male popular music act, you’ll be guarranteed to have at least 10 bloody awful female ones. No offence to the ladies, but a large motivation for labels signing many of these  acts is the aim that they’ll pout, pose and pop out of their tops…as opposed to blow your head off with their talent. Arguably then, due to their fewness it’s easier to spot a crap bloke act from a good one. Fortunately I can report that Japayork, Popjustice Hi-Fi’s newest bloke (which makes them sound a bit like a brothel, not a record label) is OFFICIALLY GREAT, with debut single “Teenagers” hopefully being just the first of much more said greatness. Check it out: Video for Teenagers by Japayork and read our chat with him:

SSG: Japayork….where’s the name from? Did you get lost en route to Japan from York? Happens all the time to me.

Japayork: I consulted a Mayan medicine man who claimed he had all the answers and knew more about me than I did. Sceptical as I was, I didn’t make too much of it but I did take his advice to going through life by the name Japayork (Son of Lust) which he claimed would bring me great pleasure… and pleasure it has brought.

Describe your sound to us?

Pop. I could come up with fictional genres; “Early-Prince meets…” and “an electronic version of…”, but no – I make pop music.

How did you go about signing to Popjustice Hi-Fi? While it’s fantastic that you’re being looked after by a boutique label that actually cares about decent pop music, do you feel that this might be at the expense of having a wider audience?

I don’t see it that way. Popjustice have a true voice and opinion and they tell it like it is and I’m very happy to have them on my side.

Upcoming single “Teenagers” was written after you’d been out on the lash. Is getting pissed a recommended source of songwriting inspiration?

I would never recommend intoxication of any kind to anyone but you can’t get away from the fact that it forms a big part of the society in which we live and I do get intoxicated from time to time, so it is one of the many themes running through my music.

What’s the most embarrassing thing that’s ever happened to you?

Well, falling a asleep in the middle of a forest on my way home from a party didn’t make me feel like the Duke of Wellington, more like Raoul Duke I guess.

Over the past couple of years there’s been somewhat of a deluge of male synthpop artists ( Frankmusik, Ali Love, Dan Black etc). What makes you better than them?

I’m not better than them, I’m simply not comparable. Frankmusik is very talented, a great composer and when he did a piano version of “Dance the Way I Feel” to honour and celebrate the life of Charles Alexander Haddon, of  Ou est le Swimming Pool (God rest his sweet soul)

Who is your musical hero and villain?

Too many to name but some of the bigger influences, although well hidden are: Steely Dan, van Hunt & Robert Palmer. Villain… “Madvillain”!!!

What’s new single, “Teenagers”, all about?

Love, lust, sex and young souls.

Are you hoping to make the BBC Sound of 2011 list?

That would be nice but i’m busy focussing on making music and art so I don’t think too much about lists and charts.

Is an album in the works? To be honest though, albums aren’t really selling like they used to. Wouldn’t you prefer to just churn out singles & EPs instead as that’s apparantly The Future of Music and all…

There will be an album for sure, I don’t think EPs and singles are necessarily the future but exploring new formats/media and making live shows worth watching are though.

How old does something have to be before it can be retro?

I think that’s up to the listener? I collect old vinyl cause Im a total music snob and watch 50s cinema while drinking cheap wine to feel sophisticated… so I guess you could call me retro?

Within a month of arriving in London you went to a party in a warehouse which got *gassed* and all the unconscious revellers got mugged. I mean…who goes through all the effort of gassing loads of people just to mug them? It sounds like a slightly shit Saw film where the villain’s losing his touch. Anyway, this hasn’t made you wary of London (and warehouses) has it?

Well they also took the door money and a decent collection of wallets and wristwatches (and there were a lot of people there selling the contents of your average wizard’s medicine cabinet), so there was definitely something to gain for those thugs! Shit happens we had fun running home and it gave me a good story for the grandkids.

If Japayork ruled the world, what would it be like?

Free veggie-sushi and condoms for everyone! (Maybe condoms first.)

The single “Teenagers” is available to download from 5th December. For further information visit www.myspace.com/japayork and www.popjusticehi.fi