City Pop, Japanese Funk, Downtempo

Pacific Breeze - Various Artist

The cover of ‘Pacific Breeze’ should be enough to bring us at a border of a pool on the Japanese Far East coast. Then a new sound arose from the mid ’70s through the ’80s, a sophisticated music mirroring Japan’s prosperity of the time. City Pop epitomized the era, providing a soundtrack for emerging urbanites. An optimistic spirit buzzed through the music in neon-bathed, gauzy tableaus coated, mutant exotica with groove-heavy strokes.

Pacific Breeze is a collection that range from silky smooth grooves to innovative proto-house pop bangers and everything in between. Amazing cover painting by Tokyo-based artist Hiroshi Nagai, whose iconic images of resort living have graced the covers of many classic City Pop albums of the 80s.