Talking about the Current Hot Topic of Yakosei - ZUTOMAYO Edition

This is the last article that I want to talk about the Yakosei fans in the series ZUTOMAYO(Zutto Mayonaka de Iinoni) .

- Review of the last issue -

• YOASOBI
• Yorushika
• ZUTOMAYO

All of the groups have 'night' in their names in common, which is why the name Yakosei is used as a general term for the artists or as a name for their fans.

For more information, see our previous blog.

Related Articles:
⇒ Talking about the Current Hot Topic of Yakosei - YOASOBI Edition
⇒ Talking about the Current Hot Topic of Yakosei - Yorushika Edition

Let's get right to ZUTOMAYO.

■ ZUTOMAYO

A music unit in which ACA-Ne is the lyricist and vocalist.
Although described as a 'music unit', there are no fixed members other than ACA-Ne-san and it is officially described as having 'no specific form'.
The music unit has a somewhat mysterious atmosphere, partly because ACA-Ne herself does not show her face.
Their first music video for "Byoshin wo Kamu", attracted a lot of attention for being their first YouTube video, even though they were completely unknown at the time. What kind of artist are they? At the time, the band was more mysterious than they are now and their actual status was completely unknown, so various speculations flew all over the internet, and it can be said that they attracted even more people's attention.

However, being mysterious is not enough to attract attention. The best way to find out why they attracted so much attention is to actually see and hear it for yourself, so here it is.

○ ZUTOMAYO “Byoshin wo Kamu”

The music video has characteristic animation with ACA-Ne's powerful high notes and the stylish chord progression.
The song is so attractive in every way that once you listen to it, you'll be sucked in.
The song was actually arranged by Nuyuri, who is also a very popular Vocaloid P.
ACA-Ne has always loved Vocaloids, so she asked Nuyuri to arrange the song, and that’s how it came to be.
The fact that such a dream-like song has become so popular is all thanks to ACA-Ne’s abilities. Various artists have posted covers of this song on video-sharing websites and the song has become even more popular.
This addictiveness is irresistible. When you hear it live, it adds even more excitement and it's just so good.

Aside from the appeal of the songs and vocals, another attraction is the instruments used.
Take a look at this short video.

I don't believe they’re using a fan lol.
Many people may be surprised that such a sound can be produced from a fan, but this is actually an instrument called a fan harp.
The mechanism is too difficult for me to explain well, so please look it up yourself lol.

There are not only fans, but also open reels, microwave ovens, cathode-ray tube TVs and more. They use various electrical appliances.

○ [Limited time] ZUTOMAYO “Justice” (from Yakiyaki Yankee Tour @ Tokyo Garden Theater 2020.11.29) ZUTOMAYO - Seigi

(This is only online for a limited time only, so sorry if it has already been deleted! Please watch the live video on the ZUTOMAYO YouTube channel!)

The reason why there’s a whole heap of so many strange instruments is due to Zutomayo's concept.
To quote an interesting sentence from the official website;

'A must-see band by composer/vocalist ACA-Ne for those who are having trouble getting rid of their unwanted electrical appliances.'

I see… So that's why they use so many interesting instruments…

And the instruments are not only present on stage, but also being sold as merch.

This is a shamoji. It's called "Fight the Shamoji" and is a regular item at ZUTOMAYO's live shows.
People dance to the songs by shaking the shamoji, and everyone who attends the live show becomes a member of the performance team and taps the shamoji to the songs.
Since ZUTOMAYO started performing live just around the time of the pandemic, the performance is designed so that 'you don't have to yell out to show excitement'.

Yoasobi are the kind of artists who have a lot of interesting instruments, production, and attractive songs, and the more you get to know them, the more addictive they become and the more you get hooked on their music.

Now, I've told you all about the appeal of ZUTOMAYO, but I'm sure that's not enough, so like a Sound House staff member, I'll introduce some of the equipment that ZUTOMAYO seems to be using.

AKG / C414 XLS Condenser Microphone

They use the C414, which is very popular at Sound House!
It has a sparkling high frequency range, doesn't it? I used it a lot when I was a student, so it's one that I have a personal attachment to.

Gretsch / G6118T-60 '60 Anniversary w/Bigsby 2-Tone Smoke Green

It was introduced as a new gear in an Instagram post in 2021!
The colour is exquisite and beautiful!

Yamaha/ LL16 ARE Electric Acoustic Guitar

This is another acoustic guitar that ACA-Ne probably uses when she sings with the guitar.
If you want to play and talk like ACA-Ne, check out this guitar first!

I talked about Yakosei over the past three articles. How were they?
All of the artists have a unique air about them, and when I first heard them, I felt as if a new wind blew inside me.
Out of these artists, Zutomayo that I introduced here, has a more unreal air about them than the other two. There’s of course the mysterious aspect of not showing their faces, but the expression of each lyric also contributes to this.
If you read this blog and listen to the songs again, you will definitely be fascinated by them!
I hope that this article will be a way for you to step into a new genre.
Thank you for reading through!