Few rock bands in Japan are as legendary as Unicorn. From their inception in 1986 at the height of Japan's "band boom," which saw the balance of chart power shift from idoru (idol) pop to real bands, through to their split in 1993 and subsequent reunion this year, the Hiroshima five-piece have left a weighty footprint.
Led by Tamio Okuda, now an astronomically successful solo artist and producer, the band moved to Tokyo in 1987 to create six wildly eclectic albums (adding a seventh this year), flirting with new wave, punk, dub, reggae, Latin, ska and more. But what set the band apart from the band-boom hordes was not only their relentless experimentation but also their solid songwriting and an injection of humor.
"I think our songwriting process was pretty natural," recalls Okuda as we chat backstage at the Summer Sonic festival in Chiba, shortly before Unicorn's rain-soaked set at the 30,000-capacity outdoor Marine Stadium. Despite the band's 23-year history, this is the first time they have spoken with an English-language publication.