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DJ Notoya comes back with a new selection of Japanese funk and modern soul and city pop recorded between 1974 and 1988 and featuring Yumi Murata, Higurashi, Chikara Ueda and Nami Shimada

Hot on the heels of the Tokyo bliss and Funk Tide sets, Tokyo-based DJ Notoya delivers Tokyo Pulse a new juicy selection of Funk and Modern soul recorded in Tokyo in the 70s and 80s. Most tracks here are making their debut outside of Japan and the album, like its predecessors, has been designed by Manuel Sepulveda (Optigram) and is annotated by DJ Notoya. The audio has been newly mastered in Tokyo by Nippon Columbia Records and remastered for vinyl by Colorsound in Paris. — (via Label)

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City pop was perhaps the first real postmodern musical phenomenon, replicating and recontextualising existing styles—disco, boogie, funk, soul, modern pop and soft rock—to create something that was both hyperlocal and still in touch with a progressively globalising world. It was the foremost cultural expression of the social paradigm shifts during an economic boom time in the 1970s and 80s—the soundtrack of a new Japanese leisure class. All of this means that city pop was more of a vibe than a genre, which is why it got pretty huge on YouTube during the 2010s. Naturally, this paved for countless vinyl compilations offering some prime cuts from that curious era.

Tokyo Pulse – Japanese Funk, Modern & City Pop from the Tokyo Scene 1974-88 is already the third WeWantSounds compilation focusing on a particular musical strain in the Japanese capital, and like "Funk Tide" and "Tokyo Bliss" has been put together by DJ Notoya from the Nippon Columbia catalogue. Unsurprisingly, Notoya veers towards the funkier side of things, but the nine songs go through many motions between Naomi Chiaki’s jazzy opener and Higurashi’s grand soulful finale "Anata wa doko ni irundesuka", touching upon reggae, synth-pop, yacht rock, and more.

What makes Tokyo Pulse stand out in a sea of quick cash-grab compilations and AI-generated YouTube mixes is Notoya’s careful sequencing—this record is a great DJ set in and of itself—and his focus on deep cuts. The vibe most certainly is there, but it never feels forced. — (via HHV Mag)

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Label: Wewantsounds
Format: Vinyl, LP, Compilation, Remastered
Released: 2026
Genre: Electronic, Funk / Soul, Pop
Style: Synth-pop, AOR, City Pop, Disco, Funk, Boogie

File under: Japanese Pop
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