KAN – TV no Naka ni

Japan Original Pressing.

Before the polish came the obsession — KAN’s remarkably inventive 1987 debut, packed with programmed rhythms, restless arrangements and flashes of Scritti Politti, Billy Joel and ’80s blue-eyed soul.

Before the sophisticated sound of NO-NO-YESMAN, there was TV no Naka ni — KAN’s 1987 debut, assembled from songs written during his amateur years and arranged almost entirely by KAN himself. The result is restless, ambitious and wonderfully difficult to categorize: sophisticated pop ideas colliding with drum machines, synths, brass, funk and blue-eyed soul.

“SPUNKY DANCE” reveals KAN’s fascination with the intricate programmed pop of Scritti Politti, while “Koisuru DISCOMAN” brings a sleek blue-eyed soul / funk touch into the album. “TOP SECRET” pushes the studio experimentation further, layering two bass parts and even using reversed chorus effects. Then “MEMORIES OF FUTURE” opens the record outward into something more spacious and atmospheric — its expansive arrangement carrying an almost Balearic quality when heard today.

What makes the album fascinating today is its imperfections. Nothing has yet been smoothed into a recognizable KAN sound — ideas arrive from every direction, arrangements are almost excessively detailed, and you can hear a young songwriter discovering what a recording studio can actually do.

Rawer and stranger than the records that followed, this is where KAN’s obsession with melody and arrangement first became visible — an increasingly elusive 1987 Japanese original LP.