Ningen kikai

‘*Watashitachi wa Robotto*’ was the only album by the Japanese band Ningen Kikai (人間機械), which was active in Sapporo in the early 1960s. The band consisted of Takashi Sato (vocals and guitar), Kenji Yamada (bass) and Haruo Tanaka (drums). They came together during their time as students and shared a passion for technology and its social impact. The album, whose title means ‘We are robots’, addressed the increasing technologisation of the world. The eponymous title track expressed a sense of alienation through repetitive rhythms and mechanical sounds. Takashi wrote the lyrics, which often described gloomy visions of a technology-dependent future. Kenji experimented with electronic effects to make the music sound as mechanical as possible, while Haruo contributed unconventional drum patterns that completed the band's technical sound. Although ‘*Watashitachi wa Robotto*’ was innovative, the band never made a big breakthrough as they were overshadowed by the Beatles wave. It was only years later that their influence on electronic and experimental music was recognised.