おしゃれテレビ (Oshare TV)

The majority of Yuji Nomi’s work has been done in the background. His name is probably most recognized for his contributions to animated film soundtracks — Studio Ghibli’s Whisper of the Heart, most notably — but he’s got an even more impressive résumé than it would appear at first blush. Nomi was one of Ryuichi Sakamoto’s most trusted arrangers, helping to bring to life the scores for Koneko Monogatari (1986) and The Last Emperor (1987) before graduating to composition duties alongside his mentor on Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honnêamise. Nomi’s sole solo effort under the name OshareTV remains his most obscure accomplishment, though it’s the highest watermark of his songwriting prowess. With an all-star lineup of studio musicians on deck — Saeko Suzuki on drums, Asuka Kaneno on violin, and Sakamoto himself on electric piano — it’s one of the lushest leftfield pop albums of its decade. For good measure, Sakamoto would perform his own arrangement of the final track on OshareTV for his album NEO GEO the following year and title it “Free Trading” — perhaps as a reference to the inspiration they bounced off one another.