Greetings. I am from the US and have been a fan of David Sylvian and Japan since 1983, after I first heard "Forbidden Colours" on the radio. I had coincidentally watched "Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence" around that time and quickly bought the soundtrack (on vinyl) and loved that the final track was "Forbidden Colours". That was it. I became obsessed. I wrote papers about Forbidden Colours for high school English class. I sculpted a life-size Sylvian head out of clay in art class, which still lurks somewhere in my basement and freaks out my kids. I devoured every bit of news I could about the band and coveted photos I saw in expensive foreign music mags.
In my efforts to learn whatever I could about Sylvian et al., I subscribed to the paper fanzine JMUSA (I think it was Japan Music USA or something), which was a monthly fanzine lovingly put together by some dedicated group replete with copied photos, articles and information. I think I still have some issues somewhere. Did anyone here subscribe to that fanzine? I can't believe how easy it is to learn about bands/music these days through social media and the internet. It was really hard back for us kids back in the old days.
I loved Japan as well and recall seeing the video for "Visions of China" on MTV when they used to be about music. Imagine that. I don't have a favorite album of theirs and love the first two albums despite their being panned or dismissed by the artists themselves. It's a pity they disbanded but it was cool to see how each member branched off and charted their own path. I have enjoyed following their respective careers and all of their style permutations.
I have had the privilege to see David Sylvian live twice and hope he tours again one day, but that may be a pipe dream.
Sylvian's and Japan's music has gotten me through some really dark and difficult times but has also echoed the happy and joyous days. Given the breadth of the material from which to choose, there has always been something to listen to that has reflected, enhanced or deflected occurrences throughout my life.
In short, I may be late to the party, but I am happy to finally arrive at a space where like-minded people gather to share their appreciation for the sonic art of Sylvian and Japan, that to me, transcends most of the doggerel out there that is considered "music."