04. Very 94.7 The Wave (Dam-Funk // Hiroshi Sato)

Episode notes

In 1982, Hiroshi Sato released the album Awakening; a synth-heavy, mostly solo record featuring Canadian-born singer Wendy Matthews. He had a few solo records out by then, but they didn’t really pay the bills. He was a working studio musician, laying down piano/keyboard tracks for other artists. He got by, but there was something missing. Thanks partly to the introduction of the LinnDrum, the first commercially available drum machine, he found inspiration to cut another record. And what a legendary record it is.

Producer and musician Dam-Funk joins us to talk about the magic of the LinnDrum, what he considers his personal “Awakening” album, and Wendy Matthews’ contribution to the record.

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In this episode...

Christian Dueñas

Host

Yosuke Kitazawa

Host

Kevin Ferguson

Senior Producer

Richard Robey

Producer

Guests

Dam-Funk

About the show

Primer is a music podcast about translation and illumination. Host Christian Dueñas is joined by a different co-host each season to explore a genre of music from outside the English-speaking world. In its debut season, music writer Yosuke Kitazawa (PBS SoCal, Light in the Attic, Temporal Drift) joins Christian and special guests to explore Japanese City Pop. They celebrate the lives of its artists, explore the cultural and historical context of the songs, and reflect on the impact that music had on listeners everywhere – including personally, as fans. Primer invites both newcomers and crate diggers alike to find their next favorite album and learn more about the music they already love.

Podcast art by Geoff Tice.