Tak Matsumoto & Daniel Ho to Play Aratani Theater in Los Angeles!
Tak Matsumoto News 
Flyer for the presumably final showing for the duo’s Electric Island, Acoustic Sea promotions
It has just been announced that one final date will be played as part of Tak Matsumoto & Daniel Ho Live! 2017 -Electric Island, Acoustic Sea- and this time, it is in Los Angeles on October 14, 2017!
The show is presented by American Honda Motor Co., Inc. and JACCC, the Japanese American Cultural & Community Center. Tickets are on sale now at this link and are listed at $49 for orchestra seating and $39 for balcony options. Unlike with many past B’z shows overseas, there are no special tickets allocated for B’z Party members and all are first come, first serve.
More information on the show can be found here on the venue’s website, along with copy promoting the event:
Tak Matsumoto and B’z have rocked Japan’s stadiums for 30 years and sold over 80 million records. Daniel Ho’s Hawaiian and world music albums span 14 GRAMMY nominations and 6 GRAMMY wins. Together, they present Electric Island, Acoustic Sea, a unique convergence of their island cultures.
The prospect of a stop in Los Angeles was first floated in an interview with Daniel Ho some months ago but given it was not included in the initial announcement and was also not paired with the Hawaii show that served as the tour’s finale, we were unsure if it was still happening. Electric Island, Acoustic Sea is available for purchase worldwide on iTunes. We may not have heard the last of the album, however, as November will bring the official list of the Grammy Award nominations and the album is surely being considered given Daniel Ho’s own fourteen nominations and Tak’s one which resulted in a win with Larry Carlton in 2010.
Tak has previously performed in Los Angeles as part of B’z numerous times, including twice for B’z LIVE-GYM 2002 “Rock n’ California Roll” and LIVE-GYM 2003 “BANZAI IN NORTH AMERICA”, with one showing for 2011’s -long time no see- tour and another for B’z LIVE-GYM 2012 -Into Free- at the since re-purposed Gibson Amphitheater at Universal Citywalk.
Tak Providing Music for Shizuka Kudo Commemorative Album
Tak Matsumoto News 
It was just been announced that Tak Matsumoto will be providing newly-written music for Shizuka Kudo’s upcoming commemorative album which is as-yet untitled.
Kudo—formerly a member of large-scale girl group and AKB48 predecessor Onyanko Club in the 1980s—debuted solo in August of 1987 with her single “Kindan no Telepathy”. Thirty years later, she will commemorate the occasion with an all-new original album to which other figures in the Japanese music industry will contribute. Amongst those collaborators joining Tak for the August 30, 2017 album will also be Koji Tamaki of Anzen Chitai fame with more to be announced in the coming months.
This is far from the first time Tak has penned new music to be used by other artists. Outside of his collaborations with Koshi, such as when the two wrote “HEAT” for Korean artist Kim Hyun Joong in the summer of 2012, Tak was responsible for the music to noted KAT-TUN single “Real Face” in 2006. The single was the group’s first and went on to sell over 1,000,000 copies, remaining their biggest-selling release to date.
The subject of B’z contributing songs to other artists will be covered at length in a new featured article on July 12.
“Electric Island, Acoustic Sea” Hawaii Show on WOWOW
Tak Matsumoto News 
Tak Matsumoto’s and Daniel Ho’s collaborative tour “Electric Island, Acoustic Sea” is drawing to a close this Sunday, March 19th, at the Blue Note Hawaii. The WOWOW Prime program guide for April has revealed, that the very same channel will — just like INABA/SALAS’ tour — broadcast a show from Tak Matsumoto’s and Daniel Ho’s tour. The show to be broadcast is the tour finale at the Blue Note Hawaii.
The show will be broadcast on WOWOW Prime on Saturday, April 29th, 2017 at 9:30 PM.
Source: WOWOW Program Guide
Electric Island, Acoustic Sea Out Now & On iTunes Worldwide!
Tak Matsumoto News 
Tak Matsumoto & Daniel Ho’s joint album Electric Island, Acoustic Sea was released in Japan today, and is available worldwide on iTunes as well! The album retails for $11.99 for the entire 12-track album, or $1.29 per track. The release is available on all iTunes storefronts internationally with similar pricing.
For those that missed them, the duo also released additional short music videos for “Island of peace” and “Sunny Tuesday“:
Additionally, we have translated Tak’s release message commemorating the occasion:
The pair will go on tour for Tak Matsumoto & Daniel Ho Live! 2017 -Electric Island, Acoustic Sea- on February 25 in Tokyo and will play their final show a month later on March 19 in Hawaii.
Tak Matsumoto & Daniel Ho Hawaii Performance & Tour Details Announced
Tak Matsumoto News 
Just before the new year, an overseas performance has been announced for Tak Matsumoto’s and Daniel Ho’s “Tak Matsumoto & Daniel Ho LIVE! 2017 -Electric Island, Acoustic Sea-” tour. The show will be at the Blue Note Hawaii on March 19th. There are performances scheduled at 6:30PM and 9PM HST. Tickets are available through TicketWeb. Be sure to get your ticket early!
In other news, the logo and members of supporting band have been announced for the tour. Keyboardist Akira Onozuka and guitarist Yoshinobu Ohga will be joined by Randy Drake on drums and Steve Billman on bass. Both have been performing on stage with Daniel Ho in the past.
Keyboards: Akira Onozuka
Guitar: Yoshinobu Ohga
Drums: Randy Drake
Bass: Steve Billman
Tak Matsumoto & Daniel Ho’s Electric Island, Acoustic Sea: Announced for February 8, 2017 on both CD & Vinyl!
Tak Matsumoto News 
Tak Matsumoto’s previously announced project with Hawaiian multi-instrumentalist and fellow Grammy Award-winner Daniel Ho has finally been announced! The album Electric Island, Acoustic Sea will be released February 8, 2017 and be followed by the tour Tak Matsumoto & Daniel Ho Live! 2017 -Electric Island, Acoustic Sea- that commences two weeks later. The album’s sound will center around Tak Matsumoto’s electric guitar mixed with the acoustic sounds of various traditional instruments, such as a Koto, Sanshin, an Ipu Heke and a slack-key guitar performed by Daniel Ho, creating a peaceful listening atmosphere. The twelve-track album will be issued in both CD and vinyl editions and will include instrumental tracks in addition to one vocal track, as well as be preceded by a special campaign to be announced at a later date.
To commemorate the announcement, Tak released a message on the official B’z YouTube channel introducing Daniel Ho and previewing music videos for “Soaring on Dreams” and a cover of the classic Journey ballad “Faithfully“. The tracklisting also includes a self-cover of the Hawaii tribute “Island of peace” from Tak’s 2014 album New Horizon and contains another track entitled “Rain” that may or may not be based on the one of the same name from the aforementioned album. You can check Tak’s message subtitled by us below:
「Electric Island, Acoustic Sea」
01. Soaring on Dreams
02. Fujiyama Highway
03. Magokoro (True Heart)
04. Infinite Escapade
05. Faithfully (Journey Cover)
06. Sunny Tuesday
07. Wander Blues
08. Adrenaline UP!
09. Omotesando
10. Island of peace (Tak Matsumoto Cover)
11. Rain
12. Lia
CD Package: 2,800 Yen
2 Vinyl LP Set: 4,500 Yen