The Fantastic Plastic Machine (album)
The Fantastic Plastic Machine is the debut studio album by Japanese musician Fantastic Plastic Machine. It was released on October 10, 1997 by Readymade Records. The album was subsequently released in Germany on April 24, 1998 by Bungalow Records and in the United States on September 15, 1998 by Emperor Norton Records. The music on "The Fantastic Plastic Machine" draws from styles such as baroque pop, bossa nova, and British and French pop, as well as Fantastic Plastic Machine's dance music roots. The album's cover art was illustrated by French cartoonist and illustrator  Edmond Kiraz. Critical reception. Steve Huey of AllMusic described "The Fantastic Plastic Machine" as "a delightful, infectious album that's not only hooky as all get-out, but also rewards repeated listening", deeming it "one of the best albums to come out of the Japanese club-pop movement". In 2007, "Rolling Stone Japan" placed "The Fantastic Plastic Machine" at number 67 on its list of the "100 Greatest Japanese Rock Albums of All Time". In 2011, the album was included in "LA Weekly"s "beginner's guide" to Shibuya-kei music. "Tokyo Weekender" writer Ed Cunningham later cited it as a  groundbreaking Shibuya-kei release, noting: "Some post-Shibuya-kei artists would follow in the footsteps of the guitar-driven indie pop of Flipper's Guitar, but many more significant acts, in genres such as picopop and electropop, would expand upon the electronica initiated by [Fantastic Plastic Machine]." Track listing. The German LP edition (total length: 45:25) follows the track order of the original Japanese edition, but substitutes "Fantastic Plastic World" with "Fantastic Plastic World (Voice 'n' Baroque)" and omits "Allen Ginsberg".