AZABU RECORDS
About Azabu Records
Azabu Records is a fictional record label featured within this archive — it is not a real 1980s label, and does not represent this site as a whole. It was created to celebrate the sound and spirit of 1980s Japan. We hope you enjoy the atmosphere of that era. All artists, releases, and history associated with Azabu Records are fictional and created using AI.
Label History
1979 — 2026
Founded in 1979, Azabu Records set out to capture something of its city at night — the neon reflections, the click of a bass string, the hush after a live set ends. Through the first half of the 1980s, the label built a catalog of city pop and fusion around a small, tightly knit roster, distinguished more by its ear for groove than its output. By 1992, the label had quietly closed its doors.
For over three decades, its masters sat unlabeled and unheard. In 2025, a set of unmarked tapes surfaced — the recordings later confirmed to be Azabu Records’ complete catalog. This site presents their 2026 digital remaster: the label’s music, as close to its original form as analog tape and modern restoration allow.
The Producer
JUN SUGIURA
Behind every Azabu Records release stood one figure: Jun Sugiura, bassist, arranger, and the label’s de facto sound. Born in Yokohama in 1950, Sugiura began playing bass in his teens, coming up through the city’s jazz kissa scene before forming Bright Meridian in 1976. When the band broke up in 1980, he moved behind the desk — overseeing the arrangements and bass lines on every record the label released.
Sugiura is not a man who explains himself. Interviews are rare, and when pressed on his sound he tends to offer the same answer: listen to the record. Off the clock, he restores vintage bass guitars, and colleagues say he’s usually the first into the studio and the last to leave.
Label Milestones
THREE NIGHTS, ONE LABEL
Three joint shows mark the arc of Azabu Records’ history, each pulling in a few more names than the last.
Azabu Records Showcase ’81
A one-night reunion for Bright Meridian, sharing the bill with newcomer Reina Tachibana（橘玲奈）.
Azabu Records Live ’83
Tachibana returns, joined for the first time by Mio Asakura（朝倉美緒）.
Azabu Records Night Session ’85
The label’s biggest night: the Jun Sugiura Band, Tachibana, Asakura, and newcomer Reiji Kazama（風間玲司）share a stage for the first time — all four of the label’s acts, together at once.
Why Azabu Records Exists
Azabu Records was born out of deep respect for Japanese music of the 1980s — the city pop, fusion, and pop records whose sound still feels fresh today, and which we believe will continue to captivate the world for years to come.
Out of that respect, we chose not to copy or reuse the work of real artists. Instead, we set out to recreate the world of that era anew — with a fictional label, fictional artists, and original songs created with AI.
Every artist, release, and story here is fictional. The real music of the 1980s remains our inspiration — and the reason this project exists.