The US Billboard club play chart No.1 award arrived with "Kimara Lovelace /Circles", No.3 with "Everyn Champagne King /One More Time" and the maxi singles sales chart No.5 with "You've Got To Be There /Nite System" in 1998.
He released numerous tracks under the Hiroshi Watanabe and NITE SYSTEM projects on New York labels such as Deeper Rekords, Nitegrooves and BPM King Street Sound. Moreover he released an E.P. and the album "Sketch From A Moment" on Frogman Records under the alias QUADRA, as well as the album "Beatmania -Beat Indication" on the Japanese label Konami, under his real name.
Hiroshi Watanabe has also left his mark in the video games department, as he has given tracks for one of the most famous games "Beat mania" -Konami (which one can find in arcades and Sony PlayStation) achieving pretty big sales. In March 1999 he decided to settle in Japan where he has been acting as producer for Japanese artists and making an even bigger impact with his many remix projects.
His new alias KAITO was a 2001 initiative, under which he released "Beautiful Day", "Everlasting", "Awakening", the albums "Special Life", "Special Love" and "Soul of Heart" on the German KOMPAKT Records. At that same period he started a new deep slow house project called "TREAD" with the assistance of graphic designer Takehiko Kitahara and so far "TREAD" has released 5 albums from Japanese "Norm".
In 2003 he released under the alias "32 PROJECT" the "Root of World" EP on the highly acclaimed label , IBADAN Records.
He continues giving live performances as Tread and Kaito, but also continues DJing, where he uses his name Hiroshi Watanabe, throughout all popular Japanese clubs. In 2002, he gave a fantastic performance at the Sonar Music Festival in Barcelona, at Vision in Switzerland and at Popkomm in Cologne, Germany. Moreover, the talented Mr. Watanabe has also made music for films, he's composed television jingles as well as music for theatre plays, fashion shows and more.
His talent in the fine arts is proved even more so intense since 2002 when he started working as a photographer. Ever since, he has held several Photo Exhibitions at certain galleries and clubs in Tokyo. His first Photo Album accompanied by the "TINY BALANCE" DVD with an original soundtrack was released in Japan in September 2004 by Colorve.
What got you started into House and Techno music?
I had been exposed to all all kinds of electro dance music when I went to BOSTON, after graduating high school in Japan, that was around in 1991-2.
Your music has been used in film and theatre, but what television jingles has your work been used in?
TV CM spots, and Drama stuff also a Great Hit Japanese animation "EULEKA SEVEN".
Coming to Australia, do you have any surprises in store for fans?
I will try my best as always wherever I go but this is my first time to be in Australia so I'm excited about this and playing to an Australian audience!
Any big plans for the next 12 months?
Yes, I will start to do couple of different projects soon. One will be the next album for KLIK RECORDS, one will be TREAD album, and also the next Kaito single.
You've made stellar albums like 'Hundred Million Light Years' and 'Trust', where do you keep getting this amazing sound?
Before I started to do dance music, also I was making totally electric ambient NEW AGE music since I was in junior high school student. I had already some kind of huge space image in my mind since I met those old analogue synthesizer so basically I mix up with those fundamentals of mind sound with dance beat.
Seen on maybe track covers, is your son joining you at the decks yet?
You mean DJ or studio works? Actually he is really enjoying my music as always, some times he came with me when DJ at some nice outside event in the daytime, and he is standing and dancing just right next to me at DJ booth!
Did you ever think you'd be travelling the world playing the music you love?
Actually no I didn't. Everything happens naturally in my life. But I really really appreciate life with my family by all my music work so far. All my music fan whoever and wherever they live, they are important supporters so I just want to say thank you.
As well as an artist, you're a photographer, do you find the two crafts similar in creativity or totally different?
I can say both way. but for me those both stuff is very similar. just deference will be a process. photograph for me will be done in just one second even more short period but music will not can make in second, need more time and need to have stable energy for finishing up the track every time.
What do you to to take time away from music?
Hanging with my family, go to see the ocean with my wife, playing with my kids, and go to find many insect around park. and of cause I am taking many many photograph always. we need a natural element as always.
If this wasn't the path your life took, where do you think you would be right now?
Maybe different planet. not the earth. I believe human been is not just exist on the earth in space. (or different life way of style)
If teaching a class about music: what would be the one lesson you'd would teach?
- How you could feel a music it self with your mind and how to into it.
- And how you going to explode your sense of feel in the music.
- It doesn't matter what kind of music is.
Check him out - KOMPAKT 3 ft Kaito (live) & Tobias Becker (dj set) Fri 17th Sep at Barsoma - Free Entry!
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