Mick Karn: 1958-2011

R.I.P. Mick Karn.

There are certain sounds that define the Eighties for me, and Karn's distinctive, rubbery bass is one of them. There's something defiantly un-rock about it, which fits perfectly with Japan's deliberate sexual ambiguity. It's all too easily dismissed now, but in its own way the New Romantic movement -- of which Japan was a prime exemplar -- stood as much in defiance of corporate cock-rock as the punk that predated it.

Karn's playing is showcased to admirable effect, along with some amusingly robotic stage moves, in this live recording of "Gentlemen Take Polaroids." John Taylor of Duran Duran offers a short but graceful tribute here.