A Holiday Playlist from Cibo Matto's Yuka Honda and Miho Hatori

We asked Cibo Matto's Yuka Honda and Miho Hatori to make us a holiday playlist. They came at us with everything from Beck to Donald Fagen

By Dan Piepenbring

December 20, 2013

Image may contain Human Person Sunglasses Accessories Accessory Clothing Apparel Hat and Female

Fans of Cibo Matto know that their name is Italian for "Crazy Food," and the band's two members, Japanese expats Yuka Honda and Miho Hatori, live up to that title. They love to eat, as we've seen before. Ever the suckers for food-related acts, we asked them to make us a holiday playlist: they could include any songs that pertained to food or put them in the holiday spirit. Here's what they created: a playlist that's got us ready to feast and dance at the same time.

SIDE A

Holiday Party Music (Lounge version), by Yuka

1. "Ma" - Tom Ze

This is how I would want to open the party. Tom Ze is a Brazilian artist whose music works some kind of voodoo on me. The key to holiday parties is getting your mind out of your stressful daily life mode and switching to “joy” mode. I can’t imagine a better man to transform my mode magically.

2. "Vonal Declosion" - Stereolab

Sometimes, some people have both of their speakers in one corner of the room. It’s fine if all you listen to is Phil Spector or music recorded before they had stereo recording techniques.

When I eat the kind of food that I have to cut with a knife first—like a steak, grilled vegetables and/or French toast—I start by "tasting" the food with my two hands: my left hand tests how easy or hard it is to stick the fork in the food, and my right hand feels the direction and hardness of the fiber, or how much of it broke down during the cooking process.

Music can be the same way. Some music, like this song, makes great use of the stereo effect, with some sounds on the left and some on the right, so that multiple pieces of information travel through you and create this exquisite sensation. I hope you get to indulge the full effect.

3. "Tibetan Dance" (from the album ‘Playing The Piano’) - Ryuichi Sakamoto

One of my favorite qualities in music is when it feels foreign and nostalgic at the same time. It feels like deja vu: you remember it not in your mind but in your cells. This music feels like it evokes my reincarnated DNA.

4. "Ne Me Laisse Pas L’aime" - Brigitte Bardot

Brigitte Bardot is one of the coolest singers. She’s got the raw power—the kind that reminds me of how pesto that’s made with a blender or food processor can never be as good as the knife-chopped version.

5. "Tender" - Blur

Tender is such a beautiful word. It’s a feeling. It’s a condition. It’s sensitive and sexy.

6. "Free Man in Paris" - Joni Mitchell

Once there was a time when going to Paris meant you wouldn't be reachable any more. Today, not having my cell phone on me makes me feel like I forgot to wear my pants. Our sense of freedom has changed massively in last 50 years.

7. "Bourgeois Boogie" - Ornette Coleman and Prime Time

This is a simply one of the most perfect songs ever.

8. "Strawberry Letter #23" - The Brothers Johnson

This is also simply one of the most perfect songs ever.

9. "Caravan" - Duke Ellington

Somehow, in my mind, this song and "Boléro" by Maurice Ravel is a “set”. Boléro is yang and Caravan is ying.

10. "Missing" - Beck

One of our highlights this year was performing “Loser” with Beck himself—and Wilco to boot. If this can happen to me, it can happen to you. Keep the dreams alive!

11. "Mushaboom" - Feist

This is the best song to play when you are making mushroom dishes. It also goes really great with a little bit of parsley.

12. "It Tango" - Laurie Anderson

Laurie Anderson is a true inspiration. She transforms shadow to light with her warm-hearted wit.

13. "Um Canto de Afoxe Para O Bloco Do Lle (Lle Aye)" - Caetano Veloso

B SIDE

After Your Big Meal, by Miho

1. “Jeux D’eau” - Ravel

When it snows, I listen to this song and stare the snow.

2. “Christmas Is Coming” - Tippa Lee & Rappa Roberts

I feel like this song puts all Christmas songs into one song. It's very charming.

3. “All I want for Ismas” - Jacob Miller & Ray I