b. Keigo Oyamada, 27 January 1969, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo, Japan. An eclectic Japanese artist with a style rooted in the use of samples and electronica, Cornelius also cites influences ranging from Burt Bacharach to Brian Wilson and contemporary indie/alternative rock bands. He first pursued a solo career in 1993 after serving several years in the cult Japanese rock band, Flipper's Guitar. Taking his stage name from Roddy McDowell's wizened scientist in Planet Of The Apes, he released three acclaimed collections on his own Japanese independent label Trattoria. In 1998, he described his musical ethos to Billboard as "gucha-gucha", or "mixed-up". The best of his solo albums so far, Fantasma, was given a US release that year on Matador Records. The album was well received throughout the west, though British critics were dismayed by live UK appearances where he abandoned the subtleties and nuances of his studio work in favour of a guitar-orientated rock sound.
Cornelius' belated follow-up, Point, was released by Matador in 2002. This dizzying collection corralled dream pop, exotica, bossa nova and punk into a remarkable whole, although the album did lack some of the freewheeling charm of its predecessor. Cornelius subsequently invited visitors to his website to remix tracks from the album. The (mixed) results were included on a CD packaged with his first DVD release, Five Point One: From Nakameguro To Everywhere.
