ACO is a Japanese singer specializing in a wide range of genres. Her early … Read Full Bio ↴ACO is a Japanese singer specializing in a wide range of genres. Her early albums focused on jazzy pop and R&B, while the middle part of her career expanded her sound into trip-hop, minimalist electronica, and synthpop. More recently, she has explored an alt-rock style. She was born in Aichi Prefecture in 1977, and she released her breakthrough single Fuan Nano (不安なの) in 1995. The song, done in a summery pop style, was a moderate success and her debut album, Kittenish Love followed soon after in early 1996.

By the end of the year, ACO was back in the studio recording her second album, NUDE, which was released exactly a year after her debut. The album picked up where her debut left off, continuing with the jazz-pop style she was known for. The best-known single from this era was DROP, which combined hip-hop elements with ACO's leisurely vocals. By 1998, ACO had begun moving away from the predominately upbeat sound that launched her career, introducing some darker and more dramatic elements into the mix for her third album, Lady Soul. The album spawned the singles CATWALK and Yawarakai Hada (やわらかい肌), which did little to reflect this creeping style change.

In the winter of 1999, ACO released Absolute Ego, her fourth album and the work that many see as the turning point in her career. No longer singing the songs of a teenage pop idol, ACO introduced trip-hop and electronica elements into her style and began experimenting with her vocals as well. Critical response to the album was overwhelmingly positive. Absolute Ego produced four singles, among them SPLEEN and Yorokobi Ni Saku Hana (悦びに咲く花). A remix album, titled The Other Side Of Absolute Ego, followed in early 2000. It featured collaborations with the likes of DJ Krush (whom ACO collaborated with on his own Tragicomic), Tricky, and Yoshinori Sunahara. A live DVD called Absolute Live was also released.

In 2001, ACO presented her fifth studio album, Material. This album moved even further into her new electronica style, and contains some of her darkest music to date. Singles released included Hoshi No Kuzu (星ノクズ), which featured an Alice In Wonderland-styled PV, and 4gatsu No Hero (４月のヒーロー). The album also included a haunting cover of This Woman's Work by Kate Bush.

ACO's sixth album, irony, followed in 2003. Collaborating with Icelandic electronica band múm and avant-garde artists portable[k]ommunity, the album explored minimalist electronica through the use of layered vocals and delicate microbeats. The album drew comparisons to Vespertine by Björk and produced one solitary single, titled Machi (町).

A new mini-album, Mask, was released in early 2006. It explores a neo-electroclash sound, including a brash recut of Fuan Nano to mark the song's tenth anniversary. During this time, she collaborated with Taeji Sawai and his band Golden Pink Arrow. The songs, which are available through Sawai's website (www.taeji.org), have not yet seen a commercial release. In 2007, she released her first greatest hits album, ACO BEST ~Girl's Diary~, a two-disc compilation featuring all her singles from 1995-2006.

In 2010, ACO returned with Devil's Hands, her first new release since ending her short hiatus. In yet another genre shift, it departs from the electropop of Mask to focus on pop-rock and soft ballads. The moody and piano-driven LUCK followed in 2012, followed by a live album and a collection of self-covers in a new "unplugged" style, TRAD.

Valentine was released in 2015 and marked another sea change in ACO's style, giving her a fuzzy alt-rock sound with raspy vocals. A covers EP in this mode, Sing Sing Sing, followed in 2019.

ヌード
ACO Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

あなたの体に遊ばれながら
小さな心も声を出す
低い声がそっと歌で誘いながら
こぼれた心をゆっくりなでる
名前を呼んで疲れたこの耳に
夢をそそいで乾いたからだへ
水に生まれた星座の下で
私が歌う誰より先に

遠くに何かを見つけだすために
私が歌うちっちゃな足で
いつもの感情のカギを閉めて
ほどけないように
くちびるから喉に流れた
あなたの言葉を体中にひろげて
気づかれないように重なり合って
あなたの方法で大人になる

くちびるから喉に流れた
あなたの言葉を体中にひろげて
気づかれないように重なり合って
あなたの方法で大人になる
くちびるから喉に流れた
あなたの言葉を体中にひろげて
気づかれないように重なり合って
くちびるから喉に流れた
あなたの言葉を体中にひろげて

気づかれないように重なり合って
La La La

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to ACO's song ヌード, or "Nude" in English, portray a sense of vulnerability, surrender, and intimacy between two people. The singer describes being played with and touched by the other person's body while her small heart and voice also make themselves present. Through her low voice, the singer gently seduces and strokes the other person's spilled heart. She calls out the other person's name to soothe her tired ears and to bring dreams to her dry body. Under the constellation born of water, the singer sings before anyone else to find something far away as she walks with her small feet. She closes the key to her usual emotion so that it will not come untied. The lyrics further describe the experience of having the other person's words flow through her lips, down to her throat, and spread throughout her body. Unnoticed, these words overlap and intertwine with each other as the person grows up in the other person's way.

Line by Line Meaning

あなたの体に遊ばれながら
While being played by your body

小さな心も声を出す
My small heart also speaks up

低い声がそっと歌で誘いながら
While the quiet voice gently invites with song

こぼれた心をゆっくりなでる
Slowly caressing the spilled heart

名前を呼んで疲れたこの耳に
Calling my name to these tired ears

夢をそそいで乾いたからだへ
Pouring dreams into my dry body

水に生まれた星座の下で
Under the constellation born from water

私が歌う誰より先に
I sing before anyone else

遠くに何かを見つけだすために
In order to find something far away

私が歌うちっちゃな足で
I sing with my small feet

いつもの感情のカギを閉めて
Locking away my usual emotions