Monday, August 16, 2010

Dekochari: UFO Bicycles

Rolling through the night like visions from 1980's outer space, these beautiful and mysterious contraptions are handmade pimped-out bicycles from Japan. For decades, dekotara fans (especially those too young to drive) have been making all manner of dekochari. Modeled after Japan's celebrated art trucks, dekochari (deko means "decoration" and chari is slang for "bicycle") typically feature large front bumpers, ornate luggage racks, rear-mounted boxes that resemble truck trailers, colorful paint jobs, lots of chrome, and sophisticated electric light displays.

The video below pieces together random night scenes from Dekochari Yarou, a documentary that profiles a few dekochari enthusiasts and their custom rides. The soundtrack is "Ichiban-boshi Blues" (sung by Bunta Sugawara and Kinya Aikawa), the theme song from the Torakku Yarou movie series that sparked Japan's dekotora craze in the '70s.

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