This month marks the fortieth anniversary of the debut album from World Standard, the avant-pop moniker of wunderkind musician Soichiro Suzuki. Also an accomplished and passionate music writer (including the Mondo Music series on exotica and lounge music), Suzuki joined us from his home in Japan for a wide-ranging conversation about his varied musical and writing career, now spanning four decades. Among the topics discussed include formative influences like Penguin Cafe Orchestra, deriving inspiration from David Lynch and Twin Peaks, his long running collaboration with Hauromi Hosono, creating music for tinnitus sufferers, giving talks and lectures on The Beatles in Japan, dissecting pop music with Jim O’Rourke and much more.