Kamakiriad is the second solo studio album by American musician Donald Fagen, known as the co-founder of the rock band Steely Dan. Released in 1993, nearly 11 years after his debut solo album, the album is a futuristic, eight-song cycle in which Fagen uses the metaphor of a journey in a high-tech car to frame a personal and philosophical odyssey.
The concept album is a song-cycle, narrating the journey of the protagonist in a high-tech car, the Kamakiri, which is mainly about rebirth and second chances. The word "Kamakiri" in the album name Kamakiriad infers praying mantis in Japanese. The mantis represents a kind of rebirth symbolism, which is quite contemporary with the album's connotation.
The album was co-produced by Fagen and his longtime Steely Dan partner Walter Becker, marking their first full-length production collaboration since the 1980 album "Gaucho." Nominated for the 1994 Grammy Award for Album of the Year, the record peaked at number 10 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart and was certified Platinum for a million copies sold in the U.S.
Notable songs from the album include "Tomorrow's Girls," "Snowbound," "Springtime," and "On the Dunes." Fans and critics alike lauded the unique storytelling, soulful lyrics, jazz-infused harmonies, and complex melodies that characterize both the album and Fagen's work overall. While it maintains the signature smooth jazz-rock sound familiar to Steely Dan fans, Kamakiriad further showcases Fagen's ability to tell a story through his music.
