Having gone major in 2015, rock band [Alexandros] have rapidly begun to gain more and more attention. The band began their real activity back in 2007. They released their first full album, “Where’s My Potato?”, in 2010 which, despite their anonymity, sold out in many shops. They became known as the dark horse, and were a big name in the indie rock scene. Let’s take a look at the charm of [Alexandros] and their work which has grown to a wide scale.
Just who is the band’s ringleader, Yoohei Kawakami?
[Alexandros] is currently made up of 4 members: guitarist and vocalist Yoohei Kawakami, bassist Hiroyuki Isobe, guitarist Masaki Shirai, and drummer Satoyasu Shomura. Yoohei looked for members to form the band while he was at university, taking charge while carrying out his activities. In 2010, then support member Satoyasu joined as an official member and is still part of the band to this day.
Yoohei, who has led the band since its inception, lived and was raised in Syria from 9-years old until he was 14. He is in charge of the lyrics and songwriting. He twists melodies with pop and brings forth some very addictive music. He is proficient in English and is skilled in effectively combining both the English language and Japanese language within the band’s lyrics.
Yoohei is also known for having been a crazy lover of movies, having written columns about them, as well as other things, which demonstrates his great talent in a variety of areas. Not only that, he has also captured the hearts of his fans for having a high fashion sense and working as a model in male model magazines.
Overcoming the crisis of the band’s name-change!
The band’s new name still probably feels new to you even now, right? The band’s original name was [Champagne] until it was changed in March 2014 to [Alexandros]. It originates from the Japanese branch of Comité Interprofessionnel du Vin de Champagne (C.I.V.C.), who the band received a request from. The band changed their name at their first arena one-man live show at the Nippon Budokan. At a time when the band feared their force and power up to that point had the possibility of stalling, they decided to be reborn as [Alexandros] and up their game even more.
Also, the band’s former name [Champagne] holds within it the meaning of “We want you to get drunk on our music”, a concept taken from Oasis’s song “Champagne Supernova”. Yoohei even used the name [Champagne] for his band during middle school. His dream back wasn’t shaken at all, was it?
They won’t shut their big mouths any time soon; their dream is to be worldwide rock musicians!
[Alexandros] say that they are aiming to be the best rock stars in the world. They have exclaimed their aspirations to head straight in that directions and that they won’t change their mind. They say that their final aim is to be able to play at the Glastonbury Festival in England, the largest greenfield festival in the world. Their song “Untitled” from their early days expresses this dream in its lyrics: “I’m gonna be a star”.
The guys are frequenters of summer festivals. They are still on the road to becoming the world’s best rock band… but there is no doubt that they want to show us that they will continue towards their dream.
The band’s new single “Swan” will be released on Wednesday August 24th. They plan to release a DVD of their live show at SXSW 2016 in America on the First Press Limited Edition. There is also footage of the members at the event, so be sure to look forward to this!
[Alexandros]
Original Text: Ishimizu Noriko （SHUTTER）
RELATED ENTRIES
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With summer fast approaching, concertgoers are gearing up for this year’s music festivals and live shows. We previously covered numerous Japanese bands and artists performing who overseas this year in parts one and two of this feature, but since the previous entry, even more acts have been announced.
Here is a new list of artists embarking outside Japan this summer.
Suchmos
For the first time in their career, rock group Suchmos are set to embark on their first ever Asia Tour this June. They will hit up 6 locations, beginning in Hong Kong before heading to Taipei, Seoul, Shenzhen, Shanghai and Beijing.
▶︎ Suchmos ASIA TOUR 2019
2019/6/2 @ Music Zone @ KITEC, Hong Kong
2019/6/7 @ Legacy Taipei, Taipei
2019/6/9/ @ YES24 Live Hall, Seoul (*w/ HYUKOH)
2019/6/12 @ B10 Live, Shenzhen
2019/6/14 @ Modern Sky Lab, Shanghai
2019/6/16 @ Tango Live (Floor 3F), Beijing
Suchmos Official Website: https://www.suchmos.com
→News Update (June 1, 2019)
Following unexpected illness of one of their members, Suchmos have cancelled all remaining dates on their upcoming overseas tour.【NEWS】
アジアツアー追加公演が決定しました。■6/28(金) ジャカルタ
会場は後日発表■6/30(日) バンコク
Moon Star Studio 1▼公演詳細はこちら▼https://t.co/HzrqIYa1FQ pic.twitter.com/ooz5TLntDL
— [ALEXANDROS] (@alexandroscrew) 2019年4月13日
[ALEXANDROS]
Rock band [ALEXANDROS] are also heading on tour in Asia throughout June and July. The band are currently on their “Sleepless in Japan Tour” in promotion of their newest album Sleepless in Brooklyn and will take their concerts across Asia for 8 shows, starting with Shanghai on June 21 and wrapping in Seoul on July 21. This also marks their first time performing in Shanghai and Beijing.
▶︎ Sleepless 2019 Asia Tour
2019/6/21 @ Modern Sky Lab, Shanghai
2019/6/23 @ Beijing Omni Space, Beijing
2019/6/28 @ Jakarta (*Venue TBA)
2019/6/30 @ Moon Star Studio 1, Bangkok
2019/7/5 @ Music Zone @ E-Max, Hong Kong
2019/7/7 @ Legacy Taipei, Taipei
2019/7/19/ @ Bentley Music Auditorium, Kuala Lumpur
2019/7/21 @ MUV HALL, Seoul
[ALEXANDROS] Official Website: https://alexandros.jp
SAKANAQUARIUM 2019 “834.194”
6月28日 上海＆6月30日 深セン公演明日5月1日12:00よりチケット販売が始まります。
券種・プレイガイドはサカナクションHPに掲載しています。https://t.co/GyH6y5B25n— sakanaction (@sakanaction) 2019年4月30日
Sakanaction
Sakanaction have announced that they will play in Shanghai and Shenzhen at the end of June. Upon unveiling the news the band created their own Weibo account, a Chinese social media platform. The rock band will release their new album 834.194 in June, their first album release since sakanaction was released 6 years ago in March 2013. The Asia dates were added to their ongoing Japan tour. This will be their second set of headline concerts outside in Japan since they performed overseas for the first time back in 2013 in Taiwan. The band are known for their use of cutting-edge technology at their shows, so foreign fans can look forward to seeing what they have in store for them next month.
▶︎ SAKANAQUARIUM 2019 “834.194”
2019/6/28 @ Modern Sky Lab, Shanghai
2019/6/30 @ A8 Live, Shenzhen
Sakanaction Official Website: http://sakanaction.jp
BAND-MAID
Earlier this month, five-piece maid rock band BAND-MAID announced the European leg of their 2019 world tour, one which will begin this June and one whose decided theme is Gekidou, or “tumultuous.” All shows on BAND-MAID’s 2018 world tour sold out completely. The initial European leg of their long-awaited new world tour will take them to 3 countries for 4 performances. They will then head to the US in September.
Related Article: BAND-MAID Announces European Leg Of ‘Tumultuous’ 2019 World Tour
▶︎BAND-MAID WORLD DOMINATION TOUR 2019 【激動】 ~gekidou~
6/22 – London, UK @ Islington Assembly Hall
6/23 – Paris, France @ Le Trabendo
6/24 @ Bochum, Germany @ Zeche
6/26 @ Hamburg, Germany @ DAS LOGOS
9/26 @ NYC Gramercy Theater, US
9/28 @ Dallas Cambridge Room, US
9/30 @ LA ECHOPLEX, US
10/1 @ LA ECHOPLEX, US
World Tour Info: https://bandmaid.tokyo/contents/241952
BAND-MAID Official Website: https://bandmaid.tokyo/
Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, CAPSULE, m-flo & More
The biggest names in Japanese pop music are set to take over Los Angeles at QTAQUEST LIVE and OTAQUEST KICK OFF PARTY which is set to take place at THE NOVO by Microsoft on July 3, 2019. Both OTAQUEST LIVE and OTAQUEST KICK OFF PARTY serve as the opener to Anime Expo, the biggest anime convention in the US, which will run from July 4 to 7. CAPSULE, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, Crazy Boy, HIROOMI TOSAKA and m-flo are set to deliver Japanese entertainment to US lovers of Japanese music and entertainment.
Related Article: Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, Yasutaka Nakata & CRAZYBOY to Perform at QTAQUEST LIVE in Los Angeles
▶︎OTAQUEST LIVE
Date: July 3, 2019
Time: OPEN 17:00 / START 18:30
Location: THE NOVO by Microsoft, Los Angeles, California, US
Line-Up: CRAZYBOY / HIROOMI TOSAKA / m-flo / CAPSULE / Kyary Pamyu Pamyu
OTAQUEST KICK OFF PARTY
Date: July 3, 2019
Time: OPEN/START 22:00
Location: THE NOVO by Microsoft, Los Angeles, California, US
Line-Up: ☆Taku Takahashi / TeddyLoid / Yasutaka Nakata (CAPSULE) / …and more
Event Website: https://live.otaquest.com/
Tickets: https://www.axs.com/events/372261/otaquest-live-tickets?skin=novo
Ai Otsuka
This year, Ai Otsuka celebrates her 15th anniversary since her debut. The singer-songwriter released her greatest hits album Ai am BEST, too in January this year, and she is currently in the midst of her nationwide Japan tour. 5 Asia dates have been added to the tour. Her previous Asia tour took her to just three cities: Taipei, Shenzhen and Guangzhou, but this year she is spreading her wings and will perform in Guangzhou, Chengdu, Shanghai and Taipei.
▶︎ AIO PIANO at ASIA vol.2
2019/7/17 @ Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s Memorial Hall, Guangzhou
2019/7/19 @ 特侖蘇音楽庁, Chengdu
2019/7/27 @ BANDAI NAMCO SHANGHAI BASE DREAM HALL, Shanghai
2019/7/28 @ BANDAI NAMCO SHANGHAI BASE DREAM HALL, Shanghai
2019/8/17 @ ATT SHOW BOX 大直, Taipei
Ai Otsuka Official Website: http://avex.jp/ai/
If you love Japanese music and a Japanese band or artist are coming to a city near you this year, then be sure to show your love and support by getting your hands on a ticket to see them live.
