I'm not here to get into a virtual fist-fight about the origins of heavy metal. However, it's not any kind of a stretch for me to pinpoint the origin of one of the very first bands to be classified as part of the then-emerging genre. The group in question is the Flower Travellin' Band formed by Yuya Uchida in Tokyo in 1967. Uchida was deeply influenced by American rock acts, and after seeing Elvis Presley in 1966, he promptly dropped out of school to pursue a life dedicated to music. He would also witness early performances of 60s surf rock bands the Astronauts and The Ventures, as well as the Animals which were beginning to make the trek to Japan for live shows.
Led Zeppelin would play the legendary Budokan arena in 1972 and others would follow. KISS would take their Rock and Roll Over Tour to Japan in 1977 playing the country for the first time, including a string of four nights at Budokan, breaking previous attendance records set at the venue by The Beatles. In 1978, Judas Priest would travel to Japan for the first time to play a string of dates in Tokyo, Nagoya, and Osaka as would the Scorpions. During the 70s, home-grown Japanese metal bands were everywhere, like Lazy, Nokemono, Action!, and Bow Wow leading to an explosion of heavy metal bands in Japan in the 80s. We'll take a deep dive into the metal scene of the past in Japan in the near future, for now here's a rundown of some of the best Japanese metal from the 1990s.
SIGH (Tokyo)
The back cover of Sigh's 1995 album 'Infidels.'
Sigh is significant to Japan's metal scene as they were the first black metal band from the country to find a home at Norway's Deathlike Silence Productions run by Euronymous–the guitarist and co-founder of Mayhem. Though it's a little difficult to pinpoint and their sound has since evolved, Sigh may actually be the originators of the Japanese black metal sound. They also love Venom and I'm guessing seeing the band when they first played Japan in 1987 might have had something to do with this heavy metal crush. Speaking of Venom, Sigh has covered songs from the Newcastle upon Tyne band's catalog on several occasions as well as the music of Florida death metal pioneers Death. Sigh's eleventh album Heir to Despair is out now.
Sigh's cover of Venom's "Welcome to Hell."
CORRUPTED (Osaka)
The elusive Members of Corrupted captured by a fan.
Corrupted have been bringing their own special brand of straight-up savage doom to Japan since 1994 and are notorious for many reasons. First, most of their lyrics are sung in Spanish as well as Japanese and English. Additionally, as the spirit of doom dictates, grooves are dirgy and intrepidly long. In 2018 Corrupted released an EP with tracks you could play at any speed on your turntable. Another reason Corrupted are intriguing is their extreme aversion to granting interviews (they don't), or allowing promotional/professional photos to be taken of themselves (they won't). Their affinity for reclusiveness has never worked against the band, in fact, it's had quite the opposite effect during their 24-year career. Corrupted traveled to the U.S. in 1997 to play a rare live show outside of Japan. Soul-crushing footage from the gig can be witnessed below.
Corrupted live in the U.S. 1997.
GREENMACHiNE (Osaka)
The back cover of GREENMACHiNE's 1998 album 'D.A.M.N..'
Just this past April Osaka band GREENMACHiNE reunited for a brief moment to kick out the jams at the Roadburn Festival playing their 1994 album D.A.M.N. (one of only three studio records in the band's catalog) from beginning to end. If the band's trickily-spelled name is familiar to you, then you might also be a fan of Josh Homme's "other" band Kyuss and their 1992 song "Green Machine," as the band named themselves after the sludgy anthem. D.A.M.N. is a hardcore crusty assault to the senses, and it's been described as a "timeless masterpiece far ahead of its time." There's absolutely NO way you'll ever regret adding it to your collection. Fair warning: the cover of D.A.M.N., designed by the vastly talented graphic artist Frank Kozik of Man's Ruin Records, is beyond disturbing
"D.A.M.N.."
RITUAL CARNAGE (Tokyo)
The 1998 debut by Ritual Carnage 'The Highest Law.' Cover art by Wes Benscoter.
Formed in 1993 by American vocalist and ex-Army man, Damian Montgomery, Ritual Carnage had kind of a tough time finding a home for their self-described "extreme" thrash-metal sound in Japan, record-label wise. Eventually, the band would land a deal with French indie label Omose run by owner Hervé Herbaut. Omose prided themselves in corrupting their fans' souls since getting started in 1991 and knew adding Ritual Carnage to their lineup along with seasoned veterans of metal like Exciter, and a band we've already jawed about in this post, Sigh was a solid idea. Though Ritual Carnage has been through their fair share of lineup changes (haven't we all?), their first release, The Highest Law, is pretty damn good. The record also deserves some applause for the album artwork done by the great Wes Benscoter whose client list includes Slayer (Divine Intervention, 1994), Dio, Cattle Decapitation, Claudio Simonetti and Fabio Frizzi, just to name a few.
"Chaos and Mayhem" from the 1998 album 'The Highest Law.'
MONO (Tokyo)
Mono.
According to the heavy metal history books, Mono became a band in 1999 – though they wouldn't put out their first album until 2001. They have played approximately 150 live gigs every year for the last fifteen years. Their cinematic, experimental style flourishes with deeply cultivated classical influences (the instrumental four-piece often performs and records with large orchestras), used by other metal bands like Iron Maiden, Grahm Bonnet era Rainbow, early Ozzy and, Death. All that said, I'd be wrong to attempt to categorize Mono as it just isn't possible beyond saying they are absolutely metal, but reside in a sonic sphere along with, let's say, the equally difficult to define Sun O))). Mono's latest record, their tenth, Nowhere Now Here, is set to be released in January 2019, nearly twenty years to the date of the band's original inception.
Incredible live footage of Mono including a few cool interview clips.
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