purple SKY - A Japanese Music Collaboraitve

Posts Tagged ‘exist trace’

[press release] exist†trace Previews VIRGIN Album on USA Tour

Tuesday, April 10th, 2012 by Kathy Chee

April 10, 2012 – All-female visual kei band exist†trace surprised fans during their first USA tour by performing an unreleased track “Honey” from their upcoming album “VIRGIN,” due to release May 23 in Japan.

Performing in four cities across the Northeast, exist†trace completed their first live-house tour of America in March with stops in Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh, where they played for over 1000 fans at the Japanese anime and culture event Tekkoshocon.

In addition to the new track from “VIRGIN,” the hour-long set list included recent singles “Daybreak” and “True,” along with early-career crowd pleasers like “Judea” and “Sacrifice Baby.”

The exist†trace concert at Tekkoshocon was so loud that noise complaints were received from neighboring buildings in the area.

Tekkoshocon partnered with national restaurant chain Hard Rock Café for a special 150-person invitation-only performance by exist†trace on the final day of the tour. This marked the first occasion where a Japanese band has performed at Pittsburgh’s popular rock-themed venue.

“VIRGIN” will be the first full-album release from exist†trace through major Japanese label Tokuma, following two 5-song EPs from 2011, “TRUE” and ”THE LAST DAYBREAK.”

exist†trace guitarist and songwriter miko expressed her appreciation for American fans:

“Everyone who joined the East Coast Tour, otsukaresama deshita!

“This was our second performance in America following last year, so we thought we understood the American energy. But, the ‘IGU family’ in America really surprised us, in a good sense! We were really happy that you guys welcomed us with heat that’s hotter than we imagined!

“Thank you so much!

“We created our stage show with some special elements this time. Songs with a unique production style, like ‘Little Mary…’ and ‘Kiss in the Dark,’ our new song ‘Honey’ that joined us all together, and ‘Judea’ which has always been supported by all of you overseas. All of these songs became important and a special time we shared with you.

“We have been going overseas once a year so far, and if possible, we’d like to visit America more often. We’d like to truly become a ‘Vanguard’ to tell many people how cool Japanese Rock is in many different locations.

“We’re really eager to visit you again, so don’t hold back! Show us your excitement and invite us again. We may visit your town because of your voice.

“See you again somewhere. Take care until then!

“- miko”

Official website – http://www.exist-trace.com/
Link to Daybreak Live Video – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HqN3xxuQYcE&feature=youtu.be

[photo] exist†trace @ Hiro Ballroom – March 18, 2012

Tuesday, March 20th, 2012 by Kathy Chee
This SimpleViewer gallery requires Macromedia Flash. Please open this post in your browser or get Macromedia Flash here.
This is a WPSimpleViewerGallery

[press release] exist†trace 2012 USA Tour – Special VIP-only Boston show added!

Wednesday, December 14th, 2011 by Kathy Chee

December 15, 2011 – exist†trace has added a special VIP-only show to their first American tour.

The all-female Japanese visual kei band will perform a limited-ticket 200-person VIP show on March 15, 2012 at The Middle East in Boston, MA. A special event for the first show of the tour, fans will be able to welcome exist†trace back to America and every ticket-holder will get to meet the band members after the show for personal autographs.

Tickets for the Middle East performance go on sale Dec. 20. Regular and VIP tickets for New York, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh are on sale now.

exist†trace 2012 USA Tour Schedule

Thursday, March 15 – Boston, MA (The Middle East)

Sunday, March 18 – New York, NY (Hiro Ballroom)

Tuesday, March 20 – Philadelphia, PA (Starlight Ballroom)

Thursday – Sunday, March 22 – 25 – Pittsburgh, PA (Tekkoshocon)

Official ticket and tour information can be found here:

http://www.japanfiles.com/existtrace-america-tour-2012.html

[review] THE LAST DAYBREAK by exist†trace

Friday, October 28th, 2011 by Jen Wang

THE LAST DAYBREAK opens with a primal call from Jyou, but instead of singing in her trademark growling alto, she keeps her voice light and clear in “Daybreak ~Jyusan gatsu no shikisai.”  Unexpected moves like these are the highlight of exist†trace’s new album.  Guitarists Miko and Omi still grind out heavy riffs that complement Naoto’s rumbling bass, but over them they layer soaring melodies and hazy reverb.

“Little Mary to Utsukushiki Nikushimi no Danube”  shows off the band’s whimsical side with a synthesized waltz and Miko’s girlish voice in the intro.  Mally continues a three-count beat while Jyou and Miko provide a conversation between experience versus youth.  The fairy tale does not end happily, however, as the guitars and violin plunge the song into a dissonant nightmare.  Exist†trace unveil their vulnerable side in “Kimi no masshiro na hane.”   Omi’s guitar cries along with Jyou, who is not afraid to let her voice tremble in the last few notes.  It is a quiet but potent end to THE LAST DAYBREAK.

The album title indicates a beginning of an end, but on the cover, the band members are firmly rooted in their determined poses.  With an upcoming U.S. tour and a new album that shows off their growth as songwriters, it is safe to say that exist†trace are not close to being finished.

exist†trace Official Websitehttp://www.exist-trace.com/
exist†trace on JapanFileshttp://www.japanfiles.com/existtrace.html

[press release] exist†trace Announces 2012 America tour

Wednesday, October 19th, 2011 by Kathy Chee

Japanese all-female visual kei band exist†trace will tour America in March 2012, performing live concerts in:

Boston, MA
New York, NY
Philadelphia, PA

Dates, venues, and ticket information to be announced soon.

Their latest CD release, “THE LAST DAYBREAK,” went on sale in Japan today. The 5-track EP is their second release from major label TOKUMA JAPAN.

Last month, exist†trace announced a special appearance as a special guest at Japanese culture and anime event Tekkoshocon 2012. The band will perform a live concert and attend special autograph and Q&A sessions for fans during Tekkoshocon’s four-day event in Pittsburgh, PA from March 22 – 25, 2012.

Tekkoshocon information and pre-registration at: http://www.tekkoshocon.com

exist†trace 2012 America tour is presented by JapanFiles, Monsters Inc., Tekkoshocon, and JhouseRock Entertainment.

exist trace USA information: http://www.japanfiles.com/existtrace.html

[press release] exist†trace to Perform at Tekkoshocon 2012

Tuesday, September 6th, 2011 by Kathy Chee

September 5, 2011 – Japanese all-female visual kei rock band exist†tracewill return to America for Japanese culture and anime event Tekkoshocon 2012. The band will perform a live concert and attend autograph and Q&A sessions for fans during Tekkoshocon’s four-day event in Pittsburgh, PA from March 22 – 25, 2012.

Tekkoshocon information and pre-registration at: http://www.tekkoshocon.com

exist†trace PROFILE

exist†trace is one of Japan’s first all-female Visual Kei rock bands. Formed in 2003, the members of exist†trace are Jyou (vocals), Miko (guitar), Mally (drums), Naoto (bass), Omi (guitar).

Along with multiple tours of Japan , exist†trace has performed twice in Europe, making appearances in Berlin, Helsinki, Moscow, Paris, London, and Barcelona. In 2009, the band *performed at the 2-day V-ROCK FESTIVAL in Chiba, Japan. In November 2010, exist*†*trace released their album “TWIN GATE” in Japan, followed by an American release from JapanFiles. In June, 2011, they made their major-label debut with the “TRUE” EP on Tokuma Japan.*

* *

exist†trace appears at Tekkoshocon by arrangement with JapanFiles and Monsters, Inc.

exist†trace official website -  http://www.exist-trace.com
exist†trace on JapanFiles –  http://www.japanfiles.com/existtrace

[review] TRUE – exist†trace

Monday, June 20th, 2011 by Kathy Chee

Exist†trace continues to defy traditional stereotypes with their major label debut, TRUE. As an all-female band, the slick cover art is anything but girly and while Jou’s alto growl is almost nonexistent, the music remains fast and hard with spine tingly melody shifts. TRUE opens with a heavy, rumbling promise to keep to their roots despite the major label upgrade. The album races, the only break being an out of place jazz number, “Kiss in the dark,” that should have been titled miss in the dark. “Jiyuu no Sora, Chijou no Uta” is the last track on the all too short album and perhaps the catchiest. It sounds ‘90s era visual kei inspired (ala Luna Sea), with clear guitar notes that linger and whine. Jou’s voice carries the melody and the guitar backs her up. The style highlights her ability to sing in a higher range without sounding strained or cute and all the instrumentals just flow together, running forward without a space of breath in-between. I listened to it four times over and if exist†trace can keep this pace up, they may just break through the male-dominated glass ceiling of visual kei.

Official exist†trace webpage – http://www.exist-trace.com/
exist†trace at Japanfiles – http://www.japanfiles.com/existtrace/

[photo] Female visual kei band exist†trace performs for 3000 fans at Sakura-Con 2011

Thursday, May 5th, 2011 by Kathy Chee

All-female Japanese visual kei/metal band exist†trace made their USA debut at Sakura-Con last Friday, April 22, performing to 3000 fans at the annual Japanese anime and culture festival in Seattle, Washington.

exist†trace performed songs from their latest album TWIN GATE, as well as older fan-favorites including “Judea” and “Ambivalence,” plus the title track from their upcoming major-label debut “TRUE”. In the middle of the set, vocalist Jyou set aside her trademark growls to perform “Cradle,” the ballad from TWIN GATE, adding a surprise verse spoken entirely in English.

For their encore song, the band returned to the stage carrying Japanese and American flags with the Japanese kanji “kizuna” (“bond”) written across each. Jyou gave a heartfelt speech in Japanese about the bond between the nations of America and Japan, and thanked America for its support during the current Japanese national crisis brought about by March 2011’s earthquake and tsunami.

Immediately after Friday night’s concert, the band signed autographs for 90 minutes and invited fans to contribute to Japan Relief and sign their own messages on the American flag. On Saturday, the members met fans for a Q&A session followed by more autographs, and then personally arrived at the exist†trace booth on Sunday to draw the winning name for a 6-foot signed banner. The winning ticket holder had travelled 700 miles from Idaho to see the band perform their first American live show.

Set List:

JUDEA
VANGUARD
-MC-
TRUE
Ambivalence
Requiem
-MC-
Cradle
-MC-
Orleans no Shoujo
DECIDE
liquid
-MC-
Owari no nai Sekai
(Encore) RESONANCE

This SimpleViewer gallery requires Macromedia Flash. Please open this post in your browser or get Macromedia Flash here.
This is a WPSimpleViewerGallery

[interview] RAMPANT – Rock Music for Kicking Down Doors

Tuesday, April 12th, 2011 by Kathy Chee
Interview by Dave Cirone

Osaka-based hard-rock band RAMPANT made their American debut at Tekkoshocon IX in Pittsburgh, PA. Playing for an audience of over 900 (the highest in the event’s history), the band delivered a 11-song set from their two latest releases, Choice of Life and BLOSSOM.

A regular performance partner of exist†trace and Dazzle Vision in Japan, RAMPANT’s vocalist Hiroko uses her equally-effective scream in just a handful of tracks, holding it back for just the right moment like a knock-out punch. Hiroko is both feminine and tough, a necessary combination to fit in with a band of male musicians who, though outwardly playful, are very serious about kicking everyone’s ass and making their own sound.

During performance, it’s Atsushi (lead guitar) and Tomoya (rhythm guitar) who make a point of regularly stepping over the stage monitors to connect with the audience. Kei (bass) is the most relaxed presence on stage, sticking close to drummer KA+U (a stylized version of “Katsu”), whose regular hobby of weight-training helps him punish the drum kit mercilessly during the hour-long show.

For this interview, we gathered in the Wyndham Grand Hotel early in the following morning. Though physically tired from the show and the solid hour of autograph signings, there’s still a glow on each member’s face. It’s a mixture of relief and amazement, and everyone’s ready to talk about music.

purple SKY: Looking at the titles of your three CD releases — Chain, Choice of Life, and BLOSSOM — it seems that the English words form a theme of forward progression: captivity transitioning into freedom. Is that correct?
Atsushi: (immediately) No connection.

Hiroko: (laughs) That was so fast!

KA+U: There’s a specific meaning for each title, a specific way it connects to the songs on the album. But we didn’t try to link them.

Tomoya: The first mini-album Chain — “chain” means like a bond, not like a prisoner. (more…)

[review] TWIN GATE by exist†trace

Tuesday, November 9th, 2010 by Jessica_Hodgins

All-girl visual kei band exist†trace follow up the success of previous releases with their first full length album TWIN GATE. Containing five new songs and five previous single tracks, TWIN GATE is dark and powerful, expressing exist†trace’s world view. Jyou’s clear, strong alto breaks through the heavy guitars to vocalize the pain and suffering of existence.

“Orléans no Shoujo” (The Maid of Orléans) is a song about Joan of Arc that may mirror how exist†trace must feel being a successful all-female visual kei band in a male-dominated industry. In “Neverland” Jyou sings about flying away into the sky and into an eternal land; her haunting vocals paint allusions to Peter Pan that are filled with longing.

The heaviest tracks come back-to-back. “RESONANCE” and “VANGUARD” support the middle of the album with frantic drums and death screams. These are followed by mid-tempo rock tracks that showcase exist†trace’s versatility as they move away from the death vocals and metal.

TWIN GATE shows exist†trace’s maturation into a well-rounded band experimenting with pop and alt-rock. Polished production adds depth to the old and new tracks that should appeal to both current fans and hopefully make a lot of new ones on their upcoming Japan-wide one-man tour, and their first live in America at Sakura-Con in April 2011.

exist†trace Official Website – http://www.exist-trace.com/
exist†trace on JapanFiles – http://www.japanfiles.com/existtrace
  • Purple SKY is a new media site for writers and artists focused on creatively delivering content about Japanese music, the scenes and the lifestyle.

  • latest comments

  • CD JAPAN

  • latest posts

  • Categories

  • tag cloud

    album review an cafe anime cocco dir en grey exist trace exist†trace Far East To East Showcase gackt Gelatine girugamesh gothic lolita hyde indie interview irving plaza j-pop j-rock J-Summit japanese music japanfiles Lilac lolita luna sea miyavi new album new york New York Anime Fest New York City NYAF nyc Otakon punk reviews sakura con Sony Superglorious Tokyo vamps victoria goldenberg visual kei vk Webster Hall xjapan zazen boys
  • archive

  • Latest Posts  |   All Categories  |   All Tags  |   Rock  |   Indie  |   VK  |   Pop  |   Photos  |   Video  |   Press Releases  |  

    Staff Bios  |   Subscribe to Posts  |   Work for Us  |   Advertise with Us  |   Contact Us  |  

    purple SKY is proudly powered by WordPress
    Entries (RSS) and Comments (RSS).

    Copyright Purple Penguin Productions LLC. purple SKY is a registered trademark.