SEIKIMA-II
Encyclopedia
is a Japan
ese heavy metal
band formed by guitarist Damian Hamada in 1982.
According to the mythology created by the band, Seikima-II is a group of "Akuma" (demon race), from the futuristic hyper-evolved dimension "Makai", that are preaching a religion, in order to propagate Satan
through the use of heavy metal music. Each member is a demon of a different hierarchical class, with His Excellency Demon Kogure
being leader of the "Akuma" and His Majesty Damian Hamada being the "Crown Prince of Hell". In accordance to the prophecy and after completing their world conquest, the band disbanded at the end of the century on December 31, 1999 at 23:59:59.
However, the band has had two separate limited reunions since their disbandment. One in 2005, celebrating their 20th anniversary, and another in 2010, celebrating their 25th anniversary with the release of their albums Akuma Nativity "Songs of the Sword" and Akuma Relativity, and their first ever world tour. As a part of the North American leg of their 2010 world tour, Seikima-II headlined A-Kon 21
, in Dallas, Texas
. They also made an appearance at Japan Expo 2010
in Paris, France
, and Viva Korea Rock Festival in Seoul, South Korea
.
Seikima-II was formed in late December 1982 by guitarist Damian Hamada while he was attending the Waseda University
Folk Song Club (WFS). The original lineup included His Excellency Demon Kogure on vocals, Zod Hoshijima on bass and Ace Shimizu on drums. The band was known for their Kabuki
-inspired makeup and flamboyant outfits. Although the exact date is unknown, Damian Hamada left the band soon after its formation, but remained a respected founder and songwriter throughout their career. He was replaced on guitar by drummer Ace Shimizu.
In 1983, two new members had joined the band's lineup. Zeed Iijima replaced Ace Shimizu on the drums. Another member by the name of Majo (witch) Ryoko became the new support keyboardist. That year, the band had its first live performance (the band's concerts are generally referred to as "black masses") playing a series of small gigs. They gained popularity among metal fans for their heavy music style and unique appearance. Later that year, Ryoko left the band and new member Giantonio Babayashi joined as a second guitarist.
In 1984, Seikima-II continued to play small gigs at various concert halls. Later that year, they passed an audition for the CBS Sony Japan
label. Around that same time, Giantonio Babayashi left, causing their debut on CBS Sony to be delayed.
1985 marked the year in which the band’s biggest lineup change would occur. A new second guitarist, Gandhara Sangeria Tigris-Euphrates Kaneko, replaced Giantonio. Drummer Zeed Iijima decided to finally leave the band. He was temporarily replaced by the new drummer named Jagy Furukawa. Gandhara soon left the group and Jagy also soon followed. At this point the band was lacking in both a second guitarist and a drummer. They soon discovered guitarist Jail O’hashi and drummer Raiden Yuzawa, who would both go on being part of the first well-known lineup. Later in September of that same year, the band released their first full length album, Seikima-II ~ Akuma ga Kitarite Heavy Metal (roughly: Seikima-II - Devils are Coming with Heavy Metal). The album received mixed reviews by critics, but became very popular among Japanese heavy metal fans. The album exceeded 100,000 in sales, a first for any Japanese heavy metal album in history.
In 1986 they would go on to release their second major album, The End of the Century. The album’s name was also the meaning behind Seikima-II (seikimatsu), as according to them, they were destined to disband at the end of the century (meaning the year 1999). Later that same year they released their third album, Jigoku Yori ai wo Komete (From Hell with Love). This was followed by their first major live concert called "The Great Black Mass Tour" held on December 24, 1986. At the end of that year bassist Zod, who was one of the original members, would finally leave the band. That same year, a game was released for the Famicom based on the band, under the title Seikima II Akuma no Gyakushū!
(lit. Demon's Counterattack). The game was re-released for the MSX2
in the following year.
One year later, in 1987, guitarist Jail O'hashi also decided to leave the band. He abandoned his "band name" and would later be recognized as Takashi "Jam" O'Hashi, playing in the American/Japanese hard rock group, Cats in Boots, and in his own band, the Takashi O'Hashi Project, although he would go by "Jail O'Hashi" while playing with Seikima-II at future concerts. Later bassist Xenon Ishikawa and guitarist Sgt. Luke Takamura III joined the band to form the most well known lineup. That same year the band released their Big Time Changes album. This album brought about a change in the bands music style by mixing heavy metal with hard rock. Here also for the first time, Luke Takamura takes on the role as more of a lead guitarist and switching off, while Ace Shimizu is heard playing more rhythm guitar. In 1988 they continued their experimentation with other genres on the album, The Outer Mission. With this album they experimented with a fusion of heavy metal, progressive rock and even some jazz music to add for an interesting new sound. Regardless of these changes they continued being praised by heavy metal fans while also receiving attention from the general public.
After releasing their next album, Yuugai (You Guy!) in 1991, they began playing their first overseas concerts in surrounding Asian countries and in Europe, most notably England and Spain. Later in 1992, they followed up by releasing their heaviest album yet, Kyoufu no Restaurant (The Frightful Restaurant). The album was a drastic change in style from the last few albums while keeping to their heavy metal roots; they combined dark, Satanic lyrics with heavy music.
Their next album, Ponk!!, released in 1994, brought about even more change from the bands past style. This album combined heavy metal with folk rock music and more ballade songs. The album was produced at Abbey Road Studios
in London
, England
when the band was living there for a short time. They showed this through their new appearance and tried to show their life in London through photos used for the album booklet.
In 1996, the band returned to its heavy metal roots when they released their next full-length album, Mephistopheles no Shouzou (A Portrait of Mephistopheles). Also for the first time, they left the CBS Sony label and were signed to BMG Japan. The album was a return to their heavier sound while also having elements of power metal and traditional metal. The move to BMG also made a noticeable difference in the sound quality of their following albums. In 1997 the album News was released, followed by Move in 1998. Both albums bring about a new digital sound combining various styles with heavy metal.
In 1999, their final album, Living Legend, was released. The album is considered to be one of Seikima-II's heaviest albums. They kept true to their roots and fans consider it to be a proper final chapter in the band’s history before finally disbanding on December 31, 1999, at 23:59:59. Their final concert was called "The Black Mass Final 3 Nights", which was part of a three day concert lasting from December 29–31. The concert was separated into three days called "The Theatrical Day", "The Satan All Star's Day" (on this night every former member and supporting member that was ever in the band performed, except Giantonio Babayashi and
Gandhara Sangeria Tigris-Euphrates Kaneko, who sent video messages), "The Doomsday", which at the end, the band is seen disappearing into a portal of light leaving the stage and finishing their 14 year career.
After disbanding in 1999, the band each member has continued to have strong solo careers. Demon Kogure has been a solo artist since the early 90’s and still continues to perform and release new material. Ace Shimizu has been involved in his own two piece band called Face to Ace. Luke Takamura later formed his hard rock band called Canta with Raiden Yuzawa. Xenon Ishikawa has been involved in the band RX with Raiden and ex-Seikima-II support keyboardist Yuichi Matsuzaki.
In late 2005 Seikima-II held two different kinds of special reunion tours in Japan for their 20th anniversary. The first tour included guitarist Jail O’hashi, bassist Zod Hoshijima and enka
singer Suizenji Kiyoko as special guests. The reunion tours were both very well received and were completely sold out within a short period of time. Since then they have released two live albums which were recorded from both tours. The second live album included a special third bonus CD which included 6 new songs written by the band.
In 2010 Seikima-II reunited to celebrate their 25th anniversary and to perform a world tour entitled, "Intercontinental Black Mass Tour". It was announced that guitarist Ace Shimizu, an original member of the band, would not be taking part and instead Jail O'Hashi would rejoin the group. On June 6 they held their first "black mass" in America at A-Kon in Dallas, Texas. On July 4 they held their second "black mass" in Europe when they visited Paris, France for the Japan Expo
. On September 3 and 4 they performed in Korea at the "Viva! Korea Rock Festival", which was broadcast on TV.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
band formed by guitarist Damian Hamada in 1982.
According to the mythology created by the band, Seikima-II is a group of "Akuma" (demon race), from the futuristic hyper-evolved dimension "Makai", that are preaching a religion, in order to propagate Satan
Satan
Satan , "the opposer", is the title of various entities, both human and divine, who challenge the faith of humans in the Hebrew Bible...
through the use of heavy metal music. Each member is a demon of a different hierarchical class, with His Excellency Demon Kogure
Demon Kogure
, previously known as Demon Kogure, is a Japanese musician, entertainer, journalist and sumo commentator. He is the frontman of the heavy metal band Seikima-II, and is known for always working entirely in character....
being leader of the "Akuma" and His Majesty Damian Hamada being the "Crown Prince of Hell". In accordance to the prophecy and after completing their world conquest, the band disbanded at the end of the century on December 31, 1999 at 23:59:59.
However, the band has had two separate limited reunions since their disbandment. One in 2005, celebrating their 20th anniversary, and another in 2010, celebrating their 25th anniversary with the release of their albums Akuma Nativity "Songs of the Sword" and Akuma Relativity, and their first ever world tour. As a part of the North American leg of their 2010 world tour, Seikima-II headlined A-Kon 21
Project A-Kon
A-Kon, formerly known as Project: A-Kon, is a three day anime convention held annually in Dallas, Texas usually on the last weekend of May. First held in 1990 with just 380 people in attendance, A-Kon is North America's longest running national anime convention.-Departments:A-Kon consists of...
, in Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
. They also made an appearance at Japan Expo 2010
Japan Expo
Japan Expo is a convention on Japanese popular culture, taking place in Paris, France, although it has branched out into a partnership festival Kultima and expanded to include some European and US pop culture as well...
in Paris, France
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, and Viva Korea Rock Festival in Seoul, South Korea
Seoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
.
History
The band's name, which literally means the "Holy Devouring Demon II", is a play on the term or "the end of the century". It is also an abbreviation of the phrase .Seikima-II was formed in late December 1982 by guitarist Damian Hamada while he was attending the Waseda University
Waseda University
, abbreviated as , is one of the most prestigious private universities in Japan and Asia. Its main campuses are located in the northern part of Shinjuku, Tokyo. Founded in 1882 as Tokyo Senmon Gakko, the institution was renamed "Waseda University" in 1902. It is known for its liberal climate...
Folk Song Club (WFS). The original lineup included His Excellency Demon Kogure on vocals, Zod Hoshijima on bass and Ace Shimizu on drums. The band was known for their Kabuki
Kabuki
is classical Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for the stylization of its drama and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers.The individual kanji characters, from left to right, mean sing , dance , and skill...
-inspired makeup and flamboyant outfits. Although the exact date is unknown, Damian Hamada left the band soon after its formation, but remained a respected founder and songwriter throughout their career. He was replaced on guitar by drummer Ace Shimizu.
In 1983, two new members had joined the band's lineup. Zeed Iijima replaced Ace Shimizu on the drums. Another member by the name of Majo (witch) Ryoko became the new support keyboardist. That year, the band had its first live performance (the band's concerts are generally referred to as "black masses") playing a series of small gigs. They gained popularity among metal fans for their heavy music style and unique appearance. Later that year, Ryoko left the band and new member Giantonio Babayashi joined as a second guitarist.
In 1984, Seikima-II continued to play small gigs at various concert halls. Later that year, they passed an audition for the CBS Sony Japan
Sony Music Entertainment Japan
is Sony's music arm in Japan. SMEJ is directly owned by Sony Corporation and independent from the United States-based Sony Music Entertainment due to its strength in the Japanese music industry....
label. Around that same time, Giantonio Babayashi left, causing their debut on CBS Sony to be delayed.
1985 marked the year in which the band’s biggest lineup change would occur. A new second guitarist, Gandhara Sangeria Tigris-Euphrates Kaneko, replaced Giantonio. Drummer Zeed Iijima decided to finally leave the band. He was temporarily replaced by the new drummer named Jagy Furukawa. Gandhara soon left the group and Jagy also soon followed. At this point the band was lacking in both a second guitarist and a drummer. They soon discovered guitarist Jail O’hashi and drummer Raiden Yuzawa, who would both go on being part of the first well-known lineup. Later in September of that same year, the band released their first full length album, Seikima-II ~ Akuma ga Kitarite Heavy Metal (roughly: Seikima-II - Devils are Coming with Heavy Metal). The album received mixed reviews by critics, but became very popular among Japanese heavy metal fans. The album exceeded 100,000 in sales, a first for any Japanese heavy metal album in history.
In 1986 they would go on to release their second major album, The End of the Century. The album’s name was also the meaning behind Seikima-II (seikimatsu), as according to them, they were destined to disband at the end of the century (meaning the year 1999). Later that same year they released their third album, Jigoku Yori ai wo Komete (From Hell with Love). This was followed by their first major live concert called "The Great Black Mass Tour" held on December 24, 1986. At the end of that year bassist Zod, who was one of the original members, would finally leave the band. That same year, a game was released for the Famicom based on the band, under the title Seikima II Akuma no Gyakushū!
Seikima II Akuma no Gyakushū!
is a multiplatform video game that was released in Japan in 1986. The original manufacturer's suggested retail price of the Family Computer version of the game was ¥4,900 .-Summary:...
(lit. Demon's Counterattack). The game was re-released for the MSX2
MSX
MSX was the name of a standardized home computer architecture in the 1980s conceived by Kazuhiko Nishi, then Vice-president at Microsoft Japan and Director at ASCII Corporation...
in the following year.
One year later, in 1987, guitarist Jail O'hashi also decided to leave the band. He abandoned his "band name" and would later be recognized as Takashi "Jam" O'Hashi, playing in the American/Japanese hard rock group, Cats in Boots, and in his own band, the Takashi O'Hashi Project, although he would go by "Jail O'Hashi" while playing with Seikima-II at future concerts. Later bassist Xenon Ishikawa and guitarist Sgt. Luke Takamura III joined the band to form the most well known lineup. That same year the band released their Big Time Changes album. This album brought about a change in the bands music style by mixing heavy metal with hard rock. Here also for the first time, Luke Takamura takes on the role as more of a lead guitarist and switching off, while Ace Shimizu is heard playing more rhythm guitar. In 1988 they continued their experimentation with other genres on the album, The Outer Mission. With this album they experimented with a fusion of heavy metal, progressive rock and even some jazz music to add for an interesting new sound. Regardless of these changes they continued being praised by heavy metal fans while also receiving attention from the general public.
After releasing their next album, Yuugai (You Guy!) in 1991, they began playing their first overseas concerts in surrounding Asian countries and in Europe, most notably England and Spain. Later in 1992, they followed up by releasing their heaviest album yet, Kyoufu no Restaurant (The Frightful Restaurant). The album was a drastic change in style from the last few albums while keeping to their heavy metal roots; they combined dark, Satanic lyrics with heavy music.
Their next album, Ponk!!, released in 1994, brought about even more change from the bands past style. This album combined heavy metal with folk rock music and more ballade songs. The album was produced at Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios is a recording studio located at 3 Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London, England. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of British music company EMI, its present owner...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
when the band was living there for a short time. They showed this through their new appearance and tried to show their life in London through photos used for the album booklet.
In 1996, the band returned to its heavy metal roots when they released their next full-length album, Mephistopheles no Shouzou (A Portrait of Mephistopheles). Also for the first time, they left the CBS Sony label and were signed to BMG Japan. The album was a return to their heavier sound while also having elements of power metal and traditional metal. The move to BMG also made a noticeable difference in the sound quality of their following albums. In 1997 the album News was released, followed by Move in 1998. Both albums bring about a new digital sound combining various styles with heavy metal.
In 1999, their final album, Living Legend, was released. The album is considered to be one of Seikima-II's heaviest albums. They kept true to their roots and fans consider it to be a proper final chapter in the band’s history before finally disbanding on December 31, 1999, at 23:59:59. Their final concert was called "The Black Mass Final 3 Nights", which was part of a three day concert lasting from December 29–31. The concert was separated into three days called "The Theatrical Day", "The Satan All Star's Day" (on this night every former member and supporting member that was ever in the band performed, except Giantonio Babayashi and
Gandhara Sangeria Tigris-Euphrates Kaneko, who sent video messages), "The Doomsday", which at the end, the band is seen disappearing into a portal of light leaving the stage and finishing their 14 year career.
After disbanding in 1999, the band each member has continued to have strong solo careers. Demon Kogure has been a solo artist since the early 90’s and still continues to perform and release new material. Ace Shimizu has been involved in his own two piece band called Face to Ace. Luke Takamura later formed his hard rock band called Canta with Raiden Yuzawa. Xenon Ishikawa has been involved in the band RX with Raiden and ex-Seikima-II support keyboardist Yuichi Matsuzaki.
In late 2005 Seikima-II held two different kinds of special reunion tours in Japan for their 20th anniversary. The first tour included guitarist Jail O’hashi, bassist Zod Hoshijima and enka
Enka
is a popular Japanese music genre considered to resemble traditional Japanese music stylistically. Modern enka, however, is a relatively recent musical form which arose in the context of such postwar expressions of modern Japanese nonmaterial nationalism as nihonjinron, while adopting a more...
singer Suizenji Kiyoko as special guests. The reunion tours were both very well received and were completely sold out within a short period of time. Since then they have released two live albums which were recorded from both tours. The second live album included a special third bonus CD which included 6 new songs written by the band.
In 2010 Seikima-II reunited to celebrate their 25th anniversary and to perform a world tour entitled, "Intercontinental Black Mass Tour". It was announced that guitarist Ace Shimizu, an original member of the band, would not be taking part and instead Jail O'Hashi would rejoin the group. On June 6 they held their first "black mass" in America at A-Kon in Dallas, Texas. On July 4 they held their second "black mass" in Europe when they visited Paris, France for the Japan Expo
Japan Expo
Japan Expo is a convention on Japanese popular culture, taking place in Paris, France, although it has branched out into a partnership festival Kultima and expanded to include some European and US pop culture as well...
. On September 3 and 4 they performed in Korea at the "Viva! Korea Rock Festival", which was broadcast on TV.
Members
- His Excellency Demon Kogure/Demon KakkaDemon Kogure, previously known as Demon Kogure, is a Japanese musician, entertainer, journalist and sumo commentator. He is the frontman of the heavy metal band Seikima-II, and is known for always working entirely in character....
– vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
(1982–1999, 2005, 2010) - Empire Magistrate Jail O' Hashi – guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
(1985–1987, 2010) - Staff General Luke TakamuraLuke Takamurais a Japanese musician and songwriter. He is best known as guitarist of the heavy metal band Seikima-II from 1987 to 1999. In 1995 he joined the short-lived supergroup Kings, with Shuichi Aoiki on vocals, Taiji Sawada on bass and Satoshi "Joe" Miyawaki on drums...
III – guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
(1987–1999, 2005, 2010) - Doctor Xenon Ishikawa – bassBass (instrument)Bass describes musical instruments that produce tones in the low-pitched range. They belong to different families of instruments and can cover a wide range of musical roles...
(1987–1999, 2005, 2010) - His Imperial Highness Raiden Yuzawa – drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
(1985–1999, 2005, 2010)
Former members
- Captain Ace Shimizu – guitar (1982–1999, 2005), drums (1982)
- Zod Hoshijima – bass (1982–1986)
- Jagy Furukawa – drums (1985)
- Gandhara Sangeria Tigris-Euphrates Kaneko – guitar (1985)
- Zeed Iijima – drums (1983–1985)
- Giantonio Babayashi – guitar (1983–1984)
- His Majesty Damian Hamada – guitar (1982)
See also
- Formula One sponsorship liveries (Brabham)