Oreskaband, an all-female Ska Japanese music group. Image courtesy of Otakon

MUSIC NEWS: Oreskaband, an all-female music group from Ska Japanese will thrill fans at Otakon 2015 Sunday Concert

BY KAZAD

Cover of Oreskaband’s Jitensha Album. Image courtesy of Oreskaband

BALTIMORE, MD. – Oreskaband, an all-female Ska Japanese music group will perform this year’s Sunday concert at Otakon. The group includes iCas (vocal/guitar); Tae (drums); Tomi (bass); Saki (trumpet); Hayami (trombone); and Morico (sax/keyboard). The female music group joins the long list of music stars who have thrilled music fans during the Sunday concert at Otakon. Last year, Yoshiki and X Japan elated fans.

Oreskaband was formed in 2003 while the members were still students at a junior high school in Sakai City, Osaka. Even at that very young age, the girls were focused on their music careers. In 2006, their final year of high school, they released their first mini-album.  Ore was an instant success, putting the group in the limelight.

While basking in the success of their first mini-album, the band continued to gain ground by winning over young Japanese fans. In 2007, Oreskaband was at the South by Southwest (SXSW), one of the largest music events in the world. Fans could not get enough of the band. With unusual guitar, bass, and drums sound mixed with brass and sax families, the band showed why it is the darling of the Japanese music world.

Soon after the band’s outstanding performance at the SXSW, the group released their first full album, WAO!!, and their first full U.S. album, Oreskaband. Oreskaband celebrates the Japanese music group gain in the United States. In 2008, the band performed at Warped Tour ’08, the largest punk-rock festival in North America. Relentless, they performed in 46 cities, becoming the first Japanese band to participate in all cities of the tour.

Oreskaband Mini-Album

To memorialize the adventure across 46 cities in the United States, the band in 2008 released its mini-album What a Wonderful World Vol. 1, alongside its Warped Tour documentary, 46 Oreskaband-Warped Tour 2008. Continuing in their glory in the music world, Oreskaband in 2009 released their third mini-album What a Wonderful Word Vol. 2. It was followed by an online-only release of the single, Jet Wave.

2009 was an exciting time in the band’s development. In addition to releasing albums that excited fans, the group also toured, extensively performing at Rock in Japan Festival 2009, Summer Sonic 2009, Set Stock ’09, and other festivals over the course of the summer. In 2010, they released a second full album, Color, and performed at Rock in Japan Festival 2010 and Rising Sun Rock Festival 2010 in Ezo.

Oreskaband YouTube Music Videos

Oreskaband is a sensation on its YouTube channel. On YouTube, music videos of the band performing are gaining a lot of attention and followership from audiences across the globe. Video of tracks like Tsumasaki, Pinocchio, Hot Number, Carry On, Wonderful World, and Jitensha (Naruto Shippuuden Ending) have more than 5 million views. At the top of the list, however, is Jitensha, a track that combines rock with drums and heavy horns. Many fans are also listening to Oreskaband’s music online.

Since it was first founded, this Japanese female band has continued to grow. In 2013, the band released its fourth mini-album, Hot Number, and toured in the U.S. for the first time in five years. The group also performed at Anime Friends 2013 in Brazil.

Hopes are that when Oreskaband gets on stage during the Sunday concert at Otakon 2015, it will not only trill their fans but also gain greater popularity among young Americans, who are becoming addicted to Japanese music.

Baltimore Otakon will be take place from July 24-26 at the Baltimore Convention Center. The convention celebrates Japanese and East Asian popular culture, including Asian culture, anime, manga, video games, and music from the Far East.

Music Video: Oreskaband Jitensha

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