Band of the Week: BUCK-TICK

Founded in 1983 by Hisashi Imai, who didn't actually play any instruments at the time, but his friend Yutaka Higuchi did. He played bass, so both friends started practicing with Imai on guitar. It didn't take long for Hidehiko Hoshino to join as a second guitarist, and finally Araki became their vocalist.

BUCK-TICK (pronounced BAKKU CHIKKU) are widely considered the founding fathers of Visual Kei as a genre (along with bands like X-Japan and Luna:Sea). I personally feel they also implement elements typical to our western hard rock (like Deep Purple, Alice Cooper etc), while still maintaining their very distinct sound.

They have been through a lot since those early days of formation, so here's a short overview of how they evolved over 30 years.

1983-1985: Formation. After Imai got a lot better at playing the guitar, they had to let Araki go, in favour of Sakurai. The drummer position was taken up by Yagami, marking the last change in line-up to date. Between 1985 and 1987 they were independent, working normal jobs during the day and practicing and performing at night. In 1987 they released their first full album, and the rest, as they say is history.

Or is it? These guys are still standing strong within the scene, not quite planning to release their tight grasp on modern-day Japanese rock music any time soon.

The idea that a visionary like Imai, who didn't have any musical background, managed to realize his dream against all odds is in and of itself a feat worth applauding.

Of course, this is just BUCK-TICK in a nutshell, to truly understand them, their views, and (let's face it) their magic, you'll have to experience their music..

Official Website: http://buck-tick.com/

Official Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/BUCKTICK_INFO