Oreskaband

Oreskaband (オレスカバンド, Oresukabando, stylized as ORESKABAND) is an all-female ska band from Sakai, Japan. As well as performing regularly within Japan, they have toured in North and South America, as well as Europe.[1]

Oreskaband
Oreskaband in Austin, Texas, during SXSW Asia's JapanNite US tour.
Background information
Also known asOreskaband
OriginSakai, Japan
GenresJ-ska, ska punk, pop punk, 2-tone
Years active2003-present
LabelsSony Music Japan
Websiteoreskaband.com
MembersiCas
Tae
Hayami
Add
CC
Past membersMorico
Saki (hiatus)
Tomi

The band name, "ore ska band," literally translates as "we're (a) ska band." While "ore" is normally considered a masculine pronoun and an informal way to say "I" in Japanese,[2] and the suffix "-tachi" is added to personal nouns when emphasizing that they are plural, in this context the term "ore" means something more along the lines of "we fellows." The choice of "ore" is also one of gender play, as the band would typically appear wearing boys' school uniform in their early videos and concerts.

History

Oreskaband began in 2003 when the members were still in middle school. Ikasu saw Tae playing in a local band and asked her to form a new one with her and some of their other friends.[3] They self-produced their first album, Penpal, in 2005 and were signed by Sony Music in 2006 while they were still in high school.

The band received media attention from their appearance in a commercial advertising the popular Japanese snack Pocky. In July 2006, their major debut EP Ore was released and a month later, they appeared at the Fuji Rock Festival attracting 1,000 attendees, a record for a new artist. In March 2007, the band members graduated from high school and toured in the United States appearing in Austin, Los Angeles, and San Francisco as part of the Japan Nite tour.[4] In April 2007, their song, "Tsumasaki" (爪先, Fingertips), was featured as the 11th ending for the anime Bleach. In May, they released their first full-length album, WAO!!. They performed at Anime Expo in Long Beach, California in July 2007 and participated in the 2008 Vans Warped Tour. Oreskaband starred in the film Lock and Roll Forever, which was set for a 2008 release in Japan. Despite the involvement of several individuals associated with the High School Musical franchise, including producers Bill Borden and Barry Rosenbush, screenwriter Peter Barsocchini and actor Lucas Grabeel in a starring role, as well as a cameo appearance from Joan Jett, the film's Japanese release never materialised, and following the US premiere it did not resurface until 2013 as a direct-to-DVD release in Scandinavia.[5][6] The band released their second full-length album, Color in 2010, and the single "Jitensha" (自転車, Bicycle) was featured as the 13th ending song of Naruto: Shippuden.

In 2013 the band were featured on AKB48 member Mayu Watanabe's fourth solo single, "Rappa Renshūchū".[7][8] In 2015, they performed at that year's Otakon convention in the USA. In 2016, long-time saxophonist and keyboardist Morico left the band to start a family, and the band released their third full-length album Slogan the same year, with new saxophonist ADD.[9] This configuration of the band's horn section made a guest appearance on The Autocratics' 2017 self-titled album, including the duet "On the Rainy Night", which featured vocals from iCas.[10]

In December 2018 it was announced that trumpeter Saki would be taking time off from Oreskaband to pursue a songwriting career; trumpeter Hisae Ōtomari took her place as a support member from January until October 2019.[11][12] At the band's Stay Irie, Go Rudy event in October 2019, they announced the new addition of keyboardist CC to their lineup as a full member.[13] This lineup would prove short-lived, as bassist Tomi announced in February 2020 that she would be leaving to pursue other musical endeavours, following a final pair of performances with the band in Tokyo and their hometown of Sakai, Osaka Prefecture scheduled for that April.[14] The COVID-19 pandemic led to the postponement of both concerts until August.[15] Owing to the continued impact of the pandemic, the performances were ultimately livestreamed without an audience present, with Luck Life appearing as the support band for the Tokyo concert, while Gelugugu were scheduled to support Oreskaband at the Sakai concert, but cancelled their appearance due to the pandemic.[16][17] Tomi's role was filled in subsequent performances by support member Aki Kawano, and the band announced that November that their lineup would be further bolstered in their December 2020 live performance by support member Natsuka Emi on trumpet, bringing the onstage lineup to seven members for the first time in the band's history, and ending the trumpet's absence from Oreskaband's horn section since CC had joined the band the previous year.[18]

Members
  • iCas - vocals and guitar (2003-, credited as "Ikasu" on releases prior to Hot Number)
  • Hayami - trombone (2003-, credited as "Leader" on releases prior to "Jitensha")
  • Tae - drums (2003-, credited as "Tae-san" on releases prior to Color)
  • ADD - tenor saxophone (2016-)
  • CC - keyboard (2019-)

Former Members

  • Morico - tenor saxophone and keyboard (2003-2016)
  • Saki - trumpet (2003-2018)
  • Tomi - bass and vocals (2003-2020)

Support Members

  • Hisae Ōtomari - trumpet (2019)
  • Aki Kawano - bass (2020)
  • Natsuka Emi - trumpet (2020)


Discography
Oreskaband performing on Vans Warped Tour in 2008

Singles
  • ''Almond'' (November 1, 2006)
  • ''Wasuremono" / "Chuck'' (March 7, 2007)
  • ''Tsumasaki'' (May 9, 2007)
  • ''Jitensha'' (April 27, 2010)
  • "NEXSPOT" / "¡Fiebre!" (March 9, 2016)
  • "Groovin' Work Stylee" (November 3, 2017)
  • ''Itokashi'' (October 10, 2018)
  • ''Egao no Manma'' (April 17, 2019) (Begin cover)

Albums and EPs
  • Penpal (ペンパル) (independent) (2005)
  • Ore (俺) (July 19, 2006)
  • WAO!! (May 23, 2007)
  • What a Wonderful World Vol.1 (October 22, 2008)
  • What a Wonderful World Vol.2 (April 15, 2009)
  • Color (November 24, 2010)
  • Hot Number (February 27, 2013)
  • Best [2003-2014] (February 26, 2014)
  • Carry On! (Independent) (September 10, 2014)
  • Slogan (November 23, 2016)

References
  1. "About". ORESKABAND Official website (in Japanese). Retrieved 2019-03-19.
  2. 8.1. Pronouns sf.airnet.ne.jp Retrieved on July 29, 2010
  3. J-Pop World interview
  4. "Japan Nite US TOUR 2007". www.sxsw-asia.sakura.ne.jp. Retrieved 2020-05-24.
  5. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1135938/ "Lock and Roll Forever, Internet Movie Database (iMDB), May 20, 2008.
  6. "Osaka's all-girl Oreskaband picked for Hollywood movie set in Japan", Asahi Shimbun (IHT), May 2, 2007.
  7. "Watanabe Mayu reveals the cover art for her 4th solo single". Tokyohive.com. June 17, 2013.
  8. "AKB48まゆゆ オレスカとのキュートな共演ビデオ公開". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). 2013-06-20. Retrieved 2013-07-10.
  9. Slogan (booklet). Oreskaband. Tokyo: Victor Music Arts, inc. 2016. VMAN015.CS1 maint: others (link)
  10. The Autocratics (booklet). The Autocratics. Tokyo: Ska in the World Records. 2017. SIWI262.CS1 maint: others (link)
  11. ORESKABAND (28 December 2018). "いつも応援してくださっている皆さまへ". ORESKABAND「ORE-BLOG」 (in Japanese and English). Retrieved 2019-03-19.
  12. ORESKABAND [@ORESKA_Official] (26 January 2019). "2019年が始まって1本目のライブで..." (Tweet) (in Japanese) – via Twitter.
  13. ORESKABAND [@ORESKA_Official] (27 October 2019). "そして、Stay Irie, Go Rudyの会場で発表しましたが新メンバー、CC" (Tweet) (in Japanese) – via Twitter.
  14. ORESKABAND (1 February 2020). "Tomi脱退のお知らせ". ORESKABAND「ORE-BLOG」 (in Japanese and English). Retrieved 2020-02-06.
  15. ORESKABAND (2 April 2020). ""サヨナラホームラン！ 〜君の瞳に乾杯〜" の振替公演および払戻について". ORESKABAND「ORE-BLOG」 (in Japanese). Retrieved 2020-04-02.
  16. ORESKABAND (7 July 2020). "サヨナラホームラン〜君の瞳に乾杯〜　お茶の間ライブ（無観客ライブ生配信）について". ORESKABAND「ORE-BLOG」 (in Japanese). Retrieved 2020-08-07.
  17. ORESKABAND [@ORESKA_Official] (27 July 2020). "【お知らせ】" (Tweet) (in Japanese) – via Twitter.
  18. ORESKABAND [@ORESKA_Official] (24 November 2020). "🥂BIG NEWS🥂" (Tweet) (in Japanese) – via Twitter.
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