Lonesome_Blue is another very talented Japanese band. They are a very new band with a lot of connections with Lovebites. The only member of the band that I know anything about is the guitarist, Narumi. She was formerly a member of the legendary Destrose, and when Destrose ended she was one of the founders of a band called Disqualia. Unfortunately, Disqualia only lasted a couple of years despite having major talent (including Hazuki now in Nemophila). When I first saw this video, I was very glad to see Narumi in a new band. Lonesome_Blue released their first 5-track EP called First Utterance in June of last year with Victor, the same label as Lovebites. All the music in the EP was written by Mao, the "6th member" of Lovebites and all the lyrics were written by Asami, of course the vocalist of Lovebites. They released their first full album called Second To None in December, 2022 in Japan and February, 2023 overseas. The album includes Face The Fear which is the first track. The music for Face The Fear was written by Mao (he wrote the music for 8 of the 10 songs on the album). The lyrics were written by nana hatori, who use to assist Asami with translating her Lovebites lyrics into English. The lyrics for two other songs on the album were also written by nana hatori. Asami now works with a Japanese American named Ayako Kawai, not only with lyric translation but also with her singing in English. I believe that Asami has improved quite a bit with her English language singing because of Ayako. The lyrics for three of the songs on the album were written by Ayako. When Lovebites tours overseas again, it might very well be with Lonesome_Blue opening for them.
Thanks for the info, Dan! Great to know about the Lovebites connection to this band. As you saw, we greatly enjoyed FTF and look forward to hearing what comes next from them on our request list. Should be fun. Stay tuned! As always, thank you for everything! We truly appreciate it! 🙏
This is my first time hearing them too. I thought I'd like to hear what you guys think. I'm probably going to go and listen to everything I can find today. Nice one! Thanks guys! :-)
That's awesome! Thank you! We look forward to reacting to Lonesome Blue again in the near future. Stay tuned! Thank you kindly for viewing and engaging. Much appreciated! 🙏
Hey Asaf and Itai.. You found another group of extremely talented ladies from Japan.. :) Do some more they are hella good!! I agree with you Itai, sounds like something we have heard before, but much, much better.. The level of musicienship from the Japanese ladies is stella.. For me, really leading the world in great rock and metal music, so much selection and choice Hundreds of great songs between them. I don't really listen to anything else anymore.. I just don't have to. Best wishes to you both from France..
Hi again Grant! Yes, we agree. They are definitely impressive and full of potential. We look forward to covering more of their work in the near future. Stay tuned! And yes, Japan seems to be a never ending source of rock greatness! We are loving it! Thank you kindly for viewing and engaging, as always. Much appreciated and best of wishes from Israel and Australia! 🙏
Hey guys, just found this reaction. Forgive any overlap, here is some background: Narumi Suzuki (known professionally as “Narumi”) is one of Japan's elite guitarists. She was Destrose’ co-lead during that band’s most successful phase, along with Destrose bandleader Minako Nakamura (“Captain Mina”); other bandmates included Miho and Haruna, who went on to found Lovebites, and Marina Hebishii, who founded Mardelas. After leaving Destrose, Narumi co-founded Disqualia with Ibuki. Her co-lead in that band was a very young Hazuki, who is now one of the two lead guitarists in Nemophila. After Disqualia disbanded, Narumi focused on a solo career, which yielded a phenomenal solo EP, “The Seed”, featuring highly technical prog and fusion-style instrumentals. It is worthy of comparisons to some of the great fusion albums of the late 1970’s. Here is the lead track, “Red Rabbit”: th-cam.com/video/cRyCaHjwIgk/w-d-xo.html Narumi also filled in for Toki during Toki’s first maternity leave from Aldious, and was with them for their only North American live appearance to date, an exhibition at NAMM. Narumi has long had a devoted fan following who wanted to see her lead her own band. Their wishes were answered in early 2022, with the debut of her new prog-metal band called Lonesome Blue. Personnel: Drummer Mizuki (x Shinku-Horou), Vocalist Maiko Nomura (a voice actress singing under her own name for the first time) Bassist Yuuki Hirose Based on what they have put out so far, we can say this is yet another killer Japanese band, with Jedi-level musicians at every position. Lonesome_Blue's debut EP “First Utterance” contains five tracks co-composed by Light Bringer keyboardist Mao, with lyrics written by Lovebites frontwoman Asami (another instance of the close and symbiotic relationship among many of Japan’s female metal stars). The song “Parallel World” features a spectacular appearance by Morfonica violinist Ayasa. “Labyrinth” th-cam.com/video/M3V3XIi1c8w/w-d-xo.html “Parallel World” th-cam.com/video/vfT1TM8r16E/w-d-xo.html “The Beginning of the End” th-cam.com/video/7_maTWu7Ycw/w-d-xo.html “Welcome to Heavenly Secret Base” th-cam.com/video/aEdyEEnMTy8-/w-d-xo.html-this is a remarkable fusion of metal with classic Disco. Their new album “Second to None” takes things to an even higher level and adds some strong progressive elements. Most of the songs are cowritten by Mao and a rotating cast of lyricists contributing to the various songs, including vocalist Maiko Nomura.
Lonesome Blue performing at a very high level. The constant reference to bands outside of Japan is to be expected. However if you flip the comparison then things look different. If you are in Japan looking out and your reference is Japanese bands then many Western bands appear to producing to a very predictable formula and don't step outside their genre.
Yes, it seems that Asami is also connected to this band. This makes them even more promising, if such mentors are involved. We look forward to covering more Lonesome Blue songs in the near future. Should be fun! Thank you kindly for viewing and engaging. Much appreciated! 🙏
It's Lovebites Lite! 😅 I find it fascinating how Japanese bands can take even outdated western music genres and give them a whole new modern twist. Lonesome Blue have done this with dance music/disco (with a guitar solo thrown in for good measure) and the result is one of the catchiest tunes I've heard in decades. th-cam.com/video/aEdyEEnMTy8/w-d-xo.html
True. We are definitely looking forward to seeing this band develop further. More Lonesome Blue reactions coming soon. Stay tuned! Thank you kindly for viewing and engaging. Much appreciated! 🙏
In this case it is hard to say which instrument I prefer. They are all awesome. I think that the singer is not giving 150% and therefore she doesn’t sound strained like some singers do. And I think this is clever.
Yes, there is also something nonchalant in her delivery, which actually makes it even cooler! We were quite impressed with this first-time listen and look forward to covering their work again soon. Stay tuned! Thank you kindly for viewing and engaging, Andrea. Always a pleasure! 🙏
That's a great mentor to have! We look forward to seeing more from this band. Definitely a good start! Stay tuned! Thank you kindly for viewing and engaging. Much appreciated! 🙏
I've only heard a couple of songs from LB but you can IMHO definitely hear Mao's influence in their work . I'm not sure that they're good enough ( yet ) to stand out from the crowd - but it's certainly slick and well produced . They come across as being a kind of Nemophila / Lovebites hybrid without quite reaching the heights of either , but I suspect overall they may be quite commercial 🤷♂
I (Itai) definitely agree on many levels, but this is also a great start for this band and they show much promise. The potential is quite high here and with the people involved (Mao, Asami, etc.) I think they will only improve from here, and still, this is a GREAT song! Definitely a commercial sound, I agree. We definitely look forward to hearing more from them and seeing what they come up with in the future. Stay tuned! Thank you kindly for viewing and engaging yet again, Alistair. Always great chatting with you. Much appreciated! 🙏
Narumi has had that hair color since Destrose days, so at least a decade! She’s been in the genre a while. Interesting you mention Nemophila as this group is a supergroup too, only a hybrid with voice / anime performers. The bassist Yuuki blows me away, she’s damn good for a voice actress! This group is in Victor entertainment, same as LOVEBITES, and have some tie-ins with LOVEBITES. Both their EP and their album are top notch. Very true that the people closest to you are often responsible for crapping on your dreams. So true. If you’re a parent or mentor you have to be REALLY careful about that. English culture is especially good at it. 😐
Yes, we believe that the Lovebites connections (Mao, Asami, etc.) means this band is in good hands and have a huge upside. We look forward to finding out more as we go. Stay tuned! As for the hair colour, I (Itai) didn't mean that Narumi is copying anyone, just that it's very popular with females in Japanese music, to the point where it MIGHT not help them stand out anymore, not that I think they need it to stand out anyway, as almost all that we've seen are awesome regardless. As for the "dream crapping" situation... yes, it happens way too often and is unfortunately a fact of life. We've experienced it as artists in the past and still do today. You need a really thick skin to succeed in the arts and the problem is that most artists are sensitive souls and easily affected by such negativity. We hope this behaviour disappears of at least decreases in future. Thank you kindly for viewing and engaging, Allan. Much appreciated! 🙏
Narumi🎸Live with DESTROSE 2012 th-cam.com/video/D6ivt5CCHOE/w-d-xo.html
MIZUKI 🥁Live 2020 th-cam.com/video/w-Eg-4hudd0/w-d-xo.html - Drum cam : th-cam.com/video/Ry5Y55TxAl8/w-d-xo.html
Hirose Yuuki (bass) Nomura Maiko 🎤THE QUEEN OF PURPLE live 2019 th-cam.com/video/DOvimvhme8s/w-d-xo.html
Lonesome_Blue is another very talented Japanese band. They are a very new band with a lot of connections with Lovebites. The only member of the band that I know anything about is the guitarist, Narumi. She was formerly a member of the legendary Destrose, and when Destrose ended she was one of the founders of a band called Disqualia. Unfortunately, Disqualia only lasted a couple of years despite having major talent (including Hazuki now in Nemophila). When I first saw this video, I was very glad to see Narumi in a new band.
Lonesome_Blue released their first 5-track EP called First Utterance in June of last year with Victor, the same label as Lovebites. All the music in the EP was written by Mao, the "6th member" of Lovebites and all the lyrics were written by Asami, of course the vocalist of Lovebites. They released their first full album called Second To None in December, 2022 in Japan and February, 2023 overseas. The album includes Face The Fear which is the first track. The music for Face The Fear was written by Mao (he wrote the music for 8 of the 10 songs on the album). The lyrics were written by nana hatori, who use to assist Asami with translating her Lovebites lyrics into English. The lyrics for two other songs on the album were also written by nana hatori. Asami now works with a Japanese American named Ayako Kawai, not only with lyric translation but also with her singing in English. I believe that Asami has improved quite a bit with her English language singing because of Ayako. The lyrics for three of the songs on the album were written by Ayako. When Lovebites tours overseas again, it might very well be with Lonesome_Blue opening for them.
I'm sorry, but I'm confused. When I was checking the credits, Asami's name was not mentioned anywhere, not even as a co - writer ?
@@danw6048 Gotcha, I was talking about the album....forgot about the EP.
Thanks for the info, Dan! Great to know about the Lovebites connection to this band. As you saw, we greatly enjoyed FTF and look forward to hearing what comes next from them on our request list. Should be fun. Stay tuned!
As always, thank you for everything! We truly appreciate it! 🙏
This is my first time hearing them too. I thought I'd like to hear what you guys think. I'm probably going to go and listen to everything I can find today. Nice one! Thanks guys! :-)
That's awesome! Thank you! We look forward to reacting to Lonesome Blue again in the near future. Stay tuned!
Thank you kindly for viewing and engaging. Much appreciated! 🙏
Great reaction guys thanks for supporting this band.
Thank you for the kind words and for viewing and engaging. We appreciate the support! 🙏
Hey Asaf and Itai.. You found another group of extremely talented ladies from Japan.. :) Do some more they are hella good!! I agree with you Itai, sounds like something we have heard before, but much, much better.. The level of musicienship from the Japanese ladies is stella.. For me, really leading the world in great rock and metal music, so much selection and choice Hundreds of great songs between them. I don't really listen to anything else anymore.. I just don't have to.
Best wishes to you both from France..
Hi again Grant! Yes, we agree. They are definitely impressive and full of potential. We look forward to covering more of their work in the near future. Stay tuned!
And yes, Japan seems to be a never ending source of rock greatness! We are loving it!
Thank you kindly for viewing and engaging, as always. Much appreciated and best of wishes from Israel and Australia! 🙏
@@myindieprodentertainment 👍👍👍
Hey guys, just found this reaction. Forgive any overlap, here is some background:
Narumi Suzuki (known professionally as “Narumi”) is one of Japan's elite guitarists. She was Destrose’ co-lead during that band’s most successful phase, along with Destrose bandleader Minako Nakamura (“Captain Mina”); other bandmates included Miho and Haruna, who went on to found Lovebites, and Marina Hebishii, who founded Mardelas.
After leaving Destrose, Narumi co-founded Disqualia with Ibuki. Her co-lead in that band was a very young Hazuki, who is now one of the two lead guitarists in Nemophila. After Disqualia disbanded, Narumi focused on a solo career, which yielded a phenomenal solo EP, “The Seed”, featuring highly technical prog and fusion-style instrumentals. It is worthy of comparisons to some of the great fusion albums of the late 1970’s. Here is the lead track, “Red Rabbit”: th-cam.com/video/cRyCaHjwIgk/w-d-xo.html
Narumi also filled in for Toki during Toki’s first maternity leave from Aldious, and was with them for their only North American live appearance to date, an exhibition at NAMM.
Narumi has long had a devoted fan following who wanted to see her lead her own band. Their wishes were answered in early 2022, with the debut of her new prog-metal band called Lonesome Blue. Personnel:
Drummer Mizuki (x Shinku-Horou),
Vocalist Maiko Nomura (a voice actress singing under her own name for the first time)
Bassist Yuuki Hirose
Based on what they have put out so far, we can say this is yet another killer Japanese band, with Jedi-level musicians at every position.
Lonesome_Blue's debut EP “First Utterance” contains five tracks co-composed by Light Bringer keyboardist Mao, with lyrics written by Lovebites frontwoman Asami (another instance of the close and symbiotic relationship among many of Japan’s female metal stars). The song “Parallel World” features a spectacular appearance by Morfonica violinist Ayasa.
“Labyrinth” th-cam.com/video/M3V3XIi1c8w/w-d-xo.html
“Parallel World” th-cam.com/video/vfT1TM8r16E/w-d-xo.html
“The Beginning of the End” th-cam.com/video/7_maTWu7Ycw/w-d-xo.html
“Welcome to Heavenly Secret Base” th-cam.com/video/aEdyEEnMTy8-/w-d-xo.html-this is a remarkable fusion of metal with classic Disco.
Their new album “Second to None” takes things to an even higher level and adds some strong progressive elements. Most of the songs are cowritten by Mao and a rotating cast of lyricists contributing to the various songs, including vocalist Maiko Nomura.
Hi, their other MVs, Parallel World, Welcome to Heavenly Secret Base & Live video(Parallel World) are so good🎵🚀
Lonesome Blue performing at a very high level. The constant reference to bands outside of Japan is to be expected. However if you flip the comparison then things look different. If you are in Japan looking out and your reference is Japanese bands then many Western bands appear to producing to a very predictable formula and don't step outside their genre.
Thanks guys, how did you know that I needed a new rabbit hole!
We had a feeling 😉
Thank you kindly for viewing and engaging. Much appreciated! 🙏
Mao, produced or co- produced the music for every song on this album. He also works with LoveBites. 😮
Yes, it seems that Asami is also connected to this band. This makes them even more promising, if such mentors are involved. We look forward to covering more Lonesome Blue songs in the near future. Should be fun!
Thank you kindly for viewing and engaging. Much appreciated! 🙏
It's Lovebites Lite! 😅
I find it fascinating how Japanese bands can take even outdated western music genres and give them a whole new modern twist. Lonesome Blue have done this with dance music/disco (with a guitar solo thrown in for good measure) and the result is one of the catchiest tunes I've heard in decades.
th-cam.com/video/aEdyEEnMTy8/w-d-xo.html
True. We are definitely looking forward to seeing this band develop further. More Lonesome Blue reactions coming soon. Stay tuned!
Thank you kindly for viewing and engaging. Much appreciated! 🙏
In this case it is hard to say which instrument I prefer. They are all awesome. I think that the singer is not giving 150% and therefore she doesn’t sound strained like some singers do. And I think this is clever.
Yes, there is also something nonchalant in her delivery, which actually makes it even cooler! We were quite impressed with this first-time listen and look forward to covering their work again soon. Stay tuned!
Thank you kindly for viewing and engaging, Andrea. Always a pleasure! 🙏
Asami of Lovebites is working with them to help them grow
That's a great mentor to have! We look forward to seeing more from this band. Definitely a good start! Stay tuned!
Thank you kindly for viewing and engaging. Much appreciated! 🙏
I've only heard a couple of songs from LB but you can IMHO definitely hear Mao's influence in their work . I'm not sure that they're good enough ( yet ) to stand out from the crowd - but it's certainly slick and well produced . They come across as being a kind of Nemophila / Lovebites hybrid without quite reaching the heights of either , but I suspect overall they may be quite commercial 🤷♂
Narumi🎸Live with DESTROSE 2012 th-cam.com/video/D6ivt5CCHOE/w-d-xo.html
MIZUKI 🥁Live 2020 th-cam.com/video/w-Eg-4hudd0/w-d-xo.html - Drum cam : th-cam.com/video/Ry5Y55TxAl8/w-d-xo.html
Hirose Yuuki (bass) Nomura Maiko 🎤THE QUEEN OF PURPLE live 2019 th-cam.com/video/DOvimvhme8s/w-d-xo.html
I (Itai) definitely agree on many levels, but this is also a great start for this band and they show much promise. The potential is quite high here and with the people involved (Mao, Asami, etc.) I think they will only improve from here, and still, this is a GREAT song! Definitely a commercial sound, I agree. We definitely look forward to hearing more from them and seeing what they come up with in the future. Stay tuned!
Thank you kindly for viewing and engaging yet again, Alistair. Always great chatting with you. Much appreciated! 🙏
Narumi has had that hair color since Destrose days, so at least a decade! She’s been in the genre a while. Interesting you mention Nemophila as this group is a supergroup too, only a hybrid with voice / anime performers. The bassist Yuuki blows me away, she’s damn good for a voice actress! This group is in Victor entertainment, same as LOVEBITES, and have some tie-ins with LOVEBITES. Both their EP and their album are top notch.
Very true that the people closest to you are often responsible for crapping on your dreams. So true. If you’re a parent or mentor you have to be REALLY careful about that. English culture is especially good at it. 😐
Yes, we believe that the Lovebites connections (Mao, Asami, etc.) means this band is in good hands and have a huge upside. We look forward to finding out more as we go. Stay tuned!
As for the hair colour, I (Itai) didn't mean that Narumi is copying anyone, just that it's very popular with females in Japanese music, to the point where it MIGHT not help them stand out anymore, not that I think they need it to stand out anyway, as almost all that we've seen are awesome regardless.
As for the "dream crapping" situation... yes, it happens way too often and is unfortunately a fact of life. We've experienced it as artists in the past and still do today. You need a really thick skin to succeed in the arts and the problem is that most artists are sensitive souls and easily affected by such negativity. We hope this behaviour disappears of at least decreases in future.
Thank you kindly for viewing and engaging, Allan. Much appreciated! 🙏