Kaya, an artist who transcends genre and gender, began crowdfunding to produce his first full album in eight and a half years, ROSE. His goal aims just shy of 35,000 USD. In addition to supporting album production, the crowdfunding campaign aims to finance Kaya’s 15th-anniversary one-man live performance at Nihonbashi Mitsui Hall on June 11.
Kaya chose “roses” as the central theme, explaining that the flower language of roses expresses love and gratitude. He hopes his fourth full-length album ROSE will extend those sentiments to his fans in honor of his 15th anniversary.
The album aspires to incorporate a range of genres such as electronic, band-arranged, and chanson. The album will include 8 new tracks for a total of 15 songs. The tracklist includes previously released songs Yumeji (夢路) and Monday Monday, co-written by Tsuki Amano and Yume Suzuki, as well as TABOO by Ken Morioka.
Both Tsuki Amano and Yume Suzuki are known for composing anime theme songs, while Ken Morioka was a member of the influential electronic-synthpop group SOFT BALLET.
According to Kaya’s official site, Tsuki Amano also composed a new song for this album.
Additional composers include Fukusuke of “ADAPTER.“, Yoko Hamasaki of URBANGARDE, Aoi Haru of Hito to Nari, and of course, HORA of Schwarz Stein.
Kaya also secured a superstar lineup of support musicians! ROSE will feature Kei Ookubo of URBANGARDE on piano, Jouji Ni-gou of hide-and-seek Dorothy on guitar, Tsunehito of D on bass, and last but not least, YURA-sama of Psycho le Cému on drums.
ROSE is scheduled for release this May. There will be a limited edition, plus “presents” for those who participate in the crowdfunding program. While most of the plans are limited to those residing in Japan, there is a special option for overseas fans:
Special Plan (FOR OVERSEAS)
Includes:
- An e-mail from Kaya
- Your name printed on the CD Jacket
- A crowdfunding limited edition of “ROSE”
- Videos from live recording
- 15th-anniversary photo book
- Invitation to the 15th-anniversary live performance on June 11
- Price: 25,000 JPY
- Details: Crowdfunding campaign
We at JROCK NEWS wish Kaya the best in achieving his crowdfunding goal!
Update 2022-02-06: We previously listed that “Yumeji”, “Monday Monday”, and “TABOO” are “new” tracks. We have corrected the article to reflect that they were previously released but will be included on the album. We clarified that Tsuki Amano composed a new track for “ROSE”.