Featured - JROCK NEWS

Interview: BAND-MAID unpacks sold-out US tour and aggressive EP “Unleash”

7 January 2023

Between a wildfire US tour, and prepping for their first big concert of 2023, BAND-MAID sat down for an interview with JROCK NEWS. The metal maidens from Tokyo had a lot to say about their US tour experience th...

Report: Cazqui’s Brutal Orchestra conducts dramatic live demonstration

Shmilly

22 December 2022

Review

It was a crisp November evening when I headed to Aoyama RizM, but the chill in the air was of quite a different kind to the chill atmosphere inside the packed live house. Pensive background music from Enya only...

Interview: NEMOPHILA guitarists SAKI and Hazuki reflect on US performances

G Andrew White

18 December 2022

Interview, Tour

In October, JROCK NEWS caught up with the all-female hard rock band NEMOPHILA at Aftershock Festival 2022. We had a quick interview with their guitarists SAKI and Hazuki. They were buzzing from the electrifyin...

Interview: Kouki and HIZAKI’s philosophies of visual kei

Erica and Omatsu

8 December 2022

Interview, Tour

Musicians Kouki (D=OUT) and HIZAKI (Versailles, Jupiter) rocked Nekocon 24, held from November 5-7 in Hampton, VA. After a hectic weekend of autograph sessions, a Q&A panel, and no less than three live conc...

Report: D=OUT joins forces with HIZAKI at Nekocon 2022

Erica

4 December 2022

Review, Tour

Nekocon attendees were treated to three full days of visual rock when Kouki (D=OUT) and HIZAKI (Versailles, Jupiter) appeared as special guests. The anime convention took place from November 4-6 in Hampton, Vir...

Report: HARU NEMURI delivers wild and unpredictable performance!

G Andrew White

4 November 2022

Review

Japanese poetry rapper HARU NEMURI resumes SHUNKA RYOUGEN - NORTH AMERICA TOUR 2022 with a surreal live performance at Trees in Dallas, TX. On October 15, an unpretentious brick-and-mortar building in the perfo...

Interview with Sick²: Diving into the pure chaos of digital rock

Erica, Dorian and Omatsu

30 October 2022

Interview, Releases

Digital rock band Sick² is a band of duality. They're instantly recognizable by their flashy, eye-catching costumes and upbeat melodies. Yet when you dive deeper into their lyrics, you're often met by darker th...

Report: ONE OK ROCK holds nothing back for North American tour finale

Bri

29 October 2022

Review, Tour

On Thursday, October 20 alternative rock band ONE OK ROCK returned to the Hollywood Palladium for the final performance of their Luxury Disease North American Tour 2022. The tour marks the band’s first time bac...

Report: BAND-MAID dominates the Golden Gate City on US TOUR 2022

Nori

25 October 2022

Review, Tour

Ravenous patrons encircled The August Hall, the crisp San Francisco air filling their lungs as they counted down the hours to Friday night’s “Okyu-ji” table service. For the metal mistresses of BAND-MAID, live ...

Report: 20th-anniversary tour showcases MIYAVI’s evolution

Erica

21 October 2022

Review, Tour

On October 5, MIYAVI returned to The State Theatre near Washington DC. This show kicked off his 20th-anniversary tour, a whirlwind circuit spanning 18 cities across North America. MIYAVI played at this venue...

Interview with Jose Mangin: Metal Ambassador on Jrock and Jmetal

G Andrew White

18 October 2022

Interview

During our coverage of Jrock bands at Aftershock Festival 2022 in Sacramento, CA, we sat down with the official host, Jose Mangin. He is regarded as the most distinguished personality in hard rock and metal tod...

Interview with Madmans Esprit: Shaping brutal but warm album

Rin

16 October 2022

Interview

Madmans Esprit is an avant-garde metal band from South Korea that incorporates elements of visual kei into both their sound and aesthetics. The band started as the solo project by independent artist Kyuho in 20...

Report: BAND-MAID turn Aftershock Festival into hard-rock Japanese café

G Andrew White

13 October 2022

Review, Tour

A bright sun shines on the Coors Light stage at the Aftershock Festival as BAND-MAID arrives for a small and dedicated crowd. Starting earlier than scheduled on a hot October 9 in Sacramento, CA, the all-female...

Report: NEMOPHILA shred at Aftershock Festival, announce North America tour

G Andrew White

10 October 2022

Review, Tour

On Friday, October 7 at Aftershock Festival 2022, NEMOPHILA took on the U.S. West Coast from the DWPresents stage. This explosive event at Discovery Park in Sacramento, CA featured a meteoric list of metal and ...