Vocalist Futoshi, bassist OKP-STAR, drummer Abiko, keyboardist Mayuko and guitarist Daisuke make the line-up of Tokyo-based band Aqua Timez. They started their career back in 2003 and, like many bands of the J-indie genre, they consisted of five members, with a female keyboardist. While this seems like a popular trend among other bands such as HY, HIGH and MIGHTY COLOUR and THC!!, Aqua Timez's style doesn't sound at all like these other bands.
Futoshi uses his lyrics to explain his life philosophies and views his surroundings from different angles, the good and the bad, and composes music that radiates optimism. Not only does this feeling reach the fans, but also the music critics who have words of praise for this young band.
Their first mini-album, sora ippai ni kanaderu inori, was released in August 2005, and remained in the top ten for half a year. The song toushintai no Love Song, which Futoshi wrote for his girlfriend as a birthday present, was played multiple times a day on the radio after its release and is one of their most successful songs to date.
In March 2006, before the release of their second mini-album, drummer Abiko left the band and they recruited a support drummer to accompany them for lives and recordings. Nevertheless, their mini-album, nanairo no rakugaki, was released on the exact date it was planned. Their first single, Ketsui no asa ni, which was released in July of that year, was used in the animated adaptation of the novel "Brave Story" by Miyuki Miyabe. Closing out the year, the band released their first full-length album, Kaze wo atsumete, and reached #3 on the Oricon charts.
Having already provided music for the animated movie "Bleach: Memories of Nobody" in 2006, the year 2007 saw the band once again contributing to the "Bleach" soundtrack with their ALONES single being used as one of the openings for the animated series. They also released their fifth single and second full-length album before the end of that year.
In 2008, Aqua Timez released two singles, Niji and Natsu no kakera, with Niji being used as the opening for the series "Gokusen 3." The following year was one filled with continuous releases: three singles, two full-length albums, one of which was a best-of, and a concert DVD.
The year 2010 started off strong with the release of yet another single. Even though they are still a fairly new band, they have the potential to affect the world of Japanese music in a big way.
