ORESKABAND

Before ORESKABAND's formation in 2003, TOMI, TAE-SAN and SAKI formed a band with other friends. Upon leaving that band, TAE-SAN, along with IKASU, formed a new band. It wasn’t too long, during their middle school years, before they became the teen girl sextet ORESKABAND. They began performing at local clubs and quickly built a following with their energetic live shows and colorful personalities.

They started recording their own material and released their first album PENPAL in 2005. To show how determined they were for their band to succeed, each 15 year-old pitched in about $200 and created their first album themselves, selling it at the live houses where they performed. It was this album, along with live shows and appearances, which helped to expand their fan base outside of their home town. Having caught the attention of A&R reps, ORESKABAND signed to Sony Music Japan in 2006 while still in high school.

In 2006, the sextet made an exceptional move when, not only was their song Hana no Ska Dance used for a TV commercial for POCKY, but the girls were also filmed performing on a moving train for the commercial. This helped gain national recognition for ORESKABAND, showing off their fresh ska-pop sound along with their lively personalities.

While juggling the lives of high school students and music artists, they completed their debut mini-album Ore in March of the same year. As they continued to record, they had the opportunity to work with trombone player and Ska legend Rico Rodriguez for his tribute session album JAPARICO~RICO RODRIGUEZ MEETS JAPAN on a cover of the Ska classic MONKEY MAN.

In July, ORESKABAND’s aforementioned debut album, Ore, was released and quickly received massive critical acclaim. Following the album's release, they performed at the prestigious annual FUJI ROCK FESTIVAL where they attracted 1000 attendees, a record for new artists.

Their popularity is still growing in Japan, but the band doesn’t want to stop there. In March 2007, ORESKABAND participated in the Japan Nite Tour which included performances at Austin’s SXSW Music Festival, in Los Angeles and San Francisco. This overseas tour was treated as the kick-off of their Japanese tour. Only a few months later, the band announced that they would be releasing an album in the USA titled ORESKABAND and performing at the Anime Expo in Long Beach, California. In August, during the ever-popular Warped Tour in the USA, ORESKABAND played at six stops across the USA.

The following year was just as productive with overseas performances as the former. Once again, the band performed at Warped Tour and at a comic convention, Wizard World Chicago. However, this time instead of only having a few shows during the Warped Tour, they performed at all 46 cities. And in October, they released 46 ORESKABAND ~WARPED TOUR 2008~ DVD, which included documentary and live footage of their experiences.

Despite the amount of promotional lives overseas, the band didn’t forget about their Japanese fans. Throughout the year, they also attended various festivals such as the MAG ROCK FESTIVAL ‘08 and FUYU RUSH.

In 2009, ORESKABAND started the year with a collaboration with DREAMS COME TRUE. They covered a song from their single titled GOOD BYE MY SCHOOL DAYS. In late February, the band performed with >Scott Murphy, a Chicago punk-pop solo artist who has been spreading his name in Japan by releasing J-Pop cover songs. Even though ORESKABAND had years of playing experience, they found it difficult to memorize Scott Murphy’s songs in such a short time.

Just as in previous years, the sextet has had a slew of performances and only a few releases for the remainder of 2009 and 2010. Some of their songs were used as themes for commercials, such as July 2009’s song, Jet Wave, which was a digital release used for the milk-based beverage.

Having surpassed the novice point of their musical journey, ORESKABAND has achieved much success and popularity. Continuing at a steady pace, this ska band will definitely continue to reach the hearts of a growing fan base.