Acquaint yourselves with the history of these globe-trotting digital rockers.
Gacharic Spin’s roots go back to early 2009, when ex-THE PINK☆PANDA bassist F Chopper KOGA got in touch with her old schoolfriend, multi-instrumentalist Hana. The duo then contacted EITA, ex-guitarist of the recently-disbanded Jikuu Kaizoku Seven Seas, and not long after, the trio were joined by ex-link age vocalist Armmy. Gacharic Spin was officially founded in June 2009.
The band embarked upon its inaugural nationwide tour Across the now! in October 2009, culminating in a sold-out one-man live at Harajuku Astro Hall. EITA departed in November and was replaced by TOMO-ZO, formerly of EU PHORIA. The band’s debut single Lock On was released in March 2010, followed by further singles Hunting Summer in June and Yukinaku～setsunaku～Melody in September. Meanwhile, Gacharic Spin played over 100 concerts throughout the year.
2011 saw the band make its overseas debut at the Anime Matsuri convention in Houston, Texas. Debut mini album Virgin-A went on sale in May, and the exhaustive touring continued, with the girls playing over eighty lives by the year’s end. Their momentum took a hit in January 2012 when singer Armmy was struck down by illness just weeks before the nationwide Gacha-pinch! Tour. Determined that the tour should go ahead, the rest of the band hastily recruited no less than nine support vocalists to cover the 21 shows. Armmy bowed out for good in May.
Amongst the support vocalists were TOMO-ZO’s ex-EU PHORIA bandmate OREO REONA, who permanently joined the band as a keyboardist in April, and Fuki, frontwoman of LIGHT BRINGER. After fourth single Nudie Rhythm in June, Gacharic Spin went on a brief hiatus while the members shifted focus to their new band project DOLL$BOXX, a collaboration with Fuki.
Gacharic Spin resumed activities in 2013, releasing their full-length debut Delicious in March, when Hana and REONA began sharing vocal duties. For the tour to promote the album, Gacha-Gacha Dancers Mai and Arisa were recruited. In July 2013, the band embarked on the LIVE Delicious TOUR in ASIA, performing in Beijing and Shanghai.
In January 2014, the girls featured on a V.A. compilation of Disney songs remixed by prominent J-pop artists; Gacharic Spin contributed their take on Beauty and the Beast. March saw fifth single Boku dake no Cinderella hit shelves, followed by sophomore album WINNER in April. The band appeared at Japan Expo on July 3rd, and then July 24th brought the news that they had signed to major label Victor Entertainment. Their major debut, the greatest hits compilation Gachatto BEST <2010-2014>, came out October 1st.
In just a few years, Gacharic Spin have emerged as perhaps Japan’s premier all-female rock band. Armed with a sound they’re never afraid to improve upon, and backed by a growing international fanbase most Japanese bands could only dream of, the sky’s the limit for these women.
