Vintage Ayumi Hamasaki Remixes by Trance Pioneers Ferry Corsten, Rank 1 and Push Available to Download and Stream for the First Time

Cyber TRANCE presents ayu trance 2 -COMPLETE EDITION- Jacket Cover

The classic Cyber TRANCE series of hits by Asia’s diva Ayumi Hamasaki remixed by pioneering artists such as Armin van Buuren and Above & Beyond is back again. September saw the release of Cyber TRANCE presents ayu trance -COMPLETE EDITION-, and today, November 17, the follow-up album Cyber TRANCE presents ayu trance 2 also gets the ‘COMPLETE EDITION’ treatment, with a reissue featuring all the tracks from the 2002 release plus many additional versions, some of which are available for the very first time. The complete set is available for download and streaming now.

The 30 tracks on Cyber TRANCE presents ayu trance 2 -COMPLETE EDITION- include the Extended mix and the Push remix of “Connected”, which was produced by Ferry Corsten as an original Ayumi Hamasaki song; “Connected” hit the club charts in countries across Europe when it was released in 2002 and was featured in countless DJ sets and DJ-Mix compilations. The album also includes “Dearest”, Hamasaki’s hit theme song for the anime Inuyasha, as remixed by Dutch trance pioneers Rank 1.

Since Cyber TRANCE presents ayu trance 2 was originally released on CD as a non-stop mix, the various tracks have never been made available individually for download or streaming, so this release has been long awaited by fans. Also, just like September’s reissue of the previous album in the series, this compilation features versions of tracks that were previously only available as promotional 12-inch vinyl or limited to certain territories, as well as versions that have never been released anywhere in the world until now.

Following the reissue of the first Cyber TRANCE presents ayu trance -COMPLETE EDITION- album, the official Twitter account of Japanese dance music brand Cyber TRANCE posted a photo taken way back on September 30, 2001, when British trance group Above & Beyond were performing at an ayu trance release party at renowned Tokyo mega-club velfarre; the photo captures the moment the three young artists were joined on stage by Hamasaki herself, making a surprise guest appearance. This rare memento of a special moment in Japanese and British trance music history reignited the excitement of fans around the world.

Whether you are from the generation that experienced the thrill of ‘ayu trance’ the first time around, or a dance-music fan of the post-EDM generation, now’s your chance to check out these timeless trance masterpieces here!

LOVEBITES Becomes the Nameless Warrior with Latest Music Video!

In The Beginning -The Best of 2017-2021 Jacket Cover

Popular heavy metal band LOVEBITES have released the music video to their new song “Nameless Warrior”, taken from upcoming album In The Beginning – The Best of 2017-2021, which will be released from our friends at JPU Records on two CDs from 14 January 2022.

“Nameless Warrior” was written following bassist Miho’s decision to depart from LOVEBITES, and is the last song to be recorded with LOVEBITES’ original line-up, as well as Mao, who has been arranging and collaborating with the band for some time. The song’s lyrics have been written by Asami.

The music video is a chronological sequence of previously unreleased and rare live and off-the-record footage. It includes cuts from a secret gig the band did under the name POWERSLAVES in 2016, before they started their fully-fledged career, plus footage from various international festivals and tours.

This time, the band’s incarnation, the wolf, appears in the video in an animated form reminiscent of ink paintings or shadow puppets, running through the metaphorical world parallel to the history of the band’s activities. For example, the scene where the wolf takes a bit of a golden fruit represents LOVEBITES winning the Best New Band award at the 2018 Golden Gods Awards by Metal Hammer, the world’s biggest metal magazine. Also, for the first time ever, the video contains English and Japanese subtitles embedded in the video, with the lyrics expressing the band’s attitude towards their future activities.

Be sure to check out the music video in question below!

BE:FIRST's Debut Song ‘Gifted.’ Hits No.2 on the Billboard US Hot Trending Songs Global Chart!

Seven-member dance and vocal group BE:FIRST formed on the hit Japanese TV audition show THE FIRST. Now, their November 3 debut single “Gifted.” has crashed into the Hot Trending Songs chart on Billboard US, taking the No.2 spot in the 24-hour chart on November 15, and No.5 in the seven days to November 15.

Gifted. Jacket Cover

Launched on October 22, Billboard’s new Hot Trending Songs chart is powered by Twitter and sponsored by Remy Martin. The chart tracks global music trends and conversations on Twitter in real time, with rankings for the last 24 hours and the last seven days. A weekly version of the chart covers the period from Friday to Thursday and is published the following Tuesday, along with other rankings from Billboard. The chart includes anything from new releases to songs included at award shows, festival highlights and even nostalgic hits from the past; it is unique in that it is based not on the number of sales or plays of a song, but the amount it is being talked about – a true barometer of buzz.

“Gifted.” also took the No.1 spot on Billboard Japan’s comprehensive Japan Hot 100 song chart in the week November 1-7. In yet more achievements, the song placed in 40 different charts, and made BE:FIRST the third-most streamed artist in a single week in Japanese history.

Meanwhile, the music video for “GIFTED.” became the No.1 ranked music video on YouTube’s Trending Music chart when it was released on November 1. Even now, two weeks later, it is still No.1 on YouTube’s Top 100 Songs Japan chart.

All in all, BE:FIRST have made a spectacular debut. Each of the group’s seven members has demonstrated huge potential with their strong skills for singing, dance and rapping, along with a high musical ability that is reflected in their lyric writing, music composition and choreography – not to mention the appeal of each member’s distinct personality. This is just the start, as BE:FIRST take their first steps into Asia and the rest of the world.

Be sure to check out the ever popular “GIFTED.” below, along with he streaming link for the single here!

KiRiSaMe UNDERTAKER Looks to Become Winners With Latest Cover Hit!

Five-member rock band KiRiSaMe UNDERTAKER revealed their second cover song on their project of covering the theme songs of SUNRISE’s anime works. They covered the song ‘Winners’ which is the ending song of FUTURE GPX CYBER FORMULA and their music video also has been released today.

FUTURE GPX CYBER FORMULA is a TV anime series which is celebrating their 30th anniversary this year. The event and exhibition have been happening and their cool anime merch has been produced for this special occasion. The story of the anime is about racing and it was the first theme that SUNRISE ever made. The story revolves around Hayato Kazami’s growth as a racer along with his mechanic team and teamwork is an important element of the story. After the broadcast of the TV series, they released the sequel as an OVA (original video animation, Japanese animated films and series made for release in home video formats) .

The theme song “Winners” has a very fast pace as the anime is about racing. The main vocalist,Yumi Kinoshita, has a strong and husky voice. KiRiSaMe UNDERTAKER arranged it in their unique way whilst still having the greatest respect for the original one. KiRiSaMe UNDERTAKER has announced that they will release their first hosted live show on the 4th of December (Sat) at the same time worldwide. The band will perform their songs from Double Decker! Doug &Kirill, SD GUNDAM World Sangoku Soketsuden, ZENONZARD THE ANIMATION and Code Geass Genesic Re;CODE. And also they will perform the songs from their cover songs project. They invited special guests including voice actors Satoshi Mikami and Nanase Matsuoka.

Tickets for watching the live performance will be sold through FAVER. Please join and enjoy the live event where the show will be united with the world.

The second project covering the theme songs from SUNRISE’s anime works is being released today. The music video of the cover song “Winners”, which is the ending theme song of FUTURE GPX CYBER FORMULA, is here.

As their first project the music video of the cover song “COLORS”, which is the opening theme song of Code Geass Lelouch of the Rebellion has been released!

<The event information>

KiRiSaMe UNDERTAKER’s first hosted live show

“The trouble at the KiRiSaMe Festival! Find out the mystery of vanished Harrison and one million Lisvaletta pounds” 

Date: 4th of December (Sat) open at 18:00/ start at 18:30 (planed to finish around 20:30）

Performer: KiRiSaMe UNDERTAKER

Guests: Satoshi Mikami,Nanase Matsuoka and others

Venue: Shibuya GUILTY　（https://www.guilty.ne.jp/top.php）

 <Ticket information>

Price: JPY 2,500 yen＋tax plus settlement fees

Period of the sales：from the 8th November (Mon) at18:00 to the 12th December (Sun) at 21:00

Tickets URL：https://faver.tv/live/show/19

*The period of releasing the archive video：It will be available to watch once the video is ready after the live performance. It ends on the 12th of December (Sun) at 23:59.

*We are trying to show this live performance to the entire world but please bear in mind that it may be the case that it will be difficult to cover some areas.

Upcoming Anime: TRIBE NINE Ending Theme Artist Info Finally Revealed!

Too Kyo Games, a creative group led by Danganronpa writer Kazutaka Kodaka, and Akatsuki Inc. have announced that the ending theme song of their joint project Tribe Nine will be sung by Lantis artist Ryo Takahashi a.k.a Void_Chords with a guest performance by LIO.

Void_Chords is an up-and-coming musician who is also known as the producer of One III Notes and who recently wrote and composed the background music and insert songs of the anime movie Sing a Bit of Harmony, which was released on October 29. He is a multi-talented artist who can compose, arrange, and play the bass and guitar in various genres, from jazz and classical to metal and club music.