Oblivion Dust is a Japanese post-grunge/alternative rock band very influenced by early 90’s American rock bands, but with a trademark sonority that makes the band unique. They stand out in the Japanese scene because a big part of their songs are written and sung in fluent English.
History
In May 1995 the band Addict of the Trip Minds stopped activities due to differences in the direction of the band. The drummer Taka Motomura (who played on the self-titled album Addict of the Trip Minds in ’94) and the bassist Derek Forbes (who had joined the band a short while ago) decided to form a new band and take a “western style”.In late ’95 they recruited Kazuhito “K.A.Z” Iwaike as lead guitarist and in early ’96 recruited Ken Lloyd as vocalist and (in the beginning) guitarist. They started to make songs and went to Los Angeles, California to record their first album (which wasn’t released until the following year) with Ray McVeigh (The Professionals, Zilch, Wild Crash 500, etc.) as producer (he would also be the producer of their second and third album), but once recording of the album was completed Derek Forbes dropped out of the band and was replaced on bass by Koozie “Jer Koozie” Johns as support member in a few shows from mid 1996 until the end of that year, then he left the band and was replaced by Matt Garrett as an official member. Soon after, thanks to the help of hide, they signed with alternative label, Cutting Edge, a label owned by the Avex Group. The name of the band was changed to Oblivion Dust in September 1996, with their debut under this name in November 1996.
In January 1997, they released their first single entitled “Sucker”. March witnessed the release of their second single “Numb”. In April the group toured the West Coast of the United States with a series of 10 concerts. In May, they managed to release one more single and in June their first full length album entitled Looking for Elvis. In July, they returned to the West Coast of the United States to play 10 more concerts and Matt Garrett left the band. In September they had their first Japanese tour consisting of a total of 11 shows and 5 extra shows in October.
In January 1998, a new bassist joined the band as official member: Rikiji Masuda. That same month they played as the opening band for the UK electronic group, The Prodigy’s gig in Tokyo before a crowd of 10.000 fans, gaining a name for themselves. 1998 also saw the release of 2 singles and their second album: Misery Days. Between both singles, they toured the West Coast of the United States again in April. The rest of year they toured Japan and in November 1998, Souta “Furuton” Oofuruton replaced Taka Motomura who left around August.
In 1999 Oblivion Dust released 4 new singles, another new album called Reborn and their first video, Overdose. Apart from that, they toured all year long, playing with other well known bands such asMarilyn Manson and Zilch. In September their official fan club, “Embryo”, was temporarily opened and December witnessed the opening of their official website.
The band began 2000 with a nationwide “Reborn tour”. In February their fan club was officially opened and in May their new song entitled “S.O.S.” appeared on the Japanese version of the Mission: Impossible II soundtrack. In the same year, the band played numerous sold-out gigs; they also played at the Summer Sonic Festival, released 2 singles, a new album called Butterfly Head and their second video. The gig performed on December 23 at the Tokyo Bay NK Hall turned out to be Rikiji’s last, as he decided to quit the band soon after.
In January 2001, their support guitarist since September ’98, Masaru “May” Yoshida gained the status of an official member and the band was joined by a new bassist Ju-ken, as a support member. The members didn’t enjoy their new roles for long, because only a few months later, on June 30, Oblivion Dust announced that they would officially disband. The last release was the compilation album entitled Radio Songs ~ Best of Oblivion Dust, which came out two months later. Finally the group held their last two concerts on September 22 and 23, these were titled “Last Two Nights Thank You & Good Bye”.
On June 28, 2007 it was announced that Ken, K.A.Z and Rikiji decided to get back together, playing two concerts called “Resurrected” on September 8 and 9. On November 7, it was announced they would release three digital downloads in three weeks before the release of their new album in stores on January 23, 2008, this self-titled album was available in a regular edition and a limited edition that came with a DVD with the full performance of the September 9 gig and the “Never Ending” music video.
Early in 2008, Oblivion Dust had a short tour to signify their reformation. Then, they performed at one night of the two-night “hide memorial summit” on May 4, alongside X Japan, Luna Sea, and others.
In mid 2008, the band released the single “Girl in Mono/Bed of Roses” and announced an album for early 2009, but in early 2009 it was announced that the album was delayed, because the members didn’t have enough time due to their sides projects.
In late 2010, the band announced “Ashes to Dust 2011”, the two shows were held at Shibuya-AX on February 18 and 19. On March 1, 2011 the band’s official fan club, “Overdose”, was renewed. They will be going on their first nationwide tour in three years, entitled “Re-Creation Tour 2011”, starting on June 11 and ending on July 18. This last gig was broadcasted on Ustream, being watched by over 8.000 people around the world. Oblvion Dust will release their first material in over three years, the digital single “Tune”, on December 14, 2011.
Members
- Kentaro “Ken” Lloyd – vocals (1996–2001, 2007–present)
- Kazuhito “K.A.Z” Iwaike – guitar (1995–2001, 2007–present)
- Rikiji Masuda – bass (1998–2000, 2007–present)
Support members
- Yuji – guitar (2011–present, guitarist of Mega 8 Ball)
- Arimatsu – drums (2011–present, He has collaborated with several bands/artists such as Vamps and Anna Tsuchiya).
Former members
- Masaru “May” Yoshida – guitar (2001, support member 1998–2000)
- Souta “Furuton” Oofuruton – drums (1998–2001)
- Taka Motomura – drums (1995–1998)
- Matt Garrett – bass (1997)
- Derek Forbes – bass (1995–1996)
Former support members
- Pablo – guitar (2007–2011, He started in the disbanded Giraffe in 1999. He was then a support guitarist for Fake? and for Takui Nakajima. Also currently playing in the hard rock outfit out of LA/Tokyo, Pay money To my Pain.)
- Masuo – drums (2007–2008, He has collaborated with several bands/artists such as J and Fake?.)
- Ju-ken – bass (2001)
- Josh Lazie – bass (1997)
- Koozie “Jer Koozie” Johns – bass (some shows in 1996)
My Top Japan 