Girugamesh

Girugamesh (ギルガメッシュ, Girugamesshu) is a Japanese visual kei metal band, formed in 2003. The name is sometimes stylized with a metal umlaut as girugämesh and is derived from the Final Fantasy character.

History

2003–2006: Formation

Formed in 2003 in Chiba, Shuu and Nii had been friends since elementary school, the earliest incarnation of the band made its first performance while the members were still in high school. Girugamesh began playing gigs with their current lineup in 2004, until they were signed to record label Gaina-Japan. Their first single, "Kaisen Sengen" was ranked #10 on the Oricon Indies chart. In 2005, Girugamesh embarked on a nationwide tour, after which they released their first live DVD, featuring footage from the tour, and after more touring, released an EP, Goku -Shohankei Enban-.

In 2007, Girugamesh was signed to the European label Gan-Shin. The band then was part of a 9-band Japanese rock festival in Los Angeles, California called "J-Rock Revolution". They were part of the second night alongside Merry, D'espairsRay, and Mucc. Around the time of J-Rock Revolution, some of the performing bands released material on the iTunes Store, including Girugamesh. On this, Ryo has commented that "if you really like the band after the initial listen, you will buy the original CD."

Girugamesh (album)

Girugamesh is the self-titled second album from the band Girugamesh, released on December 26, 2007. A limited and a regular edition were released, with different contents, as well as a European release featuring three extra tracks from the band's previous EP, Reason of Crying. The regular edition, including thirteen tracks, was released on iTunes simultaneously with the Japanese release. The limited edition included only ten songs on the feature disc, but was supplemented with a DVD with two music videos for "Vermillion" and "Kowareteiku Sekai", and backstage footage.

Music

The album features a notably heavier sound than their previous album, with a more "aggressive, destructive, and power" sound. Drummer Ryo comments that during touring, the band felt as if "there was something missing in our [Girugamesh's] songs", and the band "wanted to make our songs a little bit harder with an "edge." The band collaborated on "Patchwork", "Stupid" and "Crazy-Flag" with label-mates Tatsurou and Miya of Mucc, and with Miya as the co-producer for the album.