The Blue Hearts
| The Blue Hearts | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan |
| Genres | Punk rock |
| Years active | 1985–1995 |
| Labels |
Meldac (1987–1989), East West Japan (1989–1995) |
| Associated acts | The High-Lows, The Cro-Magnons, The Big Hip |
| Website | 30th Anniversary website |
| Members |
Hiroto Kōmoto Masatoshi Mashima Junnosuke Kawaguchi Tetsuya Kajiwara |
| Past members | Masami Mochizuki Ryūsuke Hanabusa Norio Yamakawa |
The Blue Hearts (ザ・ブルーハーツ Za Burū Hātsu?) were a Japanese punk rock band active from 1985 to 1995. They have been compared to such bands as the Sex Pistols, The Clash and the Ramones. In 2003, HMV Japan ranked them at number 19 on their list of 100 most important Japanese pop acts. In September 2007, Rolling Stone Japan rated their self-titled debut album number 3 on its list of the "100 Greatest Japanese Rock Albums of All Time".
Its members were Hiroto Kōmoto (vocalist), Masatoshi Mashima (guitarist), Junnosuke Kawaguchi (bassist) and Tetsuya Kajiwara (drummer). Mikio Shirai was not an official member of the band, but often toured with them as their keyboardist. Formed in 1985, the group made its major debut in May 1987, and released its first album, the self-titled The Blue Hearts, and followed that up with seven more albums. Though they started on an independent label, each album sold more copies than the previous one, with their last recording selling in the millions. In 1990, The Blue Hearts had a self-titled EP released in the United States, which they supported with a US tour.
In addition to having popular albums, they also had many popular singles. Two of the most well-known are "Train-Train" and "Linda Linda", which can be found on many karaoke machines. A cover version of "Linda Linda" was used in the 2004 dramas Socrates in Love and Gachi Baka, as well as the 2005 film Linda Linda Linda, the plot of which centers on a high school girls' band practicing The Blue Hearts' songs for the finale concert of their school's culture festival. The song also appears in the 2005 Nintendo DS video game Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan,. Other songs, including "Train-Train", "Owaranai Uta" and "Hito ni Yasashiku", have been featured in the Konami arcade games Drummania and Guitar Freaks. The 2015 anime series The Rolling Girls features covers of several Blue Hearts songs sung by the cast, including covers of "Hito ni Yasashiku" and "Tsuki no Bakugekiki" in the opening and ending sequences.
...
Wikipedia