abingdon boys school

Abingdon Boys School (アビングドンボーイズスクール ,abingudon bōizu sukūru?, abbreviated as a.b.s, typeset as abingdon boys school) is a Japanese rock band fronted by Takanori Nishikawa (T.M. Revolution). Formed in 2005, the band was named after Abingdon School, the all-male school where English rock band Radiohead was established.

Members

• Takanori Nishikawa (西川貴教 ,Nishikawa Takanori?) – vocals (T.M. Revolution)
• Sunao – guitar
• Hiroshi Shibasaki (柴崎 浩 ,Shibasaki Hiroshi?) – guitar (ex-Wands & ex-al.ni.co guitarist)
• Toshiyuki Kishi (岸 利至 ,Kishi Tushi?) – keyboard, programming, and turntables

Support members

• Ikuo – bass guitar
• Kozy Hasegawa (長谷川 浩二 ,Hasegawa Kōji?) – drums

Biography

In 2005, abingdon boys school released its first song, "Stay away", an English-language song written by Nishikawa and composed by Shibasaki, for the Love for Nana ~Only 1 Tribute~, a tribute album to the shōjo anime and manga series Nana. The band also recorded a cover of the Buck-Tick song, "Dress" (ドレス ,Doresu?), featured on Parade ~Respective Tracks of Buck-Tick~, an album featuring covers of Buck Tick songs by various artists.

The band performed their first live concert, "CD Data Present Music Evolution ’06", on November 24, 2005, alongside other bands UVERworld and Tsubakiya Quartet (椿屋四重奏 ,Tsubakiya Shijūsō?). CD Data (CDでーた ?) is a Japanese music magazine.

On September 3, 2006, the band announced that they would make their official debut through Sony Music Japan's Epic Records, which was also the label of T.M.Revolution (Nishikawa's solo project). Their first single, Innocent Sorrow, used as the first opening to the anime D.Gray-Man, was released on December 6, 2006 and peaked at #5 on the Oricon music charts. The b-side song off their Innocent Sorrow single, "Fre@k $HoW", was used in a tribute compilation CD for the movie Death Note: the Last Name.

Their second single, Howling, was released on May 16, 2007. It was used as the first opening to the anime Darker Than Black and peaked at #4 on the Oricon charts in its first week of release. Their third single, entitled Nephilim, was released on July 4, 2007, and was used as the main theme to the PlayStation 3 game Folklore. The single reached a peak of #5 on the Oricon.

On July 7, 2007, a.b.s performed their three singles as well as the b-side from their latest single Nephilim, "Lost Reason", at the Japanese leg of Live Earth in Tokyo.

The band's first full studio album was released on October 17, 2007.[2] Their 4th single, Blade Chord, was later released on December 5, 2007 and was used as the theme song to Sengoku Basara: Heroes. They have also covered a song, "Sweetest Coma Again", for the "Luna Sea: Memorial Cover" album, a full album of Luna Sea covers dedicated to the defunct rock band.

On July 16, 2008, abingdon boys school released a live DVD from the live concert they held in February 2008. The DVD was sold in two versions: a limited edition with two DVDs, different packaging, pictures, and stickers, and the normal edition with one DVD.[citation needed]

A new abingdon boys school song called "JAP" will be the main theme song of the latest game in the "Sengoku Basara" series: "Sengoku Basara battle heroes" which will be released spring 2009. The song had its radio premiere on October 23, 2008. The single will also be the theme for the Basara anime, to be aired in Japan in April 2009

The band released their 5th single "Strength" on February 25, 2009, making it their first single release in over a year and 2 months. "Strength" will be used as the ending theme for the anime "Soul Eater". "Freedom" serves as the b-side to their single "Strength".

The band's next single, "JAP", opening theme song to the Sengoku Basara anime as well as the Sengoku Basara: Battle Heroes PlayStation Portable game, is slated for release on May 20, 2009. The b-side to the single is "Valkyrie".

Abingdon Boys School will take part in a special 2-day music event in Shiga, September 19th (Takanori's birthday) and 20th This is a event that Takanori planed as the new cultural ambassador of Shiga Prefecture. Abingdon boys school will perform on the 19th.