Search - Koenjihyakkei :: Viva Koenji

"Koenjihyakkei towers over most modern progressive rock because of an attention to detail and an overwhelming force of conviction. No irony here: this rocks with the teeth and heart to cut through the `scenes' and the `overground' like a knife ... Koenjihyakkei may go down as Tatsuya Yoshida's greatest achievement: the most perfect fusion of straight prog, the avant-garde, and hardcore punk. Amen." - PITCHFORK "I'm probably going out on a limb here, but from my vantage point, this is not only the most brilliant of all of contemporary Japanese bands, but perhaps the greatest group currently operating in the world." - ALTERNATIVE PRESS "Start here. That is, put down all your worn out copies of Magma Hhai, King Crimson Red, and Univers Zero Ceux du Dehors and start all over again with Viva Koenji!! ... has it all - spastic tempo, coat hanger meter, vocals that would make the cokehead Magma fan proud, and a creepy zeuhl mosh at the end. How is it that the Japanese answer to `western' music styles is to always do one better?" - GROUND AND SKY Following the release of 2005's Angherr Shisspa, Skin Graft proudly presents Koenjihyakkei's second album, Viva Koenji!! to western listeners. With the original issue on Japan's God Mountain label largely unheard and fetching enormous prices on the collector's market, Viva Koenji!!, generally considered the band's heaviest album, returns to print in a deluxe remastered edition. Headed by vocalist/composer/drummer extraordinaire Yoshida Tatsuya (of the bass and drum duo Ruins), Koenjihyakkei boasts a fan base comprised of zuehl prog fans, no-wavers, and adventurous music enthusiasts - and has proven itself the most exciting contemporary progressive rock act on the planet.