Bump of Chicken (バンプ・オブ・チキン, Banpu Obu Chikin) is a Japanese alternative rock group from Sakura, Chiba. The band members are Motoo Fujiwara (vocals, rhythm), Hiroaki Masukawa (guitar), Yoshifumi Naoi (bass) and Hideo Masu (drums). Since their conception in 1994, they have released 27 singles and 10 albums. They are a popular group in Japan; every release since their third single, "Tentai Kansoku", has charted in the top ten on the Oricon Weekly Charts. Their music has been used in various video games and as theme songs for movies, television shows and anime in Japan.
History
The members first met in kindergarten and were classmates throughout their primary and secondary education. Bump of Chicken's first performance was in 1994, during their ninth grade cultural festival,[1] playing a cover of The Beatles' version of "Twist and Shout".[2] In 1996, their song "Danny" won an award on 96TFM.[3] The band's name translates literally from Japanese as "counterattack from the weak man."[4]
In 1999, Bump of Chicken released their first album, Flame Vein, on High Line Records. Later that year, they released their first single, "Lamp". In 2000, they released The Living Dead, their final release on High Line.[5] They also held their first live tour, "Tsuaa Pokiiru (ツアーポキール)", during March and April.[6]
Later in 2000, the group switched to Toy's Factory, releasing their first single on the label, "Diamond", in September.[5] Bump of Chicken's first big success occurred when their single, "Tentai Kansoku", appeared on the Oricon Weekly Charts in 2001.[7] They held two live tours, "Star Porking Tours (スターポーキングツアーズ, Sutaa Pookingu Tsuaazu) 2001" beginning in March and "Surf Porkin'" beginning in July.[6] In October, they released "Harujion".[5] They released their first album on Toy's Factory, Jupiter, in February 2002 and it was their first number one on the Oricon Weekly Charts. In the summer of 2002, their music was featured on the Japanese TV drama Tentai Kansoku, giving them more exposure.
At the end of 2002, the group released the single "Snow Smile". 2003 saw the release of their first double A-side single "Lost Man/Sailing day".[5] "Sailing Day" was used as the ending theme to the animated movie One Piece: Dead End Adventure.[1] The beginning of 2004 saw a slew of re-releases. "Arue", from their album Flame Vein, was released as a single in March. They re-released their first two albums in April. Flame Vein received an extra song and was re-released as Flame Vein +1. The Living Dead received no modifications. In July, the group released "Only Lonely Glory",[5] which became their first single to chart at number one on the Oricon Weekly Charts.[8] A month later, they released their fourth album, Yggdrasil, which was their second album to reach number one on the Oricon Weekly Charts.[7] Shortly after, they released "Sharin no Uta", from Yggdrasil, as a single.
In 2005, Bump of Chicken released two singles, "Planetarium" and second double A-side single "Supernova/Karma". Karma was used as the theme song for Namco's "Tales of the Abyss". The band's next single, "Namida no Furusato" was used in a commercial for Lotte Airs.[1] It became the group's second number one single. In 2007, they released the singles "Hana no Na" and "Mayday" on the same day. The two singles reached number one and two respectively on the Oricon Weekly Charts.[7] Bump of Chicken released their fifth studio album, Orbital Period, on December 19, 2007. They released their first compilation album present from you on June 18, 2008. This album contains b-sides from singles and other non-album tracks.
On November 25, 2009, Bump of Chicken released its third double A-side single "R.I.P./Merry Christmas", their first single in two years. On April 14, 2010, they released "Happy" and then in the following week, another single, "Mahō no Ryōri (Kimi kara Kimi e)". These two singles also reached number one consecutively for two weeks on the Oricon Weekly Charts, the first time a band achieved this since Orange Range's "Love Parade" and "Onegai! Señorita" in 2005. They released a fourth double A-side single "Uchūhikōshi e no Tegami/Motorcycle" on October 13, 2010, and they released a music video for the song on Toy's Factory's YouTube channel on September 14, 2010, which surpassed 200,000 views in two days. On December 15, 2010, they released their sixth studio album, Cosmonaut, but it did not feature the song "Merry Christmas".
In 2011, Bump of Chicken announced that they wrote the song "Tomodachi no Uta" as the theme song for the animated 3D movie Doraemon: Nobita and the New Steel Troops: ~Angel Wings~, and "Tomodachi no Uta" was released as the single on February 23, 2011. They also released two singles, "Smile" on May 11, 2011, and "Zero" on October 19, 2011. "Zero" was used as the theme song for video game by Square Enix, Final Fantasy Type-0. Also in 2012, they released two more singles "Good Luck" and "Firefly", in January and September 2012, respectively. "Good Luck" was featured as the end theme to the Japanese film Always Sanchōme no Yūhi '64.
On September 29, 2020, Bump of Chicken released the single "Acacia", which was featured in a music video named "GOTCHA!" uploaded on the Pokémon YouTube channel to celebrate the release of the Crown TundraDLC in Pokémon Sword and Shield for the Nintendo Switch.[9]
Band members
Motoo Fujiwara
Motoo Fujiwara (藤原基央) is the composer, lyricist, rhythm guitarist, and main vocalist of the group. He has written most of the music, and has also drawn the artwork for their albums The Living Dead and Yggdrasil. In March 2006, he released a solo album entitled Song for Tales of the Abyss, which included "Karma" and instrumental versions of songs from the game Tales of the Abyss. He uses a Gibson 1960 Les Paul Special Single Cutaway, Sonic fender, Gibson J-45. [citation needed] In August 2020, Fujiwara got married.[10]
Hiroaki Masukawa (増川弘明) is the guitarist of the group, and also writes most of the hidden joke tracks for albums. His nicknames within the band are "Hiro", "Hose", (meaning "very thin"), and "Nikke". He uses a Gibson Les Paul Standard, Fender Stratocaster.[citation needed]
Birth date: (1979-12-20) December 20, 1979 (age 44)
Birthplace: Sakura, Chiba Prefecture
Position: lead guitarist
Yoshifumi Naoi
Yoshifumi Naoi (直井由文) is the bassist of the group, and is referred to as the "crowd pleaser". He has released an artbook containing his works, and helped with some album artwork. His nickname within the band is "Chama", a play on the Japanese phrase "Obotchama" referring to a rich family's son. He uses a Sonic Bass, Fender Jazz Bass 65.
On September 18, 2020, an article was published detailing an affair he had in 2016 and 2017 while hiding the fact that he was married and a father.[11] Later the same day, he published an apology for his behavior, and announced that he would be taking a break from music.[12] On June 6, 2021, he published yet another, longer apology for the same incident, at the same time announcing his return to the band.[13]
Birth date: (1979-10-09) October 9, 1979 (age 45)
Birthplace: Sakura, Chiba Prefecture
Position: bassist
Hideo Masu
Hideo Masu (升秀夫) is the drummer for the band. He uses a Canopus Maple Shell.[citation needed]
Birth date: (1979-08-10) August 10, 1979 (age 45)
Birthplace: Sakura, Chiba Prefecture
Position: drummer
Songs in popular culture
Their single "Arue" is a song dedicated to the fictional character Rei Ayanami, from the anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion. The song is listed as R.A., the initials of the aforementioned character.
The song "Karma" from their "Supernova / Karma" single is the main theme for Namco's Tales of the Abyss video game. It also is used on the anime adaptation of the game as the opening theme.
The movie Doraemon: Nobita and the New Steel Troops—Winged Angels released on March 5, 2011, uses BUMP OF CHICKEN's song "Tomodachi no Uta" as its ending song. All 4 members have loved Doraemon for its unique and loving characters and story and have said that it is an honor to be chosen to sing for the new Doraemon movie.[14]
The song "Hello, World!" from their "Hello World! / Colony" single is used as the opening song of the TV anime adaptation of the manga Blood Blockade Battlefront. The song is also available as a playable song in the rhythm game Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage!, where it is performed by Leo/need, a fictional band featured in the game.
Their song "Zero" was also featured as the opening song for Final Fantasy Type-0.
Their songs are used as the opening and closing themes for episodes 1-11 of the anime, March Comes in like a Lion (３月のライオン). The opening is "Answer", while the closing is "Fighter". Around 2014, before the manga was adapted into an anime, they and the manga's author, Chika Umino, collaborated to make a CGI music video set to their single, "Fighter". The video was made into a stand-alone story promoting the original manga, called March Comes in Like a Lion Meets Bump of Chicken.[15] In early April 2017 they posted a long form music video for Answer to YouTube.[16]
Their song "GO" was featured as the opening song for the 2017 anime adaptation of the Japanese mobile game, Granblue Fantasy.
Their songs "Sirius" and "Spica" are the opening and closing theme songs respectively for Satelight's (Shoji Kawamori) anime Juushinki Pandora, released in 2018.
Their song "Gekkou" was used as the opening song for the 2018 TV anime adaptation of the manga Karakuri Circus.
Their song "Acacia" was used in a music video collaboration with the Pokémon franchise.[9]
Their song "Chronostasis" was used for Detective Conan: The Bride of Halloween (Meitantei Conan: Halloween no Hanayome), the 25th anime film in the Detective Conan franchise.
Their song "Souvenir" was featured as the opening song for the 2022 anime adaptation of the manga Spy × Family. Specifically, it was the opening song for the 2nd cour of the series' first season.
Their song "Sleep Walking Orchestra" was featured as the opening song for the 2024 anime adaptation of the manga Delicious in Dungeon.
