Color (stylized as COLOR) was a Japanese punk band formed in 1985 by

Dynamite Tommy , better known by his stage name Dynamite Tommy, is a Japanese musician, record producer and businessman. He first rose to prominence as vocalist of the punk rock band Color in the late-1980s and early-1990s, but now predominantly works behind ...

, who founded the Free-Will record label a year later.''Free-Will and Groove Productions Press Release''
Retrieved Sep 12 2007 They are considered to be important to the formation of visual kei. Their debut album ''Gekitotsu'' was named one of the top albums from 1989–1998 in a 2004 issue of the music magazine ''Band Yarouze''.

History

Color released their debut album ''Gekitotsu'', in January 1988. After releasing their second album ''Fools! Get Lucky!!'', they signed to Crown Records and released their only major studio album a couple months later, ''Ask the Angels''.Amazon.com information on ''Ask the Angels''
Retrieved Sep 12 2007 It is said that the label made the band rewrite the album's lyrics, which were originally in English, in Japanese to be more accessible by the mainstream. It seemed to have worked, as ''Ask the Angels'' reached number 16 on the Oricon chart and their popularity increased. However, in January 1990 at a concert on the album's tour, in their hometown of Osaka, a fan was accidentally stomped to death.Color bio
Retrieved June 4, 2011 The band decided to lay low and avoid media, they ended up losing their contract with Crown. During this hiatus, Tommy formed Sister's No Future with Ken-chan ( Kamaitachi),Taiji, Kenzi, and Dynamite Tommy’s new band “Killing Red Addiction” to play in L.A.
Retrieved June 4, 2011 while Marry started Goatcore with You Adachi ( Dead End). Color returned with a concert in August, and in July 1991 released the single "The Exhibition". They held a coupling tour with Genkaku Allergy in March 1993. In 1994 they released their last album, ''Galaxy'', which has an electronic dance sound instead of their usual punk. In 1995 Color held what would be their last concert, after which the band disappeared without any announcement. The music magazine ''J-Rock'' published an article in 1997, labeling Color disbanded due to inactivity. On June 14, 2002, bassist Marry died in a car accident. On the one-year anniversary of his death, the remaining members organized and performed at the first "Marry Memorial" concert. It has been held every year since then; Color reunited for the 2008 concert.

Members

* Hiroshi "Dynamite Tommy" Tomioka – vocals (1985–1997, 2003, 2008), guitar (1985), bass (1990) * Tatsuya Niimi – guitar (1986–1997, 2003, 2008), drums (1990) * Cindy – guitar (1986–1997, 2003, 2008), vocals (1990) * Naotaka "Marry" Nakano –

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

(1988–1997)†, guitar (1990) * Toshi –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

(1988–1997, 2003, 2008), guitar (1990)

Former members

* Iku – vocals (1985) * Bell – bass (1985) * Hide – drums (1985) * Ikuo – bass (1986) * Hideki – drums (1986) * Takahashi – drums (1986–1988) * Remmy – bass (1987–1988), support bass on June 14, 2008 * Den – support bass on June 14, 2003 (former roadie,

By-Sexual By-Sexual (stylized as BY-SEXUAL) was a Japanese visual kei punk rock band from Osaka. They were active from 1988 to 1995, when vocalist Sho left the band and they went on hiatus. In August 1996, the remaining members restarted the group under ...

Zigzo Zigzo (stylized as ZIGZO) is a Japanese rock supergroup that originally started activities in 1999 and disbanded in 2002. Each member came from a prominent band and they became very popular in the indies scene. They disbanded after their last s ...

)

Discography

Singles

* "Molt Grain" (March 23, 1987) * "Sandbag Baby I" (November 23, 1988) * "Sandbag Baby II" (November 26, 1988) * "Broken Tavern" (June 6, 1989)

Oricon Singles Chart The Oricon Singles Chart is the Japanese music industry-standard singles popularity chart issued daily, weekly, monthly and yearly by Oricon. Chart rankings are based on physical singles' sales. Until 2017, Oricon did not track download sales. In J ...

Peak Position: No. 65 * "Back Tonight 5th Moon" (February 21, 1990) No. 27 * "Some Become Stranger" (August 21, 1990) No. 31 * "The Exhibition" (July 21, 1991)

Studio albums

* * ''Fools! Get Lucky!!'' (March 8, 1989) * ''Ask the Angels'' (December 5, 1989)

Oricon Albums Chart The Oricon Albums Chart is the Japanese music industry standard albums popularity chart issued daily, weekly, monthly and yearly by Oricon. Oricon originally published LP, CT, Cartridge and CD charts prior to the establishment of the Oricon Albu ...

Peak Position: No. 16 * ''Cherry's World'' (July 31, 1992) * ''Galaxy'' (October 1994)

Other albums

* ''Extremism: Best of Color'' (March 16, 1991, compilation album) No. 43 * ''Color Live! Shock Treatment and Rebirth'' (August 21, 1991, live album) No. 98 * ''Remind'' (December 25, 1992, self-cover album) * ''The Best'' (December 16, 1996, compilation album) *

Videos

* ''Shock Treatment'' (October 7, 1989) * ''Overwhelming Superiority'' (May 21, 1990) * * ''Land of Revolution'' (May 21, 1991) * ''The Exhibition'' (July 17, 1991, freely distributed at Kawasaki Club live)

References

{{Authority control Visual kei musical groups Japanese punk rock groups Musical groups from Osaka Musical groups established in 1985 Musical groups disestablished in 1995 Musical groups reestablished in 2003 Musical groups reestablished in 2008 1985 establishments in Japan English-language musical groups from Japan