or Gotch (December 2, 1976) is the

lead vocalist The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of t ...

, main

songwriter A songwriter is a person who creates musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music genre and film scoring. ...

and

rhythm guitarist In music performances, rhythm guitar is a guitar technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., drum kit, bass ...

of the

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

rock band

Asian Kung-Fu Generation (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese alternative rock band formed in Yokohama in 1996. For its entire career, the band has consisted of vocalist Masafumi Gotoh, guitarist Kensuke Kita, bassist Takahiro Yamada (musician), Takahiro Yamada, and dr ...

. Masafumi met fellow band members

Kensuke Kita (January 24, 1977) is the lead guitarist and backing singer of the Japanese Rock music, rock band Asian Kung-Fu Generation. Kensuke met fellow band members Masafumi Gotō and Takahiro Yamada (musician), Takahiro Yamada while attending a music cl ...

and Takahiro Yamada while attending a music club of

Kanto Gakuin University is a private university located in Kanazawa-ku, Yokohama, Japan. History It traces its roots to The Baptist Theological Seminary of Yokohama established by Albert Arnold Bennett, a missionary of the American Baptist Churches, American Baptist ...

. The three formed Asian Kung-Fu Generation in 1996, with drummer Kiyoshi Ijichi joining the band shortly after. As the main songwriter of the band, Gotoh is credited with writing a majority of their lyrics, but has a strong tendency to share songwriting duties equally among his bandmates. His vocal style most often alternates between soft, melodic singing, and harder, harsher, yelling. Masafumi has a degree in

economics Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...

and his favourite artists include

Weezer Weezer is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1992. Since 2001, the band has consisted of Rivers Cuomo (lead vocals, guitar, keyboards), Patrick Wilson (drums, backing vocals), Brian Bell (guitar, keyboards, backing ...

Number Girl was a Japanese rock band from Fukuoka Prefecture, formed in August 1995 by vocalist and guitarist Shutoku Mukai. They first disbanded in 2002 following bassist Kentaro Nakao's departure from the band. Number Girl played fast, guitar-driven ro ...

Oasis In ecology, an oasis (; : oases ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environment Teenage Fanclub Teenage Fanclub are a Scottish alternative rock band formed in Glasgow in 1989. The group were founded by Norman Blake (Scottish musician), Norman Blake (vocals, guitar), Raymond McGinley (vocals, lead guitar) and Gerard Love (vocals, bass), al ...

, and

Beck Beck David Hansen (born Bek David Campbell; July 8, 1970), known mononymously as Beck, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He rose to fame in the early 1990s with his Experimental music, experimental and Lo-fi mus ...

. He produces records for other artists such as

Chatmonchy was a three-piece all-female rock band which consisted of Eriko Hashimoto (guitar, vocals), Akiko Fukuoka (bass, chorus), and formerly Kumiko Takahashi (drums, chorus) who are from Tokushima Prefecture on the island of Shikoku, Japan. From 200 ...

, Dr. Downer and The Chef Cooks Me. He was also one of the founding members of the band . In 2010, Gotoh launched his own

music label "Big Three" music labels A record label or record company is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and t ...

, only in dreams. In 2012, he started a solo project under the name Gotch, and released the single "'Lost". In 2014, he released his debut solo album, ''Can't Be Forever Young'' and released live album called, ''Live in Tokyo''. In 2016, he released his second solo album, ''Good New Times'', with most songs using English lyrics. In 2024, he established a non profit organization "Apple Vinegar Music Support" and build a studio called "Music inn Fujieda" in Fujieda to support young and independent musicians. In March 2024, Gotoh released drone/ambient music album ''Recent Report I'' under his original name.

Discography

Asian Kung-Fu Generation

Solo

Studio albums (as Gotch)

Studio albums (as Masafumi Gotoh)

Live albums

Extended plays

Singles

Other

* New Order – ''

Waiting for the Sirens' Call ''Waiting for the Sirens' Call'' is the eighth studio album by English rock band New Order, released on 28 March 2005 by London Records. The album was preceded by the single " Krafty". Two additional singles from the album were released: "Jets ...

'' (2005) lyrics on " Krafty (Japanese Version)" * Dr. Downer – ''Rising'' (2011) music director * Special Others – ''Special Others'' (2011) collaboration on "Dance in Tsurumi" * Feeder – '' Generation Freakshow'' Japanese edition (2012) vocals on "

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...

" * Chatmonchy – "Kirakira Hikare" (2012) producer; vocals on "Karisomethod" * Chatmonchy – ''Henshin'' (2012) producer on "Yes or No or Love" and "Kirakira Hikare" * Dr. Downer – ''Gensō no Maboroshi'' (2013) producer * The Chef Cooks Me – ''Kaitentai'' (2013) producer, vocals on "Kanjōsen wa Bokura o Nosete" * ART-SCHOOL – ''YOU'' (2014) producer * Ovall - "Nadaraka Yoru" (2018) vocals * The Mattson 2 – ''Vaults of Eternity: Japan'' (2018) vocals on "My Memories Fade" * Co.Ruri Mito - ''MeMe'' (2019) music producer * Nahavand – ''Vandalism'' (2019) producer, vocals on "Hold On" * The Chef Cooks Me – "Kakato de Ai o Uchinarase" (2019) vocals * SOFTTOUCH – "Jiyū Ishi" (2019) producer * Aiha Higurashi – "Je t'aime" (2019) producer * Aiha Higurashi – "Shining all over" (2019) vocals *

Manami Konishi , also known as KONI-TAN, is a Japanese actress, singer, songwriter, rapper, and record producer. Career Konishi appeared in Kiyoshi Kurosawa's 2006 film '' Retribution'', which was screened at the 63rd Venice Film Festival. She also appeared i ...

– ''Cure'' (2020) producer and backing vocals on "Endless Summer", producer on "Ain't Nobody Know" * FIRE EX. – "The Light" (2020) vocals * Moment Joon – "Doukutsu" (2020) vocals *

The Rentals The Rentals is an American rock band fronted by vocalist Matt Sharp. Sharp has been the only consistent member since the group's inception. The band's best selling single is "Friends of P." (1995). The Rentals released two albums, ''Return of t ...

– "Goodbye, Steve" (2020) vocals * SOCCER*SCHOOL - "last summer bleeze" (2021) mixing * Moment Joon – "Distance" (2021) vocals * Hironoi Momoi – "Fog" (2021) vocal, lyrics * Lil Boom – "The End of the World" (2021) vocals * Nahavand – "World Trigger"' (2022) recording * Yuragi – ''For you, Adroit it but soft : Remixes & Rarities'' (2022) mastering * The Tiva – ''On This Planet'' (2022) mastering * Mofution Vibration – "Oboroge" (2022) mixing, mastering * Dhira Bongs – ''A Tiny Bit of Gold in The Dark Ocean'' (2022) vocals on "Make Me Fallin In Love Again" * Link – ''Tsuki no Hana EP'' (2023) producer, recording, mixing * Jared Mattson – ''Peanut'' (2023) vocals on "Koko ni Kite" *

Kanjani Eight , previously known as is a five-member Japanese boy band from Japan's Kansai region. They are managed by the multimedia talent agency Starto Entertainment (formerly Johnny & Associates) and signed to Infinity Records. The group was formed in ...

– "Ikiteru Bokura" (2023) songwriter * Takehisa Chiba – "Spacewalker" (2023) vocals, vocals engineer, mixing * Link – ''Taiyou to Tsuki no Beatniks'' (2023) producer, recording, mixing * A Flood of Circle – ''Candle Songs'' (2024) producer on "Candle Songs" * Furusato Osamu to Furoshiki – "Ryusui" (2024) co-producer, recording, mixing, mastering; guitar and chorus on "Ryusui"; lyrics, vocal, guitar, and programming on "Ryusui Remix" * Furusato Osamu to Furoshiki – "Takibi" (2024) co-producer, recording, mastering

References

External links

*
Discography at RateYourMusic

Only in Dreams label

Asian Kung-Fu Generation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goto, Masafumi 1976 births Living people Japanese rock guitarists Japanese male rock singers Japanese male songwriters Asian Kung-Fu Generation members Kanto Gakuin University alumni 20th-century Japanese guitarists 21st-century Japanese guitarists Singers from Shizuoka Prefecture People from Shimada, Shizuoka