Thee Michelle Gun Elephant

Formed in 1991 in Tokyo, Japan, Thee Michelle Gun Elephant specialized in a blend of garage rock, punk, and blues. Vocalist/guitarist Yusuke Chiba, bassist Koji Ueno, and drummer Kazuyuki Kuhara launched the group while all three musicians were studying at the Christian school Meiji Gakuin University. Maximum! Maximum!! Maximum!!!, the group's independent debut, was self-released in 1993, followed by Cult Grass Stars — Thee Michelle Gun Elephant's first album to be released with help from a label — in 1996. Another album, High Time, was also released that year, featuring the singles "Candy House" (which charted at number 60) and "Lily" (which reached number 50). The following year, Three Michelle Gun Elephant broke into the Top 40 with "Culture," "Get Up Lucy," and "Birdmen," all three of which appeared on Chicken Zombies. On the Japanese Albums chart, Chicken Zombies peaked at number 5, and the album remained in the Top 10 with subsequent releases like 1998's Gear Blues, 2000's Casanova Snake, 2001's Rodeo Tandem Beat Specter, and the 2003 companion albums Sabrina Heaven and Sabrina No Heaven. Songs from Rodeo Tandem Beat Specter also appeared in the Japanese film Blue Heaven, along with a non-album track, "Drop," which reached number 13 on the Oricon Singles Chart Top 30. The band announced its breakup on October 11, 2003, with all four members continuing to play music with different projects following the split. Futoshi Abe passed away in July 2009, and Yusuke Chiba succumbed to esophageal cancer in December 2023. The same month as Chiba's passing, "Sekaino Owari" reached number 66 on Japan's Top 100 Deezer chart.