BAND-MAID

Band-Maid are an all-female Japanese rock band with an image modeled on maid cafés, which are cosplay restaurants found primarily in Japan where waitstaff dress in French maid or anime costumes and treat customers as masters and mistresses; the group refer to their fans as "masters" and "princesses," with their performances being billed as "servings." The band's hard-hitting sound runs the range from hard rock and metal to punk and pop. Formed by vocalist/guitarist and ex-maid café employee Miku Kobato, the group eventually coalesced around a lineup consisting of Kobato, guitarist Kanami Tōno, drummer Akane Hirose, bassist Misa, and co-vocalist Saiki Atsumi. With their appearance intended to contrast their aggressive rock sound, Band-Maid debuted live as a quintet at the Shibuya-AX concert hall in August 2013. The following year saw them ink a deal with Gump Records and issue their debut mini-album, Maid in Japan. Their second mini-LP, 2015's New Beginning, was their first to chart, reaching number 64 on the Japanese Oricon weekly. A fiery blend of rock, pop, and metal, the record caught the attention of Nippon Crown, which signed the group to their sublabel Crown Stones in 2016. That year saw Band-Maid make their first trip overseas, appearing at Sakura-Con in Seattle before heading out on a world tour that included stops in Mexico, Europe, and China. Brand New Maid, the group's Crown Stones debut, also arrived that year and peaked at number 19 on the weekly albums chart. Just Bring It, Band-Maid's first full-length effort, arrived in 2017 and received international distribution through JPU Records. 2018's World Domination proved to be their most successful outing to date, reaching the number nine slot on the strength of the hit singles "Domination," "Daydreaming," and "Dice." Adopting a maiko image (a maiko is an apprentice geisha), the band released the EP Band-Maiko in early 2019, which utilized traditional Japanese instruments to interpret a curated set of Band-Maid material. Conqueror, the group's third long-player, arrived later that year and featured a song produced by Grammy Award winner Tony Visconti (David Bowie). The LP reached number nine on the Oricon albums charts and appeared on the U.K. charts as well.
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