Ruins is a Japanese music duo composed only of drummer/vocalist

Tatsuya Yoshida (born 9 January 1961 in Kitakami, Iwate) is a Japanese musician; drummer and composer who is the only consistent member of the renowned progressive rock duo Ruins, as well as of Koenji Hyakkei. He is also a member of the progressive rock trios ...

and a

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

ist (there have been four such bassists in the band's history). The group, formed in 1985, was supposedly intended to be a

power trio A power trio is a rock and roll band format having a lineup of electric guitar, bass guitar and drum kit (drums and cymbals), leaving out a second rhythm guitar or keyboard instrument that are often used in other rock music bands that are quartet ...

; the guitarist, however, never showed up to the band's first rehearsal so the group remained a duo. The music touches on

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. Init ...

jazz fusion Jazz fusion (also known as fusion and progressive jazz) is a music genre that developed in the late 1960s when musicians combined jazz harmony and jazz improvisation, improvisation with rock music, funk, and rhythm and blues. Electric guitars, ...

and

noise rock Noise rock (sometimes called noise punk) is a noise music, noise-oriented style of experimental rock that spun off from punk rock in the 1980s. Drawing on movements such as minimal music, minimalism, industrial music, and New York hardcore, a ...

Background

The French progressive rock band

Magma Magma () is the molten or semi-molten natural material from which all igneous rocks are formed. Magma is found beneath the surface of the Earth, and evidence of magmatism has also been discovered on other terrestrial planets and some natural sa ...

is the group's most important influence, to such an extent that Ruins' original lyrics are written and sung in an invented language which, at first glance, resembles Kobaïan, the language invented by Christian Vander of Magma. Ruins' material (which Yoshida, who composes the majority of their pieces, writes out in score form) is generally of extreme complexity and thus is often described as inaccessible; potential listeners may be bewildered by the band's unrestrained yet disciplined approach. In addition to the "prog rock" label, the group's music has also been described as "

math rock Math rock is a style of progressive and indie rock with roots in bands such as King Crimson and Rush as well as 20th-century minimal music composers such as Steve Reich. It is characterized by complex, atypical rhythmic structures (includi ...

" and "

zeuhl Magma is a French progressive rock band founded in Paris in 1969 by classically trained drummer Christian Vander, who claimed as his inspiration a "vision of humanity's spiritual and ecological future" that profoundly disturbed him. In the cou ...

". That said, Ruins' style has consistently evolved since the band's beginning, often changing according to the bassist that Tatsuya was collaborating with at the time. Ruins have collaborated with several other musicians, including prominent

avant-garde The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical ...

figure Derek Bailey, auteur guitarist/multi-instrumentalist

Keiji Haino Keiji Haino ( ''Haino Keiji''; born May 3, 1952) is a Japanese musician and singer-songwriter whose work has included rock, free improvisation, noise music, percussion, psychedelic music, minimalism and drone music. He has been active since the ...

, and

Ground Zero In relation to nuclear explosions and other large bombs, ground zero (also called surface zero) is the point on the Earth's surface closest to a detonation. In the case of an explosion above the ground, ''ground zero'' is the point on the ground ...

alumnus

Kazuhisa Uchihashi Kazuhisa Uchihashi (内橋和久, ''Uchihashi Kazuhisa'') is a Japanese guitarist involved in free improvisation music. Born in 1959 in Osaka, Uchihashi began to play the guitar at age 12, playing in various rock bands, though he later studied j ...

. Bassist Hisashi Sasaki left the band in 2004, and since then Yoshida has been touring solo under the name Ruins-alone (Ruins Alone). He has also performed as Sax Ruins with alto saxophonist Ryoko Ono. He was chosen by

Matt Groening Matthew Abram Groening ( ; born February 15, 1954) is an American cartoonist, writer, producer, and animator. He is the creator of the comic strip ''Life in Hell'' (1977–2012) and the television series ''The Simpsons'' (1989–present), ''Fut ...

to perform at the

All Tomorrow's Parties "All Tomorrow's Parties" is a song by the Velvet Underground and Nico, written by Lou Reed and released on the group's 1967 debut studio album, ''The Velvet Underground & Nico''. Inspiration for the song came from Reed's observation of Andy Warh ...

festival Groening curated in May 2010 in Minehead, England. On September 6, 2016, Tatsuya announced via his Facebook that third period bassist Ryuichi Masuda would be rejoining the band for a show in December and shows throughout the spring.

Members

;Current members *

–

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 ...

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

(1985–present) ;Former members *Hideki Kawamoto – bass, vocals (1985–1987) *Kazuyoshi Kimoto – bass, vocals, violin (1987–1990) *Ryuichi Masuda – bass, vocals (1991–1997, 2016) *Hisashi Sasaki – bass, vocals (1995–2004)

Discography

* ''Ruins III'' (1988) (reissued as ''Infect'' in 1993) * ''

Stonehenge Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, west of Amesbury. It consists of an outer ring of vertical sarsen standing stones, each around high, wide, and weighing around 25 tons, topped by connectin ...

'' (1990) * '' Burning Stone'' (1992) * ''Graviyaunosch'' (1993) * '' Hyderomastgroningem'' (1995) * '' Refusal Fossil'' (1997/2007) * ''Vrresto'' (1998) * '' Symphonica'' (1998) * ''Pallaschtom'' (2000) * '' Tzomborgha'' (2002) * ''Yawiquo'' (as Sax Ruins) (2009) * ''Alone'' (as Ruins Alone) (2011) * ''Blimmguass'' (as Sax Ruins) (2013)

EPs, live releases, and compilations

* ''Ruins (EP)'' (1986) * ''Ruins II (EP)'' (1987) * ''Early Works: Live & Unreleased Tracks'' (1991) * ''II & 19 Numbers'' (1992) * ''0'33"'' (live album)(1993) * ''Split with Dawson'' (1993) * ''Split with Schlong'' (1994) * ''March–October 1997'' (1997,2002,2003) * ''Mandala 2000: Live at the Kichijoji Mandala II'' (2000) * ''1986-1992'' (2001) * ''Live in Guangzhou'' (2002) * ''Ales Stenar'' (2001) * ''Split with

High on Fire High on Fire is an American heavy metal band from Oakland, California, that was formed in 1999. Matt Pike, the band's frontman and founder, also plays guitar for doom metal band Sleep. High on Fire won the 2019 Grammy Award for Best Metal Per ...

'' (2005) Collaborations * ''Ruins & Umezu Kazutoki'' (1994, with Umezu Kazutoki) * ''Hatoba & Ruins'' (1994, with Omoide Hatoba) * ''Saisoro'' (1995, with Derek Bailey) * ''Jason Willet & Ruins'' (1995, with Jason Willet) * ''Tohjinbo'' (1997, with Derek Bailey) * ''Ketsunoana'' (1998, with Ron Anderson) * ''Big Shoes'' (2001, with Ron Anderson) * ''Kazuhisa Uchihashi & Ruins'' (1998, with Kazuhisa Uchihashi) * ''Live In Europe'' (2001, with Kazuhisa Uchihashi) * ''Knead'' (2002, with Keiji Haino) * ''New Rap'' (2006, with Keiji Haino) * ''Uhrfasudhasdd'' (2008, with Keiji Haino) * ''Hauenfiomiume'' (2008, with Keiji Haino) * ''2008 New Japan Festival'' (2008, with various artists, including Ruins-Alone)

References

External links