Tha Blue Herb is a Japanese

alternative hip hop Alternative hip hop (also known as alternative rap) is a subgenre of hip hop music that encompasses a wide range of styles that are not typically identified as mainstream. AllMusic defines it as comprising " hip hop groups that refuse to confor ...

trio based in

Sapporo ( ain, サッ・ポロ・ペッ, Satporopet, lit=Dry, Great River) is a city in Japan. It is the largest city north of Tokyo and the largest city on Hokkaido, the northernmost main island of the country. It ranks as the fifth most populous city ...

Hokkaido is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel. The la ...

. They formed in 1997 and now consist of three members: Boss the MC a.k.a. Ill-Bosstino (MC), O.N.O. (producer, formerly live DJ until DJ Dye joined Tha Blue Herb in 1999) and DJ Dye (live DJ). They also run a record label called Tha Blue Herb Recordings. James Hadfield of ''

The Japan Times ''The Japan Times'' is Japan's largest and oldest English-language daily newspaper. It is published by , a subsidiary of News2u Holdings, Inc.. It is headquartered in the in Kioicho, Chiyoda, Tokyo. History ''The Japan Times'' was launched by ...

'' described Tha Blue Herb as "the

Company Flow Company Flow was an American hip hop trio from Brooklyn, New York City, consisting of Bigg Jus, El-P and Mr. Len. The group was at one time associated with the independent record label Rawkus Records. Rapper/ producer El-P and DJ/producer Mr. ...

of Japanese hip-hop." Beside releasing several albums and singles as the group, O.N.O. also released solo works, while Ill-Bosstino participated in Herbest Moon (with producer Wachall) and Japanese Synchro System (with producer Calm) and also worked with

DJ Krush , better known by his stage name DJ Krush, is a record producer and DJ. He is known for his atmospheric instrumental production which incorporates sound elements from nature and extensive use of jazz and soul samples. Early life Ishi was born i ...

and

Audio Active Audio Active were a Japanese reggae fusion band who released several albums between the early 1990s and the first decade of the 21st century. History Audio Active were one of the most successful reggae fusion bands to come out of Japan, and were ...

amongst others.

Discography

Albums

* ''Stilling, Still Dreaming'' (1998) * ''Sell Our Soul'' (2002) * ''Life Story'' (2007) * ''Total'' (2012)

EPs

* ''Underground vs. Amateur'' (2000) * ''Front Act'' (2002) * ''The Future Is in Our Hands'' (2003) * ''The Way Hope Goes'' (2005) * ''Phase 3'' (2007)

Singles

* "The Shock-Shine Revolt" (1998) * "The Ring of Wisdom / The Wind Blows from the North" (1998) * "Underground vs. Amateur" (1999) * "Times Are Changing" (2000) * "Trans-Sapporo Express" (2000) * "Annui Dub: Thank You Very Much My Friend" (2000) * "3 Days Jump" (2001) * "Front Act" (2002) * "The Future Is in Our Hands" (2003) * "Roads of The Underground" (2004) * "Chie no Dub / Pusher on the Street" (2005) * "My Work / My Faith" (2006) * "Phase 3" (2007) * "The Suburbs of Hip Hop / A Special Night" (2007) * "Straight Years" (2009)

Soundtracks

* ''Heat: Original Soundtrack'' (2004) a soundtrack album for ''

Heat In thermodynamics, heat is defined as the form of energy crossing the boundary of a thermodynamic system by virtue of a temperature difference across the boundary. A thermodynamic system does not ''contain'' heat. Nevertheless, the term is al ...

DVDs

* ''Enbu'' (2007) * ''That's the Way Hope Goes'' (2007) * ''Straight Days'' (2009)

References

External links

* Japanese hip hop groups Japanese pop music groups Musical groups established in 1997 Musical groups from Hokkaido {{hiphop-band-stub