United is a Japanese
thrash metal
Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and often fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, 2007, . ...
band formed in 1981.
They took their name from the
song of the same name, off of
Judas Priest's ''
British Steel''.
History
Originally a Judas Priest and
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...
cover band, they began to write their own material in 1983 when bassist Yokoyama joined. United have played numerous times in North America and have had a couple of their albums released there as well. They have played with
Anthrax,
Slayer,
Testament and
Machine Head
A machine head (also referred to as a tuning machine, tuner, or gear head) is a geared apparatus for tuning stringed musical instruments by adjusting string tension. Machine heads are used on mandolins, guitars, double basses and others, and ar ...
on their Japanese tours, and in 2010 was
Paul Di'Anno
Paul Andrews (born 17 May 1958), better known by his stage name Paul Di'Anno, is a British/Brazilian heavy metal singer who was the lead vocalist for Iron Maiden from 1978 to 1981.
In his post-Maiden career, Di'Anno has issued numerous albu ...
's live band for his.
In 2009, the group recruited
Kuwait
Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...
i frontman Kenshin.
They released their ninth album ''Tear of Illusions'' on April 20, 2011.
At the end of 2012, the band announced that Kenshin had left the group. Masatoshi Yuasa, who was their frontman from 2000 to 2004, returned as the vocalist of United in April 2013. The band's longest serving member, bassist and manager Akihiro Yokoyama, died on May 13, 2014. A concert titled Yoko Fest The Final was held in his honor on September 12, 2014, that featured nearly every member of United, past and present, and other diverse acts such as
Head Phones President
Head Phones President (stylized as HEAD PHONES PRESIDENT) is a Japanese metal band formed in Tokyo in 1999. Their sound has been described as alternative metal, progressive metal, avant-garde metal, and nu metal.
They have played various musi ...
,
Passpo
were a Japanese idol rock girl group under Platinum Passport. Their first major single, "Shoujo Hikou", reached number 1 at the Oricon charts on May 16, 2011. They also are producing a group called Puchi Passpo (ぷちぱすぽ☆), a 5-girl g ...
,
Garlic Boys
Garlicboys is a Japanese punk band from Osaka. The current lineup is Peta (lead vocals), Larry (guitar, vocals), Pessin (bass, vocals) and Ryo (drums, vocals). They are known in Japan's "trendy" underground music scene as the "godfathers of new ...
,
Flow, and
Outrage
Outrage may refer to:
* Outrage (emotion), an emotion
* Tort of outrage, in law, an alternative term for ''intentional infliction of emotional distress''
Books
* ''Outrage'', a novel by Henry Denker 1982
* ''Outrage'', a play by Itamar Moses 2 ...
.
Members
;Current members
* Yoshifumi "Hally" Yoshida – guitar
(1988–present)
* Singo Otani – guitar
(1990–present)
* Akira Tominaga – drums
(2004–present)
* Masatoshi Yuasa – vocals
(2000–2004, 2013–present)
* George Enda – bass
(2014–present)
;Former members
* Oz – bass
(1981–1983)
* Yasu Tsukahara – drums
(1981–1983)
* Jouichi "Joe" Hirokawa – drums
(1985)
* Kouichi "Nao" – vocals
(1981–1986; died 2017)
* Takeshi "Mantas" Nakazato – guitar
(1981–1987)
* Tetsuo "Tetsu" Takizawa – drums
(1983–1985, 1985–1988)
* Masaki "Marchan" Hara – guitar
(1981–1988)
* Iwao Furusawa – guitar
(1987–1990)
* Yoshiaki Furui – vocals
(1986–1995)
* Yuichi Uchino – drums
(1988–1998)
* Shinichi Inazu – vocals
(1996–2000)
* Yusuke Nakamura – drums
(1999–2003)
* Nob – vocals
(2005–2008)
* Faisal "Kenshin" Al-Salem – vocals
(2009–2012)
* Akihiro Yokoyama – bass
(1983–2014; also manager; died 2014)
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
EPs
* ''Destroy Metal'' (February 1985, picture disc vinyl in February 1987)
* ''Beast Dominate'' (December 1986, picture disc vinyl in April 1987)
* ''Beast Dominates '92'' (1992)
* ''Burst'' (May 2, 1997)
Other albums
* ''Best Rare Tracks from Underground'' (March 24, 1995, compilation album)
* ''Scars of the Wasted Years'' (April 4, 2012, self-cover album)
Demo
* "Demo '89" (January 1990)
V/A Compilations
* ''Devil Must Be Driven Out with Devil'' (1986, "Positive War" & "Bite Yourself")
* ''Emergency Express – Metal Warning 2'' (1989, "Suck Your Bone")
* ''
Flower Travellin' Band
was a Japanese Rock music, rock band that was formed in 1967. They were connected to Japan's Counterculture of the 1960s, counterculture movement and noted for their mixture of early heavy metal music, heavy metal with psychedelic rock, psyched ...
Tribute'' (September 20, 2000, "Make Up")
* ''Tribute to
Bad Brains
Bad Brains are an American rock band formed in Washington, D.C. in 1976. Originally a jazz fusion band under the name Mind Power, they are widely regarded as pioneers of hardcore punk, though the band's members have objected to the use of this t ...
'' (November 29, 2000, "Riot Squad – How Low Can a Punk Get?")
* ''Beast Feast Admission'' (August 2, 2001, "Cross Over the Line")
* ''Power Germanys'' (April 27, 2002)
* ''Enter the Beast Feast'' (April 27, 2004, "Sonic Sublime")
* ''Beast Feast Admission 2K2'' (December 17, 2002, "Hate Yourself, Hate Your Own Kind")
* ''Tribute to
Garlic Boys
Garlicboys is a Japanese punk band from Osaka. The current lineup is Peta (lead vocals), Larry (guitar, vocals), Pessin (bass, vocals) and Ryo (drums, vocals). They are known in Japan's "trendy" underground music scene as the "godfathers of new ...
'' (August 18, 2006, "Skate & Mosh")
* ''
44Magnum Tribute Album'' (April 2, 2008, "It's Too Bad")
DVD
* ''Official Bootleg'' (September 27, 2008)
References
External links
*
Official blogInterview with KenshinHally ESP guitar gallerySingo ESP guitar galleryYoko ESP guitar gallery
{{Authority control
Japanese thrash metal musical groups
Japanese heavy metal musical groups
Musical groups from Tokyo
Musical groups established in 1981
Musical quartets