Balzac

Balzac never really denied being the Japanese answer to the Misfits (down to skeleton costumes), but then again, they wouldn't have become the country's premiere horror-punk band by being plain copycats. Balzac's songs are often dark and moody, and their sound incorporates the occasional bouts of noise rock and industrial, but the bandmembers are also remarkably skilled as melodic punk songwriters who hold dark humor and campy imagery dear to their hearts. And that's to say nothing of their veritable entrepreneurial skills: many of Balzac's releases come with toy figures, and the band runs a chain of shops selling its own brands of clothes. Balzac date back to 1992, being the project of vocalist Hirosuke Nishiyama, who created the group after dissolving his "zombie-core" unit Astrozombies. The first lineup also featured guitarist Tetsuya, bassist Yoritsugu "Anti" Azuchi, and drummer Naoki, all of whom played on the band's debut ultra-rare demo, Scapegoat 666 (1992), released in only 13 copies. Tetsuya and Naoki left in 1993, replaced by Atsushi Nakagawa (guitar) and Koji (drums), both appearing on Balzac's first single, The Lord of the Light and of the Darkness, released on their own Evilegend13 Records label in 1993. Two years of laborious touring and small releases followed, before Balzac got a deal with Alchemy Records and released their debut album, The Last Men on Earth (1995). Around that time the band was hit by another string of lineup troubles, losing Koji in 1995 -- he was replaced by Hajime Nishio -- and then seeing the rhythm section depart in 1997 when Balzac shifted to Diwphalanx Records, one of Japan's biggest indie labels. Nishio and Azuchi were replaced by Imai Akio (bass) and Masami (drums), but the latter left during the recording sessions for the...