Hold on, I need to go practice...😅|NEK!, Maze

[@javierhuertas7741]

This is a new band formed in 2024 I think. The bassist auditioned for Lovebites in the past and I believe she's 17 or 18. I guess the rest of the band are also extremely young. They clearly have a Bandmaid influence, awesome band!!!!

[@sunshaker01]

I think one of them is 24 and the other 2 are 20 or 21.

[@kla4600]

I think the first item on their KZbin channel is a BAND-MAID cover. Their first few songs are great, Maze being my favorite. Lots to look forward to!

[@jamie4993]

It's Nek - ee. They treat the exclamation point as an upside down I. And the ending -e in Japanese gives an "A" sound, so it's "maz - ay". Don't worry, most of us learned the pronunciation the hard way too.

[@Greg-om2hb]

In Romanized Japanese, /e/is NOT an “ay” sound, which is a diphthong which would be written /ei/. /e/ is pronounced like the /e/ in “bed.”

[@cactustactics]

@@Greg-om2hb it really depends on the speaker and what they're saying - 'bed' has a very short vowel, whereas 'e' in Japanese ~can~ sound close to /ei/. Like listen to the first line of this song, to me it sounds like /mazemazei/ - shorter /e/ the first time, more of an /ei/ for the second word. I wouldn't call 'ay' wrong exactly, but you have to be careful not to lean into it too much for sure. Somewhere between 'bed' and 'bay' will probably get you there!

[@Ohrenje]

Finally you are getting into NEK! I love this new band, they are amazing and I can't wait to hear more from them 🤩 My favorite song from them is Blink but there are no MV for that song. Please listen to it whenever you have some free time!

[@_tyler5201]

Welcome to NEK! (pronounced like neck + the letter e... the ! is supposed to be an upside-down i). Found this band because of all of their Band-Maid covers they did before the finally released their first EP (which is where this song is from). They are still very new (started earlier this year), but you can hear a lot Band-Maid influence as well from all the covers. There's not a lot of music so far, but I would recommend their breakout single Get Over

[@TheMaxzinc]

Such a fun group of talented young ladies!

[@jinggaddi]

It's called the slap-and-pop technique, where you hit the lower strings (slap) and pull on the higher strings (pop) alternately. This technique was first used by Sly and The Family Stone bassist Larry Graham. Check out the song "Thank you for letting me be myself" 😊

[@adampino6587]

I've heard this band a few times but somehow it didn't hit until I watched this reaction, thanks for sharing. I'll be digging in more.

[@kevinbowland4686]

I'm sure you have seen how incredible Lovebite's bassist is (Fani). Kanade was in the running in their auditions a few yrs back at 15 yrs old. She's a nix of Misa, F Chopper Koga (Gacarhic Spin) and Wakazaemon (East of Eden & Koiai). She;s extremely talented.

[@ilovejapanesemusic3858]

If you want Halloween it's all in Visual Kei😊 Jiluka, Deviloof, Kizu, DazzlingBAD, Leetspeak monsters 🎉

[@moscatodasti1]

Nek-e, they are really good!

[@Short_Round1999]

I might be the only one, but those who also know her, the singer kinda reminds me of Akari Kitou

[@otobokegaijin6218]

Unlike some new bands, they’ve been very active on the club circuit. I saw them live in Osaka in August, though actually I was there to see another band on the bill and hadn’t paid much attention to NEK!. A friend of mine has turned me on to them, and he and I will see them at Club Eggman (Band-Maid’s favorite club) in November. He’s a big fan of theirs, seen them multiple times, says the regular club gigs have really made a difference, band tightness and stage presence more and more impressive.

[@loribass898]

If anybody interested, the bass player, Kanade has a bass playthough on her channel of this song: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nomqgauPltF9nM0

[@coradesune7537]

Nek! are my favourite discovery of 2024.

[@donaldbohn3183]

I immediately purchased their debut CD.

[@hedoban_nord]

NEK! are really cool, they're probably my newcomer band of the year (besides Phanton Siita). It's amazing how good they are while being so young.

[@timokarvonen804]

”She [Kanade, the bass player] makes it look so easy!” I’ve seen NEK! twice in Tokyo (Shibuya eggman) and both times was standing very close to Kanade. She also really does make it look easy live, all the time playing with a big smile on her face. Effortlessly changing from slap ’n’ pop to playing with fingers and using a pick for a song or two. She’s an exceptional talent and it’s really fun to watch her play. She also does the backing vocals.

[@sundragon7703]

Thanks for the referral! Love this band's sound.

[@TlanImass]

The bassist Kanade is also the backup vocalist so she really works. They’re only teenagers, I believe. Cocoro the drummer just turned 21. So, the others are mostly that with Kanade being the youngest at under 20.

[@tcntad87]

NEK! is on the rise and the horizon is bright!

[@funnystuff2552]

NEKI is one of the best new bands of 2024, immensely talented girls. Kanade - bassist is still in school, she is 17, she got into Lovebites bassist audition final when she was just 15 years old! Cocoro - drummer, turned 21 recently. Not sure bout others, but should be around the same age. Even though Maze is my favorite song, other their songs r great as well!👍

[@neilwoodley530]

There are occasions when being seventy years old has its benefits.... give me a minute while I try to think of one. However on days like today, I really wish that I was 40 (50?) Years younger. I want to throw myself around the room listening to this. They are fabulous!!! Great song, great band, great reaction (as always). Keep up the good work princess.

[@chrisegbertky]

Ditto!

[@Riel_VenturesForth]

Thank you for reacting to this song! I've traveled to Japan multiple times-eight shows in total-just to see them perform. Their talent is incredible, especially considering how recently the band was formed and their young ages. I absolutely love this band; I own ten copies of their EP 😅

[@markhayes9004]

Hello Princess NittPicc. NEK! is a fairly new band, so they don't have a lot of videos out yet, but they do seem to be releasing new videos pretty often. If you were really interested in learning to play slap bass, there is an option to slow the playback speed in the settings on KZbin videos down to about 1/4 speed. It is kind of hard to catch what they are doing in Japanese rock videos since they do so many quick cuts so often. You could watch the Misa solo in "No God" and slow it down to watch the master at work, I think you might be able to catch what she is doing. Fami from LoveBites has her own KZbin channel that focuses on her bass, so you might be able to learn what she is doing there. Juna Serita also has her own channel, and she would be a great example too. To fit in with your Halloween theme, I would suggest Trident's "Spoopy" as a good song, or maybe Brat's "Spiderweb." Please take very good care of yourself and have a wonderful week.

[@sondebueu]

The bass player KANADE , was one of the 4 finalist in LOVEBITES bass audition. In that time, 2022, she was too young (15), and she compited with FAMI... And FAMI it's a bass beast: kzbin.info/www/bejne/h5C4oq2qrL50hbc Another bass players i like a lot from japan are KIYOSHI (she plays and sing) kzbin.info/www/bejne/qaTXhImLfJqjqa8 KOGA (from Gacharic Spin) kzbin.info/www/bejne/rJfXiJJmgpalhqM And the funk Princess.. JUNA Serita kzbin.info/www/bejne/pGHSpX1jbKmZobs Enjoy.. and ask for more players, if you want

[@Greg-om2hb]

SERINA of TRIDENT plays awesome slap bass on AMBIVALENT. TRIDENT also have a very heavy song called SPOOPY F-CHOPPER KOGA of GACHARIC SPIN published a slap bass tutorial for their song SEKIRA LIAR - kzbin.info/www/bejne/eqeVpaaif7qorLMsi=srTCEsk_6i_mkfb9 Yes, that’s a wah-wah pedal.

[@mikeanglada742]

NEK! are Amazing!!! Like a Baby Band-Maid in the making... 🤘🤩🤘

[@greylocke100]

From a Japanese Reactor who introduced me to these ladies, he said they were a small cover band that covered a LOT of Band-Maid, Gacharic Spin, Scandal, and several other female Japanese bands, then they got serious and started to write and record their own stuff. All I know is that I LIKE IT!! Especially their bass player channeling MISA and Koga. And Yes, that was a Wah pedal, with some fuzz, over drive and distortion. And they only have 4 Official release songs, but they are all slammin songs. I suggest you add these ladies to your To be Watched list, for any of the releases when they come out. You won't regret it.

[@PaleHorseShabuShabu]

Six songs

[@greylocke100]

@PaleHorseShabuShabu they only have 4 full length mv's on their YT page. If they have other songs I wouldn't have seen them yet

[@PaleHorseShabuShabu]

@@greylocke100 Ah, you said “songs” and not “videos” so I went with that. Their debut EP has five songs, then “Loner” came along.

[@greylocke100]

@@PaleHorseShabuShabu thank you for correcting me. Now I know I need to look for more of their music

[@maciejstodolski5515]

fami Alien,Alien is great example of bass techniques ...

[@loumunga]

It’s good to see BAND-MAID has a little sister! ❤️

[@waynebenedict5785]

They are a great new band! Something in the water in Japan, I think! That base, yes indeed!

[@sunshaker01]

How To Play SLAP Bass The Right Way - What You MUST Know kzbin.info/www/bejne/iHbPgoOafNB5oqs (Bass Camp/Charles)

[@donaldbohn3183]

While getting attention covering BAND-MAID, among others, they're riding straight to fame in a much shorter time, and I can't blame them. They've got the talent to do it.

[@hazardouswaste08]

Think about it carefully. How much NEK! sounds like BAND-MAID. 😁

[@bandinjapan6059]

Kanade (The bassist) has her own channel, she has a playthrough of Maze on there if you you want to see more clearly what she is doing. Nek(e) by the way

[@EwokWarDance]

While everyone will have a different opinion about bass technique, the key is to start with the "bassics" (...just couldn't help myself!!!). There are two KZbin channels that are my Go To's for instruction on technique, style, tone, etc.,. - BassBuzz and Low End University. Both instructors are entertaining to watch along with providing excellent instruction that can apply to any bassist of pretty much any level. I've been playing bass for approx. 40 years and I can still pick up suttle suggestions from them that helps my playing. For an excellent beginners lesson on slap bass technique: BassBuzz - kzbin.info/www/bejne/jaWpnpdspZish80 For an analysis of slap technique, I'd highly recommend Low End University's vid spotlighting Mark King, one of the best slap bassists on the planet (...IMHO): kzbin.info/www/bejne/hIbcfqx6h9ylaKc A personal fav bassist of mine is Jacob Umansky, a Berklee gard and all around bass virtuoso. When I watch him play I alternately say to myself "Darn it, I give up!" and "Darn it, I need to analyze his technique and work at it some more!". Here's a prime example of his skill level with slap and finger styles: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jHnTc3uKotieetE Hope that you read this comment and check out the vids. Excellent learning tools! Also, love your channel, especially Band-Maid Sunday!!!

[@Mikupigeon]

They covered band maid songs in their Instagram and live gigs before, that's why they caught some BM fans' attentions. Not a huge fan of their latest song but I quite like their first EP. I heard some people said the bassist was amongst the finalists for the bassist audition of LOVEBITES, but at that time she was 15 and it's too young for them, so they chose Fami.

[@JuanSan66]

Nek! is a new band (2023) so it's a great time to jump on the fan van. They released an EP this year called EXCLAMAT!ON, which is very interesting, and they just released a single on their channel, Loner. Many of us have known them for their Band Maid covers and, of course, we are proud that the influence of their music is being felt in the following generations. Thank you NittPicc!

[@PANIC_aka_PinD]

This band is very "BAND MAID - like". They have already attracted a pretty solid group of fans (including me :p ) . If they can stay together I think they have a very bright future. A lot of Maidiacs seem to have latched onto them ;) .

[@iichikun8189]

NEK! is more early SCANDAL-like by looking the genre, members and their instrument

[@MaartenT]

​@@iichikun8189 I don't know Scandal that well (I own "Kiss From The Darkness" and "Mirror" and don't really like those albums), but I know they have played some more pop punk style as well. I would say they are a bit of a mix of early to mid Band-Maid (until World Domination album) although this track in particular has some later Band-Maid as well, but I can certainly see why you would call their more poppy side more like Scandal. It all depends on the track and part of the track. I have said this before, but I think they might be able to be to appeal to both fanbases and fanbases of bands that have a somewhat similar style of music. I am personally less enamoured with the more poppy parts, but the harder parts are without question something I enjoy also I am a huge fan of good bassplaying and drumming so this easily appeals for me in that regard. One of the reasons why people compare them to Band-Maid (the same goes for Paleneo) is because they have done Band-Maid covers before and in Nek!'s case they also played in Shibuya Eggman (Edit: 11 times on the setlist website, which is a lot with how young the band is), which is a pretty important venue for Band-Maid since they played there a lot in their early career.

[@PANIC_aka_PinD]

@@MaartenT For such a tiny club the Eggman is iconic :) .

[@MaartenT]

@@PANIC_aka_PinD At least for Band-Maid fans it is, they apparently played there well over 30 times which is by far the most on that setlist website (which obviously only has the sets that were added to it by fans).

[@mikeholmes5308]

I thought I'd heard that they were actually proteges of Band-Maid... can anybody confirm that? Meanwhile, in addition to Band-Maid, I hear a little Hanabie, and maybe even a little Gacharic Spin.

[@kent-oveprestberg3578]

Song suggestion "Spoopy" by Trident 😊👌

[@st.croix5835]

Great band. They haven't put out a weak song yet. I think they only formed earlier this year but everything they do is fire so far. Get Over and Reigen Girl are my two favorites.

[@ericifune5543]

The vocal line you mention is a Japanese style vibrato with wavering tones.

[@IanBreton35]

Kanade the bassist is a young prodige. Finish in the final 6 at Lovebites audition at 15 years old ( no choose because she was too young). The level of talent of the 17 years old bassist is impressive. I 💙 then all the 6 songs they've realised. Hika the vocalist remind me Asaka from Trident and also Miku from Band Maid. Natsu on lead guitare for my is little Kanami. Cocoro the drummer remind me Reina ( scandal) and Akané from band Maid. Those ladies still the hart of Maidiacs. NEK! was form around the end of the 2023. I'm totally fan of NEK!

[@cactustactics]

Oh nice P bass! I never put in the time to learn either (and sorta want to), but yeah you basically hit the two lower strings with the edge of your thumb (slap), and you hook your 3rd and 4th fingers and sorta pull on the top 2 strings with those (pop). Your fingers kinda stay where they are, it's all wrist action. Probably worth watching a tutorial!

[@phaeron]

Wait, I didn't mishear and you said 'Spoopy', right? 🤔 Well, I'm really sorry but I can't help but give you a mandatory task for the coming days‼😇 The band name is 'Trident' and I'll give you exactly one chance to guess the song name. :) .... Right.... 'Spoopy' (MV). I have a strong feeling you'll like this trio, just like the outstanding ladies here from Nek! who we'll (hopefully) be hearing a lot more from in the years to come. I don't think there's any denying that a handful of maids have had quite an influence on this band. And omg, are they good students from a distance, right? 🤘🏻 _____________________ _"America invented rock. England improved it. And now, Japan has perfected it."_ Band-Maid | Gacharic Spin | Lovebites | Nemophila | East of Eden | Hanabie | Asterism | Trident | NEK! | Hades | etc.

[@Short_Round1999]

Need to get DrumRollTony on this

[@chrisegbertky]

Yes ma'am Yes ma'am Three bags full to quote the old nursery rhythm. Love this. All parts magnificent and fun! W O W!

[@WhirlwindMediaStudio]

I hear the influence of a number of Japanese groups/musicians in Nek!’s sound. Kind of a cross between Band-Maid and Scandal. Very Koga-like (Gacharic Spin) slapping in the bass…even some Mina (Girlfriend, etc) influence? Some Ado-like vocal phrasing. Definitely, keep this group on your radar…

[@SomethingToDo360]

From Kanade’s KZbin channel, her play style is closer to Fami than to Mina.

[@WhirlwindMediaStudio]

@@SomethingToDo360 I’m so use to Fami’s playing in Lovebites, I forgot how much she slaps on her YT covers🫤

[@SomethingToDo360]

@@WhirlwindMediaStudio “I forgot how much she slaps on her YT covers” It’s not about how much she does it, and more about how. What I mean, is that Kanade’s slapping and tapping would be a closer fit (although not an exact fit) to Fami than to Mina. As for seeing direct comparisons between Kanade and Fami, below are two videos of the same song played at roughly the same age (since Fami’s video is older): Kanade: kzbin.info/www/bejne/p2SsoIqAgpWIntE Fami: kzbin.info/www/bejne/d6anpoptpNp7abs

[@SomethingToDo360]

@@WhirlwindMediaStudio Just for clarification, I’m not saying they’re the same, only that they’re closer to each other than they are to Mina. Also Fami’s tapping is hard to beat.

[@Will-ug5rs]

Kanade is the basist. She has a playthrough video of this song where you can get a good look at her technique. It also sounds like she is pronouncing the band name as neck-ee. Side note: I Japan, someone who plays slap base is known as a Chopper.

[@taihavard]

They are slapping a string with the side of their thumb which is the slap (blisters!!) and then arching other fingers around to pluck other strings kinda from underneath the string almost, which is the pop. Sometimes it will be slapping only, sometimes popping. At least that's the general technique. Different people might be doing something else. When not doing that, and you likely know this bit already, they will usually have the thumb planned on a pickup and then alternate 2 or sometimes 3 fingers to pick. Though some will just use a pick, and some like Miho (ex LOVEBITES) will tap as well.

[@ehqueBM]

I’ve seen them live, multiple times, and it’s crazy that a newly formed (2024) underground Japanese band has so many foreign fans. They’ve covered Band-Maid songs before, so that’s one reason why they are making waves overseas. Kanade (Ba.) probably also another reason, although Hika (Vo./Gt.) is my favourite - she’s all sassy here but really lets her emotions through live. Edit: Bassist here. Kanade’s using slap and pop. Slap - whacking your thumb into the string to set it in motion, pop is pulling the string far enough off the fretboard (with fingers) that it hits the frets on its way back. Every bassist has a slightly different way of doing it, MISA (Band-Maid) is a master, as is F Chopper Koga (Gacharic Spin).

[@ericifune5543]

They've also made it easy for overseas fans to enter their concert lotteries.

[@Davey-Boyd]

Superb new band! I bought their debut EP and I'm really looking forward to see how they progress!

[@enol8603]

YESS! Been waiting patiently for this band.

[@not-so-great-oldone9780]

My take on it is if Koga, MISA, and Wakazaemon went to a build-a-bassist workshop and this is who they came out with. The whole band is really talented and I’m looking forward to future releases.

[@ApocryphalBob]

I would soooo watch your posts for learning bass guitar. Please do it. As I came in pretty late with Band-Maid I would be very happy if I was in at the start with NEK! I really hope they go on to bigger and better so I can follow along for the ride.

[@sunshaker01]

The ! is a stylized "i" which makes it Neki.

[@RolfStrijdhorst]

I'm not so sure if it's a studio trick those dropouts. If you listen to most songs of Sokoninaru they also have dropouts, in fact it's a major thing in their music. And I can tell you they produce the same dropouts when they play life.

[@cactustactics]

It's a production technique to get it that sudden and clean (especially muting the drums) - you can definitely do stops live, they just don't sound the same as hitting mute. There are tricks to get it close though! Especially if you're running stuff to a click through a computer, you can get a lot of studio magic automation in a live setting

[@cius2112]

Nek! has been awesome so far! They got a new song out too called "Loner". btw if you want to do some spooky songs try "Spoopy" by TRiDENT. Also Aldious -- Sweet Temptation, for a cool vampire themed music video. Oh and Bridear -- Bloody Bride, is a good one too!

[@rocotocloc]

NEK! is a new band formed in 2023, they only had released a 5 songs EP called "EXCLAMATION" and a single called "Loner". So don't worry NittPicc, you've arrived just in time to jump right on NEK! wagon lol Speaking of spoopy season, you should try "Spoopy" by another all female Japanese band named TRiDENT, pretty cool song and a great introduction to that band

[@andreasakerlund453]

A good way to get a good idea of how to slap is to find an instruction video from F. Chopper Koga from Gacharic Spin. And then watch Koga rocking in a Doll$Boxx-video. "Dragonet" being my personal favourite. And yes: That is a Wah-wah pedal.

[@taihavard]

Yay, Nek!!!! Also, nice bass strings! How is Rocksmith working out for you? (I am guessing, maybe you just like the asthetic) XD I find it pretty effective for my 6 string learnings! If you would like to see a Japanese metal band, women fronted, where the bassist shares our taste in guitar strings, here it is! Broken By The Scream - Sayonara Birthday mv kzbin.info/www/bejne/h2nUgHtjm5uXpa8 Also, it's amazing! Nice reaction :)

[@keronjinRYU]

"neki "is a slang used by Japanese people on social media . the meaning is a word that express respect for women who understand Japanese culture.

[@TlanImass]

I really enjoy their song BLINK. It’s unreleased as it’s only in their EP. You will like that song too!

[@st.croix5835]

I read that Neki in an internet slang term meaning "reliable older sister." Apparently, their lyrics are so full of slang that some are referring to them as slang rock. I have also heard them called Baby Band-Maid.

[@billmcleangunsmith]

"Neck-ee" and "Mah-zay" I love the way she says spicy. Spy-she. They dropped their first song only six months ago.

[@gordonbell8728]

Kanade, the bassist, was one of 6 finalists when LOVEBITES was doing the auditions for a new bassist; which we all know was won by Fami; but Kanade was only 15 at the time of the auditions. All the girls in Nek! are in their last year of high school currently.

[@dkmusic7000]

Thank you so much for reacting to NEK! (Neck-E), finally, hehe. They are up and coming and growing fast. If you ever wanted to know what it feels like to be early on in a band's career, here we are. We are all here, all in support and all for it. The year 2024 is the year of NEK!. Check out 'Get Over," their debut from April. And if you get to it, the EP EXCLAMAT!ON! It's hot. They've had a busy debut year. I can't wait to see what they do next. ぽ (Edit) Hika - Vocals/Rhythm Guitar Natsu - Lead Guitar Kanade - Bass Cocoro - Drums

[@k3w1b3an5]

The bassist Kanade is phenomenal. I believe she's still in her teens. .

[@masaegu]

"Maze" is a Japanese word meaning "mixing"; It is not the English word "maze". Just use your Spanish vowels when pronouncing romanized Japanese words. The word even appears several times at the very beginning of the song.

[@jameswelsh598]

I'm sorry you play flute and I play square neck dobro...we can never be cool

[@PaleHorseShabuShabu]

Typical slap bass is striking the string with your thumb on a downward stroke, then plucking with your index finger and letting that string rebound against the fretboard. Some people call it slap and pop. Kanade, the bass player, has her own channel where she’s done playthroughs of “Maze” and “Get Over.” She’s obviously a tremendous talent, she’s posted some shorts that are wild. Love that girl.

[@mightydegu]

It's Neki with an exclamation point replacing the i. As I understand it, and I'm not an expert, in Japanese a syllable is always going to end in a vowel sound. There's a slight exception to that (hence the more or less silent "u" that shows up in some English spellings of Japanese words) but in general, they don't end anything in a constant sound. I'm sure that others can offer a more complete and accurate explanation than that, but it seems to work. Anyway, imo they're the best new band of 2024, but Mellows (cute metal band) are really promising too.

[@cactustactics]

Yeah aside from 'n' Japanese sounds always end in a vowel, but in normal speech they can disappear a bit (just like in English!) If there's an English word being borrowed it'll use the same set of sounds so it's the same rules, but you might be more likely to hear the 'extra' vowels dropped since people know they're kinda being inserted and how it's meant to sound. But they can also become common words, and then the Japanese pronunciation becomes the 'real', normal one and it doesn't need to sound like the original I had a quick look at a dictionary and one meaning of 'neki' is internet slang for 'sis' or someone (usually female) who's dependable and can be relied on - that's my guess!

[@leekebot1802]

If you need a Halloween song, Phantom Siita put out a new video a week or so ago. And they are as spooky crazy as the one you checked out before.

[@wanderleyjesus6772]

57 seconds and already 4 viewers!!!

[@markmathewssgbcpenaltyboxs6389]

These young ladies are just killing it. It is mind blowing how talented they are at such a young age. Love this band. F Chopper Koga, Gacharic Spin bassist and among the best slap bassist out out there today, put out a teaching video that hopefully will help you. here is the link. kzbin.info/www/bejne/mH6sqnWXes6jZrc

[@designforlife5097]

Please react to Arjit Singh song - Mein Phir bhi tumko chaunga

[@keronjinRYU]

well, your pronunciation of the band name is wrong😅 the exclamation mark is actually "i"😮

[@snakewhisperer1]

Guitarist here. As to the title on your video....I say the same when I watch Lovebites. And yes, if you watch the Lovebites bassist audition video, you will see that this bassist, Kanade, made it to the finals as new Lovebites bassist. She's the one who was only 15 and still in high school at the time.