Metal School - Loudness

[@Jokerz777]

Akira is so underrated when people discuss guitarists. Easily one of my favorites.

[@giannit2777]

Exactly!! I saw them in 1985 at Madison Square Garden. They opened for Motley Crue. Akira did an amazing solo!! The crowd went nuts when they played Crazy Nights!!

[@Jokerz777]

@@giannit2777 I seen them in 1987 in Nashville with TNT and Stryper. He was amazing then too.

[@siggyretburns7523]

Big time underrated, and this guy is not helping one bit. 4:15 "Free from the pop scene, now Akira can cut lose". And then plays that. Wtf? Thats not a solo. Yawn. I get the feeling this narrator hasnt listened to them at all. I mean, play some "demon seed". Play parts that'll interest people, not lullaby them. Then at 29:15 he says "it got the Rage against the Machine sound, So I can't help but like it". Its like, What, were you trying to hate it? 🤔

[@panagiotiskaroutas6859]

Akira! Amazing player! One of the GREATEST!

[@humanactivated1017]

​@@giannit2777crazy nights was the big hit though , I remember when Ken Kwan the only metal Chinaman I knew was cranking crazy nights on his stereo . I really did feel like a hero that night

[@burningdaylights]

I saw these guys open for the Crue on the Theater of Pain tour, and honestly I thought they were the best thing about the show.

[@bassdaddy6548]

@@burningdaylights agree 👍

[@WesleyGravolet]

Jeez..come on! This is the closest one can come to spinal tap without actually being the tap...btw, the tap rules, loudness drools!

[@raistlinrodriguez5696]

Akira has always been a bad ass on guitar and never gets the acknowledgement he deserves. Love this band.

[@ScottRodney-vb7bm]

I remember these guys when I was a teenager they were really good man I totally loved loudness. Glad I seen this on KZbin completely brought me back to the 80's!

[@christervainio]

Thunder In The East is a Metal Classic.🤘 I also like Lighting Strikes. Loudness is a very important band in the history of Heavy Metal.

[@juaraekspresyakinsdn.bhd.306]

when i heard 'Like Hell', i was hooked.

[@leftyzappa]

Disillusion is excellent. The Law Of Devil’s Land is a killer record as well but a verrry trebly mix.

[@bongo2565]

Thanks for shedding the light on this band and spending a lot of time coming up with this great video…! I am 57 and from Japan(but currently reside in the US). I was born in the Kansai region where the home of Loudness(Osaka) is located. Osaka is a big city, but I was born and raised in a small town that is mostly formed by fishermen and farmers. I am not one of the core fans of Loudness, but this band was surely the game-changer in Japan and they have been imprinted in my brain throughout my life. I also remember “Lazy” well. As you described they were pretty much one of the pop bands or I would say “Idol” that a lot of girls screamed at. Lazy could have shown up one of the “afternoon variety shows” that my mom and a lot of housewives watch regularly and play the poppy ~ idol song first, but then, they play the harder song with Akira’s blasting(but still short..) solo at the end of the show. At the time, I had started to had started playing electric guitar. So, I knew Akira and the other members were not just one of these idol kinds of guys.. “Young Plaza”… As long as I remember, this was their first official exposure in Japan… I think this was not even broadcasted nationwide. It was only for the Kansai region or the west side of Japan at most. Well, I witnessed this historic  moment. This was a live and comedy ~ talk evening show(around early dinner time). If I remember right, they actually played “Loudness” first, then, “Burning Love” later… Minoru and the band blew me away… I was already listing western (but softer) bands… like Boston, Styx, Eagles, Dobbie Brothers, and Toto, etc.. and I, at that time, tend to dismiss any Japanese bands… But, when I saw them.., I talked to myself, can Japanese play and sing like this..?? I had a small group of my music buddies at the school who are just like me and we talked about them a lot and one of the guys bought the record as soon as it became on sales. Around that time, the movement “New Wave of Heavy Metal” was stepping in from England to Japan. A lot of local ~ domestic bands from Osaka (Earthshaker, X-Ray, 44 Magnum, Marino etc…) followed Loudness … I think Van Halen already had the record deal in Japan. It was a great time for me as I began stepping into harder/heavier music and a lot of these western bands started to be “formally” introduced in Japan… Rush - Permanent Waves, Triumph - Progressions of Power, Y&T - Earthshaker, Iron Maiden, Saxon, Tiger of Pan Tang…, of course, Ozzy with Randy…. I bought all these records myself working as the local evening newspaper boy. Thanks again…!!!!

[@MetalSchoolChannel]

That’s pretty awesome! I still want to do a Bow Wow/Vow Wow video but that will be a long one. But it looks like there are several other 80s Japanese metal bands I need to check out too 🤘🏻

[@bongo2565]

I like the idea! Yeah, they started Bow Wow in 70's in Tokyo, then transformed themselves to Vow Wow. So, long history... I would say they are more of a melodic ~ Hard Rock band. Kyoji Yamamoto is another great player with his own distinctive lead tone... I think the major challenge for the Japanese band is to sing in English... I recall an article that Max Norman (producer of their US debut) demanded Minoru to sing more than 50 times over just a single phrase. :) So, having Genki Hitomi as the lead singer of Vow Wow was a logical choice since he was an English teacher and he teaches English at a high school in Japan even now. It would be very cool to learn English from him at school.. ;) He may be better than Jack Black... ;) Yup, there are more metal bands that came up in 80's. Anthem, United (they are more of Thrash Metal guys), Saber Tiger, etc.. Good times..!

[@TheRadioAteMyTV]

You tell good stories. Pretty long for youtube comment section but I enjoy both stories.

[@bongo2565]

My bad..!, but glad you enjoyed it!

[@drunk247]

@@TheRadioAteMyTV I'll take a long story from someone who was actually there anytime. Hindsight is 20/20 and I like to believe that as much research and study/listening my dude has done putting this video together,he still lacks the perspective of the commenter,and appreciates the story. The Commenter was there! That perspective matters.

[@ricdale7813]

Akira is Japans EVH. He has influenced hundreds of thousands of guitarists even today.

[@butter5144]

@Kraze yes

[@molanhujikan7064]

He is better than evh , and the whole band is more better than motley crue and vanhalen

[@roymartin500]

I understand what you're saying. He's to Japan, what Eddie Van Halen is to America. Their styles are in the same camp of Neoclassical guitar solos with catchy riffs. RIP EVH

[@zeketrick]

Yah! At their level " better than " is a matter of opinion they are teachers to the genius players. I saw Loudness in a club in Detroit they Leveled the place. "Unbelievable "

[@YesYouCANPlayGuitar]

So very true! Listened to Thunder in the East and Lightning Strikes today for the first time in many years…. Great memories such an amazing player!

[@johnnycombs4623]

Saw them here in Dallas, in the mid eighties, with Keel & Accept. This band brought it. Good post! 🎸🎼

[@magnuswettermark8293]

Munetaka Niguchi was a phenomenal drummer. You play drums with all other heroes now. RIP

[@sethkaicer319]

Rock and roll Never Dies. It just passes out every now and then.

[@dragonqueen6589]

You mean Rock n roll will never die 😉

[@jpmcmullan8666]

Just like its stars

[@sedition4267]

Yep...hangovers can be a bitch from time to time.

[@sethkaicer319]

@@sedition4267 I could tell you about the time I woke up nude on the hood of my car once. But that's another story I can't recall.

[@sethkaicer319]

@@jpmcmullan8666 well they actually die but we're try not to remember that.

[@luisgarza1989]

Akira on guitar, minoru on vocals, munetaka on drums and masayoshi on bass, classic line up.🇯🇵🎸🔥

[@jonathanwilson9042]

Being 58 years old and buying Thunder in the East a couple of other albums from this band brings back a lot of memories. Akira is definitely in a class with Eddie Van Halen. I am unaware that they have such a repertoire. Gotta get back to my roots, man.❤

[@spitefulwar]

Every japanese home hifi receiver has a loudness button in honor of this awesome band. Change my mind! :D

[@nyfo29]

thunder in the east should have become an industry standard for mixes. amazing sound that puts many of todays recordings to shame

[@stevenr6874]

Thunder In the East is my fav too.It was recorded at the famous Sound City studios in Los Angeles with many other great rock and metal records including Saxon's Rock The Nation. Check out Dave Grohls documentary on Sound City.

[@hrosemd]

Agreed. One of the best guitar tones ever recorded. Pure gold.

[@philipwittke8491]

Max Norman= Randy Rhoads

[@TheRadioAteMyTV]

Modern mixes are all crush everything to mid range. No more highs and lows or crispness. Pro-tools is used by people to flatten out all the sound. I like it because I am used to it, but listening to pre-digital or indy stuff, and you can get that actual "real" sound again. The masses have moved on to mixed mush. It ain't marvelous.

[@stevensmith8538]

I have only 1 Loudness CD from back in the day and it's "Lightning Strikes" and I think it might be their best the studio mix is really super polished with seemingly big energy and dynamics. Let it go is my top tune by these guys!

[@AaronRhodeen]

Loudness fan since ‘85! Akira is one of the greatest metal guitarists ever. Thanks for posting this.

[@davidayala2938]

Finally someone doing a review of Loudness...because they are the best Japanese heavy metal I ever listen...great video 😎

[@STEELARAS]

Then you never listen enough if you think that loudness is the best band

[@gcord21]

Anthem, E-Z-O, X-Japan, and many good bands from Japan.

[@davidayala2938]

@@STEELARAS well I know way more but I'm saying no music KZbinr talks about loudness and their discography...that is why I said that

[@davidayala2938]

@@gcord21 of course but I am technically saying no music KZbinr ever talked about loudness

[@gcord21]

@@davidayala2938 All good, I know what you mean. Loudness is one of my favorite bands. When I heard that Loudness was coming to town I saw them in concert.

[@memyopinionsche6610]

What a great band. Very overlooked and underrated.

[@ChannelBerpindah]

This band was one of the biggest influenced in the 80s Malaysian Heavy Metal scene, alongside Iron Maiden, Earthshaker and Tokyo Blade.

[@muhammadmustaqim8886]

Wow ,bro pon ade kat sini lah

[@ChannelBerpindah]

@@muhammadmustaqim8886 haha sekali sekala jalan2.

[@gurminsidhu9892]

tak dapat cari kaset cetak rompak pada tahun 1986...album.. thunder from the east.. haizz

[@ChannelBerpindah]

@@gurminsidhu9892 saya ada kaset pirate thunder in the east, dah hancur ranap dah kaset tu tak dapat diselamatkan haha.

[@princesssolace4337]

@@ChannelBerpindah Chromium Dioxide.@Cro2, sleeve hitam dgn tulisan gold. Aku.dok ada simpan lagi.Master of Puppets sleeve putih sekali dgn Somewhere in Time.

[@SamLazier]

LAZY's Spaceship Earth is also an underrated heavy metal gem. Btw this video's outro song is actually "Harukanaru Mother Land" from that same album.

[@jeffrymanlutac]

Hello, Metal School-san remember me?!. in the comment section before in your Aria Episode a few months ago?. I'm the one who requested some Japanese Metal Band reviews. Thank you for this one Loudness is probably one of my all-time favorite Japanese Metal Bands.

[@MetalSchoolChannel]

For sure! Glad I could finally get one up. Been meaning to get to Loudness for a while. Amazing band and Akira is phenomenal! 🤘🏻

[@dragonqueen6589]

@@MetalSchoolChannel Yup 🎸 He sounds so like EVH at times it’s astounding!

[@dragonqueen6589]

Hey dude, Sex Machineguns are pretty rad too- even if their name sounds like they were drunkenly going through the English dictionary and stumbled upon two words they thought sounded cool together 😂🤣😉

[@kevynhansyn2902]

WE ARE "X"!!!!

[@jeffrymanlutac]

Some of my favorite Japanese Rock and Metal Bands aside Loudness are Princess, Princess, Show-Ya, Anthem, Seikima II, 44 Magnum, EZO and X Japan

[@raymondabella4684]

This band is so awesome, I introduced them to the younger generation and they are blown away by them. Crazy Akira is one of my top ten guitarist and is so under rated in the likes of other great under rated guitar gods like Nuno Betancourt. Good job on the video of them!!!👍

[@joe5516]

Akira was one of the tightest and cleanest players ever...never got the respect he deserved in the US...In Japan he was and still is the man...

[@GregBird]

Thunder in the East... blew my mind in the early 1980's. Still listen to this way WAY too loud, that and so much of their collection is on regular rotation in my truck. I am going to be one deaf old man one day...

[@BeirutBarracuda]

Rock on my man! Rock on! 🤘🏽🤘🏽🤘🏽

[@arno-luyendijk4798]

Dude, I love your honesty. NEVER let pass the music that gives you meaning in life, rock on!

[@seventhstar]

I saw them twice, once on the Hurricane Eyes tour opening up for AC/DC who was doing their Flick of the Switch tour. Then I saw them in a club in Cleveland for their 25th anniversary tour. Talk about a night and day difference in performance. They are so underrated. Akira was absolutely amazing! This band is so underrated overall.

[@magusodonllout332]

Thunder in the east is easily one of the top 10 metal albums of all time in my opinion.

[@emanuel_soundtrack]

there are too much by iron maiden, that’s already a problem ;)

[@nicklasschmltt6959]

I had that album

[@Jaake-my2rq]

I still listen to it to this day. And lightning strikes too!

[@Jaake-my2rq]

I have no idea that they had so much post 1980s work! I'm definitely interested in the new work with the original singer bassist and drummer, and since I am a drummer I'm pretty sure I can get down with the current drummer and that material too!

[@denisiqra8712]

Lazy's singer is Hironobu Kageyama he has became a prominent Anime singer/song writer with really heavy tracks on his discography, his work with Steve Lukather and other Toto member is also really good

[@13yelworC13]

Saw them play live and was BLOWN away....they should have been the headliner!!! 🤟🤟🤟

[@joeflorez143]

I am so happy that I stumbled onto this page. I watched this Loudness mini doc. and it was fantastic. The way it was covered in only 40 minutes was amazing. Lots of info covered and covered all their albums which were many. The icing on the cake was the awesome footage shown. Fantastic job. I am a metal head and former scribe and I can acknowledge when good work is done and this is it. Keep killing it!

[@MetalSchoolChannel]

Thanks for watching!! 🤘🏻🤘🏻

[@DJSpidey]

Wow! Just, wow! Totally missed out on a bunch of this--just knew of "Crazy Nights" and "Like Hell" from them until today.

[@marramusic]

At first I thought 40 minutes on Loudness?! But then you had me in tears with the Devil Baby back story. Well done. I really loved this video of an incredible Japanese band. Soldier of Fortune is an epic album.

[@InternetUser-d7s]

One of the greatest, thanks. My big respect to the people of Japan for your exquisite taste and style.

[@bestiadeldesierto]

Vescera is a really great singer and one of my all time favorites but Minoru is, and was already at that point of band's history, an important part of their's essence. Thank you very much for this awesome video.

[@jackocasablanca1229]

I saw Loudness in 1985 in Indianapolis supporting AC/DC. We had the album and loved it before so it was great to see them live.

[@haroldwest3577]

Was at that show, drove from Dayton, Oh to see Loudness live. Was an excellent show I remember.

[@jackocasablanca1229]

@@haroldwest3577 Who Made Who ACDC headliner. My first arena show. Market Square Arena

[@pava2237]

Great Loudness Retrospective!! Well Done for an Awesome Band!!! Akira is one of the Greats on guitar!!!

[@shamsulrizal601]

I like this heavy metal band from east.. memory 80s..

[@cainealexander-mccord2805]

Like every other metal band in the 80s, I gave Loudness a shot. I really liked them-always rooted for them, but had NO idea they had such a long and illustrious career! I was delighted to find this video and equally so to hear they've been so prolific. Thanks so much for this!

[@jaysullivan2236]

When I watch “Let It Go” video…I laugh because of the animated drummer on his mega-kit, but I also get goosebumps because it is such a greatly written song with a great guitarist who obviously watched Eddie Van Halen. He even does the tapping at the end of that awesome solo.

[@NitroModelsAndComics]

I had no idea they were creeping up on 30 albums. That is an incredible output by any standard.

[@mikem.7921]

Some of those albums are very hit and miss to say the least 😂

[@mikewatkins3533]

First saw the crazy nights on MTV and been a loudness fan ever since! Miss the the 80s and MTV🍺😎🎸🎸🎸

[@robertesensee3494]

A highly underrated band...especially Akira. That guy is among the best guitar players ever. Thunder is my fav along with Lightning Strikes. I had NO idea they had so many albums. I need to check them out. One of your best videos. Well done!

[@wokedragon3211]

I first Heard Loudness on the King Biscuit flower Hour I used to record it every Sunday night as a kid Bands in concert they were amazing live. Saw them in 86 they were just as good as I had recorded two years before.

[@okolekahuna3862]

Thunder in the East was my introduction to Loudness. That album was so well produced. HUGE !

[@AJ-yi6hg]

Holy shit I had no idea of the long and varied history of this band! I literally thought there entire existence began and ended in the 80s.

[@janissalenieks1154]

You deserve way more subscribers. This is some quality work right here.

[@bogrot69]

I caught these guys in Seattle on the Thunder in the East tour. It was a great show. We drove down from Vancouver Canada as that was the closest the came to us. Absolutely worth the effort.

[@Lindisfarne666]

Suggestions for future videos! Gamma Ray, Primal Fear, Helstar, Accept, Rhapsody of Fire, Yngwie Malmsteen! Love the channel!!

[@desynchonosisdragon9108]

Thunder ,Lightning and Soldier were the Albums that I had and loved them a lot. This brought back many memories and thanks for making this episode!

[@MrAndre505]

My first concert was Loudness opening for Mötley Crüe (Theatre of Pain Tour) in 1985. I was 13. I thought Loudness was great but I never heard another thing about them. Who knew they cranked out like a bazillion albums?!?

[@ericchng6102]

Dig the vid. Sincerely appreciate the effort and time to put out this fantastic documentary on Loudness. Loudness Banzai! Loudness Banzai!! Loudness Banzai!!!

[@tomsawyer5736]

Akira is one of my fav guitarists.So underrated as a player as well as Loudness as a band.His style is instantly recognizable at least to me.

[@markcoledrumteacher]

I've been a fan since Thunder in the East and Lightning Strikes. I still listen to those. I'm gonna check out more of the stuff I haven't heard. Great video! Now do METAL CHURCH.

[@crystalstevens4638]

Yes! Metal Church please! David Wayne was always 1 of my favorite metal screamers

[@GrootsieTheDog]

The drummer was amazing. Always played interesting grooves and unexpected drum fills.

[@Bassmanhill84]

Man! Love this channel !!! You do Vids on some of my favorite bands AND bands I'm getting into! I.E Loudness! Now I can't stop listening to Loudness cause of you! Keep up the great work dude!

[@dougfisher1885]

I heard thunder in the east when it first came out man it blew me away been listening to them ever since

[@sparklybruh4136]

OMG YES a Metal School video on Loudness! I just recently found this band and I have been falling in love with their badass music!

[@salamwati9281]

Absolute Awesome docu...Loudness influenced every hard rock band in Asia here where i lived..Thunder is my first purchase of their catalog and is an absolute masterpiece almost all killer no filler. Hurricane Eyes notches it up further out of the stratosphere. 😎

[@fndjufri]

Those 80's Loudness albums are just classics. They influenced a lot of bands in Singapore and Malaysia back then when heavy metal was starting to take over the music scene. Every other band had at least one Loudness song in their repertoire. If you can play Akira's solos people looked up to you in this part of the world back then.

[@davidmatela9868]

Still have my Thunder in the East ticket stub!

[@shawntyrrell5473]

Very late, but found you. I am a 1950-1980 country music guy. Love watching your videos, and learning about these different bands. Excellent work, and well keep watching.

[@MetalSchoolChannel]

Ahh, back when country music was good, haha :) Thanks for watching!🤘

[@matsnilson7727]

Nice video! I've been into metal since the early 80s but always overlooked Loudness. I did know (back then) they were the biggest metal band from Japan, and had a really talented guitar player, but I don't think I managed to hear even a single Loudness song back in the day. After seeing this video I plan to buy some of their early albums soon. Better really late than never...

[@mayge1234]

Akira Takasaki has always been one of my top guitar heroes. Love Loudness. I always felt that they should have been bigger but, Japan.

[@shermstixx]

Underrated af. Thanks for making this. Respect.

[@metalmelisha250]

Great documentary. I've always loved this band. This shedded some light on things I had no clue.

[@JohnDoe-yr4wc]

It's really cool to see (or hear) a musically accomplished band evolve over the course of decades and see real growth and development, even if at times they seem to be chasing trends. Cheers for bringing Loudness to my attention. I'll definitely be checking them out.

[@bendowling8281]

I always enjoy your tongue in cheek descriptions of the videos

[@ericcrane4871]

I saw Loudness in 1984 at a tiny SF club called Wolfgang’s with local thrashers Exodus opening. There were plenty of open spots up front so of course had to set up right in front of the mind-boggling Akira. I still have a custom “Akira” guitar pick he gave out as gifts.

[@TheStrykerProject]

Wow - I had no idea Loudness was still kickin'! I remember them from the 80's, and though/since I wasn't a big fan of their first US release, they definitely fell off my radar. Having watched this and listened to "King of Pain" (both song and album), I'm stoked to hear more of their newer stuff, for sure. Thanks for putting this one together, man!

[@thechannelforeverything2170]

Akira's guitar tone is up there with the best of them. So aggressive.

[@CapstoneTider]

Only 4 seconds into the groove of crazy nights I knew loudness was for me. Great video.

[@StuBusDriver]

This one made me laugh in a good way. Lots of memories to go along with this band. Thank you!

[@metalman_j]

Thanks for making this! Loudness is the band that transformed me from a weebie Jpop fan into a metalhead. I've seen them live probably more times than any other band, while living in Japan for the last two decades. Love that you covered the "Lazy" years. Never knew there was a track that hard on their second album, since I only have the last Lazy album. As for Loudness, I largely agree with your assessment. The 80's is classic Loudness and I know all the songs by heart. The Mike Vescera years are great too as he is an amazing singer. (Obsession is a great band too!) The Ezo years are generally agreed to be the dark years by most Loudness fans, but the self-titled album has certainly gotten plenty of play time from me. And as you say, all Loudness albums have something to enjoy on them. None are "bad". The 2000's albums are mostly a blur, but my favorite "modern" Loudness album is The Everlasting. I love every track on that album and have played the hell out of it. All the others after that are pretty good, as you mention. They have found their footing. Thanks for the video. You are the hero tonight!

[@MetalSchoolChannel]

😄🤘🏻

[@jean-lucm5150]

Akira is a real guitar god, for speed, technique... and even more for musical inspiration !

[@baruyero]

Wonderful video. Just fantastic. Great work. Many thanks man

[@britannicman9995]

Your KZbin channel is awesome I wish there are more channels like this on KZbin

[@rubengardinerart]

Fantastic video of one of my favourite bands. Would love to see a video on X Japan!

[@funzjag]

🎶ROCK N ROLL CRAZY NIGHTS 🎵YOU ARE THE HEROES TONIGHT 🎶 Loudness is a band that I've enjoyed since I was a teenager. When they released "Thunder in the East" here in the US, They caught my attention. I've only listened to Loudness releases with Minoru on lead vocals. His vocals are a big part of the bands' appeal to me. He's been back in the band since 2000, so all is well.

[@dragonqueen6589]

🎶Ohh, you’ve come to see the show/ Well we’re gonna rock and shock you/ Come get on your feet/ Sound hits you in the face, All right!/ Ooh let’s get so crazy tonight/ Let me hear you rock n roll/

[@funzjag]

@@dragonqueen6589 M Z A !!!

[@funzjag]

@@dragonqueen6589 I'm usually not big on rock anthems, but "Crazy Nights" is an exception. The heavy guitar and the ever so slightly off English gives the song a unique quality that gets my approval.

[@dragonqueen6589]

@@funzjag They do decent ballads too, my favorite Loudness ballad is definitely In my dreams it’s quite deep and introspective…. not like this whole “I’ll die if you don’t pay me any attention” that was prevalent in many a pop ballad even back in the 80s…

[@funzjag]

@@dragonqueen6589 I like their ballads as well. Do you remember a song called something like "Searching For Odin?" I believe that it was from a movie soundtrack. The chorus went "Searching for Odin, my love. " I had a Loudness EP, I believe that it was a Japanese import. It had that song and maybe 3 other tracks. It's been a while, I bought it when I was 16 years old back in 1986.

[@PaulLoughrin]

Good gracious! Another great documentary. Thanks much!

[@guliverwalk6563]

Thank u for covering LOUDNESS. I was introduced to their music on m id 90s n changed my view on japans rock n metal scene. AKIRA is guitar god.

[@JCM3x3]

Saw them in '85 opening for, and blowing M.C. off the stage...bought the "Thunder in the East" vinyl record the following weekend. Great job on the documentary!!

[@alexsackman5122]

Well done Sir🤘👏👏👏👏 The first time I saw Loudness was with DIO in 87 in Amsterdam , in 2017 they play in a free metal Festival near Barcelona, meet the guys and they were very shy!! We took them after the gig to a Spanish bar and got a nice time with them.🤝

[@hectorcastaneda3891]

I still have the vinyl, thunder in the east like new, since 1985, i salute u from san Antonio tx usa 🇺🇸

[@giannit2777]

Great band!! I saw them in 1985 at Madison Square Garden. They opened for Motley Crue. They put on a great show!! Akira did a fantastic solo!!

[@dannyjoe3343]

I DID dig this. I can tell you're a dedicated fan. I've been a fan of Loudness for years and have been tryin' to keep tabs on 'em. I still have Birthday Eve (autographed) on vinyl, and wish i had their entire catalogue. I still think Live Loud Live is one of the greatest live albums in history. I've seen 'em live and they were phenomenal! People comment about Loudness bein' the greatest Japanese metal band....but i think they're just a great metal band, PERIOD. Thanx so much for the history lesson...i'll go ahead and sub now.

[@michaelmcnair7624]

I saw them in a famous rock club in Brooklyn, NY called L'AMOUR...that was 30 years ago....they kicked ass BIG TIME. I only saw them twice, but live they were amazing....thanks for this, I got as far as Hurricane...I got all the albums (VINYL people...lol) before that. Got them as imports...EZO is another great band with their own flare and sound.

[@jeffreyp1855]

I loved Akira Takasaki's guitar playing. The guy could sound like anyone, from Van Halen to Malmsteen. A really talented dude! 🤘🏻

[@Themacchuck]

I honestly feel like he’s being misrepresented by comparing him to EVH and Malm. He was right there along side them.

[@nunchaku4607]

He has a taste of Dime Bag at times too.

[@jerseymetalmike5111]

I've seen Loudness back in the day, the drummer had this outrageous solo, I was totally impressed. That Akira guitar tone was unmistakable! Such a good band!

[@darkChristian]

I love these guys! Heavy Metal has no racism or discrimantion, its in everyone's blood weather we are listeners or creators music speaks to everyone on a personal level, we all have our likes and dislikes, I like harmony vocals and guitar drums bass tricks progressive Heavy Metal, not really into death metal , all of its offshoots etc etc etc...but it all influences each other every type of music it makes music even greater and more progressive. it speaks to all our spirits in a special way like someone sang "music is your special friend dance on fire as it intends"Jim Morrison of The Doors WE NEED CREATIVITY IN MUSIC WE WOULD ALL GO MAD. LIKE ANOTHER BAND SANG "FOR THOSE ABOUT TO ROCK - WE SALUTE YOU" PRECIOUS WORDS OF AC/DC LETS MAKE IT HAPPEN AGAIN, WE ARE A HEAVY METAL family come together. Amen

[@SO-ym3zs]

Great presentation, as usual! Their early stuff is amazing for fans of traditional and glam metal. It's sad how lost a lot of metal bands became when the 90's began and grunge and alt rock went mainstream.

[@craighenry2351]

Thanks for doing this. Exposing more people to akira takasaki is a great idea. He is certainly the greatest asian metal guitarist out there, but is also a top 15 metal guitarist worldwide. It is also cool that Masaki sang with them for a bit. Loudness is still the best Japanese metal band, but EZO wasn’t far behind. Shoyo Aida is a pretty good guitarist, himself. Plus, early on they went onstage in kabuki makeup. The bass player Taro also had his hair spiked straight up, about 15 inches high. You might want to do one of these on EZO.

[@mikem.7921]

Loudness is one of my all time favorites just about everything is fantastic ❤

[@gstar7686]

I saw Loudness open for Stryper in 1987 at the Greenville Memorial Auditorium in SC. Great show!

[@Razr2027]

I was at that show as well...with TNT also...great night of metal.

[@muttonssun9003]

japanese music videos are deeper and convoluted than any reason it is needed.but the creativity is greatly appreciated xD

[@brianfabrizio4676]

Thunder in the East. Freaking brilliant album.

[@boriskarloff598]

Great video! I still listen to these guy's old tunes regularly. Akira launched a whole neighborhood full of guitarists where I'm from. It was awesome to watch them on the Thunder in the East tour.

[@SonnyGTA]

Wow!! What a great video! I only knew of ‘Thunder In The East’ and ‘Lightning Strikes’.

[@orangenblue6981]

Thanks for this. Downloaded their first album five minutes into the video. Love these new discoveries!

[@erenn6476]

I was very impressed with their catalog, no idea it was that large. Releasing a new album every year for almost an entire decade is unheard of. These days bands take 6,7, 8 years between album releases. Also, the main riff for Crazy Nights is frigging EPIC!

[@arno-luyendijk4798]

My first reaction hearing/seeing the pre-incarnation Lazy for the first time in my life made me go: WHAAAtt?? Never thought Loudness evolved out of that almost Osmonds-like pastiche. But aside from that. this documentary made me listen seriously to this band's music for the first time in my life, and you have to give the band credit for it, out of the cliché that most of Japanese bands copy European and American bands sometimes too rigid, this band made some very interesting musical developments in the 1990's. Interesting, interesting.

[@oyc7946]

Really love these videos that you're putting out mate! Would be awesome to see a Metal School episode on more 80s Japanese bands like X Japan or Seikima-II!

[@aldefleppardbangkokcrispyc3623]

Loudness was the first Japanese Metal/ rock for me. The started it. Now Band-maid. Mutant monster . Ganglion baby metal on and on. Thanks to Loudness. Love your channel awesome stuff. 🇬🇧