First Time Hearing ASTERISM! Bass Teacher REACTS to "Church" (Live in Studio)

[@tonygriffin_]

An incredible performance from all 3 members here - sublime, precise, emotional and very skilful. Band-Maid, Lovebites, Asterism, Nemophila and Babymetal are my top 5 Japanese bands but there's so many other great artists from over there.

[@michaelthain4488]

About the same for me but I would add Gacharic Spin and Unlucky Morpheus but especially GS. But as you say there are so many great bands in Japan I have even started listening to Jazz and jazz rock fusion as band like Tokyo Groove Jiyoshi, Jazz Avengers and RIE / Muses are so fricken good and talenetd

[@timjonesbooks]

Nemophila's most bass-oriented song, Rollin' Rollin', doesn't have an official video, but Adabana or Seize the Fate are good videos & songs to showcase Haraguchi-san's bass playing

[@MaartenT]

Miyu is probably my favourite Japanese bass player actually and certainly one of my favourite in general. Most of their tracks are heavier and faster than this, but this is certainly a fan favourite. They are still very young (the drummer begin the oldest at 23 years old) and very talented. Guitars: Haruka (Hal-Ca) born November 2002. Bass (plays 4, 5 and 7 string basses depending on the track. This one is a custom 7-string bass by ESP): Miyu born March 2002. Drums: Mio born November 2000. Miyu and Mio are brothers. They have been around for a while, since 2016, so they are already pretty experienced even though they are so young. There is some footage from when the youngest 2 were 12 and 14 and it's already very good. My favourite of them is a fancam of them doing "Dawn" live in 2019 (ASTERISM 『DAWN』2019/04/20), but it obviously doesn't have as great of a soundquality as Church has. It's still pretty good for a fancam though and all 3 of them get a point to shine in that track. An other great one to show Miyu's skills on bass is: ASTERISM - BLAZE (LIVE) [from Welcome to INFERNO vol.MAX] (also from 2019), this comes off of their official channel so has better sound quality. And every live in studio off of the "Guernica+a" album is worth checking out, that album is somewhat of a masterpiece in my opinion and is pretty progressive. They also have newer tracks with vocals on it (done mainly by the guitar player), I personally like them less but they are still very good. They tend to be a little less technical though.

[@MaartenT]

@yu-ki4793 youtube seems to have removed your comment, I hope this is going to be clear enough via translation: Yes, I prefer their instrumental music over their vocal music by a lot, but it's not like I don't want them to make any music with vocals as I think the mix of instrumental and vocal tracks work really well for them live. I just don't like the production on the vocals on the EP's and I prefer them to make more complex music which is not really possible as it would not work with vocals. I would be ok with them doing 50/50 instrumental and vocal tracks, I personally would prefer 75/25 but 50/50 is fine. I know a lot of people do like the vocal tracks a lot and I like their vocals live, I just don't like the sound of auto-tune and pitch-correction and they use that a little on their recorded EP's. But I have always liked their track "metal" and I enjoy their newest track "Stardom". I also really like the MV for "Stardom". And I want to make clear that even if I don't like their music with vocals as much and I have complained about it a lot. I still wish all the best for Asterism and I think everybody should check those tracks out for themselves to see if they like them or not. I would never go around on websites to rate music badly because I don't like it as much. Also, thank you very much for letting me know about "Decide"! I am going to pre-order the CD immediately, I can not wait for it to release. I will keep supporting them until they only make music that I don't like any more and I don't think that will happen soon. Miyu is one of my favourite bass players and Hal-ca is probably my favourite Japanese guitar player, I am not going to keep supporting them. (Edit: I have pre-ordered "Decide")

[@IWishUWereTacos]

I love how you've been doing more relatively unknown groups lately. I've been discovering all kinds of new grooves from you 🤘

[@stevefromlondon4949]

Wow, how did I miss this?? And I was one of those recommending them, too 😆 I was fortunate to see and meet them in Tokyo last month, standing just 6 feet away from them and he is incredible. They do plenty of Metal, too, if you wanted to check out, say, Light In The Darkness or Rising Moon. Slightly OT, Haruka and Li-sa-X (who I also saw with KOIAI) are two of the best guitarists I've seen live, such clean and precise playing from both of them. Glad you were able to get to ASTERISM, awesome analysis, thank you!

[@UltraHD.7]

Oh, I've been waiting for this. His name is Miyu Yoshinaka, born March 12th, 2002. He is 19 in this video. Guitar goddess Haruka Noma (Hal-Ca) is even younger, born November 23rd, 2002. My 2 favorite musicians on their particular instruments. "Church" is my no. 1 song by them, but if you like their heavier side, try "Dawn", "Full throttle" or "Gunfire". Thanks 🤘🏻 🙂

[@psul42]

Glad you got to this. I, and it seems many others, were sure you would be impressed. This is a great 'value added' reaction like all your others. Thanks for giving some exposure to what i think is the best rock trio to come along in a very long time.

[@oskisnutz]

I can honestly say, after 54 years of countless instrumental performances, Church just might be my all time favorite. Unbelievable that so much heart and soul came out of kids all under 19 at the time of writing

[@LowEndUniversity]

It's so good!

[@MaskedRiderChris]

Excellent stuff from such a young band! I think I need to look up more of their music, post haste.

[@kicorse]

You've now reacted to four of my personal Top 5 Japanese bands, but this is the reaction I've been waiting for! Miyu Yoshinaka is my favourite bassist and he doesn't get enough attention, partly because of the understandable focus on the female talent (and of course Asterism's Hal-Ca is among the best). Usually, I use reaction videos to discover new bands rather than listen to my favourites, but to hear an expert bassist appreciate Miyu is special. My favourite song of theirs is Dawn, but it has to be live. Church is a relatively calm song. The album is named after a Picasso painting, which is named after a Basque town that was bombed in the Spanish civil war. The English, Spanish, Basque, and probably the Japanese pronunciations are all different, so I don't think anybody can tell you the correct pronunciation! By the way, my missing Top 5 Japanese band is Sokoninaru, and Misaki Fujiwara is also an incredible bassist. Tenohira de Oduru is my recommendation.

[@kicorse]

Replying to my own comment, but off the back of this, I decided to finally check out Mark's own music. Specifically the album "The Migration" by Scale the Summit. I'm a little bit blown away to be honest. If you're an Asterism fan, there's a very good chance you'll like this too.

[@JoneyJefe]

Hi Ki, I enjoyed reading this reply. This is surprisingly probably my favorite video to date. I’ve never heard of this band and I found the song to be very emotional. And from one extreme end of the spectrum with the bass to the polar opposite end with the guitar, & the drums just tying it in all together humbly in the background. You may enjoy the first album by TetraFusion if you’re into instrumental music. Their later albums include vocals. Their first video is called Monologue and is wonderfully done. If you want to see how small the world can be, watch the video, “Down to Ride” by Watermox. You’ll notice that Mark is in all three of the bands, Scale the Summit (that you mentioned), TetraFusion, & Watermox with his best friend and drummer JC Bryant. Different genres, but all equally talented bands.

[@kicorse]

@@JoneyJefe Thanks! I will definitely be checking them out.

[@trevalarose8155]

They actually do songs with vocals now. One of the best bass players I've recently witnessed. So much talent in a trio. Informative reaction.👍🎼

[@coltonpugh9669]

"That was the drum fill I wanted to hear before I knew I needed to hear it." Perfectly said. I wholeheartedly agree. Drummer brought out his inner Portnoy on that one.

[@keithvincent-ul2te]

Asterism at Last.Great Trio.

[@bacongl]

Dang she is really hammering on that wigglestick. Yamaha Pacifica in the house. Bass chords are so freakin great when there is room in the mix for them.

[@JuanSan66]

Excellent review sir. A great job. Your explanations have been tremendously educational, thank you. This young band is already quite veteran because they started together very early. Miyu (bass) and Mio (drums) are brothers. Hal-Ca (guitar) joined them in 2014. Guernica+a is a true instrumental masterpiece, a highly recommended album. Currently the band is introducing vocals (with Hal-Ca or collaborations) and is in full evolution. Where they will end up starting from so high is a mystery. If you fancy taking another look at the impressive panoply of Japanese bassists I recommend Kiyoshi Mani. She played with Marty Friedman for a long time. Her handling of the bass is amazing because guitars do not appear in her compositions. On her YT channel there are several live performances but if you want to see how she mixes the different layers of bass for a song I recommend her video Against The Grain [Studio Footage].

[@bassimprovjams3772]

This was absolutely amazing! I love hearing some new bands and players on here chat you guys kill it!! And can we all recognize that Mark has the best hair!! I realized I need a 7 string for my solo playing lol

[@jimnusbaum3589]

Asterism has evolved a lot over their almost 10 year existence. From Hard Rock/Metal to Jazz/Prog Rock/Metal to Pop Rock/Metal. All great.

[@RobinC63]

I agree. I think to label them as just heavy metal is inaccurate.

[@ericifune5543]

Saw them live in LA earlier this year and will see them again in Japan in November.

[@ericifune5543]

Despite being so young, they are so dynamic live.

[@Greg-om2hb]

CHURCH is a beautiful “ballad” from ASTERISM, but this earlier live performance of DAWN is fire (including the bass interlude) - kzbin.info/www/bejne/mKa0gal_g6-Wd5Isi=HQEJUZsmcFyIrZuv Another amazing Japanese power trio to check out are sokoninaru-そこにに鳴る. Try TENOHIRA DE ODORU - kzbin.info/www/bejne/pGiwqqJ4oM5src0

[@michaelthain4488]

Great reaction man. The band have being turning out great instrumentals since they were very young, some of their live videos are insane. Hal-Ca has started to do vocals kust recently and for someone who has not done them before they are pretty good and only going to get better. The drummer often gets overlooked as the bassist and guitarist are so awesome, but I reclkon (being a non drummer) he has to be pretty good to be able to provide them with what they need

[@svenkaahedgerg3425]

Incredible music. Love this band

[@alicemystery5332]

it's good to see some recognition for the Bass

[@AngelLWJ]

Miyu the bassist is amazing, and he is only 21 years old🤘🏻⭐⭐⭐🤘🏻

[@barrycounts490]

GUERNICA is one of Pablo Picasso's most popular paintings ! It's about a city in Spain (Guernica) which the Germans destroyed . Picasso was hired to do an anti war painting of the destruction ! Asterism is a group of stars and that's what this band is =) Check out "Rising moon" MV [ The Sessions Vol. 2 ] Thanks Nice Reaction

[@angelkiller]

Love watching musicians reacting to these Japanese bands.

[@amnorth5342]

Great as always

[@davidornberg]

Well this was one of their slowest songs. Rising Moon was their first video. Around 16 YO at that time. It is mindblowing! It is a blessing to follow them over the years how they evolve as musicians!

[@klauskluge7256]

That bass is so massive - it has two truss rods! Never seen that before - but what do I know with my basic 4 strings. I would guess setting that one up adds another level.

[@cepho8349]

Great analysis, they are all extremely skilled musicians. You should also react to Galneryus, another Japanese band with an insane bassist. Well, all the members are super skilled musicians. I would recommend a live version of The Force of Courage, maybe.

[@santi141414]

Well if you love this, you need to check their song called Gunfire

[@barrettflorida]

Another killer band from Japan!

[@apple-on5pq]

that bass is too good!

[@hiawatha.g]

Just found this reaction. Guernica is one of Picasso's most famous paintings. It was painted as an anti-war protest, during the Spanish civil war, which was a prelude to WWII. And congratulations on finding the best new power trio since (in my opinion) Cream. They are a power trio from Fukuoka, Japan. They consist of: Haruka Noma, guitars (“HAL-CA”) Miyu Yoshinaka, bass Mio Yoshinaka, drums They have only recently begun including vocals in their compositions. They were formed in 2014 when Noma was 11 and the brothers were 12 and 14 respectively. They were all playing at a talent fair for young musicians in their hometown, when one of the music scouts noticed them, had a hunch and suggested they play together. Most of their current youtube catalogue is fan-made live video footage, much of it at the Hard Rock Café in Fukuoka. There are also a few clips from their one tour in the U.S., when they played Austin and Los Angeles. From the start, they have written most of their own music, covering a wide range of styles. The brothers bring a lot of jazz and funk ideas into their playing. Miyu plays 4,5 and 7-string basses, which are co-lead instruments in his hands. They are all phenomenal talents, but the big draw has been Noma, known by her first name Haruka or by her stage name Hal-Ca. She has been likened to a reincarnation of Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan, with bits of Joe Satriani, Nuno Bettencourt and Akira Takasaki, among others, thrown in. Even in the Japanese scene, with its overload of extraordinarily technical instrumentalists, she stands out. She also writes most of the band’s music. Best clips to start with are: “Rising Moon” (their first professional MV): kzbin.info/www/bejne/f5fbfpxmd91nrpI “Blaze” (Live): kzbin.info/www/bejne/a2KzqZ6mbdF6d9U “Light in the Darkness” (Live): kzbin.info/www/bejne/h6Hbf5aQpLOdjLc “Yunagi” (Studio live): kzbin.info/www/bejne/bnzNn6egpdOhbbc “Dawn” (Live): kzbin.info/www/bejne/mKa0gal_g6-Wd5I “Day 26” (Studio live) kzbin.info/www/bejne/bKLGqYhjp86endU To see Haruka practicing at home, these are fun: “Practice Homework”: kzbin.info/www/bejne/lXfQanV4rNicntk kzbin.info/www/bejne/gYHUoadtpd12pbM kzbin.info/www/bejne/moHZdHp-i8hneZI kzbin.info/www/bejne/gKWzkKJol7SdrKM kzbin.info/www/bejne/gJqyloKtlL6tg7s kzbin.info/www/bejne/bHLSh4ejfL90iZI kzbin.info/www/bejne/gJWUlaqvaJujpbc kzbin.info/www/bejne/pqW3nmWBhLynldk kzbin.info/www/bejne/oHenpKajhtOhabs kzbin.info/www/bejne/pYOqq4KmYtx5qpY

[@ThePiquet888]

Luv this song.. this is their opus.. just beautiful and they are writing this stuff as kids!! check asterism - dawn .. live live live.. or for something a bit wilder.. go for the band Nemophila and see some of Haraguchi-San's work.. she is amazing on the bass. Smiles for days!!! Another bassist you might like is Bo from Babymetal. Rondo of Nightmare is a good showcase for him. Awesome bassist but an even better entertainer!! Showman supreme!

[@aaronleesgbclieutenant]

Love Church! But i really think you'll enjoy Gunfire, and Dawn as well

[@josefeitoza4028]

Church is my favorite song from this band. It had a lot of sentimental charge, i don't know how to explain. I would like to see you reacting to "OVERDRIVE" by Asterism.

[@f.b.jeffers0n]

P.s. in regards to tapping, Charles B has some videos where he taps a stainless steel fretless bass, and it is surreal! Even if you don't make a video on it, it's seriously worth checking out on your downtime; if you haven't already...

[@dg3258]

Good reaction. I think they're very unique. Hope you'll eventually get back to LOVEBITES. 🤘

[@LowEndUniversity]

I plan to! What do you recommend? I was thinking about doing Fami’s Alien song next, it’s been constantly requested.

[@zabriabubakar5982]

Check Japanese female (LOVEBITES) bassist Fami channel, watch her play bass cover song Alien Alien (viewed 10++) 🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘

[@Muzicman2112]

Pronounced gehr · nee · kuh This song was inspired by a painting by Pablo Picasso!! During WW2, the Germans marched into the town of Guernica, Spain and displayed Havic to that town, the only building standing was a church, for me, thru this song I can imagine that moment the Germans entered the town and as the song plays I can feel the emotion of the scenery!!

[@mlwsf]

lot more fusion than metal

[@f.b.jeffers0n]

I'm not sure if this was mentioned - although something tells me you might have - but do you have perfect, or relative, pitch?

[@LowEndUniversity]

Yes, I have perfect pitch / synesthesia!

[@hairlokk8672]

Uchecked out "Dawn" live with them yet?

[@LowEndUniversity]

Not yet! Drop me a link here if you can!

[@hairlokk8672]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/mKa0gal_g6-Wd5I @@LowEndUniversity

[@psul42]

So Asterism fans: What is is next most impressive MIYU tune? Gunfire has that neat flutter thing.

[@billmcleangunsmith]

Most of their songs are MUCH heavier. "Church" grabs your emotions with the first note and doesn't let go. I appreciate your insights.

[@fat_ninja_status]

I still want an 8 after watching You Bred Raptors? Videos

[@lucst.martin2112]

Prog/Metal

[@renedenengelsman8174]

You should know Guernica, the village destroyed by nazi-Germany in 1937 during the Spanish Civil war and the painting (huge) Picasso made of it...

[@mitchgillhespy5919]

Check out some Matt freeman please (Rancid, Op Ivy). love me some Rancid

[@janelijah9424]

Try sokononinaru 3 piece band

[@realdocloco]

Good idea!

[@janelijah9424]

You will love it the bassist so good too...and their music prog rock so good fast tempo

[@janelijah9424]

Tenohiru no odoru by (sokoninaru)

[@dalweed100]

One again and there was a lot time yet. You should hear soko ni naru "tenohira de odoru"

[@arkaitzcarrasco2216]

This is for me the most incrible performance of Asterism (and most part of the internet) that I see. The song is increible, with a really hi tec guitar solo and a beautiful bass solo. But what it got me knuts is the last two minutes of the song....´What a filling!! And on top of that, just when they have 16 years old 😳Mind blowing!! kzbin.info/www/bejne/mKa0gal_g6-Wd5KXreaciis

[@jamestown57]

If someone wants to learn 2 hand tap, they should study Stuart Hamm. Even though he cheats and shims his fretboard, you will still learn a lot

[@yolandria]

Miyu is a great young talent. But for me....Bohte Daisuke aka BOH from BabyMetal's "Kami Band" is top of the list in the mens catagory. For some examples of his work. Check out any of the Kami band intro's. There is currently 5 songs featuring him. With each member doing a quick solo. And if metal bass isn't your thing....He is also apart of the "Kari Band" Which is more of a jazz fusion project. One of the newer songs "Samurai Groove" is a great example of his work.

[@JuanSan66]

+1 vote for Kari Band!

[@MaartenT]

I am not the biggest Babymetal fan but there is no denying all of them (and especially the Kami Band) are great musicians. I am not always in the mood for listening to the Kari band (I imported the CD), but I really enjoy it when I am. BOH is without question one of the better Japanese male bassists. I also really like the sax player on the Kari band cd (Yucco Miller), I have gotten a couple of her solo albums which are a bit hit-or-miss for me but her work on the Kari band album is great as well as the cover of "Lover Come Back To Me" that she did with Senri Kawaguchi on drums about 10 years ago, I absolutely love that video (I am a big Senri Kawaguchi fan).