The first plans for Jinkaku Radio were created in late 2000 and a few months later the band officially started in January 2001. In the beginning they started with the following line-up: vocalist, guitarist and composer Yuuki, guitarist Maya, and bassist and producer Naoki. They began with an appearance much different from what it is now: visual kei-esque outfits with quite some make-up, as opposed to the black suits of today.
In May of the same year, they released their first demo-tape titled Nejimakidori, which was only available at lives. They performed various times and on December 14th they had their first one-man. A few weeks later, Maya decided to leave the band; however, he did stay for a long time after as a support member.
Shortly after, Mai, the former drummer of LUV'ra-doll joined the band as a 'half radio' member, the term that the band uses for its support members. Also their first maxi-single Kairo was released during this period. Selling out rather quickly, a second press was released a few months later. A funny note about this single: the cover features Yuuki and Naoki's dogs.
In April 2003, they finally released their first album, Shouko. The album sold out within a day and a second press was released. Maya did not to participate in the recording of this album, instead the guitarist Rai (formerly of Falcioune) recorded it with them. About two months later, he officially joined as the new support guitarist and Maya permanently to pursue his music career with other bands. In December of the same year, they released their second single Yuuhodou. It managed to reach the 10th rank on the indies Oricon charts.
In 2004, support drummer Mai left the band, and they paused their activities for a short while. In June, they found a new support drummer named Shin, who had previously worked with Naoki in the project Lemon-Glass, and so they continued with their activities.
More releases followed then, though only in the form of singles and unfortunately no new album. From being totally self-produced and doing most of the distribution by their own office, they joined Danger Crue (a sub-label of Sony Japan) who took care of the distribution of their CDs from then on.
A special, live-only single was released in November 2006: Bandgal Shoukogun, a parody song about fangirls. During live performances of this song, the band members dress up with gothic lolita headpieces, and a whole choreography has been developed for the song, complete with several dancers on the stage. This act can be seen at the live DVD Bandgal Radio Theater that was released in July 2007, which is their only DVD so far.
In between, another change in the support members was made as Rai left the band in December 2006, and was replaced by John. Their next release was the single Oborozuki in December 2007. Despite being only sold at Tower Records in the first few months, it ranked fifth on the Oricon indies charts. During this time, the band performed frequently, gaining more recognition and fans as time progressed. Overseas their small but loyal fanbase was slowly growing as well.
In July 2008, Yuuki and Naoki announced to be taking a break from live activities, in order to focus on working on their long awaited second album. At some point, they resumed their live activities again but it took the band until April 2010 before a new release came out, the single Taiyou. The band finally kept up to their promise in November 2010, as the long awaited second album Ichibyou was released. It ranked in the top 50 of the Oricon charts.
In 2011, Jinkaku Radio is once again focusing on live performances and their release schedule returned to it's comatose state. Knowing them, fans might have to wait another three years before another release comes out. However, a small reassurance might be that Jinkaku Radio's music is generally worth the wait!
Jinkaku Radio has been active since 2001 and have been acting in their original stance from the beginning. Despite not looking or sounding like a typical visual kei band, they are usually categorized as one.
Through their music, they captivate the audience with their songs, which strongest points are undoubtedly the intriguing melodies, guided by captivating arrangements. With putting careful thoughts into their song writing, their releases are a little sparse, though the band has released six singles and one album until now.
Their live performances are unique as well, where you will be invited into Jinkaku Radio’s original atmosphere. A prominent part of their shows is when the fan-favorite Oningyousan is played, during which a doll is kicked around.
